Step 5: Increasing Capacity

It's great that we have a charge controller, but with one relay we're limited to around 500 watts. Lets take a look at how to increase that. Read more »

Step 4: Initial Testing

Now that we have everything hooked up together we have to test and make sure everything works. Don't worry if it doesn't work right when you turn it on. As you'll see in the video I made a mistake, but I show you how to look for and correct any mistakes you may have made. Read more »

Step 3: Soldering The Parts Together

Alright, we're almost finished with the complicated stuff. In this step you will be soldering the components together. It's not that hard, just make sure to watch the video and take close looks at the pictures. Read more »

Step 2: Placing Components

Alright, lets get to building a charge controller. This is probably one of the more complicated steps so take it slow and watch the video a couple of times if you have to. Without further ado... lets go! Read more »

Step 1: Introduction to Charge Controllers

What is a charge controller? A charge controller is essential to any renewable energy system for one important reason. A charge controller simply controls where the power from your solar panels or wind generator goes. Overcharging your batteries is very bad for them and can cause costly repairs. A charge controller simply lets the solar panels and wind generator charge the batteries until they reach full charge. When they're fully charged the charge controller shunts the power to a dump load. A dump load can be anything from a hot water heater or an old block heater. Read more »

Building The Blades (if building your own)

Alright, so you've decided to take the plunge and build your own blades. This page will cover building pvc and wooden (coming soon) blades. You'll need some tools for this step which we'll go over, but you'll feel a real sense of accomplishment when you're finished... I know I did. Read more »

What Type of Blades To Use

We now come to a very important step in building your wind generator: what type of blades do you want to use? Your blade choice depends largely upon how much power you want your wind generator to produce as well as how much time you're willing to put into them. We'll be going over the different types of blades in this step and which ones you should use depending on how much power you want to produce. Read more »

What Type of Motor To Use?

The motor is the heart of your wind generator and with all the different kinds of motors available to you what type is best for your purposes? In this step we'll be covering the different types of motors and the pros and cons of using them. Read more »

What Kind of Wind Generator?

So, we now know what the restrictions that 'Big Brother' has placed on us regarding what type of wind generator we can install it's time to get down to the nitty gritty... actually building your homemade wind generator.

If you have found that you're able to build a horizontal axis wind turbine than you can proceed with the steps under the 'building wind generators' link at the right. This is a very in-depth guide with lots of video to make it as easy as possible for you to build your own wind generator.

If you're not allowed to put up a horizontal axis wind turbine your other option is to build a vertical wind turbine. While you can't get as much power out of each one you can still get a decent amount. We've decided to try and make them look as good as possible so it looks like they're just lawn decorations, but when people ask you can tell them it generators 40% of your power.

I wish you the very best on your journey... and remember if you need any help we're just an email away. I'll personally make sure your problem is addressed as quickly as possible.

If you would like to learn more about building a wind generator just click here

Finding The Grants

Before we start building a wind generator it's always best to see if we can find some free money from the government. The United States has been really on the ball with renewable energy grants, and I'm sad to say that Canada hasn't been quite so proactive. Read more »