Disadvantages of Wind Power
on a Residential Site

Disadvantages of Wind Power

Variable and unreliable wind source

Wind may spin a rotor for a week but then it could sit idle for two weeks, and also blow during the day and not at night. Available wind can be very seasonal, i.e. most of a particular season there may be very low wind pressure.

Bird fatalities

There are reports of birds flying into spinning rotors, although this is more of an occurrence of commercial wind turbines.

Residential aesthetics

Neighbours are known to be at best unpredictable with their response to the appearance of wind towers. Although the owner often believes they are a thing of beauty, others say they are a blight on the landscape.

Noise concerns

The sound of a wind turbine is very different from that which is naturally occurring and this change is often what is why it perceived to be noise. The size, height and speed of a small wind turbine will alter the perceived loudness.

Difficult to site

Wind towers are notoriously difficult to place correctly on a property with issues such as wind barriers (trees, valleys, hills), neighbours, cost vs distance to transmit electricity to a house.

Rotors icing up

Falling sheets of ice from iced up rotors has been raised as a concern as well as 'thrown' ice from a spinning iced rotor.

Other disadvantages of wind power, similar to solar systems: when the grid is 'down', so is the system, unless there is a battery bank. And speaking of battery banks, they use 25% more generated electricity than battery-less systems. It is also said that wind power generation takes time, money, attention and work for a successful outcome. So 'free' power is a misnomer really.

Advantages of Wind Energy

• It's an abundant and renewable resource
• We will never run out of wind unlike oil
• We don't have to mine for wind like coal seam gas
• We don't have to build and maintain nuclear power plants or dispose of spent nuclear material
• Wind can never be owned by the government or 'BIG OIL'
• Uses existing infrastructure: grid, power box, electronics
• Remote locations can use wind power much cheaper than using conventional power

Reference: Wind Power For Dummies.

Go to my Wind Power Design page for vital set up processes

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