Air is constantly on the move. In some areas of the country, it provides a highly reliable source of mechanical energy. Fortunately, humans have invented an amazing array of devices that can harness the energy of the wind and put it to practical use. Wind energy is one of the cleanest and cheapest energy technologies in the world. With the interest in renewable energy growing, it’s no wonder that the popularity of using wind energy is rising fast.

Wind energy systems generate electrical energy by harnessing the power in wind using machines called wind turbines. Wind energy can be produced for a single home or can be produced in quantity and distributed to the electric grid.

As with solar, there are considerations in using wind energy. The most important and most obvious one is the need for a breeze. Yes, air is always moving, but wind is needed to turn the blades of the turbine fast enough to produce electricity in quantity. There are particular areas in the U.S. where the air flow is rapid enough to do just that. In Middle Tennessee, high elevations or land far from cities (rural properties) are ideal locations. High elevations provide you with higher wind speeds.  Whether the high elevation is natural or provided by a wind tower doesn’t matter.  However, wind towers need some acreage and rural land is the ideal location for them. The Department of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy suggests at least one acre of rural land.

Now let's discuss wind turbines. Wind turbines, like aircraft propeller blades, turn in the moving air and power an electric generator that supplies an electric current. Wind speeds typically need to be sustained at a minimum of 10 miles per hour to turn the turbine fast enough to generate electricity. In most cases, the longer the turbine blades the more energy it can capture from the wind and the more electricity it can generate. However, sometimes in a lower-wind-speed area, a turbine with smaller blades can end up producing more energy than a larger rotor because it takes less wind to spin the smaller generator.  And let’s not forget another major factor: tower height.  The higher the turbine, the more energy it can capture because, remember, wind speeds increase with elevation.  Scientists estimate a 12% increase in wind speed with each doubling of elevation. And with a doubling of wind speed comes an eight-fold increase in power potential.

To help determine the suitability of your site for a small electric wind system, you need to estimate your site's wind resource. The wind resource can vary significantly over an area of just a few miles because of local terrain influences on the wind flow.

Since we are in no danger of running out of wind, using wind power in combination with micro-hydro or solar (or both) can provide you with plenty of electricity to power your home free from the utility grid, and to reduce your carbon footprints and monthly power bills. And remember, if you stay connected to the “grid,” any additional energy your system produces can be sold back to the utility company. Wouldn’t that be a change – having them pay you?

Imagine this.  In just one hour, the earth receives more energy from the sun than the entire world uses during a whole year. How is that for a plentiful energy source?

The sun is the most popular of all renewable energy sources and most likely will be the most important energy source of the future. We see it used all the time in solar calculators, landscaping lights, flashlights, radios, and battery chargers – just to name a few.  What we don’t see as often, at least in Middle Tennessee, are solar panels on roofs, in yards or pastures.  However, with the increasing interest in renewable energy and the resulting decrease in costs, we should see that changing soon.

So, how exactly does solar power work? Residential homes that use solar power typically have photovoltaic (PV - photo = light/voltaic = electricity) solar panels located on the roof or near the house. These panels contain PV cells which are activated when the sun’s rays shine directly on them. In a series of (technical) steps, sunlight is converted directly into electricity. (Check out the links below for a plethora of detailed information.)

Just like micro-hydro, solar power can be used as a stand alone system (although not usually recommended) or as an extra power source to a grid-tied system. Using solar energy to power a home that is not tied to the grid will require more consideration than one that is.  It will need battery storage to compensate for periods without sunlight. Most experts recommend that due to the unreliability of nature, it is wise to use at least two renewable energy sources to power your home or supplement with a fossil fuel generator.

Conversely, for grid-tied systems, solar power can supplement electricity purchased from the utilities’ system, reducing energy bills.  And if there is any surplus energy produced, it can be fed back to the power company to be purchased or stored.  In Middle Tennessee, TVA will purchase 100% of the green power output at a rate of 15 cents per kilowatt-hour. Payments are guaranteed for 10 years from the date of the contract. It does require that all equipment be in compliance with national standards and codes and be certified by a licensed electrician.

Although setting up solar power is expensive, the low cost of system maintenance as well as government incentives for a grid-tied system can make it a more reasonable investment for powering a home. For instance, in Middle Tennessee, TVA offers a $500 incentive to help with start-up costs.  There are also federal and state rebates that can pay for up to half of your system.

If your home is in a remote location without utility lines, powering your home with natural electricity sources is real option. However, to use solar power you must have a solar window (unobstructed solar access) from 9 am to 3 pm year-round and a location that faces south.  You must also have enough space for the number of PV panels needed or room for expansion. (The U.S. Department of Energy estimates that for every Watt of energy required you'll need 10 square feet of space depending on the efficiency of the system you choose.)  If any of these three conditions are compromised, the size of the system will have to be increased.  But that is one of solar’s best features – its scalability.  You can start small and build your system gradually. Adding more panels is relatively simple. To get a quick estimate of the price and size of an adequate power system for your location, try the solar estimator at this link: http://www.findsolar.com/index.php?page=rightforme

If you’re looking for property, consider tracts that offer year-round water, a clearing with a large solar window, and/or at least one acre of rural land to set up a tower for a wind generator.  With at least two out of the three, you are all set to produce your own power if and when you decide you want help the environment, save tremendously on your power bills, be independent, and increase your property value.  Call us. We have just the spot!

Anyone who has a river or creek nearby has the potential to supply their own clean, efficient electricity.  And in this day and age, an opportunity to create your own power is an enviable position to be in. Streams offer a renewable natural source of energy that, if done right, can have little or no impact on the environment.  Micro-hydro power, which is hydro power for home-based systems, is probably the least known of the off-grid energy systems, but it has the potential to produce the most power.  Also, with the right site, flowing water can be more reliable than wind or sun – especially in remote wooded areas (our specialty!).

Hydro power is based on simple concepts. Moving water turns a turbine, the turbine spins a generator and electricity is produced.  The amount of power that can be produced is dependant on two factors: the stream flow (how much water runs through) and the drop (head) which provides the pressure behind the flow. There are varying opinions on how much water needs to flow to operate a successful micro-hydro system, but it seems that at least 2 gallons per minute of flowing water and a good drop; or at least 2 feet of drop and 500 gallons per minute of water flow are needed. (See links at end of article on how to measure the water-volume flow rates.)

Micro-hydro systems function much like the old grist mills. They run alongside a river or stream, diverting a small amount of water into 2”- 4” plastic pipe which then jets through a nozzle and spins a turbine. The water is then returned to the source. These cause much less eco-damage than dams because they don’t interrupt the entire water flow or create a pool of water in a reservoir. They are built with simple technology, making it possible for people with basic training to maintain their own power systems.

In planning a micro hydro system, accurate site assessment is vital because it not only determines the micro hydro energy potential but also helps determine the perfect location for the apparatus to be installed.  The terrain surrounding the stream must be suitable for running a length of pipe from the proposed intake structure to the powerhouse location. It also requires access for construction and maintenance.  (See links at end of article.)

There is an abundant supply of streams that criss-cross Middle Tennessee making micro-hydro power very feasible.  You can take just about any creek, spring, pond, or river and turn it into clean, efficient electricity. Of course, it’s best to have a site with year-round running water, such as Factory Falls to the left or Canyon Falls below, but isn’t that exactly the sort of place we’d like to live in anyway? And if the site doesn’t have a consistent flow, that’s okay, in areas with high rainfalls in the winter and plenty of sun in the summers, such as Middle Tennessee, hydropower combines naturally with solar for year-round self-sufficiency.

On a usual morning, we wake up and flip on the lights and crank up the heat. We start the coffee-maker and turn on the hot water for a shower. We check our email and do a multitude of other tasks that require electricity.  The vast majority of us take it for granted that the electricity will flow unimpeded from that little outlet in the wall to the various energy eaters we have hooked up to them. In short, we are connected to the “grid.”  The grid is a common name for the system of wires and pipelines that carry electricity and natural gas to our homes. A typical house is connected to power, natural gas, water, and telephone lines.

The power generated to homes from the grid usually comes from the burning of fossil fuels. Fossil fuels are non-renewable resources meaning that when they are used up, they can’t be replaced in our lifetime – or millions of lifetimes. Not only are they non-renewable, but when they burn, they emit greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide.  In fact, electric power generation is the largest source of greenhouse gases.  Our cars don’t contribute as much to global warming as the average home.  Our carbon footprints, which we have all heard so much about, measure how much carbon dioxide we send into the atmosphere just by going about our daily lives. A drive to work, a flip of a light switch, lighting the grill all rely on the burning of fossil fuels such as oil, coal, and gas.  And each time we do it, poof – there goes more carbon dioxide into atmosphere.

Now that the reality of the energy crisis is upon us and the subject of alternative energy is the constant topic of discussion in newspapers and on the radio and television, unconventional concepts such as eco-living and living off-grid are beginning to hit the mainstream.  When people go “off-grid,” they opt out of the public utilities and provide all their own power needs through renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, water, and bio-diesel.  This is the largest step in being self-sufficient.  A smaller step is to be grid-tied – meaning you are hooked up to the power grid, but also produce your own electricity.  This way you can save on your electric bill and often sell any extra power you produce back to the utilities’ system.  Both are excellent ways to reduce your carbon footprints, exert independence (it’s wonderfully empowering and liberating!), and reduce your consumption of fossil fuels as well as your monthly power bills.  If those aren’t incentives enough, there are tax breaks by way of credits and rebates available for those who invest in powering their homes with renewable energy as well as the increase in property values that will result from the investment. It’s a real option for those who have already found their own little slice of heaven that is too far to feasibly plug into the grid.

There’s an awful lot to like about off-grid living.  It’s different for everybody. It almost always requires a few lifestyle changes and a different daily routine.  The first step is just developing the desire to do it.  The next step is examining the various ways to produce your own power and determining what types will work where you live or where you plan to live.  If you’re looking for land to build on, you’ll want it to have some open spaces for solar panels, possibly a high elevation for wind, and/or perennial flowing water - the most consistent source of all.  The clouds may cover the sun and the wind may quit blowing, but a perennial stream offers a constant source of power.  The geography of Middle Tennessee offers countless year ‘round streams that provide enough of a flow to power a home and enough open spaces to collect the sun’s energy.  It is an ideal region to find a spot to set up an off-grid living experience.
It seems to be becoming a movement. Alternative energy technologies are rapidly advancing and the costs of equipment have dropped greatly.  They should be falling even more in light of the surge in interest.  And do-it-yourselfers can find numerous kits, resources, and manuals on how to build their own equipment in books and on-line.  Read on for more information about going off-grid.

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