Phillips Case Study
Many homeowners across the country are feeling the bite of rising electric rates and Randy Phillips of Camp Point, IL is no exception.
Dismayed with the prospect of paying an ever increasing electric bill, Mr. Phillips decided to take a careful look at alternative energies. A self proclaimed cheap skate, Randy started investigating everything from corn burners to solar power as ways to reduce his utility bill.
For several years now, wind turbine manufacturers have been producing a new class of product designed for residential use. After hearing a presentation by Southwest Windpower and Farmergy on the Skystream 1.8 kW residential wind turbine, Randy decided to purchase one for his home from Farmergy and took the first step by buying a SmartEnergy PRO
™ Plus plan to look at all energy needs and aspects of the site and resources. As an airplane pilot Randy is constantly aware of wind, and he knows his property has good wind resources. His home’s rural location on top of a hill, without any features in the landscape to block the wind, made a turbine a logical option.
Mike Hale, the local Farmergy Certified Installer, began the project following the onsite assessment. The Skystream and its foundation are located 215 feet from the house. Once the concrete cured and the tower arrived, installation was quick with a power line run to the house and hooked directly to the breaker box.
Mr. Phillip’s electric coop allowed him to interconnect, but asked that he carry an additional $700,000 in liability insurance. This initially daunting figure ended up costing a very affordable 26 dollars per year extra in homeowners’ insurance.
In a world starting to feel the effects of global warming, more people are looking for ways to reduce their dependence on electricity produced from coal. Wind turbines, generally thought of as gracing the Dutch countryside or clustered on wind farms in the American Midwest, are now being produced by several companies on a scale suitable for residential applications. Small turbines have become an attractive option for rural homeowners seeking greater energy independence.
Equine Waterer Case Study
In the fall of 2006, Randy Bucknell, park director at the Cuivre River Park facility near Troy, Mo., became convinced that an alternative watering source was needed along a remote trail making up the 18 miles of equestrian trails in the Cuivere River Park.
"We had some concerns brought to our attention by folks in the area that equestrian activities could potentially damage or impede the creek," explains Randy Bucknell. "We tested the water and found it to be fine. But we wanted to be proactive in providing a facility to make it easy for horses to get water and still stay out of the surface water."
The park's equestrian trails are a popular draw to the area, with as many as 250 horses and riders enjoying the park on a busy weekend.
The challenge park officials faced was the lack of electrical power running to the remote areas of the park where the watering system was needed. So Bucknell and his staff sought the help of contacts at the Missouri Department of Natural Resources about alternative energy systems and the possible availability of a Clean Streams grant. Roger Kornberg, water programs engineer for the Department of Natural Resources, helped guide them through the grant application process and eventually put the park management in contact with Henry Rentz, vice president of installation services for St. Louis-based Farmergy Inc., to carry out the installation.
Rentz-a life long rancher and general contractor- developed a solar powered water pump system to deliver the water from the natural water source nearby and installed the system over two days in May 2007.
The actual horse waterer, manufactured by Hoskins, required some customization so that water could be made available when needed but drain out when not in use to keep it from freezing over. The internal float system was replaced with a foot peddle to turn the water pump on and off.
To keep the surface pump system out of easy reach of the public and away from vegetation on the banks of the water source, the pump was mounted on a set of dock floats out in the water. A 4 foot by 5 foot deck was floated on the docks that contained the 9300 SureFlo pump and well shaft suspended down the center of the float. The pump is powered by two 40-watt Evergreen solar (PV) panels.
"The park was fortunate to receive a grant from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources that helped cover the project costs," notes Rentz. "Many states offer similar incentives to encourage the use of renewable energy. Farms and businesses in rural locations are ideally situated to take advantage of these new technologies and incentive programs. Farmergy can help them through the planning and implementation process."
Following the waterer installation, a staging area for horses was installed in front. The 20 foot by 30 foot area is made up of a geo-erosion grid filled with rock to mitigate run off and erosion from overflow or traffic.
If you are in need of alternative power in a remote location for watering livestock or powering utilities, call the energy system experts at Farmergy at 888-838-0042.
Fricke Case Study
Brad and Chery Fricke were puzzling over the logistics of supplying power to 145 acres of land they hoped to use for a rotational cattle grazing operation when help came from an unexpected source. Brad's father introduced him to Henry Rentz—a rancher, electrician and general contractor—who believes in the value of using power from the sun. Henry, currently the vice president of Installation Services for Farmergy, Inc., knew the Fricke's power needs could be supplied by a carefully designed solar system.
Running electric lines any distance from the main supply is not cheap, and the Frickes were looking at an $18,000 dollar price tag to deliver power to the edge of their property. To complicate matters, there wasn't a water source where the electricity would be delivered; a well would also need to be drilled. As an alternative, Henry proposed a solar system that would power fences, irrigation sprinklers, and two pumps drawing water from a pond in the middle of the property. The Frickes decided to use alternative energy and ended up with 12 solar panels, each with a 150-watt capacity. The panels are mounted together on a dual axis tracking system, that allows them to move and follow the sun, thereby maximizing the available solar energy. Backup batteries are charged when more electricity is produced than needed; these batteries can supply power for several days when light levels are low.
Brad is pleased with the performance of the solar panels and backup batteries, which have been running continuously without any power lapses since August 2005. The power supply is ample for the fencing demands, and the two pumps together can deliver 120 gallons of water a minute for irrigation and watering tanks. The intensive grazing system allows the Frickes to manage 400 head with room to expand and enough electricity for future needs.
The Frickes were fortunate to receive a grant from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources that helped cover some of the project costs. Many states offer similar incentives to encourage the use of renewable energy. Farms and businesses in rural locations are ideally situated to take advantage of the new technologies.
Renewable energy systems can provide a reliable and environmentally friendly power alternative, and with rising fuel costs, one that makes economic sense as well.
Peckham Case Study
Couple harnesses backyard power
Private windmill to be connected to electric grid.
By LIZ HEITZMAN of the Tribune's staff
Published Thursday, January 11, 2007
The Skystream Wind Generator wouldn't be hoisted into the air for another day on Nick and Diane Peckham's alpaca farm off Route K. The machine's pearl-white blades were still cradled in Styrofoam on Tuesday, and workers were busy burying electric lines, but that didn't stop Nick Peckham from counting his kilowatts.
"Feel that?" he said, his steel-gray hair flopping in the wind. "Feels like 2 kilowatts to me."
Two kilowatts is the most electricity the windmill can generate an hour. Made by Southwest Wind Energy in Flagstaff, Ariz., the Skystream is designed for residential use in low-to-medium wind conditions.
When installation is complete - expected to happen today - it will be the first windmill in the county tied to the electric grid through Boone Electric Cooperative lines. When the windmill is generating more power than the Peckhams can use - in the middle of the night, for example - the extra energy will be pumped back to Boone Electric's grid for others to use.
When the Peckhams use the electricity generated from the windmill, they aren't charged; when they pump electricity into the grid, they get a credit from Boone Electric.
Nick Peckham of Peckham & Wright Architects won't say how much the project is costing him. The Skystream cost about $5,000, but total costs including installation can vary from $8,000 to $16,000, he said.
Peckham believes the windmill will pay for itself in energy savings in about six years, but he's quick to point out that's not his main motivation.
"We're farmers, or least Diane is," he said, motioning to his wife's alpaca operation. "If anything, this life teaches you common sense. And it just makes sense not to put all those carbons into the air if you don't have to."
From grinding grain to pumping water, windmills have been used in this country for hundreds of years. Looking for sources of renewable energy, scores of angular, modern windmills can be spotted across the country. But the wind wasn't tapped on a large scale in Missouri until last fall, when two Northwest Missouri men built Bluegrass Ridge, a 7,000-acre wind farm in Gentry County. Both Columbia Water and Light and Boone Electric buy a small percentage of their electricity from the wind farm.
Northwest Missouri is one of the few spots in the state where winds regularly blow harder than 13 mph at 50 meters off the ground. Boone County, like most of the state, has average wind speeds below 12.5 mph - barely enough to tip the windmills. If he's lucky, said Chris Rohlfing of Boone Electric, the Peckhams' windmill will generate half of their needed electricity.
"We are in a very marginal area for wind generation," Rohlfing said. "To be honest, he's spending a lot of money to put this windmill up. If you're looking for a payback, if you're thinking you're going to put this thing up and sell the electricity back to the company and make a lot of money, you're going to be very disappointed."
Still, Rohlfing said, the addition of the windmill has exciting possibilities for the area. New technology has made it easier for individuals to connect to electric grids; Rohlfing expects two other residences with solar panels to connect to the grid in the coming months.
Rick Anderson, energy policy analyst for the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, said he knows of three other individuals in the state who have grid-tied windmills. He said a construction company in St. Louis also has one.
"I think a trend is under way," he said. "We're seeing the technology get improved, and more and more people are now aware that wind is one of the ways that people can generate electricity."