Choosing the best wind turbine for your site will depend on a number of factors. The first thing is to determine if you have enough wind. A national database of wind speeds is available and will give you an indication of the wind speed at your home. This can be accessed from many places including my company’s website.

You will want to see this reporting in excess of 5m per second. If it does, then you will want to consider measuring the wind speed at your site for a time to confirm you have enough wind to make it worthwhile installing a turbine.

The wind turbine will need to be mounted on a pole well clear of any obstructions. We do not favour turbines mounted to sides of buildings. The turbine you choose can be matched to generate enough electricity for your building.

However, with feed-in tariffs expected to start in April 2010 many people will be installing the largest turbine (but less than 50kW) they afford and get planning permission for. Electricity generated but not used by your home will go on to the national grid and be used by your neighbours; you will receive a payment for this electricity.

When it comes to choosing between different types of turbine our web site also includes some useful calculators that will help you estimate the electricity likely to be generated by many common brands of wind turbine.

Photo by N-O-M-A-D

Click here to ask an Energy Expert a question, and sign up to RSS feeds, to make sure you don't miss the answer.

About the Author: Graham Eastwick is a director of Encraft, and manages renewable energy installations for home owners, community organisations and small businesses across the UK.

About the author: Graham Eastwick is a director of Encraft, and manages renewable energy installations for home owners, community organisations and small businesses across the UK.

Click here to ask an Energy Expert a question, and sign up to RSS feeds, to make sure you don't miss the answer.