Harnessing the wind

SENECA COUNTY, Ohio - There are incentives out there, but to utilize wind power, it will cost you thousands of dollars, at least up front.

But if you wait out the investment, homeowners like Gail and Dan Dulgar of Seneca County say you'll get paid back.

In April the Dulgars installed a wind turbine in their back yard.

"There was a lot of paper work that had to be done, and there were a lot of conversations that had to happen," Gail recalls.

But after a lot of planning, a propeller turbine was installed in the spring, and so far it's working for them. With the right conditions, it can generate 40 to 60 percent of the Dulgar's electricity each month.

"Why not harness what we have?," said Chris Downey of Green By Design in Wood County. The third-year business helped the Dulgars install their turbine. Downey, a sales manager, says there is a lot of work involved.

"There is a lot to this," he said. "It's not just, dig a hole or put a flag pole up and put a blade on top of it, and hope that it works."

It's more of a major investment. The propeller wind turbine in the Dulgar's backyard costs $20,000. For residential turbines like this, Downey said it's pretty standard, however, there are incentives out there to help you.

You can obtain a 30 percent federal tax credit and you could qualify for a state grant.

"There's state grants available," Downey said. "There's certain criteria that they have to meet in order to apply for grants."

If you plan to invest in a residential wind turbine, you should go through a licensed installer and tie yourself into an electric company's grid.

Downey, though, said installers like Green by Design can take care of most of that work.

"Customers have to do one thing - sign a check, pay the money, and we'll take care of the rest," he said.

There is a lot of things to think about for a homeowner who plans to invest in a propeller turbine. You have to consider city and county zoning issues, and height restrictions among other things.

"It's preparing the site, getting permits, we have to go through a lot of counties, townships, make sure we're in all of the regulations," Downey added.

There could be opposition to turbines.

"There's always a couple of people out there who are going to be against it," Downey said. "Some people don't like the looks. Some people don't like the sound."

But when it comes to what it does for the environment, the Dulgar's agree that wind turbines are worth the investment.

"The payback is 10-12 years in the future," said Dan, "but you're looking at what we can do for the environment today."

"A return on investment wasn't a decision for us," Gail added. "I mean, we may see some of that eventually, but it wasn't a factor for us. It was all about reducing our carbon footprints, and being responsible."

The Dulgars say they haven't seen much difference in their electric bills since April, because the wind power is usually better in the fall and winter months.

But, soon they hope to see almost one-third of their energy bill blow away, with the help of the wind.

Is getting a wind turbine a good option for you? It all depends on your situation. Unlike solar panels, you can't start small and build your way to a bigger system.