Build Your Own Small Wind Power System

CHAPTER 10Balance of System: Batteries, Inverters, Controllers, and More

The stupidest thing we can do is put a turbine, large or small, in a place that has no wind. It’s also stupid to drill in Saudi Arabia when we have such great wind here.

–MORTEN ALBAEK, SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT FOR GLOBAL MARKETING OF VESTAS

Overview

• Do I need an inverter, and what does it do?

• Should I get batteries for my system?

• How do I wire everything together?

• How do I protect the system from surges and shorts?

You could have the sleekest turbine in the land on the highest tower, but if that’s all you’ve got, you aren’t getting any energy. You’ve also got to have what is often called the balance of system: bits of wire and various electronic do-dads that connect ...