This category is primarily about how not to or where not to install wind turbines--of any size. There are legitimate urban wind installations. These are typically commercial-scale turbines sited to best advantage within urban agglomerations. However, there is an unfortunate proliferation of "rooftop urban wind" projects that are nothing more than architectural greenwashing.
Celebrities like former Tonight Show host Jay Leno and actor Ed Begley Jr. endorsed the Canadian entrepreneur's product. Rowan was making national headlines with his invention. But skeptics wondered...
I pay a price for debunking various wind turbine flim-flams and posting critiques on my web site. Consequently, I am cursed to be listed by Google and Indian call centers as the person to call if a...[more]
I’d seen a reference to the technical paper, Optimization of a vertical axis wind turbine for application in an urban/suburban area, by two academics making the rounds but didn’t take much notice of...[more]
The onslaught of super-dooper new windmill inventions is never ending. Frankly it’s wearing out us old timers. We can’t keep up with the damn things. We try to ignore them but our friends and...[more]
Four years after a federal grand jury in Raleigh, North Carolina returned a two-count indictment against James Alan Rowan for his fraudulent wind turbine investments, the fugitive was caught in...[more]
Urban environments are challenging locations for small wind turbines. Moreover, the sector must deal with cases of small turbines poorly sited and installed by companies that are more interested in...
James Alan Rowan was apprehended in Saskatoon, where his parents live. A Saskatoon judge committed him to be extradited to the U.S. to face two fraud charges filed against him amid allegations he...
Honeywell WindTronics may be dead but that doesn’t stop others from spinning the WindTronics hype. [more]
“The province gave the company $2.7 million to open in Windsor — under one condition. The company promised there would be 200 workers in the plant by the end of this year. That is now very unlikely,”...[more]
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) concludes in a new report that rooftop-mounted and building-integrated wind turbines are a failure, though readers would be hard pressed to find that...[more]
Cleanfield made a big media splash in Ontario, Canada during the mid-2000s with its claim of producing a new wind turbine suited for mounting on buildings. [more]
This is the way to do small wind right. "When Hurricane Joaquin affected the East Coast the first week of October 2015, the two wind turbines, which were selected for their ability to withstand...
That this turbine was doomed to fail—and would give small wind another—and unneeded—black eye was obvious from the beginning—for anyone who had the desire to know.[more]
I am writing this now to close the book on this sad little turbine and the whole “let’s put them on the roof” phenomenon. Stumbling across an obscure NREL field test report from long ago (see Power...[more]
Let this be a warning to you skeptics, critics, and debunkers of new-fangled wind turbine flim flam. It will come home to haunt you. Are you listening Mick Sagrillo?[more]
By now everyone has seen the fawning news accounts—several times, no doubt—that a US company has installed two wind turbines inside—yes, inside—the Eiffel Tower.[more]
Yes, there’s a wind turbine in San Francisco Bay. It’s probably one of only two commercial wind turbines in all of Marin County. Yes, it’s in a state park too. It’s been there for more than three...[more]
Boston and the communities around Boston Harbor have more commercial wind turbines than the entire San Francisco Bay, including one 1.5 MW wind turbine within Boston's urban core. Yes, it's a real...[more]
It was an odd call. An ACE hardware store deep in Michigan called with a request for parts to the infamous Honeywell Windtronics “wind turbine”. Naturally I was curious why an ACE hardware store was...[more]
Grand Jury for the Eastern District of North Carolina, Southern Division indictment of James Alan Rowan of Mag-Wind, Enviro-Energies.[more]
United States Attorney Thomas G. Walker announced that on October 18, 2013, a federal grand jury in Raleigh, North Carolina returned a two-count indictment charging JAMES ALAN ROWAN with securities...[more]
Updated with a photo of the 18 Venger V2 Savonius turbines on the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.[more]
I've written before about what is real "urban wind" and in that article I've sited several examples. There are so many examples of functioning, productive "urban wind" worldwide that I don't bother...[more]
The true tragedy of this sad saga is that anyone with a modicum of technical expertise would easily have seen that the entire edifice was built upon a fundamentally flawed design with a business...[more]
Despite the promise of a revolutionary new technology for small-scale wind energy, one local company has found the industry’s headwinds too stiff to stay in business. . . Even after receiving...
While many misconstrue "urban" wind turbines as those mounted atop or integrated into buildings, true urban wind turbines are commercial-scale turbines placed in or near cities, towns, and villages....
Of the wind turbines shown here, only the turbines atop 12W in Portland, Oregon were probably in service. I doubt that the Windspire turbines on the side of the San Francisco Public Utility...
The following is an email from retired civil engineer Lynn Shafer on his experience with the Honeywell Windtronics turbine. Shafer lives in Sedalia, Missouri. If the company posts a response, I'll...[more]
Reno, Nevada is vying for the world record for "Worst Turbine Install in History" through sheer scale, expense, and hubris. . . [more]
The incident helps explain why the whirling turbines, installed as a featured element at the top of the new 29-story tower last summer, have been silent since mid-December. . .
A pair of local tool and mold shops are owed about $375,000 by a Michigan-based wind turbine company which has closed its production plant after only two years of operation in Windsor.
cautionary tale about an "urban wind" project gone awry in 1982 . . .
Comments on Crissy Field wind turbine installation in San Francisco. . .
The most sophisticated and comprehensive study of small rooftop wind turbines in the Americas concludes rooftop wind turbines are "Not cost-effective at this site". . .
These are photos of the Honeywell Windtronics turbine on display at a vendors booth at the CanSIA exhibition in Toronto, December 5, 2011.[more]
Windtronics Inc. has scaled back production of small residential and commercial wind turbines at its Windsor plant because incentives for such projects have not yet been included in the province's...
So far, a new wind turbine delivers little . . . Generous federal and local rebates and credits have helped put wind power on a growing list of options that use the forces of nature to trim your...
But so far, we've seen only a fraction of the total power that WindTronics says we should for our area, even after several visits from a company-authorized installer. At that rate, the Honeywell...
Despite my best efforts, I've been dragged into the DyoCore flap here in California. I successfully ignored Mick Sagrillo's plea to write something. I successfully ignored DyoCore's request to get...[more]
A Windtronics wind turbine under test at SEPEN in southern France was removed within the first month of operation, according to Jay Hudnall, an expert in the French small wind turbine industry.[more]
Because of my early postings (December 30, 2008) about the Honeywell Windtronics turbine, other observers have been sending me their comments on the product.[more]
After posting my article Honeywell Windtronics WT6500 Report from the Field, the president of the company contacted me to note that their web site clearly says that they recommend using the turbine...[more]
Retired civil engineer Lynn Shafer wants to do the right thing and leave the world a better place for future generations. In 2010 he installed 5 kW of solar PV on his house near Sedalia, Missouri....[more]
Press release claiming that Cleanfield was installing its VAWTs on rooftops "around the world." The press release implies Cleanfield's association with McMaster University and Ontario's Centres of...[more]
Based on what I have been able to locate, I think this structure is another example of ‘Green Gone Wrong.’ I reiterate, I think we need to be mindful about NOT over-hyping some green(er)...
Back in December I stopped by the Boston Museum of science and checked out the public display of data from their small wind turbine experiment, and I posted some of the publicly available data here...
I feared the worst when I saw the title. As an outspoken critic of so-called "Urban" wind and especially the British variety, I thought the book would be destined for the dust bin after the first...[more]
As I am learning, most designers tend to quietly dismiss a project's failings, and don't repeat installations like this. And so, as with folks in the USA not paying attention to the results of the...
First, here’s a view of the installation from the north bank of the Charles river,
Mag-Wind is back. Grab your children. Bar the door. The dead walk. . . Worse Ed Begley and Jay Leno, those omnipresent endorsers of all things "green", have leapt to the aid of the undead. Their...[more]
I've reviewed the series of preproduction wind turbine designs from Earthtronics twice before. See below.[more]
Confirms That Rooftop Mounting Doesn't Deliver[more]
If further proof is needed that mounting wind turbines on rooftops is a bad idea, the final report on the Warwick Wind Trials is it.[more]
It was interesting to compare the behavior of the various turbines.
The Boston, Massachusetts, Museum of Science, is installing a rooftop Wind Turbine Lab in the summer of 2009.
Conclusion? Again, it's unlikely that this wind turbine will produce the reported generation anywhere in Michigan by a large margin.[more]
Presentation at the CanWEA conference i 2007 by S. Tullis at McMaster University.[more]
A thorough analysis of the concept by an experienced renewable energy journalist.
Britain's Renewable Devices introduced its "Swift" micro turbine several years ago to criticism that its estimates of annual production were inflated. See Roof Top Over the Top in Britain. Since then...[more]
It's unlikely that this wind turbine will produce the reported generation anywhere in Michigan.[more]
AeroVironment has installed 20 units of its AVX 1000 rooftop turbines on a building at Boston's Logan International Airport. The 20 kW installation, part of what AeroViron[ment calls its...[more]
Related to the interest in rooftop mounting of small wind turbines is that of integrating wind turbines into the building structure itself.[more]
The following documents were made available to the public in Great Britain. They refer to the field trials of several dozen micro and mini wind turbines installed on buildings in urban and rural...[more]
Presentation by Stephen Tullis, McMaster University.[more]
In this presentation, Stephen Tullis of McMaster University calls attempts to use Vertical-Axis Wind Turbines in urban environments "promising," but notes they are too new to conclude much.[more]
Technical paper by S. Tullis and his students at McMaster University examining the wind flow around and over buildings. The work was funded by the Ontario's Centres of Excellence.[more]
The building houses exhibition on water and now on energy. There are two wind turbines installed on the roof as shown in the photos below.[more]
Cleveland's Great Lakes Science Center installed a 225 kW Vestas V27 wind turbine in 2006 on the city's harbor front between the Cleveland Brown's football stadium and the science museum. The V27 is...[more]
The pyramids have always been thought to contain some magical power. Maybe they do. Maybe Mag-Wind has found a way to tap into this magical power, because they certainly are not going to get much...[more]
Has something happened to the water in Britain since they privatized the water companies? Someone should check because the British government has gone berserk.[more]
The following is an open letter by Hugh Piggot to BWEA calling for action on the unsubstantiated claims by promoters of rooftop wind turbines in Britain. Hugh Piggott is one of the world's most...[more]
Stewart C. Russell sent these photos of a Windsave installation in Scotland. The turbine is near his parents house and is installed on an expensive home. Note the sheltering effect from both the...[more]
I am a retired IBM engineer living in a very remote area of Alaska who is hooked on renewable energy. I am not soliciting advice just merely passing along some photos and very limited experiences you...[more]
With the flap in early July about roof top wind hype in Great Britain, I was surprised to find the controversy dogging my steps into the Sierra Nevada.[more]
Your claims cannot be substantiated by the data made available to the public and it is likely they cannot be verified in the field. [more]
Urban wind turbines. The image is immediately appealing. Most people live in cities. Most people want to use wind and solar energy. Thus, there must be ways for those living in cities--urbanites--to...[more]
Are you one of the many people who have read or heard that the next generation of roof mounted wind turbines will provide all the electricity needs of the average semi in the UK?
Why You Shouldn't Do It[more]
Stewart knows what he's talking about. He's a pro.
