small wind

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Customer Interviews

Flagstaff, AZ

Flagstaff, AZ - Don Garrett began supplementing his utility-supplied electricity
with a photovoltaic system about three years ago. Consisting of 960 watts on a fixed rack
and another 1,440 watts on a movable rack, it keeps his battery "pretty well charged until just before sundown." Flagstaff averages 6.5 peak sun hours per day year-round.

Last November, he decided to supplement his solar energy system with a 1 kW Southwest Wind Power (SWWP) H80 wind turbine. "In Arizona, we have more sunshine hours than
just about anywhere else. But we also have a lot of wind. When the sun goes down -- especially in the winter, when the sun goes down early -- we get enough wind that it will take you right on into the night. In our area, [sun and wind] really complement each other. And the wind turbine is half the price per watt of the PV, so it lowers the overall price/watt of the system."

Garrett received a $1000 tax credit from the state (the Arizona credit covers 25% of the cost of purchased alternative energy equipment, up to $1000). He estimates that his hybrid system offsets about 40% of his power consumption, saving him $30-$40/month on his electric bill.

Garrett's SWWP H80 is mounted on a 35-foot tower. (His application for a variance from height restrictions in the local zoning code was denied because a neighbor objected to the impact of a taller tower on his mountain view.)

The hybrid system is not connected to the utility grid, but Garrett hopes that, eventually, the utility will become more "user-friendly" with respect to its interconnection practices. He also hopes to see Net Metering or some form of Renewables Portfolio Standard (RPS) policy put in place. Right now, he points out, "you sell power back to the utility at their generated cost of about 2 cents/kWh,
as opposed to the high prices they charge when electricity gets scarce on the Southwestern Grid."

If utilities are required to acquire renewables capacity, Garrett thinks he may be able to get "something like 10 cents/kWh" for the electricity generated by his
wind-and-solar hybrid energy system. With Net Metering, says Garrett, the utility
"would pay the private alternative energy producer the same amount he is
charged for equal amounts of electricity up to a zero balance between the utility and the private power producer. The private power producer gets to use the grid as his batteries, while the power company gets the most power from the private producer when the power company needs it the most. It's a win-win situation for both the private power producer and the utility."

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