Anyone tried the cheap Chinese Wind Tubines?

[Neil Spooner]

I tried one, nasty, put it back on eBay, got most of my money back.
The Rutland wind generators seem to be the quietest, I have a 913.
Mount them away from your sleeping quarters if you can.
I made silicone mountings for mine, it made a massive difference to the noise transmitted into the hull.
I believe Rutland are the only makers of controller that do both wind & PV, but there is no reason why you can't have one of each. (Controller).
(I have no interest in Rutland BTW)
Neil

 

[AlexB]

I saw this online, and it got me thinking.


400W Hybrid Wind Turbine Generator with 20A Charger Controller $120

View attachment 154876

Anyone have any experience with these?

I do, rebiulding one right now. You get, what You pay, easy to rebiuld. most problems with controllers.

 

[Rick D]

I tried one, nasty, put it back on eBay, got most of my money back.
The Rutland wind generators seem to be the quietest, I have a 913.
Mount them away from your sleeping quarters if you can.
I made silicone mountings for mine, it made a massive difference to the noise transmitted into the hull.
I believe Rutland are the only makers of controller that do both wind & PV, but there is no reason why you can't have one of each. (Controller).
(I have no interest in Rutland BTW)
Neil

FYI, weighing in just on observations. Where our mooring is in Catalina Island, there is regular wind in the mid to high teens. Thus, wind generators are (were) popular with the seasonal help. I can hear them more sharply from a distance than I can a Honda 2000 generator. One boat near me has a Rutland. It is far away the most quiet; not silent, but not annoying. BTW, most of the guys are moving to more solar instead.

 

[capta]

most of the guys are moving to more solar instead.

Apples and oranges. If you have enough solar to fill your batteries before noon, it won't do you much good if you have a heavy load (a computer or two or a flick on the TV) after dark. A windgen is certainly much less efficient than solar, but you really can't get much value from solar after dark!

 

[Meriachee]

Apples and oranges. If you have enough solar to fill your batteries before noon, it won't do you much good if you have a heavy load (a computer or two or a flick on the TV) after dark. A windgen is certainly much less efficient than solar, but you really can't get much value from solar after dark!

Yeah but, in @Kermit ’s absence, doesn’t it get into diminishing returns if you need a 10kw stereo to get over the racket of the vanes?

 

[capta]

Yeah but, in @Kermit ’s absence, doesn’t it get into diminishing returns if you need a 10kw stereo to get over the racket of the vanes?

I refused to buy a cheap windgen even though it took longer to save the money for the Rutland. What I said was don't waste your money on the cheap, noisy ones unless you want to be unpopular in the anchorages and mooring fields.
Rutland, the D-400, and Aerogen are all quiet units that produce OK power in moderate winds. Certainly not as much steady power as solar, but at night they definitely can help.