Installing a 3kW Wind Turbine in the DR

When we began considering how best to tackle the various aspects of how alternative and renewable energy are being, and/or can be, utilized in the Dominican Republic, we decided to ask a DR1 member who always has expert advice to offer on the subject of wind turbines, to do one or more "guest blogs" for us on what kind of wind turbine systems are being installed in the DR for off-grid home or business purposes.  "Georgios," who installs such systems in the DR, kindly agreed to share with us some examples and discuss the kinds of considerations and calculations that do into installing and running them.  We hope Green Team blog readers find this useful and informative.

To provide Green Team blog readers with an idea of the type of wind power set-ups possible in the DR, we�d like to share with you the example of a 3 kw wind turbine Pro-Radius installed at Cabrera, on the north coast of the DR, on April 10, 2006.  The pictures provided here are for that particular project.










The owner wanted a wind energy system for his home sufficient to charge a double battery bank of 12 batteries at 2V, 1000AH each ( a total of 24 battery cells).  The house is away from the grid, totally stand alone.












Currently, the existing 22 KW diesel genset runs for about 5-6 hours a day to power the swimming pool pump, washing machine & dryer, a well pump and charge the battery banks for later use in the afternoon and night.












Given the owner�s house location and after detailled wind data collection the 3 kw wind turbine was selected and installed as a primary charging source having the genset as a back-up for low wind periods.  The target is 75 � 90% fuel savings, which sets the payback period at approximately 5-6 years.























For the moment, the pool pump remains untill the new solar pool pump arrives which will rent the diesel generator idle for days at a time, saving fuel and cutting down on noise and emmissions.












Due to the high elevation of the property (720 feet above sea level), the home is not equipped with AC units. The owner will replace the electric clothes dryer with a propane model to limit further fuel consumption. In addition, the majority of light bulbs have been changed to halogen, reducing the power requirements even more.









The cost of the wind turbine & tower in the Dominican Republic is about $9,500 US. Included are the controller/charger c/w diversion load element and wiring to the base of the tower. 



















Additional costs involved in this project were the
120 feet trenched wire connection to the battery room, the concrete foundation, and crane expenses. The crane is used only to assemble and erect the tower/turbine due to the weight of the equipment (turbine body & tower weigh over a ton).  No further crane service is needed for the 15 year lifetime of the turbine.









As seen on the pictures, this is a 15 meter tower with tilting capability for easier service and most of all protection against hurricane force winds.  During a hurricane, the tower can be lowered to the ground via an electric winch and the turbine can be strapped down until the hurricane passes.  The same procedure is reversed to tilt up the turbine in order to resume power production.  No crane required. The tilt tower feature is specifically designed for the Caribbean region because of its frequent hurricane force wind environment.

Once a year the turbine must be lowered to perform the required maintenance.  This includes blade inspection and balancing, lubrication, main bearing check and slip ring inspection.  Any signs of corrosion must be addressed with marine grade paint.  A typical yearly maintenance procedure should take about 5-6 hours.

Other wind turbine projects are carried out as well.  These projects include the installation of smaller wind turbine and towers.  Pictures and commentary to follow in a few weeks.  For questions or comments you don�t wish to post to the blog, please email me at proradius@on.aibn.com

-- Georgios