I am restoring an antique power windmill. It produces rotary motion and was used to power farm equipment. It was built in 1904 and it is a sectional wheel type where the sections that make up the wind wheel fold in and out like a flower to control the speed of the mill. The wind wheel is 16 feet
in diameter and in a nine mph wind it produces 5 1/2 horse. It is being restore to be as historically acurate as possible and will eventually be placed in a museum.
The goal now is to recreate a 21st Century version that is almost maintenance free that can produce electric power. Some people will disagree, but I think that those 3 bladed mills look out of place next to a house. Looks are very important to some people. The three bladed mills are very efficient though.
I have found a fellow who will redesign it for me with updated bearings and gears but the idea is to keep the windmill as simple as possible so it will last.
The windmill is also part wood. The wind wheel and the tail are wood. I think they will remain wood. I could make them out of plastic, but if they are made out of wood then after I am dead and buried the windmill could still be repaired by any skilled wood worker.
I did not like the idea of using batteries for energy storage. I noticed some other posts about storing compressed air under ground. Has anyone actually done this on a small scale?
Any comments on the use of a Tesla Turbine to run the generator?
Now you know how I got my account name.