Among many of the lofty goals we have set for ourselves is for our house to be Net Zero or at least Near Net Zero. We would like to produce as much energy as we use . We may not achieve this on a daily basis but through out the course of a year instead. At the moment we have received bids that range between $30,000 and $50,000 for a 3-5 KW system. This is before rebates and tax incentives from the state which could pay for up to 50% of the cost. In order to take advantage of those incentives we need to tie into the grid. This would also help us achieve our net zero goal as we will be able to buy electricity when needed an sell it when we have excess. Our goal is to achieve a balanced system that is Solar Photo Voltaic powered and Wind powered. We have looked at a few systems for wind and have some issues with local ordinances as far as structures over 35' are concerned. Most wind turbines have to be on towers that are at least 35'. Add to that the fact that we would need a special variance to set one up. Matthew at LGA forwarded me a couple of interesting house mounted vertical axis wind turbines (VAWT) one by Wind Terra and the other by Pac Wind. In theory we would not need a variance for this type of wind turbine as it would be well under the 35' restriction and is virtually silent.
