Five Cool Vertical Axis Wind Turbines
Forget cars, clothes, or coffee makers - it seems that the truly hip among the product designer set have moved into the arena of the wind turbine. Why not? You get to be "green", you get to work with cutting-edge technologies and materials, the machines that you create don't pollute,
and the worldwide demand for sustainable energy equipment is going in only one
direction - up. I've come across a number of pretty interesting wind
turbine designs - both
horizontal axis turbines, and vertical axis turbines (on this page). Listed here are five
vertical axis wind turbine designs that I picked simply because I think they
look cool. For the purposes of this article, I chose not to investigate
the efficiencies, materials used, power generation potentials, or costs of these
turbines. Those are all very important factors when deciding on the right
wind turbine for your home or business, but in this article I'm concerned only
about aesthetics. So without further ado...
1) Four Seasons Windpower
I chose the Four Seasons Windpower vertical axis turbine for the number one spot simply because the company is based in Medina, Ohio - and I grew up just a few miles away via Ohio Route 18 in Cuyahoga Falls.
Other than that, there is zero significance to the order of my picks. Four Seasons claims that it's VAWT operates almost silently, and so is "bird and bat friendly". It may not be the prettiest wind turbine in the beauty contest, but it gets points for being original.
2) Helix Wind
Is it a UFO? A deranged wind turbine engineer's bizarre DNA fantasy? Or the next big thing in sustainable power generation? Either way - the
Helix Wind VAWT is interesting. The folks at Helix Wind claim that their turbines are suitable for high wind conditions or gusty, frequently changing wind direction conditions.
3) Mariah Power Windspire
Mariah Power is a Reno, Nevada-based wind turbine manufacturer that appears to have done a great job of combining efficiency and design within a VAWT. Getting your turbine photographed in front of the National Capitol building is pretty nice, as well. Mariah Power claims it's "Windspire" can generate electricity with as little as an eight mph wind speed.
They call the wind "Maria", and they call Mariah Power when appealing VAWT
design is sought after.
4) Enviro-Energies
Probably the most "industrial" looking wind turbine on the market, but the
Enviro-Energies roof-mount VAWTs are still sleek compared to other horizontal-axis and vertical-axis turbines out there. These turbines are endorsed by green geek Ed Begley Jr. (of "St. Elsewhere" fame, who has appeared in his own sustainable living reality show), as well as Jay Leno. Jay knows cars, so it's not a stretch to assume he knows a worthwhile green tech toy when he sees one.
5) Windside
Europeans have a knack for coming up with ways to make mundane things look cool. Walk into any Ikea furniture store to see the Euro sense of style applied to normally boring items like toasters, chairs, or pillows. Now they are taking the lead in sustainable energy design (as well as technology).
Windside's turbines demostrate this very well.