Here Jonathan Hare shows three types of homemade windmills. Firstly, the classic windmill, a circular disk with blades attached which then interact with the wind. Obviously the amount of power produced by this homemade windmill depends on the amount of wind available, in fact it depends on the wind speed cubed. The problem for the average urban user is that this type of horizontal axis windmill needs to point into the wind to be successful. A vertical axis windmill turns irrespective of the direction of the wind which makes it easier to place in an urban situation. Dr Hare also shows a basic model of a windmill dependent on sails fluttering in the wind to power the generator.

Tags: homemade windmills