Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Power the Man Shed - Backyard Energy Wind Turbine



This is a story of a family in Monticello, IL who is using sustainable, renewable wind energy to generate power for their pool house, or as they like to call it, "Man Shed".  The Man Shed is a glorious place where you can drink beer, pee, listen to music, and watch HBO.  And now it is all powered by wind and sparkles that sweep across Central Illinois. 

My friend Matt Coyle and his company, Zelen Energy, built and installed the wind turbine in the back yard of said Man Shed owners.  He took J and I to see it a few weeks ago.  This is the first wind turbine he's installed, so there are still a few kinks to work out - like frozen batteries.  But I'm sure this won't be the last wind turbine we see popping up from Zelen Energy - the neighbors already want to tap into the Man Shed's power supply.

Wind turbine is lowered by a wench


Checkin' on stuff


Mini cameras track temperature and wind speed so information can be accessed online from Chicago

Batteries are also stored here, and laptop is kept in Rubbermaid bin

2 comments: