Calling all boaters, campers and caravaners!

I looked at one for my caravan build some years ago but gave them a miss for the following reasons:

inconvenient to set up
not practical when underway
often quite noisy
expensive for the output
not as practical or cost effective as solar panels.

I know a lot of ocean yachts have them, particularly if there is not enough deck space for solar. But I couldn't get excited about them for a caravan. Good luck with your research Alex.

Keith

Alex
To take wind from any angle simply means it isn't fixed on it's axis because/all ARE pointed into the wind from whatever direction it blows from.
A Savonius generator rotates on it's vertical axis but accepts airflow from any direction because of it's unique design.
Do you mean both concepts?
Any wind device attached to a caravan, will make noise transferred to the van = unhappy sleep.
A propellor whizzing around will make a noise for the whole camp area. It may not be serviceable/operating in the morning. Most likely buried somewhere.
Who is going to carry additional frames or poles to make it happen?
Only after a certain size will it be of use output wise. At low windspeed there is little energy.

If it was practical you would already see Chinese ones all over the country.

In terms of your question "more or less convenient than how you get your electricity now?"

I do not believe a wind system would be better than what we have now.

We get our electricity in the right conditions from our solar system.

In not so good conditions we use our generator.

Both of the above are very convenient for us.

Hi Alex,
Like the others I've toyed with the concept and gone solar. BUT, that doesn't mean you should give up because those that give up don't get anywhere. You should continue with the study for many reasons.

For example there are many wind turbine designs out there. I might be wrong but a propeller type turbine with blade made out of solar panels could be one concept. Or solar panels attached to the blade. I'm not saying it will work but thinking outside the box is what makes inventing fun.

Noise- the biggest issue apart from value for money. Some are noisy, the others are bearable noisy. Some delivery vans and dog trailers have those disk shaped vents that spin at the slightest breeze and don't seem noisy...what about a few joined together with a micro generator?

Height- The higher it is the more wind they source. Can you include a telescopic pole? maybe one with a screw internal 12V so it auto screws upward (like a screw jack) and can be mounted on the wall of the van? Must be lightweight.

Remember, there are many people that sit for weeks in the one place. They don't want to start up their car to charge their batteries by the alternator or use a generator. The best objective might be to consider wind generation as a supplementary source of power, not the sole source.
Good luck

Another alternative for electrical power generation is the fuel cell.
We had one in a motorhome that we toured Europe in for 3 years, 6 months per year as a back up for the solar and for when the batteries failed.
It was a wonderful devise.
It only generated 90W, but did so without much sound, no pollutants and would operate 24/7. It was small and light and was under a seat inside the motorhome. Current purchase price and limited fuel selections constrains their attraction, but I see real potential for ongoing development of a devise that would be a boon to RVers.

Cheers,
Peter
OKA196 motorhome