There are three basic Wind Energy System designs used, these are essentially the same as a Solar Power setup. You can have a grid connected system without battery backup. A grid connected system with battery back up, or a stand-alone system that is not connected to the grid.

           If you live in an area that produces enough constant wind, you can setup a stand-alone system. This system uses essentially the same components as the grid connected system with battery backup, but of course your not connected to the grid. The turbines charge the batteries until they are fully charged, then the turbines provide all the power needs. When the wind is not steady or strong enough to provide your power needs, the batteries are switched in line to provide your power. The drawback is that the amount of time you have power then depends on the amount of battery storage you have. Usually though, in areas that provide enough wind for a stand-alone system, even if you don't have enough wind to completely power your home, there will be enough with to "trickle-charge" your batteries as you use them, extending the amount of time you can run your devices.  

           Generally speaking, the wind in your area must average at least 10 miles per hour in order for a wind generation system to be effective. In considering a wind power system you must also consider the location as well as wind speed. You need to take into consideration trees, hills, and buildings, currently standing, and those that might be built in the future. Tall buildings, trees and hills cause turbulence, making your generator less effective. A large flat location is ideal. If your in a hilly area, you will have to use an anemometer to survey the hills and terrain around you to find the best location

           Consideration must also be taken into account for the local laws. You will probably be putting your wind generator on top of a tower. A minimum of 30 feet above any obstacle that is within 300 feet is generally recommended. The higher you can go, the higher the winds will be. However some areas have laws limiting the height of structures that you can erect.

           The US Government has several departments that have regional information showing whether wind speeds in your area are high enough to consider investing in a wind system. For a general map of U.S. Wind Speed, Try Here. For more comprehensive U.S. wind speed and power information, try this link to the NREL Wind Atlas site.

           All wind generation systems consist of a wind turbine, a tower, inverters, controllers, miscellaneous items such as wiring, batteries, if you want a battery backup system, and of course a tower.

           The tower, or rather the height of the tower is important also. Experiments have shown that relatively small increases in tower height can produce significantly higher power production. For example, to raise a 10kW generator from a 60 foot tower height to a 100 foot tower height involves a 10% increase in overall cost but it can produce 25% more power. A relatively small increase in cost for the tower results in quite a gain in power.

           There are two ways to tie into the grid, stand alone, and with battery backup. If you are looking for a wind system without batteries there is a limited selection of equipment to choose from.

         Most systems use batteries in them. Some turbines have a charge controller built into them so they will not over charge the batteries. Other turbines do not have controllers built into them and a load diversion controller is usually put in line to prevent the wind generators from overcharging the batteries. A load diversion controller is just a switch the detects when the batteries are full and will switch the generator output to a load. A heating element is most commonly used to provide a constant high current draw as a load. The load diversion controller is a battery protection device only.