Wind power seems like one of the cleanest renewable power sources that you can imagine. In fact, it is one power source that has been in use for centuries, if not millennia. It is cheap and in many places readily available, albeit not a very reliable source of power. Due to the plunging cost of natural gas in recent years, many forms of renewable energy have become seemingly cost-inefficient. However, there are still many good reasons to look to renewables as a solid investment in a long-term energy reliability and security.

“Build Your Own Small Wind Power System” is an instruction manual for all those who have dreamed about building their own power-generating windmills. It is a fairly comprehensive book, but it assumes a great deal of prior technical know-how and advanced technical skills. Building effective wind power systems is orders of magnitude more complex task than working on a solar or some other renewable energy source. If you choose to take the wind-energy route to energy independence, then I would strongly urge you to collaborate with one or more people on implementing your goals.

Aside from the technical details, this book covers a lot of legal and logistical material. It is well written, accessible, with several short humorous digressions which help with the overall readability. The topics covered include “Introduction to Small Wind Power,” “Electricity, Energy, and Wind Science,” “How to Finance Small Wind Power,” “Wind Turbines Demystified,” “Installation, Maintenance, and Troubleshooting,” and many others. The book also includes useful online and offline references for further resources that you may want to tap into. No matter what your level of expertise with wind energy, this book will certainly be a useful guide.

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