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Philippe Starck's wind turbine is compact enough to fit on a small city lot. Photo: Pramac
Finally! A wind turbine just for city dwellers.
Wind turbines have long been equated with rural areas – so where does that leave city dwellers who long to be off the grid?
Wind turbines have long been equated with rural areas – so where does that leave city dwellers who long to be off the grid?
Thankfully, designer Philippe Starck recently strayed from his polycarbonate-plastic armchairs, household products and hotel interiors to develop sleek, contemporary wind turbines made for small lots.
Back in 2008, Starck introduced the first of his two micro wind-turbine models: the 400W WT. The 400 W WT had a quadrangular form, twin blades and a power output of 400W (not enough to power the peak load of an entire house, but considering a hairdryer runs at about 1.8KW and a microwave at 1.2KW, and a typical lightbulb requires 100W, it's still a push in the right direction).
A second RevolutionAir model – produced by Italian company PRAMAC – debuted last week. The 1KW WT is helicoidal in shape, has triple blades and can generate a power of 1KW. Both are on a vertical axis and cost between $3,500 and $4,900.
Whereas most turbines have huge arms that require an acre or two and emit noise, these operate independent of wind direction, exploiting turbulent air flows. But the best part is that they are extremely quiet. You can put them in your garden – yes, even on a cramped city lot! – and you don't have to do any physical labor to activate it like you would with homemade power generators. (No bicycling, no hand cranks, nothing.) According to the company, it's very easy to install. What arrives with an order are three standing poles, two wind boxes (similar to DSL modems) and two inverters.
It's as noticeable as a lawn ornament -- and it's hardly the garish object you would expect a wind turbine to be. Flaunting a little bit of style is never a bad thing, right?
