Wind turbine class
ReadingEagle.com
June 24, 2008
www.readingeagle.com
The Mid-Atlantic Renewable Energy Association is offering a wind turbine installation class, July 9-12, at the Kempton Community Center.
Members of the association recently placed the foundation for the tower at the Kempton Community Recreation Center and the concrete is now curing for the July installation of a Skystream wind turbine.
The public is invited to enroll in the four-day session, where they will learn the basics of small, grid-tied residential wind-turbine systems, site selection and design, the permit process, electrical safety and installation of a Skystream 3.7 Wind Turbine on a 50-foot monopole tilt-up Tec Wind tower under the supervision of experienced electricians.
The day-long programs include classroom instruction, assembly of the tower, installation of the wind turbine and wiring to intertie with the local utility.
The Skystream wind turbine was developed with funding through the Department of Energy. It was specifically designed for small-scale residential projects with the emphasis on quiet operation, minimal parts and low operating speeds. According to Southwest Windpower, the manufacturer of the Skystream, an annual average wind speed of 12 mph will produce 400 kilowatt hours of electricity per month, approximately one-half the average residential usage of a Berks County household.
The class is being taught by master electrician and community college instructor Jenny Heinzen. She has been a speaker at the Mid-Atlantic Renewable Energy & Sustainable Living Festival and is a renewable energy and apprentice electrician instructor at Lakeshore Technical College in Wisconsin.
Lee Kauffman, a partner at Berks Solar LLC, is supervising the electrical installation. Kauffman has 25 years commercial and industrial electrical experience in the Berks County area.
Registration is limited to 15 students. Cost of the class, including lunches, is $350 for MAREA members and $400 for nonmembers.
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