I can't stand my wind gen...

[Jim Cate]

Originally Posted by TJ D

Hi Jim,

Just to understand, it was actually glued on the convex side, 1/4 of the way in from the leading edge? (1/2" from the leading edge on a hypothetical 2" wide blade)?

Thanks, TJ

Yes, that's about it! I am left with the impression that the exact location was not critical, but remember that this was in 1986, so a bit of experimentation might be in order. Again, IIRC I stuck it on initially with a few drops of superglue, and once convinced of its usefulness epoxied it more permanently in place. Oh... it only stretched over about the outer 1/2 of the blade length, maybe a bit more. It's the high velocity parts that make the noise.

Hope it works for you!

Jim

[laika]

If you go with a new one this is also worth checking out: https://store.marinebeam.com/marinek...ind-generator/

[Tellie]

Originally Posted by laika

If you go with a new one this is also worth checking out: https://store.marinebeam.com/marinek...ind-generator/

Gotta love the first video they use comparing the SuperWind350 on another nearby boat. Perhaps if they had asked the owner of the SuperWind350 to turn off the stop switch it might have been a more credible comparison.

Halden Marine Services | Marine Watermakers, Solar Panels, Wind Generators

[RaymondR]

My Rutland 913 was fairly quiet when it was new but appears to make more noise now. I think it might be the bearings becoming a bit worn. If yours sat in the bilge for many years before you mounted it the grease in the bearings may have gotten old and thick and the bearings now noisy as a consequence.

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, captainsir.

[HappyMdRSailor]

Originally Posted by donradcliffe

Don't think of the wind generator sound as noise, think of it as a free audible windspeed indicator. I slept a lot better knowing that my wind generator would wake me up if the wind increased.

BTW, the Kiss has a protective device which will open the charging circuit if the internals get too hot, which happens at windspeeds somewhere about 30k. The current goes to zero and the Kiss sounds like a wounded banshee.

Don, Sandy killed my D400 after the lashing failed... Sure wish it opened to zero! You could smell it a cable length from the boat after...

Originally Posted by TJ D

I can say with certainty that the unit does a fine job of rousing us from our slumber when the wind kicks up and we're snug in our bunks. Unfortunately, 20 knots of wind isn't really enough for us to feel like we need to stay up and maintain an anchor watch, but the KISS does seem to suggest otherwise...

Hopefully the new blades mellow it out a little bit. I even took them down and re-balanced them to make sure all was well, and it was, but still the whooshing continues unabated.

TJ

Funny stuff TJ!

[a64pilot]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

Yes, that's about it! I am left with the impression that the exact location was not critical, but remember that this was in 1986, so a bit of experimentation might be in order. Again, IIRC I stuck it on initially with a few drops of superglue, and once convinced of its usefulness epoxied it more permanently in place. Oh... it only stretched over about the outer 1/2 of the blade length, maybe a bit more. It's the high velocity parts that make the noise.

Hope it works for you!

Jim

If your talking about the "top" side of the wing, it sure sounds like your describing a Vortex generator, which energizes air flow and delays airflow separation from the wing, makes air flow more laminar.
I'd be surprised if it didn't actually increase the efficiency

[HappyMdRSailor]

Originally Posted by a64pilot

If your talking about the "top" side of the wing, it sure sounds like your describing a Vortex generator, which energizes air flow and delays airflow separation from the wing, makes air flow more laminar.
I'd be surprised if it didn't actually increase the efficiency

Maaaaan.... What you're talking about sounds an awful lot like the famous flux capacitor...

[a64pilot]

Originally Posted by HappyMdRSailor

Maaaaan.... What you're talking about sounds an awful lot like the famous flux capacitor...

Not really, look at it this way, it takes energy to make noise, and that energy has to come from somewhere. Sometimes by reducing noise, you decrease the parasitic drag, and increase efficiency.
I just wouldn't be surprised if Jim's fix did both, decreased noise and increased power output slightly

[HappyMdRSailor]

Originally Posted by a64pilot

Not really, look at it this way, it takes energy to make noise, and that energy has to come from somewhere. Sometimes by reducing noise, you decrease the parasitic drag, and increase efficiency.
I just wouldn't be surprised if Jim's fix did both, decreased noise and increased power output slightly

I WAS KIDDIN' YA!

Vortex generator just rolled off the tongue...

I'mma N-GIN(bourbon really)-EAR...

Although I do enjoy a smooth conservation of energy on occasion...

[skipgundlach]

We have a KISS.

It is user serviceable in every regard other than if you somehow had to rewind the stator.

I know because I've done it more than once, including replacing the magnets on the rotor.

I also just replaced the thermostats. When John builds them now (he bought out the guy in Trinidad shortly before he died), he puts the thermos face-to each other. My older (2007) unit didn't have long enough pigtails, so I put them side-to before heat shrinking them. It made a significant difference, as one of ours had failed.

When it freewheels, it's merely a whoosh. It's when the breakers recover that it can be noisy. Cocking with the tether through the tail allowed us to continue silent generation during a 40k squall recently. Turning the rectifier to the middle position also slows it down, while still allowing power generation. If it gets REALLY windy, turn it off; the braking is sufficient to well over 40k.

We looked at the D400, and, indeed, John used to sell them during the period when he couldn't get (he used to be the distributor before he bought out the manufacturer) get KISS. It's majorly heavy, very expensive, and impossible for the user to service. Despite it being, probably, quieter than the KISS (more below), those offsets were enough to have me do my work to isolate our issues of power and noise.

I can't adequately emphasize how important PERFECT balance is. Our blades are nicked and rough and otherwise old. But, they are perfectly balanced. And a mere whoosh, even into 30A production (before the breakers open) was the result.

The spindle provided (or if you lost/never had one, they'll sell you one; it's a critical tool) is pretty easy to use; we use the original lead tape and nibble off the heavy blade, saving the pieces, which we then use for fine tuning on the light blades. We use a metal level for one side (hard surface, level) and a large screwdriver shank for the other, guessing at level by aligning with the level. We know we're balanced when the blade doesn't move, regardless of which one you position 'high' - and that the least bit of movement on the shank off level induces a roll. If you can't balance to that degree, you'll get more noise than you need to endure - but if you do, likely you'll not get any of the symptoms complained about.

The new blades are merely weight matched. They are not dynamically balanced. You could use spray paint to balance them beyond what you get out of the box. I can't say personally from experience with the new blades, as I've decided what we have do the job well, but my understanding is that they use the same mold but are superior material and workmanship. But because they are 'prebalanced' there is no included mechanism for fine tuning the balance (no lead tape, in our instance).

Check your balance in that fashion. I'd bet it's off.

HTH

[Bulawayo]

Originally Posted by TJ D

Hello forum,

I had a KISS wind generator sitting in the lazarette for years, and finally got around to installing it. I hate it. I'd never been around one in 20 knots or more before, and the noise it produces when it starts to whine is just about like nails on a chalkboard to me.

Sure, I like the high output, but I would trade a little less power to get my blessed silence back. We pretty much have the thing shut off all the time anyway.

Anybody have some good experience with a silent one? We obviously still want some output, but I just don't want to feel like I'm next to a jet turbine in everything over 20 knots...

Suggestions solicited! There just might be a very good deal on a KISS to be had here soon as well.

Thanks, TJ

We have 2x D400's - they replaced our two Windbuggers that howled like banshee's. Not only are the two D400's quiet they start producing power from a fairly low wind speed; the adverts say 5knots but 7knots is what we measure. Like other quality wind generators these are not bucket shop prices but to have peace and quiet AND vibration free is worth every penny. They certainly belt out the power. I am not sure I would buy such an arrangement again as we have a heap of solar panels and a single D400 would have been adequate in reality.

[domander]

I'll second the nomination for Spreco Silentwind. I've been quite happy with mine. The blades are amazingly quiet compared to others. Apparently that is because of the stiffness of the carbon fiber. You don't get the whooshing sound at all. However, the alternator does "sing" when it starts producing power. I don't find it annoying at all. When the wind really picks up the single toned singing becomes a duet! But again, it isn't objectionable.

As a measure of how quiet the blades are, Spreco makes blades for some other company's units and people do swap out their original blades for Spreco's.

As well, I had a controller failure after owing the unit for about 2 years. Even though I had bought it in St. Maarten, the repair depot in Miami replaced it without question even though I had long ago lost the receipt! So, I can't say enough about the company. :-)

I see Steady Hand earlier in the discussion has demonstrated a video which shows the quiet blades on another unit. And you can hear the "singing" I was talking about. :-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQ-5vwOMMOE

[George DuBose]

SuperWind 350 is probably the quietest and highest output wind generator on the market. SilentWind is a cheap imitation.

SuperWinds are made of the highest quality material and when I bought mine in 2008, it was quiet enough. When I was close-hauled in a strong wind, what little noise the blades were making would tell me when I was "in the groove". SuperWind introduced a new blade design that makes it ever quieter than it already is.

In fact, the new blades are so quiet, that if I am on anchor and in the cabin, I have to actually look to see if the generator's blades are spinning at all.

I have the voltage regulator that prevents my AGMs from overcharging and I bought the stop switch. I couldn't imagine trying to turn a wind generator sideways or backwards and trying to lasso them to keep them from turning.

In extreme winds (such as I haven't experienced) the blades of the SuperWind feather, like the big wind generators. I think the unit is rated for over 100 kts.

I regularly can cruise for 6 weeks or longer without resorting to shore power to charge my 5 series 31 AGMs.

Crossing the Atlantic in 2009, my crew decided on night to turn on all the lights and all the nav equipment. In the morning, the batteries were too low to start the engine and we were sailing downwind with the spinnaker so the SuperWind wasn't putting out much. We stopped the boat for about an hour and the SuperWind charged up the batteries enough to start the engine.

This is definitely a case of "You get what you pay for." SuperWinds ain't cheap, but I have had zero problems in 6 years.

On one occasion a crewman raised a boathook too high and broke one of the blades. I had a new set the following day delivered by FedEx.

Great product, great company, great service.

[bobw100ton]

Over the past 25 years I have seen many iterations of wind turbines. I would agree that having the turbine on your mast head (read tuning fork) will amplify whatever Db rating it had on it's own pole. The harmonics can be transmitted down the inside of the mast, unless you have foam spacers (to secure wires, as well as the residence down the aluminum itself. The BIG benefit is 360 degree access to unobstructed air flow. Even though the apparent simplicity is easy to retail I do not recommend turbines with internal regulation (i.e. airx, air breeze, etc...). The circuitboard is contained in a high temp environment with the inevitable breach of moisture. Failure requires dismounting, the salon disassembly to determine you need a circuit board you won't have. Better to have the raw wattage delivered below to a charge controller. In the event of failure you can regulate the charge yourself by just shutting it down when you get close to full charge or turn on a load.