If you are searching for a fun & interesting home DIY project that will also save you lots of money, then a build your own windmill project might be just what you are looking for. With simple tools that you probably already own you can build your own windmill & easily generate 400-500 or more watts of power. You can feel good about doing your part for the environment using a renewable resource that is 100% free. You can easily scale a simple build your own windmill design to handle all of your electricity needs. Excess power can even be sold to the power company. It is an amazing feeling to watch the power companies meter run in reverse knowing that a check will be coming in the mail at the end of the month.

For the do-it-yourselfer, the decision to build your own windmill is an easy one. For the more mechanically or electrically challenged there is still hope with a little help in the right places. There are many build your own windmill DIY guides on line that make a build your own windmill project very straight forward.

Before you build your own windmill, you need to know how a wind generator works. Conceptually, wind power works in much the same way that hydroelectric power works. Clear? In both cases all you need is a driving force to create kinetic energy. In the case of hydroelectricity, the force is moving water. In the case of wind generators or turbines that force is the wind.

Wind generators consist of three basic components which are rotor blades, shaft & generator. The rotor blades are used to convert energy from the wind into kinetic energy. When the rotor blades rotate they turn the shaft that transfers the energy to the generator much like the engine in your car transfers energy to the alternator via the belt drive to charge your battery. Generators operate on the principle of electromagnetic induction. When magnets are rotated around a conductor, they generate electricity.

It really is that simple. Electricity is created by magnets rotating around an electrical coil. The wind power is simply used to rotate the magnetic field around the coil.

Building your own windmill makes sense because the cost of commercial systems are still out of reach of many homeowners. These systems cost from $6000 to $20,000 & the payback can be 8-15 years. You can build your own windmill for under $200 & later scale the system to handle all of your electrical needs if desired.

Most of the parts required to build your own windmill can be scavenged or purchased inexpensively online, at local junkyards or at the local hardware store.