Wind & Solar Controllers

Wind Turbine FAQ

• What is the right turbine for my needs?

  Start with two questions: how much wind does your site actually get, and how much room do you have.

  Vertical turbines (X-300, T-500W, and the H12 and HPRO series) start turning in about 2 m/s and take wind from any direction, so they suit rooftops, suburban blocks and anywhere the wind swirls and shifts. They run from 300 W up to 2000 W.

  Horizontal turbines (S-400W, M-600W, M-800W, and the L1, L2 and G series) want cleaner, steadier wind and a clear run at it. They scale further — 400 W up to 5000 W — and most of them survive heavier weather.

  Match the turbine to your battery bank, not to the biggest number. 12 V suits a camper, 4WD or tinnie; 24 V a van, cabin or boat; 48 V a shed or remote block. The largest models run at mains voltage, and the L2-3000, G-3000 and G-5000 are ground-mount only — they need a 10–15 m mast and are not rooftop units.

  Rated power is measured at 10–12 m/s. What you get at your place depends on your wind, your mast height and the season — not on a number on our website.

• Can I connect my wind turbine directly to the inverter?

  No. Wind turbines generate "wild" 3-phase AC power that changes voltage constantly with the wind speed. Connecting it directly to a battery or a standard solar inverter will destroy your equipment. You must wire the turbine into a dedicated wind/solar hybrid MPPT controller with an integrated dump load resistor. The controller converts the power to stable DC to charge your batteries safely.

• How do I choose between 12V, 24V or 48V configuration?

  Match the turbine and its controller to the voltage of your existing battery bank:

  • 12V: compact mobile setups — caravans, 4WDs and camper trailers.
  • 24V: medium setups — off-grid sheds, cabins and motorhomes.
  • 48V: most of this range, and the sensible choice for a full off-grid system. Higher voltage means less current in the cable, so less loss over a long run and lighter cable.
• What is a dump load resistor and do I need one?

  When your battery bank is fully charged it stops accepting power. If a storm hits at night with the batteries full, a turbine with nowhere to send its power will free-spin out of control and can physically fly apart. A hybrid controller prevents that by diverting the excess into the dump load resistor, which burns it off safely as heat and acts as an electronic brake to slow the turbine down. Yes, you need one.

• Do these vertical turbines make a loud whirring noise?

  Quieter than a propeller turbine, but not silent — and we will not tell you otherwise. A horizontal turbine's blade tips move fast and make a rhythmic chopping sound. A vertical turbine's blades move more slowly for the same output, so what you hear is mostly wind noise rather than a beat.

  The manufacturer publishes no measured decibel figure for any model in the range, so we do not quote one. What we can tell you is that verticals are what people choose for suburban blocks, caravan parks and anywhere close to neighbours, and that is the reason.

  Any turbine gets louder as the wind picks up, and mount height and clean air matter more than anything in a brochure.

• Will the turbine spin in a light breeze?

  It will turn, but turning is not charging. The blades start moving at about 2 m/s — a light breeze — and the verticals are quickest off the mark.

  Charging starts once the wind clears the cut-in speed, about 3 m/s (roughly 11 km/h) across the range. Output then climbs steeply with wind speed. The rated figure on each model is measured at 10 to 12 m/s depending on the machine — a 36 to 43 km/h wind, not a normal afternoon.

  So a gentle breeze keeps the turbine ticking over; it takes real wind to push real power into your batteries. Every horizontal model has its measured power curve published on its product page — work from that, not from the number in the product name.

• Why is my turbine showing low voltage?

  It is almost always one of three installation issues. Check them in order.

  1. The multimeter is set to DC — the most common mistake.

  • The issue: measuring the three turbine wires with the meter set to DC volts.
  • The reality: wind turbines generate 3-phase AC directly from the stator.
  • The fix: switch the meter to AC volts (V~). Testing on DC gives a false reading near zero.

  2. The turbine is stalling because of a short.

  • The issue: the blades turn heavily and slowly, or lock up.
  • The reality: if any of the three AC output wires touch each other, or the controller's braking diodes have short-circuited, it acts as a magnetic brake — the turbine can never spin fast enough to build voltage.
  • The fix: disconnect the turbine from the controller. If it frees up and spins much faster, the problem is a short in the wiring or a faulty controller.

  3. Voltage drop from thin cable.

  • The issue: thin wire run a long way from the tower to the battery shed.
  • The reality: thin solar or automotive cable over 20 metres or more loses the power as heat before it reaches the controller.
  • The fix: use heavy cable on long runs — minimum 8 AWG, ideally 6 AWG. Final sizing is your electrician's call.
• What are the wiring and installation requirements?

  This turbine generates 3-phase AC power and cannot be connected directly to a battery, a solar controller or a home inverter. It must run through a dedicated wind/solar hybrid MPPT controller with an integrated dump load resistor. The dump load stops the turbine over-speeding and destroying itself in high winds once your batteries are full.

  Installation and commissioning must be carried out by a suitably qualified and licensed electrician. Cable, breakers, isolators and all protective devices are selected to suit your site and are the electrician's call, not ours.

• Why is my turbine not showing its rated wattage on the screen?

  Because the number in the name is a peak rating, not a promise.

  A turbine's rated output is measured at a specific wind speed — 10 to 12 m/s for these models, which is 36 to 43 km/h — and most sites see far less than that most of the time. Your display shows what the wind is delivering right now, so it will sit well below the rated figure and move second by second as the wind changes. That is physics, not a fault.

  As an example, the L2-2500 is rated 2,500 W at 11 m/s. On a decent steady coastal breeze of 7 m/s the manufacturer's own curve gives about 640 W. That is the honest picture, and it is why we publish the full power curve on every horizontal turbine's product page.

  Where these machines earn their keep is time: they keep charging through the night and through the weather that shuts solar down. If the display shows 0 W while the blades are spinning, that is a different problem — see the 0 W question.

• Do I have to connect my turbine to a battery?

  Yes — connect the turbine to a battery bank first, through a dedicated charge controller, never straight to an inverter. Connecting a wind turbine directly to a standard inverter will damage the equipment or cause the system to fail.

  The correct order:

  1. Wind turbine — generates wild, fluctuating 3-phase AC as the wind changes.
  2. Hybrid or wind charge controller — converts it to steady DC, and protects the turbine from over-speeding with an electronic brake.
  3. Battery bank (12V/24V/48V) — absorbs the gusts and provides a steady source of energy.
  4. Off-grid inverter — connects to the battery, converting stored DC into AC for your appliances.

  Why you cannot skip the battery:

  • Unstable voltage: wind changes second by second. Without a battery to smooth it out, a direct-connected inverter would constantly cut out.
  • Turbine damage: with no battery, the turbine loses its load. Without that resistance the blades can spin out of control in high wind and destroy the unit. The controller uses the battery connection to dump excess power and slow it down.