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Aren't there other ways to find out this information? Can't I just use the modeled data online? There are various other ways to calculate the power at your site but these are significantly more expensive and/or much less accurate and comprehensive. Various alternative solutions include expensive anemometers (in excess of £1000, and only measure wind) or a visit of a consultant (more expensive and doesn't take a long term picture). Modelled data alone cannot be relied upon as it does not consider local obstructions and is accurate only to a sq kilometre.
I know someone who had an installer come and calculate the potential of their site. Isn't that more reliable? Excluding the cost, which is likely to be several hundred pounds for a few hours of their time, this method is unlikely to take into account an ongoing analysis, as the Power Predictor does. For example, if the installer visits on a particularly windy day they may overestimate the wind power potential of your site or underestimate the solar power potential if it's overcast.
Isn't £149.50 expensive? This price is much cheaper than anything similar on the market - about a fifth of comparable devices - whilst providing a more comprehensive and easy to use solution. The cost include the sensor, the data recorder, and a twelve month software license to analyse your data at www.powerpredictor.com. With the Power Predictor you can unlock the potential of your site or avoid a costly mistake by spending thousands on renewable energy technology for an inappropriate site.
How is it so cheap? It has taken 2 years of research and development to get the cost this low. Our years of expertise in the wind and solar industries, offering independent advice of various third party solutions have placed us in a unique position to develop a low cost, highly accurate site assessment device.
Do I need planning permission? Is it an eyesore? You do not need planning permission to mount the Power Predictor as a temporary structure. It is a small device, no larger than a crow. Far from being an eyesore, many people see it as a positive lifestyle statement.
Does it take long to install? Often it can only take a few minutes to install your Power Predictor. If you are mounting it on a pole it may take longer.
I'm interested but I don't know anyone who can sell me a wind turbine or a solar panel? When you are ready to find out more about the technologies being installed at your site, simply click 'get quote now' and we will put you in touch with your local specialist installer. Could you tell me if the extension cable is needed ?
The extension cable is used to extend the length between the sensor (top of the anemometer) and the data logger (part where the data is recorded to). You need the sensor to be as high as possible, whereas the data logger needs to be easy to access in order to get the SD memory card out which contains the recorded data.
How long is the cable that's attached to the normal wind meter ?
The Power Predictor package includes 5m of cable, but if for example you wanted to put the Power Predictor on a 12m mast, the logger would be 7m in the air and thus difficult to access. This is why we offer the extension cable.
How high do you recommend that the meter is set on a pole ?
The best advice is to have the Power Predictor at a height that is similar to that of the hub height of an eventual turbine. For the best data, you need to get the Power Predictor above and beyond all turbulent objects such as hedges, trees or nearby buildings. Such objects would reduce wind speed and could cause shadowing for solar readings. You could use the wind shear formula (this is calculated automatically for different heights on the Power Predictor software) to estimate potential wind speed at different heights.
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You can access the raw data direct from the memory card however, the wind speed is in pulses rather than m/s and the solar needs to be converted to Watts / m2. If you upload your data onto www.powerpredictor.com there is a download feature that downloads your data to Excel with the conversions in place enabling you to analyse your own data.
The raw data file contains date and time, wind speed, wind direction, and solar.