FAQs - common myths about wind power

Proven Energy wind turbines do not affect animals at all. We have turbines on livestock and poultry farms, in wildlife parks, nature reserves as well as in equestrian centres.

What happens when it is not windy?

If your turbine is battery connected, power is stored in the battery which you can use when there is no wind. If your turbine is grid connected and you sell excess power to the grid, when there is no wind, your power will come from the grid.

What happens if there are extremely high winds?

In extremely high winds the turbines keep operating due to their unique design. The original patented blade design means in high winds the blades cone out of the wind. This reduces the surface area exposed to the wind and stops the turbine from over producing; as the speed of the blades pick up, they twist and change angle. This twisting allows the blades to stall the speed enough to prevent the turbine overspeeding. Once the wind decreases, the blades open back out and return to an angle that doesn’t stall. This means that even in the strongest winds the turbines will continue to produce the maximum power without stopping.

Are the turbines noisy?

No, our turbines don't use a gearbox, the blades rotate at a relatively slow rpm and the blade aerodynamics all contribute to ensure the turbines are quiet in operation.

Do turbines kill birds?

Bird strikes do happen very rarely. We take care to site turbines away from bird feeders and nests as well as to identify migratory flight-paths where appropriate. The turbines rotate at a slow rpm and our black blades can be detected by birds from several hundred meters – allowing them to adjust their course appropriately. Vehicles, building windows and natural predators kill millions more birds per year than are killed or injured by wind turbines.