I have been thinking of getting solar panels on my place for a while now. It just seems like a great investment. Put a couple of solar panels and then stop paying your electric bill. And in some cases the electric company starts paying you for energy!!! The one downfall to this is that solar panels are pretty expensive so that initial investment puts a hurt on the wallet.

It was in researching these that I stumbled upon this company called PacWind. Their whole idea is to bring wind power to the public. Now I knew wind power was becoming more popular but I always pictured it out in the middle of nowhere on giant white posts. I live in the city and the thought of one of those in my backyard did not seem all that convenient.

What PacWind has done is invent a small wind turbine that can really be used by anyone for almost anything. What they invented (and is now in full production) is what they call Vertical Axis Wind Turbines (VAWTs) and are supposed to be completely silent, stable, and safe in wind conditions up to 100+ mph. They are also supposed to be completely bird friendly too.

The smallest turbine they have is the Seahawk which is about 30 inches wide and 48 inches tall with a price tag of about $3,000. PacWind says the Seahawk has a power output of 1 Kilowatt and a maximum power output of 3.4 Kilowatts.