A Chembur resident has installed a windmill and solar panels on his terrace
Ride the wind to gain on power……….Shwetaa Karnik
After years of being caught between load shedding and high electricity bills, Chembur resident Dr Ashok Keni has found an economical and environment-friendly way to generate power on his own terrace, courtesy the wind and the sun.
A few months ago, Keni installed eight solar panels and a windmill which produce photovoltaic panels for light generation and water-heating systems. A combination of a windmill and a solar panel is very effective. If the day is hot and sunny, the solar panels generate electricity. And if it is cloudy and stormy, the windmill carries the load, he said, adding that, he was inspired by a similar unit installed atop a bungalow at Lonavala.
After an initial investment of around Rs2 lakh, Keni is now able to generate enough power to meet the requirements of his plush 5,000 sq ft bungalow. I bought the windmill for Rs25,000 and spent around Rs65,000 for the eight solar panels. The batteries, invertors and turbines required to run the panels were also quite expensive. But I dont regret spending a single paisa, he said.
And thats not all, with the use of renewable energy, the familys electricity bill has reduced by nearly 40 per cent. Earlier our monthly bill was around Rs10,000. But now it has come down by Rs4,000, which is a considerable amount.
However, Keni now wants to be completely self-reliant and is planning an additional investment of Rs1.8 lakh to install a better equipped plant. A friend suggested that I should install 32 solar panels as it will help generate more electricity to fulfill my requirements. I am currently in talks with Super Nova, a Gujarat-based company which supplies these equipment, said Keni, adding that, setting up the whole plant from scratch would cost him around Rs8-10 lakh. But since I have the basic machinery I can get the panels for Rs1.8 lakh.
Talking about how efficient it is to install both the solar panels and the windmill, he said, If the wind turbines do not work, electricity continues to be generated from the solar panels. And since my house is located next to the golf club, there arent any other constructions that block the movement of air.
When asked whether any of his friends had also set up their own units, Kini said, People appreciate the concept but when they hear about the investment they take a step back.