With the overall power crunch facing the nation, people are looking for alternative power sources, including wind and solar.

Now, I’m no rocket scientist, but I know a screwdriver from a crescent wrench.  And that’s about all the technical skill you need to build your own wind turbine.

My father’s best friend recently had a company come install solar and wind generators at his house. Granted, his house is a mansion, but the cost was in the tens of thousands of dollars. He will eventually recover the costs, though….his meter is actually running backwards, and the power company is paying him for the extra energy. Seriously…that’s crazy!

I had given up the idea of doing something myself because of how I was going about it. I was shopping for pre-fabricated kits and alot of fancy electronics. Then I found these plans, and learned that I could actually pay around $175 for the raw materials and make something that will actually help power my house. It’s awesome.

If you are at all handy and want to consider building your own wind or solar generator, you should check out the plans. Or you could visit: http://www.squidoo.com/home-made-wind-power for some more ideas.