Wind Turbine Payback in Adams County, CO
Wind turbine payback in Adams County
No. The turbine wears out before it pays for itself.
At 30 m, the height a home turbine tower usually reaches, the wind in Adams County, CO averages 4.87 m/s (10.9 mph). A 10 kW turbine there would make about 11,668 kWh a year, worth $1,960 at CO's 16.8¢/kWh. Against an installed cost of about $100,000, that is a payback of 51 years, and the turbine is built to last about 20.
What to do in Adams County
A home turbine is not worth buying for savings in Adams County unless your spot is far windier than the county average, 7.4 m/s at the hub against 4.87 m/s here. Per kW, solar panels would make about 1,416 kWh a year here against the turbine's 1,167, so get a solar quote first.
What would have to change
- Power would have to cost 43¢/kWh, 2.6 times what CO pays now.
- Or the average wind at the hub would have to be 7.4 m/s instead of 4.87. A taller tower or an exposed ridge can add some of that; a rooftop never will.
Against the rest of CO
Adams County is the 1,524th windiest of 3,144 US counties at turbine height; the national middle is 4.79 m/s. The windiest in CO is Baca County at 6.65 m/s, payback 24 years.
Month by month in Adams County
April is the strongest month here, at 5.52 m/s and about 1,327 kWh. July is the weakest, 4.33 m/s and 707 kWh, so the best month makes 1.9 times the worst. November to March brings in 46% of the year's output in Adams County.
| Month | Wind at 30 m | Output | Worth |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 5.08 m/s | 1,113 kWh | $187 |
| February | 5.06 m/s | 991 kWh | $166 |
| March | 5.35 m/s | 1,269 kWh | $213 |
| April | 5.52 m/s | 1,327 kWh | $223 |
| May | 4.74 m/s | 919 kWh | $154 |
| June | 4.63 m/s | 830 kWh | $139 |
| July | 4.33 m/s | 707 kWh | $119 |
| August | 4.36 m/s | 724 kWh | $122 |
| September | 4.63 m/s | 835 kWh | $140 |
| October | 4.90 m/s | 1,007 kWh | $169 |
| November | 4.98 m/s | 1,018 kWh | $171 |
| December | 4.86 m/s | 987 kWh | $166 |
What a taller tower would buy
Measured at 10 m the wind in Adams County averages 3.71 m/s; at 50 m it is 5.53 m/s. That gives a shear exponent of 0.248, typical of ordinary open country. Going from 20 m to 50 m takes output from 8,783 to 16,254 kWh a year, 85% more, before counting the extra cost of the taller tower. Why tower height decides it explains the shear behind these numbers.
| Hub height | Average wind | Output | Payback |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20 m | 4.41 m/s | 8,783 kWh | 68 years |
| 30 m | 4.87 m/s | 11,682 kWh | 51 years |
| 40 m | 5.23 m/s | 14,132 kWh | 42 years |
| 50 m | 5.53 m/s | 16,254 kWh | 37 years |
Counties around Adams County
4 of the 6 closest counties are windier at turbine height; the windiest, Arapahoe County, averages 5.42 m/s.
- Arapahoe County, CO: 5.42 m/s, 15,462 kWh, payback 39 years (16 mi)
- Denver County, CO: 4.76 m/s, 10,954 kWh, payback 54 years (30 mi)
- Morgan County, CO: 5.37 m/s, 15,105 kWh, payback 39 years (38 mi)
- Broomfield County, CO: 4.76 m/s, 10,954 kWh, payback 54 years (38 mi)
- Elbert County, CO: 5.42 m/s, 15,462 kWh, payback 39 years (40 mi)
- Weld County, CO: 4.95 m/s, 12,199 kWh, payback 49 years (47 mi)
Sun versus wind in Adams County
Adams County gets 4.85 kWh of sunshine per square metre a day on average. One kW of solar panels here would make roughly 1,416 kWh a year; one kW of the turbine above makes 1,167. Kilowatt for kilowatt, panels make 1.2 times as much here as the turbine. Panel output assumes an 80% system performance ratio. Wind or solar runs the same comparison for every county.
How this is worked out
Wind is NASA's Power climate record, the 2001-2025 average at 10 m and 50 m for the county's centre, carried to 30 m with this county's own measured wind shear and spread into hours with a Rayleigh distribution. The turbine is a generic 10 kW, 7 m rotor machine with 10% losses. Cost is $10,000 per kW installed with no tax credit, because the federal one ended in 2025. One county-centre number cannot see your hilltop or your tree line, so treat it as the starting point for a site survey, not a substitute. The full method and its weak spots are in how the numbers are made.