Wind Turbine Payback in Addison County, VT
Wind turbine payback in Addison 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 Addison County, VT averages 3.43 m/s (7.7 mph). A 10 kW turbine there would make about 4,056 kWh a year, worth $971 at VT's 23.93¢/kWh. Against an installed cost of about $100,000, that is a payback of over 100 years, and the turbine is built to last about 20.
What to do in Addison County
A home turbine is not worth buying for savings in Addison County unless your spot is far windier than the county average, 6.2 m/s at the hub against 3.43 m/s here. Per kW, solar panels would make about 1,031 kWh a year here against the turbine's 406, so get a solar quote first.
What would have to change
- Power would have to cost 123¢/kWh, 5.2 times what VT pays now.
- Or the average wind at the hub would have to be 6.2 m/s instead of 3.43. A taller tower or an exposed ridge can add some of that; a rooftop never will.
Against the rest of VT
Addison County is the 2,587th windiest of 3,144 US counties at turbine height; the national middle is 4.79 m/s. The windiest in VT is Franklin County at 3.97 m/s, payback 65 years.
Month by month in Addison County
March is the strongest month here, at 4.12 m/s and about 609 kWh. August is the weakest, 2.75 m/s and 164 kWh, so the best month makes 3.7 times the worst. November to March brings in 57% of the year's output in Addison County.
| Month | Wind at 30 m | Output | Worth |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 3.89 m/s | 512 kWh | $123 |
| February | 4.12 m/s | 550 kWh | $132 |
| March | 4.12 m/s | 609 kWh | $146 |
| April | 3.90 m/s | 499 kWh | $119 |
| May | 3.31 m/s | 305 kWh | $73 |
| June | 2.95 m/s | 202 kWh | $48 |
| July | 2.77 m/s | 168 kWh | $40 |
| August | 2.75 m/s | 164 kWh | $39 |
| September | 2.95 m/s | 202 kWh | $48 |
| October | 3.32 m/s | 310 kWh | $74 |
| November | 3.50 m/s | 356 kWh | $85 |
| December | 3.61 m/s | 407 kWh | $97 |
What a taller tower would buy
Measured at 10 m the wind in Addison County averages 2.18 m/s; at 50 m it is 4.23 m/s. That gives a shear exponent of 0.412, typical of rough, sheltered ground: trees or buildings slow the low wind a lot. Going from 20 m to 50 m takes output from 2,314 to 7,787 kWh a year, 237% 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 | 2.9 m/s | 2,314 kWh | over 100 years |
| 30 m | 3.43 m/s | 4,045 kWh | over 100 years |
| 40 m | 3.86 m/s | 5,887 kWh | 71 years |
| 50 m | 4.23 m/s | 7,787 kWh | 54 years |
Counties around Addison County
5 of the 6 closest counties are windier at turbine height; the windiest, Chittenden County, averages 3.82 m/s.
- Rutland County, VT: 3.32 m/s, 3,648 kWh, payback over 100 years (29 mi)
- Chittenden County, VT: 3.82 m/s, 5,707 kWh, payback 73 years (30 mi)
- Washington County, VT: 3.55 m/s, 4,530 kWh, payback 92 years (31 mi)
- Essex County, NY: 3.61 m/s, 4,778 kWh, payback 72 years (32 mi)
- Orange County, VT: 3.55 m/s, 4,530 kWh, payback 92 years (38 mi)
- Windsor County, VT: 3.58 m/s, 4,653 kWh, payback 90 years (42 mi)
Sun versus wind in Addison County
Addison County gets 3.53 kWh of sunshine per square metre a day on average. One kW of solar panels here would make roughly 1,031 kWh a year; one kW of the turbine above makes 406. Kilowatt for kilowatt, panels make 2.5 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.