Wind Turbine Payback in Hancock County, KY
Wind turbine payback in Hancock 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 Hancock County, KY averages 4.53 m/s (10.1 mph). A 10 kW turbine there would make about 9,519 kWh a year, worth $1,352 at KY's 14.2¢/kWh. Against an installed cost of about $100,000, that is a payback of 74 years, and the turbine is built to last about 20.
What to do in Hancock County
A home turbine is not worth buying for savings in Hancock County unless your spot is far windier than the county average, 8.2 m/s at the hub against 4.53 m/s here. Per kW, solar panels would make about 1,215 kWh a year here against the turbine's 952, so get a solar quote first.
What would have to change
- Power would have to cost 53¢/kWh, 3.7 times what KY pays now.
- Or the average wind at the hub would have to be 8.2 m/s instead of 4.53. A taller tower or an exposed ridge can add some of that; a rooftop never will.
Against the rest of KY
Hancock County is the 1,731st windiest of 3,144 US counties at turbine height; the national middle is 4.79 m/s. The windiest in KY is Fulton County at 5.54 m/s, payback 43 years.
Month by month in Hancock County
March is the strongest month here, at 5.31 m/s and about 1,247 kWh. July is the weakest, 3.34 m/s and 317 kWh, so the best month makes 3.9 times the worst. November to March brings in 56% of the year's output in Hancock County.
| Month | Wind at 30 m | Output | Worth |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 5.25 m/s | 1,211 kWh | $172 |
| February | 5.26 m/s | 1,098 kWh | $156 |
| March | 5.31 m/s | 1,247 kWh | $177 |
| April | 5.36 m/s | 1,236 kWh | $176 |
| May | 4.45 m/s | 768 kWh | $109 |
| June | 3.78 m/s | 453 kWh | $64 |
| July | 3.34 m/s | 317 kWh | $45 |
| August | 3.35 m/s | 320 kWh | $45 |
| September | 3.77 m/s | 450 kWh | $64 |
| October | 4.54 m/s | 816 kWh | $116 |
| November | 4.93 m/s | 990 kWh | $141 |
| December | 4.99 m/s | 1,057 kWh | $150 |
What a taller tower would buy
Measured at 10 m the wind in Hancock County averages 3.2 m/s; at 50 m it is 5.32 m/s. That gives a shear exponent of 0.316, typical of rough, sheltered ground: trees or buildings slow the low wind a lot. Going from 20 m to 50 m takes output from 6,490 to 14,750 kWh a year, 127% 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 | 3.98 m/s | 6,490 kWh | over 100 years |
| 30 m | 4.53 m/s | 9,501 kWh | 74 years |
| 40 m | 4.96 m/s | 12,251 kWh | 58 years |
| 50 m | 5.32 m/s | 14,750 kWh | 48 years |
Counties around Hancock County
1 of the 6 closest counties is windier at turbine height; the windiest, Warrick County, averages 5.42 m/s.
- Spencer County, IN: 4.53 m/s, 9,519 kWh, payback 62 years (17 mi)
- Daviess County, KY: 4.35 m/s, 8,460 kWh, payback 83 years (18 mi)
- Perry County, IN: 4.53 m/s, 9,519 kWh, payback 62 years (19 mi)
- Breckinridge County, KY: 3.63 m/s, 4,862 kWh, payback over 100 years (20 mi)
- Ohio County, KY: 4.35 m/s, 8,460 kWh, payback 83 years (25 mi)
- Warrick County, IN: 5.42 m/s, 15,462 kWh, payback 38 years (31 mi)
Sun versus wind in Hancock County
Hancock County gets 4.16 kWh of sunshine per square metre a day on average. One kW of solar panels here would make roughly 1,215 kWh a year; one kW of the turbine above makes 952. Kilowatt for kilowatt, panels make 1.3 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.