Wind Turbine Payback in Jefferson County, OH
Wind turbine payback in Jefferson 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 Jefferson County, OH averages 3.44 m/s (7.7 mph). A 10 kW turbine there would make about 4,094 kWh a year, worth $770 at OH's 18.81¢/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 Jefferson County
A home turbine is not worth buying for savings in Jefferson County unless your spot is far windier than the county average, 6.9 m/s at the hub against 3.44 m/s here. Per kW, solar panels would make about 1,098 kWh a year here against the turbine's 409, so get a solar quote first.
What would have to change
- Power would have to cost 122¢/kWh, 6.5 times what OH pays now.
- Or the average wind at the hub would have to be 6.9 m/s instead of 3.44. A taller tower or an exposed ridge can add some of that; a rooftop never will.
Against the rest of OH
Jefferson County is the 2,573rd windiest of 3,144 US counties at turbine height; the national middle is 4.79 m/s. The windiest in OH is Lake County at 6.53 m/s, payback 23 years.
Month by month in Jefferson County
January is the strongest month here, at 4.10 m/s and about 601 kWh. August is the weakest, 2.65 m/s and 142 kWh, so the best month makes 4.2 times the worst. November to March brings in 59% of the year's output in Jefferson County.
| Month | Wind at 30 m | Output | Worth |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 4.10 m/s | 601 kWh | $113 |
| February | 4.20 m/s | 585 kWh | $110 |
| March | 3.99 m/s | 556 kWh | $105 |
| April | 3.91 m/s | 506 kWh | $95 |
| May | 3.22 m/s | 280 kWh | $53 |
| June | 2.96 m/s | 203 kWh | $38 |
| July | 2.69 m/s | 151 kWh | $28 |
| August | 2.65 m/s | 142 kWh | $27 |
| September | 2.89 m/s | 187 kWh | $35 |
| October | 3.37 m/s | 326 kWh | $61 |
| November | 3.59 m/s | 385 kWh | $72 |
| December | 3.75 m/s | 459 kWh | $86 |
What a taller tower would buy
Measured at 10 m the wind in Jefferson County averages 2.11 m/s; at 50 m it is 4.31 m/s. That gives a shear exponent of 0.444, typical of rough, sheltered ground: trees or buildings slow the low wind a lot. Going from 20 m to 50 m takes output from 2,231 to 8,233 kWh a year, 269% 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 | 2.87 m/s | 2,231 kWh | over 100 years |
| 30 m | 3.44 m/s | 4,077 kWh | over 100 years |
| 40 m | 3.9 m/s | 6,102 kWh | 87 years |
| 50 m | 4.31 m/s | 8,233 kWh | 65 years |
Counties around Jefferson County
3 of the 6 closest counties are windier at turbine height; the windiest, Harrison County, averages 3.67 m/s.
- Hancock County, WV: 3.44 m/s, 4,094 kWh, payback over 100 years (13 mi)
- Brooke County, WV: 3.44 m/s, 4,094 kWh, payback over 100 years (13 mi)
- Harrison County, OH: 3.67 m/s, 5,034 kWh, payback over 100 years (19 mi)
- Carroll County, OH: 3.67 m/s, 5,034 kWh, payback over 100 years (21 mi)
- Ohio County, WV: 3.36 m/s, 3,794 kWh, payback over 100 years (22 mi)
- Columbiana County, OH: 3.55 m/s, 4,530 kWh, payback over 100 years (26 mi)
Sun versus wind in Jefferson County
Jefferson County gets 3.76 kWh of sunshine per square metre a day on average. One kW of solar panels here would make roughly 1,098 kWh a year; one kW of the turbine above makes 409. Kilowatt for kilowatt, panels make 2.7 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.