Wind Turbine Payback in Madison County, TX
Wind turbine payback in Madison 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 Madison County, TX averages 4.35 m/s (9.7 mph). A 10 kW turbine there would make about 8,460 kWh a year, worth $1,356 at TX's 16.03¢/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 Madison County
A home turbine is not worth buying for savings in Madison County unless your spot is far windier than the county average, 7.6 m/s at the hub against 4.35 m/s here. Per kW, solar panels would make about 1,358 kWh a year here against the turbine's 846, so get a solar quote first.
What would have to change
- Power would have to cost 59¢/kWh, 3.7 times what TX pays now.
- Or the average wind at the hub would have to be 7.6 m/s instead of 4.35. A taller tower or an exposed ridge can add some of that; a rooftop never will.
Against the rest of TX
Madison County is the 1,852nd windiest of 3,144 US counties at turbine height; the national middle is 4.79 m/s. The windiest in TX is Dallam County at 6.82 m/s, payback 24 years.
Month by month in Madison County
March is the strongest month here, at 4.94 m/s and about 1,032 kWh. August is the weakest, 3.51 m/s and 370 kWh, so the best month makes 2.8 times the worst. November to March brings in 52% of the year's output in Madison County.
| Month | Wind at 30 m | Output | Worth |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 4.72 m/s | 909 kWh | $146 |
| February | 4.89 m/s | 906 kWh | $145 |
| March | 4.94 m/s | 1,032 kWh | $165 |
| April | 5.00 m/s | 1,032 kWh | $165 |
| May | 4.54 m/s | 814 kWh | $130 |
| June | 3.87 m/s | 487 kWh | $78 |
| July | 3.55 m/s | 385 kWh | $62 |
| August | 3.51 m/s | 370 kWh | $59 |
| September | 3.66 m/s | 410 kWh | $66 |
| October | 4.25 m/s | 671 kWh | $108 |
| November | 4.63 m/s | 831 kWh | $133 |
| December | 4.70 m/s | 900 kWh | $144 |
What a taller tower would buy
Measured at 10 m the wind in Madison County averages 3.11 m/s; at 50 m it is 5.09 m/s. That gives a shear exponent of 0.306, typical of rough, sheltered ground: trees or buildings slow the low wind a lot. Going from 20 m to 50 m takes output from 5,826 to 13,146 kWh a year, 126% 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 | 3.85 m/s | 5,826 kWh | over 100 years |
| 30 m | 4.35 m/s | 8,480 kWh | 74 years |
| 40 m | 4.75 m/s | 10,916 kWh | 57 years |
| 50 m | 5.09 m/s | 13,146 kWh | 48 years |
Counties around Madison County
5 of the 6 closest counties are windier at turbine height; the windiest, Leon County, averages 5.43 m/s.
- Leon County, TX: 5.43 m/s, 15,534 kWh, payback 40 years (23 mi)
- Walker County, TX: 3.83 m/s, 5,753 kWh, payback over 100 years (26 mi)
- Grimes County, TX: 4.94 m/s, 12,132 kWh, payback 51 years (29 mi)
- Brazos County, TX: 4.94 m/s, 12,132 kWh, payback 51 years (31 mi)
- Robertson County, TX: 5.27 m/s, 14,397 kWh, payback 43 years (35 mi)
- Houston County, TX: 4.53 m/s, 9,519 kWh, payback 66 years (39 mi)
Sun versus wind in Madison County
Madison County gets 4.65 kWh of sunshine per square metre a day on average. One kW of solar panels here would make roughly 1,358 kWh a year; one kW of the turbine above makes 846. Kilowatt for kilowatt, panels make 1.6 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.