Wind Turbine Payback in Sarasota County, FL
Wind turbine payback in Sarasota 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 Sarasota County, FL averages 4.8 m/s (10.7 mph). A 10 kW turbine there would make about 11,212 kWh a year, worth $1,718 at FL's 15.32¢/kWh. Against an installed cost of about $100,000, that is a payback of 58 years, and the turbine is built to last about 20.
What to do in Sarasota County
A home turbine is not worth buying for savings in Sarasota County unless your spot is far windier than the county average, 7.8 m/s at the hub against 4.8 m/s here. Per kW, solar panels would make about 1,495 kWh a year here against the turbine's 1,121, so get a solar quote first.
What would have to change
- Power would have to cost 45¢/kWh, 2.9 times what FL pays now.
- Or the average wind at the hub would have to be 7.8 m/s instead of 4.8. A taller tower or an exposed ridge can add some of that; a rooftop never will.
Against the rest of FL
Sarasota County is the 1,563rd windiest of 3,144 US counties at turbine height; the national middle is 4.79 m/s. The windiest in FL is Brevard County at 5.62 m/s, payback 39 years.
Month by month in Sarasota County
January is the strongest month here, at 5.71 m/s and about 1,492 kWh. July is the weakest, 3.27 m/s and 294 kWh, so the best month makes 5.1 times the worst. November to March brings in 58% of the year's output in Sarasota County.
| Month | Wind at 30 m | Output | Worth |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 5.71 m/s | 1,492 kWh | $229 |
| February | 5.40 m/s | 1,176 kWh | $180 |
| March | 5.55 m/s | 1,394 kWh | $214 |
| April | 5.04 m/s | 1,051 kWh | $161 |
| May | 4.41 m/s | 748 kWh | $115 |
| June | 3.63 m/s | 401 kWh | $61 |
| July | 3.27 m/s | 294 kWh | $45 |
| August | 3.55 m/s | 384 kWh | $59 |
| September | 4.45 m/s | 742 kWh | $114 |
| October | 5.41 m/s | 1,308 kWh | $200 |
| November | 5.65 m/s | 1,411 kWh | $216 |
| December | 5.56 m/s | 1,400 kWh | $214 |
What a taller tower would buy
Measured at 10 m the wind in Sarasota County averages 4.17 m/s; at 50 m it is 5.13 m/s. That gives a shear exponent of 0.129, typical of very open, smooth ground where height adds little. Going from 20 m to 50 m takes output from 9,690 to 13,421 kWh a year, 39% 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 | 4.56 m/s | 9,690 kWh | 67 years |
| 30 m | 4.8 m/s | 11,230 kWh | 58 years |
| 40 m | 4.98 m/s | 12,430 kWh | 53 years |
| 50 m | 5.13 m/s | 13,421 kWh | 49 years |
Counties around Sarasota County
None of the 6 closest counties is windier than Sarasota County.
- Manatee County, FL: 4.66 m/s, 10,320 kWh, payback 63 years (17 mi)
- Charlotte County, FL: 4.34 m/s, 8,403 kWh, payback 78 years (34 mi)
- DeSoto County, FL: 4.34 m/s, 8,403 kWh, payback 78 years (38 mi)
- Hardee County, FL: 4.37 m/s, 8,575 kWh, payback 76 years (41 mi)
- Hillsborough County, FL: 4.66 m/s, 10,320 kWh, payback 63 years (46 mi)
- Pinellas County, FL: 4.66 m/s, 10,320 kWh, payback 63 years (52 mi)
Sun versus wind in Sarasota County
Sarasota County gets 5.12 kWh of sunshine per square metre a day on average. One kW of solar panels here would make roughly 1,495 kWh a year; one kW of the turbine above makes 1,121. 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.