Wind Turbine Payback in Stark County, OH
Wind turbine payback in Stark 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 Stark County, OH averages 4.24 m/s (9.5 mph). A 10 kW turbine there would make about 7,842 kWh a year, worth $1,475 at OH's 18.81¢/kWh. Against an installed cost of about $100,000, that is a payback of 68 years, and the turbine is built to last about 20.
What to do in Stark County
A home turbine is not worth buying for savings in Stark County unless your spot is far windier than the county average, 6.9 m/s at the hub against 4.24 m/s here. Per kW, solar panels would make about 1,110 kWh a year here against the turbine's 784, so get a solar quote first.
What would have to change
- Power would have to cost 64¢/kWh, 3.4 times what OH pays now.
- Or the average wind at the hub would have to be 6.9 m/s instead of 4.24. A taller tower or an exposed ridge can add some of that; a rooftop never will.
Against the rest of OH
Stark County is the 1,920th 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 Stark County
January is the strongest month here, at 5.12 m/s and about 1,135 kWh. August is the weakest, 3.27 m/s and 295 kWh, so the best month makes 3.8 times the worst. November to March brings in 58% of the year's output in Stark County.
| Month | Wind at 30 m | Output | Worth |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 5.12 m/s | 1,135 kWh | $213 |
| February | 5.09 m/s | 1,007 kWh | $189 |
| March | 4.84 m/s | 972 kWh | $183 |
| April | 4.78 m/s | 909 kWh | $171 |
| May | 3.97 m/s | 546 kWh | $103 |
| June | 3.66 m/s | 410 kWh | $77 |
| July | 3.33 m/s | 313 kWh | $59 |
| August | 3.27 m/s | 295 kWh | $55 |
| September | 3.56 m/s | 375 kWh | $71 |
| October | 4.20 m/s | 650 kWh | $122 |
| November | 4.49 m/s | 763 kWh | $144 |
| December | 4.68 m/s | 885 kWh | $166 |
What a taller tower would buy
Measured at 10 m the wind in Stark County averages 2.92 m/s; at 50 m it is 5.04 m/s. That gives a shear exponent of 0.339, typical of rough, sheltered ground: trees or buildings slow the low wind a lot. Going from 20 m to 50 m takes output from 5,139 to 12,805 kWh a year, 149% 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 | 3.69 m/s | 5,139 kWh | over 100 years |
| 30 m | 4.24 m/s | 7,834 kWh | 68 years |
| 40 m | 4.67 m/s | 10,400 kWh | 51 years |
| 50 m | 5.04 m/s | 12,805 kWh | 42 years |
Counties around Stark County
1 of the 6 closest counties is windier at turbine height; the windiest, Wayne County, averages 5.65 m/s.
- Carroll County, OH: 3.67 m/s, 5,034 kWh, payback over 100 years (22 mi)
- Summit County, OH: 4.24 m/s, 7,842 kWh, payback 68 years (23 mi)
- Tuscarawas County, OH: 3.67 m/s, 5,034 kWh, payback over 100 years (26 mi)
- Portage County, OH: 4.24 m/s, 7,842 kWh, payback 68 years (26 mi)
- Wayne County, OH: 5.65 m/s, 17,126 kWh, payback 31 years (27 mi)
- Columbiana County, OH: 3.55 m/s, 4,530 kWh, payback over 100 years (31 mi)
Sun versus wind in Stark County
Stark County gets 3.8 kWh of sunshine per square metre a day on average. One kW of solar panels here would make roughly 1,110 kWh a year; one kW of the turbine above makes 784. Kilowatt for kilowatt, panels make 1.4 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.