Skystream 3.7™ was designed from the start to be easily installed on a variety of sites to provide affordable residential wind energy. Your Skystream dealer can help you with all the details.

Depending on your site needs, Skystream can be mounted on several different tower types—as long as they meet our tower load specifications and are certified by a Professional Engineer (PE). While many owners choose a guyless monopole tower, others find that the affordability of a guyed tower or latticed tower better meets their needs.

Foundation Drawing—Pier

Foundation Drawing—Mat

PE Stamped Drawings (PDF)  Select State Arizona California Colorado Deleware Georgia Idaho Indiana Kansas Kentucky Maryland Maine Michigan Minnesota Missouri Mississippi Montana North Carolina North Dakota New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico Nevada New York Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Texas Utah Virginia Vermont Washington Wyoming

The first step is to re-confirm that you do not have any significant barriers to the installation of your Skystream 3.7 wind generator. There are two important factors. They include:

1. Local planning and zoning ordinances that may prohibit the use of a structure in your neighborhood.
2. The interconnections of your Skystream to your utility

Once you have confirmed there are no problems, the second step is to develop a detailed site plan in preparation for obtaining your building permit(s).

• Develop a detailed site plan to ensure the best location for the Skystream 3.7
• Develop electrical drawings for your system.
• Organize professional engineered (PE) drawings for the tower.

Smooth clean wind will offer you the best performance from your Skystream wind generator. Most important to your installation is to place your system on the highest hill away from trees, buildings or other objects that may create turbulence in the wind. The general rule is:

“Place your wind generator in a location that is 250'(76M) away from any surrounding object.” If this is not possible then make sure the prevailing wind direction that is “upwind” from the tower is as clear as possible.

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If you live within the city limits, you will probably need to work with officials at your local City Hall. If you live outside the city, then it is likely you will work with county officials. Make that determination and then contact them. A personal visit is recommended to begin a positive relationship with the official. When you tell them you intend to install a wind generator, most will think of very large machines or other designs that often require very high towers.

During your visit, present several color copies of the Skystream 3.7 specification sheet and explain that this is a residential wind generator which uses entirely new technology designed to operate silently on relatively short towers. Your objective is to have them convinced from the start. Without question, this will make the process considerably easier. Check on any HOA (Home Owner Association) restrictions that may prohibit the installation of your wind generator.

At this point, one of two situations will be evident:

1. There are no restrictions to the installation of the Skystream 3.7 and you can proceed to communicating with your utility
2. The local city or county office will require that you go through a public hearing

The next step will be to contact your local utility and request an “interconnection agreement.” All utilities are required to allow you to connect to the electrical grid. Some however, are friendly to this and have a simple procedure ready to go while others can be resistant to the idea.

On your electrical bill you should find a customer service number. Give them a call and ask for a person or department in charge of hooking up generators (any kind) to the electrical grid. This will likely be within the engineering department. Depending on the size of your utility, it may take a few phone calls to reach the right person.

When you find the right person, let them know what you are doing. Explain that you will be installing a 1.8 kilowatt wind generator at your house and would like to receive any documentation and/or procedure to connect. Be sure to request two copies. The second copy is for Southwest Windpower. If the utility sounds resistant on the phone, simply request a copy of their interconnection procedure. If they do not have one, then contact us. We can provide a sample copy of one. Depending on the type of utility and state regulations, it is possible we can negotiate with the resistant utility on your behalf. This may take time but in the end, it is worth the effort.

Before your proceed, you should have:

• Copy of your city/county ordinance regarding the installation of a small wind generator and/or tower
• Building permit along with copies of drawings
• Interconnection application and procedure from the utility

With all your documents in hand, you now must follow the guidelines spelled out in the various city and/or county and utility interconnect applications. Most building permits require the same information and it is important to have all your documents organized to minimize the amount of work that goes into writing your application.