MARK WAITE / PVT Mike Reeder and other workers at E-Z Wind and Solar, lifted up the first wind turbine behind a home on Vanguard Street Friday. Advertisement

Pahrump could soon be looking a little like Holland, with its famous windmills, if a local company proves successful, though this kind of windmill has a high-tech look.

A start-up company, E-Z Wind and Solar, held it's "big uprising" Friday, lifting up a wind turbine with a mast 33-1/2 feet tall and curved turbine blades 18 inches in diameter set to swing in the wind.

The morning of the big event it was calm. But true to form on most desert afternoons, the wind picked up later in the day with gusts well above 10 mph.

Local welder Mike Reeder was doing some of the hands-on installation work during the first job at 3570 S. Vanguard St. He researched the idea of alternative energy together with company CEO Sue Zink after hearing people complain about wanting to reduce high monthly power bills of as much as $400-600.

"This is a good way to do it. We have wind here every day," Reeder said.

Michael Belcher, the technical specialist, and Reeder got on the Internet and found out there were training sessions they attended.

Reeder claims the Skystream 3.7 wind turbine will cover, on average, 85 percent of the power needs for a home at a cost of $15,000 installed. He explained the name means "when the winds blowing like a banshee it's putting out 3.7 kilowatts."

"The company that makes these has been in business 20-something years. They have some pretty good electrical engineers working for them and they really worked a lot on this system," Reeder said.

A homeowner can claim a $2,500 tax credit the first year, then can list depreciation for 36 months, he said.

"We've got a lot of interest. We've got people who've been asking from as far away as Elko and Laughlin," Reeder said.

The turbines were designed by NASA and don't generate a lot of noise, he said.

The wind turbine doesn't have to be running 24 hours per day, seven days a week, either, Reeder said. Homeowners can monitor the watts being put out by personal computer, Reeder explained. If the wind turbine is generating 1.8 kilowatts, "That means you got a little teeny wind." At 2.5 kilowatts it's a moderate wind; if the turbine is generating 3.5 kilowatts, he said, "It's blowing pretty stiff."

So the name says E-Z Wind and Solar. What about solar power? Nevada has been described as "the Saudi Arabia of renewable power."

"Equipment in solar cells start losing efficiency when they get over 77 degrees Fahrenheit," Reeder said. "So the hotter it gets, the less efficient they are. You have to have more of them to make up for the loss."

He added, "Batteries don't last in the heat. We prefer this system because it hooks up directly. There is no battery. The only battery is on the remote control."

While he's pushing the wind power side of it, Reeder said the company can hook up a hybrid system of wind and solar power.

A company in Las Vegas specializes in selling solar equipment. Reeder said it's selling extra solar panels to customers to make up for the lack of efficiency at higher temperatures. Those systems are more expensive than wind turbines, he said.

Valley Electric Association is behind the Vanguard Street project, Reeder said. In fact, his company will be installing a demonstration wind turbine at Rosemary Clarke Middle School.

"They're behind us 100 percent because once we explain that we got cutting edge technology and their engineers had a chance to review it, they were really impressed with the quality of the machine and it's totally compatible with the grid system they use," Reeder said.

Utilities like VEA are also under mandates to begin using a certain percentage of renewable energy in coming years, he said.

While a proposal to erect a series of wind turbines on hills around Pahrump Valley was withdrawn after public protest over aesthetics back in 2000, a company like E-Z Wind and Solar may make a dent in the politically correct renewable energy issue one backyard at a time.

None of the neighbors have complained, Reeder said, and no special planning permits are required.

"It's going to definitely save a lot of people hundreds of dollars a month," Reeder said.

The company's phone number is 727-WIND.