Could we generate our own power?

Embrace micro-generation (small-scale, home-based, renewable-energy technology that powers your house) andyou'll get decades' worth of clean, green power, freedom from the tyrannies of a global energy supply chain, and be granted immunity from thehigh electricity bills expected in the near future (remember, the era of cheap power is over).

Turning your home into a powerhouse not only slashes the volume of CO2 belched out by fossil-fuel-powered plants, but it is the efficient option. However, you still can't march into a DIY store and pick up a solar thermal pack or turbine and install it over the weekend; only 100,000 households in the UK currently have any form of micro-generation and the domestic grant situation is confusing - the current Clear Skies programme (www.clear-skies.org) will be replaced next month by a Low Carbon Building Programme Fund in April.

But despite these drawbacks, the new-generation mini-wind turbines on your rooftop suggest that the answer to the energy crisis - 30 percent of our generating capacity will be lost over the next 15 years - can be found blowing in the wind. The Swift Rooftop Wind Energy System(www.renewabledevices.com) is just 2m in diameter and produces 1.5kWh of energy every time it turns. It costs per watt to install, and has a payback time of eight years; but look out for the 1.6m diameter model, due out this spring at around £1,300. The Windsave (www.windsave.com) is a little more grounded, requiring a pole and plinth, but the manufacturers estimate that it can save

33 per cent of your annual electricity costs. It's £995 plus ethical VAT (5 per cent) and installation costs. The payback time is five years. As for the praise that was once heaped on solar photovoltaics, which have proved to be expensive and tricky, that now goes to Combined Heat and Power Units (CHP). They work by capturing the steam which comes from the boiler and using it to drive a turbine which then produces electricity. To find a good one, try the Combined Heat and Power Association (www.chpa.org.uk) or keep an eye out for the popular Powergen Whispergen units (www.powergen.co.uk; 0800 068 6515). The first 400 were snapped up like hot cakes. At around £3,000 they are more expensive than a high-performance boiler, but will cut energy bills by £120-£150 a year depending and have a reduced VAT rate of 5 per cent. You can also get reduced VAT rates on wood-fuelled boilers (www.carbon trust.co.uk) and grants to install geothermal heating (see www.micropower.co.uk).

The Energy Saving Trust (www.est.org.uk) says that by 2050, microgeneration could provide 30 to 40 per cent of our total electricity needs, more if we cut our profligate power use. This is key. Five per cent of domestic consumption is still attributed to appliances left on standby. Turn down your thermostat by one degree and you'll save around 235kg of CO2 emitted into the atmosphere. These are tiny actions that all make microgeneration feasible. Finally, there's a sniff of revolution in the air. Of course, if you already have a rooftop turbine, you'll know all about revolutions - they're powering your kettle★

lucy.siegle@observer.co.uk