At 75 years old, Howard Ovist is looking to the future by becoming the first person in Beloit to install a wind turbine on a home.

Ovist began building the 4-foot-tall wind turbine himself two months ago. It was set to be installed on his roof Friday.

The wind turbine will be used to charge 6-volt batteries. The batteries power a generator, which Ovist has wired to the basement lights, refrigerator and microwave.

The basement has no windows, so Ovist wanted to make sure there would be light if the electricity went out. Plus, food and hot coffee would be essential.

“You can’t live without hot coffee,” Ovist joked.

Since Ovist’s wife is in a wheelchair, he hopes the batteries charged by the wind turbine can also power her wheelchair lift.

Ovist first became curious about wind turbines went he built a small model turbine in 1978.

Ever since then, anyone who saw the model encouraged Ovist to build a big one. He finally decided this year to do it.

The aluminum blades are surrounded by a wooden base and top. The blades were done by Jerome Sheet Metal Shop in South Beloit, Ill.

Ovist, who can walk with a walker but also uses a wheelchair, has friends who have helped with the project. He’ll also have help when the time comes to install it on the roof.

Although some neighbors were concerned about the noise of the wind turbine, a simple test shows just how quiet it is.

The turbine barely made any sound at all as Ovist demonstrated by blowing a steady stream of air into the blades, setting them in motion.

Because the city had never dealt with anything like this before, Ovist had to get a conditional use permit approved by the Beloit City Council. He got that approval Monday night.

Before Ovist came to the city with his wind turbine proposal, the city was looking into a wind energy ordinance, said community planner Drew Pennington. But Ovist’s project has really set the wheels in motion, and an ordinance will probably be set by the end of the year.

The city is expecting, and hoping, to see more residents looking into alternative energy sources for their homes.

“It certainly is something that is on the horizon as concerns of our climate change kind of enter the mainstream and utility costs continue to increase,” Pennington said.

As applied to wind energy, the ordinance will include standards designed to protect public health and safety, which is all the city can regulate.

State law prohibits municipalities from regulating the physical appearance of such alternative energy devices.

The standards will include height, placement or setbacks, sound and any other factors that involve safety or health.

Solar energy is also up for consideration, and the city may begin to look at an ordinance for other forms of alternative energy, but Pennington said those forms are still a ways off.