Why I love living off the grid
I really feel passionately about living off the grid. Building our solar power system was a labor of love, and while it wasn’t always easy, it was definitely worth it. Here are a few reasons why.
Our sense of independence. If you’re like me, and I suspect you are because you’re reading this, you believe that it’s better to live on your own terms. My parents had a tremendous influence on me in this area. If they taught me one thing that really hit home, it was this: if you wanted something done you had to do it yourself. There were no safety nets in the real world, none that you would want anyway, and you had better be able to fend for yourself if you were going to make it.
My parents both worked and came home late every night. I was the oldest child and was expected to take care of myself from the age of 10 on to adulthood. Not only did they expect me to take care of myself, but I was expected to make dinner for the family on a regular basis. I probably grumbled at the time, but it taught me self-reliance. Now I know that I can do anything I set my mind to and I can do it, for the most part, on my own. Of course, I have family and friends to help, but I sure as heck don’t need the government or big business sticking their nose in my affairs.
Living off the grid appeals to that instinct. I know that, for better or worse, we are in charge of our energy consumption and production. We are master of our destiny in this home and we feel that others like you can do this with a little guidance.
Not worrying about blackouts, brownouts, and the smart grid. How much do you think those folks in New York and New Jersey would have given for their own power system after Hurricane Sandy? You think they wish they were off the grid right about now? We no longer have to worry about storms and blackouts now, and it’s an amazing feeling. Even if our solar and wind generator had been ripped to shreds, our batteries would have kept the lights on.
The sad part is that blackouts are becoming a routine occurrence even without storms and attacks. Our power grid is probably the oldest part of our entire infrastructure system and it would take decades and trillions of dollars to replace it. It’s a better bet to act locally and generate power with the stuff that is all around us every day.
And the scary thing is that the government thinks it’s doing us a favor by throwing this ‘smart grid’ at us. The smart grid is just a conspiracy to get the government further into your home by actually controlling your appliances. They’ll decide what you should run and when, they’ll do it without your permission. No, it’s best to just disconnect from that whole nightmare and go it on your own. I’ll show you how.
Not having a power bill is pretty nice. This one is pretty obvious so I won’t belabor it. But if you thought your power bills were high now, just wait until they make you pay for this smart grid nonsense. And cap and trade is coming, trust me. And that will send bills higher than you can possibly imagine, and force power companies into rationing.
Trust me friends, this is the way to go. I hope you’ve found the help you need to get there here in our program. Thanks for tuning in.
You guys need to get some wind generators and use solar cookers. International Sun Ovens are great and so are Go Sun. I use solar to,pump my well. But have the capability of pumping by hand if necessary. I keep a generator. Recoil start gens should always start. I also have extra solar panels, a wind generator, inverter and controllers in Faraday cages
I am 5 miles from the power lines and love it. I have 2 large gardens and grew our vegetables and have a greenhouse for cabbage, beets and tomatoes in the winter
Grew extra corn for the hens and goats this year. Will try some oats and wheat next year. I also keep are large dog and the gate locked and my .45 loaded. God Bless America
Been looking for land and still looking. The link in this post states “lots”, not ‘acrreage” which makes me think the realty company tried to convince the well heeled to build a new ‘suburban retreats’ that didn’t sell, If they are talking ‘lots’, it’s the word for ‘oversight coming down the road when we sell enough you’ll be part of an HOA or the county has building restrictions’. Got that tip from a realtor, so be sure what is being talked about when you look at buying.
search is easy at “landwatch dot com” check it out
I’m a Veteran of the Viet Nam era! My electronics education began there! The Internet is a real problem, especially with the Abomiination elected to the “White House”? With my disabilty and what I know, I’ll be having my home off of the grid, using solar and wind, , as soon as possible? I’ve been shopping on-line but American Express prepaid services will not even alllow a purchase?? Let’s get rid of the idiot in the White House! I’ll keep working! Being deaf-disable, the internet is my only methot to communicate!
We started with conservation. One of our first purchases when we bought our 1958 house was to replace single pane, drafty windows with tight fitting double pane windows. We couldn’t afford to replace patio doors so we installed tinted, reflective film on the glass. Next was a programmable thermostat. Then we put dual flush kits in each toilet. We also collect rainwater in cheep kiddie pool and, after filtering, store in two-leter juice bottles.
Is there much on power generation for northern states. Due to lack of significant sunlight in the winter, the ice cold weather and ground, what is there for electricity to live off the grid? Are there any cost effective hydrogen powered generators since the by-product is water so it can be enclosed? Gas, oil, propane would need huge tanks to last out the winter for traditional furnaces, stoves, generators. Heating and electrical generation requirements would be considerable for a major disaster.
In the northern part of San Francisco bay is Mare Island. It used to be inaccessible in the winter due to strong currents. Inhabitants would grow food all summer and store for the winter months. Like being in rural Alaska but you could see people trading/living normally across the water.
I have solar panels and I am currently on the grid using net metering. I would love to get off the grid but the research I have done is that the batteries are very expensive and they do not have a very long life. Please show me some information to the contrary if there is any. Thank you so much for all of your help.
suggest you look at calling a few lift truck repair shops. they change out those big batteries because they wont hold a charge to run the lift truck but lots of power for home use.. they are super heavy so have a way to put pipes down to roll them where you want them because they wont be moving LOL
Lead acid batteries are typically not good for off-grid electrical storage because they are not designed for deep cycling (drawing the power ‘way down between recharging). There are LA batteries that are designed for that, but they are expensive. And as you noted, they must be changed out frequently — they don’t last long.
Another option, also expensive (~150% of the equivalent LA cost), but a ONE-TIME expense, are NiFe (kickel-iron) batteries. They last about 100 years (some of Edison’s original cells are still functioning in Jay Leno’s electric cars), work when the temperature is freezing or lower, and need almost no maintenance.
You can get more information at nickel-iron-battery.com. I bought mine at IronEdison.com.
(I get no finders fee or any other compensation for this. I just think NiFe batteries are a much better choice than any LA battery.)
I concur with NiFe (Nickel Iron) battery use. I had a very large array of original Edison cells for my solar power/ I had 40 ED-160 cells in series, in parallel with 40 ED-80 cells in series. This gave me 240 Amp/Hr at nominal 48 VDC. In 2013, while I was away, thieves stole my solar panels, inverters, and battery bank. When they tried to sell the Edison cells, they were told that they would have to pay to dispose of them! The obscure nature of these cells prompted a call to the sheriffs office to report the sale attempt and helped to identify the perps. Prosecuters refused to prosecute and I never recovered my Edison cells, but at least I was able to identify those involved and let everyone in the community know. I put in a bank of 8 435 Amp/Hr 6V Trojan lead/acid batteries in series (48 volts) to get me by until I can save up the $17,000 it’s going to cost me to replace the stolen cells with the new chinese made NiFe cells. Another advantage of NiFe cells is you cannot damage your battery bank from overcharge or undercharge, they do not suffer from sulphation, and you can run them totally dead without damage. The effective Amp/Hr capacity is like 2 to 3 times the rating because unlike lead/acid batteries, you are not limited by depth of discharge limits to avoid damaging them! With my 435 Amp/Hr lead/acid 48 volt battery bank, I am not able to store as much daytime power for night use as I was able to with the 240 Amp/Hr of Edison Cells that I had. My homeowners insurance covered the theft but the payout was barely enough to cover replacing my inverters. I had to go back to work in 2015 to supplement my social security so I could replace my solar panels and buy the lead/acid batteries to get back on solar power. I had to use the federal solar credit on my taxes to offset the tax liabilities of going back to work! The stress of this whole mess caused a heart attack and now I am unable to work anymore. I’m concerned with losing my medicare now because I had to work last year to replace what was stolen. My homeowners insurance cancelled my personal property coverage, so if another theft occurs, I’m out of luck. I’ll stay home, shoot first and let GOD sort them out!
Hi Bob. I’m so sorry to hear of the sad things you went through. All it takes is one dirt bag to start things sliding down hill. I would love to have the NiFe batteries but find that I can get six years on my 48 volt Trojan golf cart battery bank. In my case, my 10.12 kW system is tied to the grid having regular Sunny Boy (grid tie) and Sunny Island (hybrid battery based) inverters for that and the battery bank so my batteries are on float at all times except when the grid drops out so they have a fairly long life span. I just replaced them early this year and probably could have gotten 10 years out of them if I would have kept up on them better by checking the water level in them more often. They bulk charge once a month which boils them so I need to top them up every three to six months. I hope things smooth out for you buddy.
Frank I have got a year supply of food plus . I love to hunt and fish for most of my food. I have a wood stove lined up for heat . And a hand pump on hand for water. Plus plenty of wood. I’m ready thanks for the ideas. Bob.
Kudos, Bob.
Yes for sure, what about EMP of any kind?? Invertors, charge controllers, and batteries are all at risk because of the components that make them. And will super capacitors be better than deep cycle batteries??? Batteries will start failing after 8 to 10 years, capacitors will last longer and don’t build up a memory as quickly.
I’ve been around but, I won’t try to impress with great stories. You need good info for making things happen. In that thought here is what I’ve done. I don’t have much disposable income so when an idea comes I can’t act on it unless I already have materials on hand. Tracker Supply, Lowes and Home Depot is out of my budget. So, when I get some extra money and time I travel across town and buy steel at a steel distributor. It’s cheaper in the scrap yard so I look there first. I just buy various shapes that are good to keep on hand. Eventually, I used them. This may sound unimportant but, please understand I have saved the day and been a keen inventor of labor saving devices by having a source on hand. I’m just saying think differently about how you budget. If living independently is in your DNA then this is just good inventory to keep on hand.
I have a question about switching to solar power. Would an EMP ruin all the battery systems for solar. If so, is it really worth the cost of converting considering that an EMP is a realistic threat?
OK, so the deal with EMP is this: EMPs kill everything with an active circuit. Lithium batteries always hold a charge, even when not in use, so they’d be dead. Lead Acid batteries, like the deep cell marine batteries we recommend would, likely, be fine unless they were currently hooked up and in use. What you really want, if you are worried about EMPs, are solar panels and batteries built and ready to go, but not in use. They would survive an EMP hit just fine so long as the circuit is open during the strike. You want a car that will work after an EMP. Get an older model truck, leave in the garage with the battery out of it. It’ll be good to go when everyone else is dead in the water.
Hi Frank!! Would an off the grid home be able to get their wind power back up and running after an EMP attack? also do you think it wise to keep one wind turbine stored just in case? Thank You Frank!!
Frank
Excellent advice. When I bought my new solar panels last year to replace what was stolen, I bought twice as many as I needed and put the rest in storage inside of a metal garage set up as a Faraday cage. I keep a spare car in there as well as fuel for the car and tractor. Anything connected will get fried by EMP so I bought a spare for my inverter as well. As I mentioned in my last post, I cannot afford to replace my former battery bank that was stolen, but at least I have some limited capacity. Like you said, the batteries are not really vulnerable to EMP and should not be damaged. All of my solar power infrastructure is inside of that metal building, except for the solar panels themselves. Even the concrete slab the building is on has shielding for EMP and is double-wall metal with the interior metal layer insulated from the well-grounded outside layer. A metal box inside of a metal box so to speak.
Hello Frnk,
I have seen many websites that are hawking electrical generators that are not solar. but rather they are supposed to generate electricity out of thin air; most are generaly referring to Nicola Tesla’s theories! The look feasible and I have a background in electronics so I am somewhat convinced that some of these gadgets might actually work!
So what do you think?
By the way, all of these devices can be built by the average person in just a couple of days with readily available parts for around $200!
I may give one of these a try; I will let you know if they actually work.
Jim
p.s. these are all silent running. a real plus!
If you can get one to work, the world will beat a path to your door.
I just left another website, I won’t name it, but it was a video about the cost of the “grid”. I didn’t finish watching because he just kept going on and on about the same ole s### and in the end he was going to try to sell me something. I can’t believe that people will pay good money for information that if they just think on it and use “common sense” they can figure it out for themselves. As to “common sense”, I guess that is what the people who are selling are counting on that is lacking.
I still “live on the grid” and just paid my electric bill, $37 and change. Now I do live in central Florida, where the weather is usually mild, ha-ha. Been cold lately. My trick to low power bills is I do not run my AC or heat. I do live alone so there is no one else to satisfy. When it is cold I dress as warm as I can. When it is hot I open all the windows, just like we did when I was a kid living in Houston in the ’50’s. I have window fans that I use to pull in air from the South where the sun is not beating on the windows. Luckily my house faces almost due south so in the Summer the sun is over the back yard where I have 1500 sq. ft. under cultivation.
Now don’t get me wrong, I am not poo-pooing alternative power, I support it and am working towards my own. My point is that there a lot of ways to save money on the power bill. Set the washing machine to cold water, that’ll save a bundle and the clothes come out just as clean. Don’t take hot showers, in summer the water coming out of the tap is usually about 75 deg’s. In winter I have a oil filled electric radiator like heater I use to warm up the bathroom before I shower. On really cold nights I plug it in to warm the space I sleep in. I haven’t had a power bill over $50 in a long time.
Keep up the good work Frank.
Wow Frank, you are the man! I prefer hot showers and nice cool temps with low humidity so my solar power system makes more electricity then I burn and I installed a solar thermal hot water system which keeps an 80 gallon tank full of 170* water. I’m in Florida too (SW) and think anyone who hasn’t gone solar in this area just isn’t thinking clearly. I built my system back in 2010 so I could have saved 60% if I had waited until today since component prices have come way down. So here’s an area where procrastinators actually win! I made the leap early when I first heard that America hating, communist, dog eating, Trojan Horse, Muslim usurper say that under his incompetence electricity would necessarily skyrocket. ;)
Hi, am also in sw florida (Lehigh acres ) and i was curious as to what all you have in your system, what did it cost and what is saving you a month. Thanks in advance.
How much does it cost to set up a Solar system to just supply electricity for a 4 Bedroom house.
Gary. Find brokers/ individuals that will do a sale with an amount dwn w/ no credit check. I know of some in the SW states Tx-Az- N.M etc. Am sure can look them up
Yep. Good reasons. Spot on regarding smart grid.
Frank – I have a “Power Hub 1800” generator with two solar panels that I purchased from Solutions From Science a year ago. It is set up to accept input from a wind turbine also.
I’ve been looking for one to add and certainly would appreciate some advice.
I don’t have 3 or 4,000 dollars to spend, would like a decent one for 500 or less.
Many of the reviews I’ve read about the ones in this price range are anything but favorable.
Thanks bunches.
put a small off grid system together a few years ago just to power up a couple lights and phone charger..now june 2013, i have half the house tied into my off grid system. it keeps getting bigger.
now, im playing around with integrating a small wind turbine into the system. got plans for a hot water collector for later this summer..love this!!
I think I need other manuels
ok how do you figure how many panels your house needs or whats the formula?
first look at conservation. then whatever is left is what you need to choose to power up with solar ..
use solar to heat water.. silly to convert pv to drive a heater..
Conservation is a Boat load cheaper than what it will cost to put up panels.
If you are having a system professionally installed.. they will get you in the wallet big time. Best to do your research.. take your time think about it.. then research some more.. one can get a 5kw system for under $3000 today out of china. But you still have to get it installed and the hook ups.. etc. expect to pay $7 -12 per watt installed..
You will also find pretty much the same system and it will be much much more expensive as high as $25000 for the same output.. so you do the math … someone is buying their bently at those prices
EVERYONE will be “off grid” when an emp, solar flair of nuclear weapon hits home. All of your solar parts and pieces will be FRIED like chicken in a KFC happy meal. Not sure I want to spend the money for fried chicken parts and pieces with what I see coming down the pike. Think pioneer. Wood cook stoves and oil lanterns. Think Ram pumps, compost water heaters and horse tubs for your tubbie time. Think pick and shovel instead of electric week wackers and tillers. Lazy people need not fear….There will be a place for you in the FEMA camps that house more hungry people than there is food to feed them. They call some DOOMSDAY PREPPERS for a reason. lol da da da da
I recently purchased property ‘off grid’ in Arizona. I was informed by the Kingman Az. Building department that in July 2013 there is a new NATIONAL building code book being introduced, that will require ALL new residential housing to install new electrical receptacles that do not use a trickle of electricity 24/7 as is the case with current inexpensive receptacles. BUILDERS BEWARE.. I was told that these receptacles are extremely expensive ! !
am betting they will have a circuit breaker that comes out shortly to do just that.. same as the gfci that we see in lots of breaker panels now
Mornin’ Frank!
Mom & dad worked for the family of 8. Began making dinner for the family by the time I was 6. Laundry was finished by means of a wringer washer and a clothesline. In those days everything had to be ironed.Shared the only bicycle between the 6 of us –walking or the bus was our only means of transportation. I still hang clothes on the line, use a wood stove for heat, as well as cooking. Fortunately, I own a grill with a side burner for summer cooking.
I would love to get off the grid as smart grid has already visited and taken up residency in my home. My mind does not wrap itself around anything electrical–therefore, I cannot “make” power. Sure would like to find someone who can build these things!
My home central heating down here in SW Florida is a very inefficient electric heat strip. I never turn it on. Instead I use small portable heaters in whatever rooms I’m using. Much more efficient.
Hello Frank,
I want to get off the grid. How do you heat your home? Is your heating system electric?
Because my home is heated by gas. What can I do about that?
I also had a self-reliant upbringing, where I learned that I had to work for whatever I wanted. Very early in life, I learned the difference between wants and real needs, and have always tried to focus on obtaining those things actually needed for survival, before concerning myself with anything I might like to have, but could live without. Electric power is a fairly new invention. People lived for many thousands of years without it, and could learn to do so again, if necessary. Learning how to get off the grid is important to me, but a more immediate priority is being able to provide backup systems for those things I really need, such as heat in the winter and a safe, reliable water supply. None of us really knows what the future will bring, but I thank God for prompting me a number of years ago to buy a piece of land in a rural area, where I can at least play around with practicing self-sufficiency, without some government regulator on my back. I am currently in the stage of learning skills that I may or may not need to rely on at some point. As Gene says, it is pretty much just fun for me now.
Gene, where did Frank ever state he could predict the future? What he did state was we should be prepared for it.
Where did he claim to be God? If you think it was by him stating “trust me” you really need to go back and finish that class on Comprehensive Reading.
You so took his comment out of context it is embarrassing.
Comparing Frank to a Real State Broker is like comparing Jesus Christ to Abraham Lincoln, its just wrong.
For the love of God, get a hold of yourself and a grip on your emotions.
Sincerely,
Rob
P.S. Not even Jesus Christ endorsed fanaticism.
Frank, Getting off the Grid is FUN not required. “Trust you?”, NO, I will trust GOD and Him alone. I will not even trust myself. I wish you would believe me in this matter, because the Last Person who Tried to tell me to trust them was a Real Estate Friend of Mine who said that The house Values were always going to go up, and I told him NO that you cannot predict the future God could make them God up or Down at HIS WILL. But Guess what, God proved me right but I LOST in the matter because I My Loan went UPSIDE DOWN and I had to go into bankruptcy, It all worked out in the end for me BUT it was just a big hastle. Please Don’t force God to prove you wrong in this matter Frank, I am having so much FUN learning about being off the grid. If he has to teach you a lesson in GOD reliance, I don’t want to loose in this matter. Can you please just start TRUST GOD and not yourself Now….. I am having too much FUN.
I have not seen any hints on hygiene concerns.
You are doing a good job.
Thanks.
I am 64 and used to be handy with tools I can still do a lot , but now I have a problem I don’t have a place to build anything on. I am a disabled veteran and no credit is there a way for me to find the land to build on. I know this is not your field of expertise just thought maybe you could point me in the right direction. Thanks for your consideration.
Gary
Check out http://www.treasurestateranches.com I think you will be pleasantly surprised.
Your URL is incorrect. It should be http://www.treasurestateranchesMT.com
Where do I find the supplies for building the solar panels?
dont need much but it is not cheap. need solar cells .. ebay
need glass.. find where they do window replacements and see if you can salvage ..
make the frames from cut down 2×4
need resin to seal the cells.
need wire to attach the cells to each other.. ebay.
diode ebay
wire to connect the panels to each other. ebay
I like the micro inverters.. but you have to build a panel that puts out atleast 250 watts nominal to use them.. This helps eliminate if you have part of the array shaded by a tree or cloud.. That will cut your output a lot. If you are on battery .. need a charge controller to keep from over charging and frying your batteries. if on the grid need a grid intertie.. do your research.. there are literally hundreds of sights with various odds and ends. Go see if the library has home power it is a wonderful resource for PV.. or Build it Solar has some excellent articles.
I appolopgiz I do not have alll of the infomatio, at this second? I can only reccommed you check “Powr 4 Patriots? ? We are not the onlys ones seeking Truth? Energy Independence is the way to go!