ha! thank you sir Glen, see this reply here is what makes you so good, or is an example of why you're so good rather. I've thought that but didn't know how to express it but you did and elegantly.
By the way, I wanted to give a shout out to a wonderful lady who just joined this month, I invited her to this contest which she just entered a couple days ago and she placed on the list in some position, I don't know something like 25th or so? Anyway without trying to do anything she is already doing fantastic and she just freakin got here! she's @sugarcreek and her blog is a fascinating one about her family setting up an off-grid homestead. I just wanted to highlight her work and fast progress.
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Well, okay. She should fit in quite well with all you homesteaders then. I'll go and take a look at her blog, though homesteading isn't one of my main interests (yet). At the very least, I 'll see what I can do to welcome her. :)
thank you sir! yes, they are already on all solar power but what's interesting is that they are getting ready to move to a new property and build a house, ponds, gardens, all the stuff to live offgrid so it will be an ongoing project that we get to witness.
Has she said anything about how she's going to connect to the internet off the grid? It seems like we've currently got means to do virtually everything else, other than surf the web without an Internet Provider. If she can do that, I'm in. :) It would be a tough sell to my wife to go do even some of the rest, although if we can save some money at some point, she might be willing. Problem is always the cost up front verses the actual cost savings of either electricity or gas, etc.
well they are already living totally off-grid and everything, including wter for showers is solar powered, they have batteries and propane for cooking if they have to have it so it's pretty amazing. I forgot how she is connected online but it's solar powered somehow!
no way for me, I like long hot showers!
I'm sure there's a way for you to have your long hot showers, just not sure how long everyone else might have to wait to get theirs. :)
It's a pretty enticing thing, I know. I'd probably be there if my wife didn't think the idea was crazy. She'd like not paying for things, though, but not the cost of the set up.
yes I've heard that solar was crazy expensive. but once you have it that's it, one time cost.
Well, it really depends on the quality of the material the solar panels are made of, and how efficient they are at taking the sun and generating power. If they last five to ten years, you'll be replacing them. I'm not sure how long they last, but I've heard that they don't last as nearly as long as a roof might. That means you're probably losing out on power over time. And of course, you've got to live in an area where you have plenty of sunshine year round.
Then, you have to have something to convert the energy from the solar panel to I think DC, or whatever gets stored in the big car or boat batteries, and then run things off the batteries. Unfortunately, it's not a simple process of sunlight to outlet.
So, over the course of a 40 year period, you could be changing out panels on your roof three to four times. Electricity is still inexpensive enough in our area anyway, that it would take quite a while to pay off through usage what you lay out in set up. I can't remember what it was exactly, but it was something like fifty or so years. Plus, you have to have a whole bunch of solar panels and batteries if you want to offset all of your energy usage, or you 'll need to cut way back on it. Most smaller operations are only supplementing their electricity usage, and here, that primarily only happens during the summer months.