Suburban Off-grid living

[sunsaver]

I am living off-grid in a typical blue-collar nieghborhood. My house is an old farmhouse that i moved onto an acre sized, wooded lot, right in the middle of the nieghborhood, much to the dismay of my nieghbors. But now it is the prettiest house around, with a screened porch, white picket fence, tin roof, and a rusty stovepipe sticking out the side. I keep the front garden colorfully landscaped with edible ornamentals, and a rustic, drystacked stone wall. God has truly blessed me, and i have worked hard to paint a storybook picture onto the hardscape of my small piece of the american pie.

But one day a lady from the power company was very rude to me on the phone. It made me mad. I also got tired of the lights going out every time we have a thunderstorm. So, i studied solar power design for a year, and i designed an expandable solar system with batteries for night time use. To be successful, I had to make significant lifestyle changes, and dramtically reduce my energy consumption. Also; if i had been married, my wife would not have let me ditch all of her highpowered appliances. Nor would she be willing to wash my clothes in an old fashioned washtub, even if it does have indoor plumbing. I also have to keep the icebox full of ice, and do my dishes by hand as well. Aside from that, i dont feel i am depriving myself of anything. I have a very low power, 30watt 15 inch HD tv, free over the air HD network and public tv programming. I use led lights that are 2watts each, and my lights never go out during thunderstorms!

Im hoping to help other people who want to live a more sustainable lifestyle. I'd also like to meet other people who live off-grid solar. I've never met anyone else who lives completely off-grid, so i'd like to share and learn from them, if there actually are any off-gridders out there. I guess they're so hard to find because, well, they're off-grid!

 

[savingdogs]

Good for YOU! How do you go about heating your water for washing?

 

[TanksHill]

Sounds nice!!

 

[FarmerChick]

more power to you!
I won't live like that but you sure found a way around that power company.

 

[sunsaver]

Thanks! i love living the simple life, but i'm blending old and new technologies. I have to have my tv and internet, right!
My hot water comes from a thermosiphon solar water heater. It's more simple than it sounds. cold water sinks because it is more dense than hot water. It moves to the bottom of the tank, then flows downhill in a pipe to the heat collector. The collector is an insulated box with a zig-zag of copper pipes and a glass lid. It is tilted towards the sun. As the sun heats the water, it rises up the collector, through a pipe, and back to the top of the tank. The force of convection does an excelent job of setting up a circulation in the tank untill all of the water in the tank is about as hot as it is at the collector. A check valve prevents revearse circulation at night, so the dark sky cant suck the heat back out. The tank is on my roof, and i plan to insulate it. Winters are mild here, so it works great, as long as the sun is shining. The collector is out by my solar panels, tomatos, chard, and grape vines. i call this my el-cheapo retirement plan. No money, no bills!

 

[sunsaver]

Just like to add a comment here. If i fell in love, and it was true love, and i added enough solar panels; i could always get my slightly used appliances out of the guest bedroom and hook them back up! And a word of warning for you guys who are married: i recommend a full rig of panels and a massive battery bank. If you throw out the washing machine and get your wife a washboard for chistmas, you'll probably get served with divorce papers!

 

[savingdogs]

haha! You could always offer to take the wash to the laundromat for her. True love.

 

[sunsaver]

Oh yeah. I have to do that on rainy days anyways! clothes lines dont work in the rain. In winter, i hang my socks over the fireplace with care.

 

[dragonlaurel]

I lived off grid for over a year back in the 90's, with no solar panels. We had a battery operated flashlight and radio, wind up clock and watches, and a wood stove for heat and food. Cooked outside if it was too hot.
Oil lamps worked for night time.
We set a bathtub under a pipe that came out of a spring, let it fill in the AM and let the sun warm the water till we took our bath.
Washed the clothes in that bathtub too by stomping on them with soapy water. I would have killed for a wringer though.
We didn't break up over roughing it. I even miss living that way sometimes. But- I would add a solar battery charger and laptop if I was going remote like that again. I hadn't ever tried internet back then.

 

[sunsaver]

Dragonlaurel, you are the first off-gridder ive ever met. Blue jeans are tough, and im looking for a good clothes-wringer for under $80.

It's a free country, right? Funny how nobody ever says that anymore.