Off-Grid Solar Setups

[TomSeller]

Porches are a huge energy saver. Keeping the sun off the windows will save you money, and also extend the life of the seals around them. Most people just assume that the doors are what needs protecting from the elements, but covering the windows also has a huge benefit.
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As is a good old shade tree. They take a while to grow big and If I were planning to build a new house I would plant the shade tree(s) as far in advance as I could.

I start getting shade at about 2 PM mid summer which is the way I like it.

 

[BitChin1]

As is a good old shade tree. They take a while to grow big and If I were planning to build a new house I would plant the shade tree(s) as far in advance as I could.

I start getting shade at about 2 PM mid summer which is the way I like it.

But remember to avoid casting shade over the solar panels as this kills their efficiency

 

[Got2BTru]

Our thought/plan was to use pole mounted Solar Panels. And I agree about the tree shading. Our plan is when we start building next year, we'll "invest" in a MUCH more mature tree (or a couple of them) for around the house. Budget is $750-$1,000 each

 

[pwright]

I've never met anybody who went with solar for their main power supply who was happy with it and would do it again if they could get power to their place. For $25,000 it's a no brainer having the power company supply it over solar. When you hit the $100,000 mark, that's when you might consider solar, and even then, I know two people who went with solar instead of paying for the power lines to be run and they both regretted it.

FWIW, we finished our retirement home early this year and have been living in it full time since April. Only solar for electric as the nearest power lines are many miles away.

We have 27 255W panels on three poles connected to dual Midnite Solar Magnum inverters and Classic charge controllers. 16 Surrette AGM 830 aH batteries wired as two 48V banks in parallel for 39.8 KWh of storage.

The panels are nearly 100' from the house so we put a small TuffShed building right next to the panels to hold the batteries and inverters. That way we could run straight AC to the main house panel in a trench.



The house is stick-built on a pier and beam foundation. The walls and floor have R23 denim insulation. The roof has R30 blown in fiberglass. For heat we have a normal gas furnace running off propane and also a Harmon P68 pellet stove fairly central in the main living space (kitchen, dining area, living room and sitting room) which is an open plan. Other than testing the furnace so far we have only used the pellet stove. Stove and dryer are propane Kenmore units. Water heater is a Rheem on-demand also on propane. Dishwasher, microwave and fridge are also Kenmore units. Generally speaking we went with efficient appliances but didn't go overboard on it. We added a small Whirlpool 14 cu ft chest freezer in the garage this summer. Cooling is with a MasterCool ASA7112 evaporative cooler (1hp). The house is 2300 sq ft.



So far we've been using between 300 and 450 kwh a month with plenty of available power. This winter will be the next big stress test on it with the colder temps and shorter days but not foreseeing any issues as the solar system was actually up and running before last winter.

After federal rebates the complete system including the shed and having the big poles put into the solid rock of the hillside was about $28k. A power line to here would have been many millions of dollars.

Note this is in central New Mexico at an elevation of 5600 feet. We get more than 300 days of sun a year. YMMV.



So, Eddie, now you kind of know 1 person that put in solar and doesn't regret it. If you make it over to the Socorro, NM area some time let me know and we'll show you the system.

 

[EddieWalker]

Thank you, I would love to see it. Nice to hear you are happy with it so far. I've been to the home of several people on here and seen their systems, plus I've been overseas and seen them there too. I love the idea of it, but in every case, talking to those who have had solar for several years, they all have said they wish they had city power. I think it's very similar to well water compared to city water. No maintenance, no upkeep or upgrades required. You just pay for what you use and if you live under the same self levels of power usage, you will find the cost of city power to be very small. Of the people I've met, two are in the process of selling their places and looking for something that is on the grid.

Since it sounds like it is impossible for you to do it any other way, I compliment you on what you have accomplished!!!!

 

[pwright]

If we could have gone with grid power for something less than we paid for the solar system we definitely would have done so. No utilities of any kind out here. Fifteen miles by unimproved dirt road to the nearest paved road which is I-25. Obviously there will be expenses in the years to come with replacing the batteries and, much further down the road, the panels themselves. But who knows what other options may be available for us in 10 or 20 years.

 

[3930dave]

I tend to equate off-grid with DIY type of folks.

It's not so much that a properly designed/installed modern system requires much in the way of maintenance.... it's more that many consumers today expect to do zero-maintenance, on everything.

Before going off-grid, I'd recommend that everyone take the time to talk to somebody that's owned a system at least 5 years. If what they have been doing for maintenance sounds like way too much work, then off-grid is not a fit.

A leading indicator can be to what extent someone does their own car maintenance. Anyone capable of doing first level basic maintenance on a car should be able to maintain a well designed/installed off-grid system, IMO.

Rgds, D.

 

[3930dave]

As is a good old shade tree. They take a while to grow big and If I were planning to build a new house I would plant the shade tree(s) as far in advance as I could.

I start getting shade at about 2 PM mid summer which is the way I like it.

I do like the look and function of porches.

That said, the advantage of a deciduous shade tree up north is you want to get the solar gain during the Winter..... not easy to accomplish with a conventional porch.

Rgds, D.

 

[TomSeller]

If we could have gone with grid power for something less than we paid for the solar system we definitely would have done so. No utilities of any kind out here. Fifteen miles by unimproved dirt road to the nearest paved road which is I-25. Obviously there will be expenses in the years to come with replacing the batteries and, much further down the road, the panels themselves. But who knows what other options may be available for us in 10 or 20 years.

Small price to pay for having such "good neighbors"

Must be peaceful.

 

[pwright]

Small price to pay for having such "good neighbors"

Must be peaceful.

Very peaceful. Worth all the effort to build it.