Living “Off Grid” – Part 2

Living “Off Grid” – Part 2

Living “off grid” means you are not connected to a utility company power line, the electrical grid. You must produce your own electrical power to meet your needs. This can be a challenging and rewarding experience!

Refrigerator/freezer:

Refrigeration is the next greatest electrical need, 8% of annual energy use. Although many off grid homes use propane powered refrigerator/freezers, common in the RV industry, we recommend highly efficient electric refrigerator/freezers.

They use less energy overall, don’t rely on a non renewable fossil fuel, and are more maintenance free. Super efficient DC models are available, some can be costly. But very efficient brand name AC models are available if you ask for them. They are priced comparably to standard household models.

Cooking:

In an all electric home the cooking range is a large electrical load, 6% of annual energy use.

An off grid home should use a propane cooking range/oven. Select a model with a piezo ignitor (which sparks to ignite the flame when you turn the knob), or a pilot light (less desirable because it uses propane constantly - although a small amount), or use matches to start. Do not use models with “glow bars” to ignite the flame. They use large amounts of electricity constantly.

A microwave can be powered easily by an RE system, but choose a small model (900 or 1,000 watt) without a digital clock (which uses energy all the time.) A toaster oven is also useful for small cooking tasks but is a fairly large electrical load.

For the more adventerous, a solar oven can bake or boil foods on sunny days, uses no electricity, and does not add cooking heat to the home in summer. Solar ovens are portable and easily used on any sunny day, summer or winter.

Washing and drying clothes:

Clothes washing and drying accounts for approximately 5% of annual energy use. Shop carefully for an energy efficient and water conserving washing machine (front loaders are usually best.)

You’ll not only have to power the washing machine with your RE system, but will likely pump water from a well with the RE system too. How much water the washing machine uses can affect the size of your pump and RE system.

Saving “gray water” (waste water from washing machine, sinks, and shower) to irrigate landscaping will let this water do double duty and reduce the water you’ll need to pump from your well for irrigation.
Check with your local Health Department about a gray water system, separate from the “black water” (waste water from toilets) system.

An electric clothes dryer is too large an electrical load for an RE system. Choose a propane heated clothes dryer with an electric tumbler motor. And make best possible use of a “solar clothes dryer” – a good old fashioned clothes line.

Retractable clothes lines can be installed under a porch overhang, in a utility room, or in a garage and allow pre-drying clothes in any weather. They retract when not in use to be out of the way. Use your propane clothes dryer to fluff line dried clothes, or to dry clothes in damp weather when necessary.

Lighting:

Home lighting accounts for about 4% of annual energy use. Incorporate natural day lighting in your passive solar design to avoid the need to use lights during the day.

Use skylights (sparingly to avoid excessive energy loss in winter and gain in summer) or “solar tubes” to bring daylight to interior spaces
without windows. Use compact fluorescent light bulbs, turn off lights when not needed, and use timers, motion sensors, and photo cells to control indoor and outdoor lights.

Other:

The many other small electrical appliances in a modern home use about 7% of annual energy use. Take a mental stroll through your house and consider all the other energy using devices you have. Eliminate, or reduce the time of use, of as many devices as possible.

Turn off your computer and accessories when they are not being used. A switched surge suppressor outlet strip works well. It is a myth that such equipment can be damaged by turning it off and on
frequently. Turn off appliances when you’re not using them.

Eliminate “phantom loads” - such as clocks, cordless phones, “instant on” TVs and stereos, “wall cube” transformers that plug into outlets - all consume power constantly, even when turned “off”! Unplug them or use a switched outlet strip or power cord switch to insure they are disconnected.

These loads can needlessly consume your valuable renewable energy if left on when not needed. Use an appliance power meter, such as a Kill A Watt meter, to test your appliances and phantom loads. Know how much energy you are using so you can make informed decisions about your energy use.

RunGreenPower.com will teach you how to build solar & wind power systems for
your home within a weekend.

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