Is It For You?
So you think you want to live “off grid?”
Why would you want to do THAT?
Well- why wouldn’t you want to do that? I personally like some of the benefits of living this way, like having power when the grid does go down, but there are some very legitimate questions that need to be asked by anyone seriously considering this type of life.
First and foremost would really be why? Are you the rebel type who simply wants to be free of the power grid, are you concerned about the future of our country and freedoms and just want to be prepared or do you have a specific need to be off grid? If you want to see why my family made the decision you can read the article on “Independence” but no matter the reason, I think off grid living is a great way to go. The reason I suggest asking yourself why you want to is because contrary to popular belief, being off grid does not mean “free power”.
Some people have said to me upon learning that my family is off grid - “wow, it must be nice to have no utility bill”. That thinking is not entirely accurate. Although you may not have an actual paper invoice coming to you that must be paid or your power will be disconnected, you do have real costs that must be planned for and set aside on a regular basis if you don’t make enough money to replace an expensive component with the stroke of a pen or simply pulling the cash out of your pocket.
Some of these components can be in the thousands of dollars so planning is a prudent thing to do. There are also factors that are out of your control that can affect your system, so a good insurance policy that covers things like lightning or wind damage is a plus. Because of the costs associated with a good system, maintenance becomes a very important issue. If you don’t maintain your system you will be in for more expense and sooner than you want. Lack of maintenance is something that will make living this way more difficult so don’t be too lax about it. When your car needs attention, you have to take care of it or it will cost you even more to replace it, and this is no different.
Another consideration is the cost of your off grid system as compared to the cost of commercial power. Usually, commercial power is the least expensive option. If you consider that per watt, solar electricity just in the basic cost of a good solar panel can run as high as several dollars a watt and the cost of a kilowatt hour of commercially produced power (which varies depending on location) can be around 15 or 20 cents; the cost for a really good quality well sized off grid system may not make much sense. It really depends on your needs, your point of view, and your pocket book.
Off grid systems have, over time, gained popularity which has increased the demand for them. This has caused the price of alternative energy to drop to a more affordable level. There are also more companies and types of systems to choose from. Do a search online and you will probably be amazed at the variety. There are also places to find used components or as in our case, a whole system that was used but in great condition for a lot less money.
Some of the things you will need to ask yourself are this:
1. Why do you really want to be off grid?
2. Do you want to purchase and install everything yourself or hire a professional company? Please understand that doing everything yourself is possible and offers quite a bit of personal satisfaction when finished, however - it is a big undertaking and will require some skill sets that are important to a successful outcome. As one electrician responded when asked what happens if the battery bank is wired wrong? Answer: you don’t want to be in the same building!
3. Do you want to supplement only or supply all of your power needs?
4. Do you want to have net metering or do you care? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Net_metering
I like the definition from Wikipedia but very simply put, net metering is when the power company pays you back for some of the power you generate. There can be a lot of rules that differ substantially depending on where you live. Some are friendly to the idea and some are openly hostile. Some pretend to be accepting of the idea but place such high restrictions on it that it may not be worth the effort.
5. Is net metering even offered by your power company?
6. Do you really want the expense of an off grid system?
7. Are you willing to do the system maintenance yourself or will you hire a company to maintain it?
8. Are you willing to scale back your life to use less energy or do you want to be off grid and still use all of the power that most people use? (this version gets really expensive)
9. Is the site for your system good for producing the kind of power you will need? Both with solar and wind?
If off grid stuff really turns your crank, you can go online and look up some of the new innovations that are out there. One of the new things from Germany is a multi-layer cell that is enhanced by intensifying the sun’s rays through the use of a Fresnel lens (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fresnel_lens). A company from Australia has a similar panel and even added a tracker and extreme weather protection on theirs to keep the unit into the sun but protected from really harsh conditions that can be seen in some locations (this one was already being produced several years ago but had not as yet made it to America).
Believe me, I get it! If you really want an alternative energy system nothing will dissuade you. I happen to think that solar and wind are the cat’s meow of power. Nothing else anywhere says “independent” or “self-sufficient” like an off grid system.