3 More Solar Panels and other homestead projects.

After 3 rounds of snow, sleet and Ice, we finally had a break in the weather yesterday. I have been having My normal "spring is coming and there is so much to do and none of it is done" anxiety,,haha
Usually around this time I am constantly chattering about everything that needs done, and my wonderful husband ( being a mild mannered fella') usually nods and listens,, knowing that this is my normal behavior this time of year.. ;)

Right now the list of things to get done is pretty much endless,( don't get me started)

It felt SO good to be outside yesterday. It was about 60 degrees and partly sunny.. a perfect day to get our Solar stand built! We bought 3 additional panels about 3 or 4 months ago, but time, money and weather prevented us from getting it built, ( if its not one factor its another , sure y'all know how that goes).
So with all variables in our favor, we got it built! This is going to help our  energy situation immensely. Right now we have 1440 watts of solar., This would in fact be plenty if we didn't live in a holler. We are down in, surrounded by some very tall mountain ridges, so sun is not in great abundance here. These 3 additional panels should really help us in winter especially! we are adding 3  more 240 watt panels.

While Robb worked on the Solar stand and my waddle fence ( which is almost done. pictures soon!). I spent the day, planting spinach , getting the pea trellis up , planting peas, made a stepping stone, transplanted some kale, did some more seeding .and finished of the day with baking a homemade apple pie ..

 

Hoping to get the gardens tilled up next week, weed barrier down and some fruit trees transplanted before they bud! Chicken tractor still needs finished for the meat birds as well..
The Forecast looks pretty nice after the rain clears out in the next couple days, So I feel like we will be right on schedule!

Everyone enjoyed the sun and weather,  kids n critters included ;) ( and the bees, oh yes they were out BIG time , just didn't get a pic but trust me they are happy to be out as well :)

Blessings
The Cool Family

Growing up Off Grid

I was recently fortunate enough to have an interview with NPR / american Public radios "MarketPlace" weekend addition. ( If you are interested in listening it will air this weekend.) The topic was "cutting out the Middle man".
After the interview , I called my mom to chat and tell her about the interview. So what kind of questions did they ask you?"she asks,  and then asks " Did they ask how it has effected Norah , growing up with this lifestyle?"
They did not ask this question. The interview was fairly short and they had specific questions..

But what if they had asked that?? There really would not have been an answer.. And  like my husband said " Norah doesn't know any different, she is growing up this way, its what she knows."

She is an off grid kid ;) She doesn't have the handheld devices ,  video games , and has very limited tv time. We do not have television per say, but have a TV for dvds, which can only be watched when there is an extra sunny day.

It just  what she knows..................

She knows not to flush the toilet if the generator is running( haha),, she knows to turn the lights off when she leaves a room, she knows when I say " we have hot water now. that means right NOW while the fire is going or the sun is hitting the passive solar heater,and bath time is right then n there.
She knows to turn off the water when brushing her teeth to conserve water. She know that the sun makes our lights work and that wood heats our home, lets us cook and gives us hot water. She knows that rainbarrels are used for watering and that using the hose is a luxury ;) She knows to dress warm in the winter and light in the summer because there is not air conditioning and winter mornings can be chill until the fire gets going.


This is what she knows.

I suppose there are times when I might feel a little guilty that she can't wake up on Saturday and watch the morning cartoons ( like I did as a kid!) but when I see her wake up put her play clothes on and run outside at 8 am to catch bugs, crayfish or dig a hole in the dirt, or build something and use her imagination..  I tell myself,, this is what   She Knows .............. and this is a wonderful thing!!!

Blessings

The Cools

Friday Night activities

Friday Night activities with my 2 favorite people. A perfect way to unwind  from a  long day.

Blessings

The Cool Family

Solar Hot water Round #2

So. last year, if you read our previous posts, we built a passive solar hot waterbread box for our hot water in the summer. And while it worked, it was just too far away from the shower, so by the time the water got back to the shower the tank filled up with cold water, it was just too far of a run. So we really only got a about one showers worth of hot water on a sunny day. and as soon as the sun went down the temperature of the water in the tank dropped immediatly.

So this year my husband built a solar hot water collector. Which is actually a solar panel. Some people think of solar panels as the part that generates the electricity, but this is actually not true, that is called a solar module. A solar panels are actually water heating devices.

So we are going to do our best to explain to you  how we built our solar hot water panel.

WHAT YOU NEED

- repurposed glass ( we used sliding glass door, you want something about that size , about 32x80", which is pretty good size) double paned is better
-some lumber to build a frame, treated 2x4's and treated plywood ( because this will be sittting outside on your roofe)

- some type of insulation , foam board insulation  to line the inside of your box

- a metal absorption plate, we used some repurposed metal roofing spray painted black

-spray paint, black, flat works best

- some type of copper tubing to build your heat exchanger, depending on size .. we got a couple peices of 3/4" pipe and also a few rolls of the soft copper refrigeration tubing.
( please note that there are many different ways to build an exhanger which will require different amounts of copper, fittings etc) we chose this method because I could drill holes in the 3/4" pipe and insert the small tubing braze around it to make like a ladder type effect

- temperature controller, ours is a a close on rise temperature controller. ours is a honeywell.

-fasteners, misc nuts and bolts and glues and caulk etc :)

- air vent

- pressure releif valve ( Very important, for safety issues!!!!)


WHERE TO BEGIN:

We decided to keep our hot water storage tank (which is well insulated) so that way the water you heat up stay hotter longer.. so if the sun goes down you still have time to take a shower.. so its not connected anymore, its just a storage tank.
So first we built a box for the sliding glass door to sit on.


Then, we put blueboard insulation on the inside of that wooden box.

Then we put our metal roofing , cut to fit, and set on top of the insulation and then screwed it down.


Next we built our heat exchanger to fit inside of that box..
You can sodder or braze or the copper. Robb Chose to braze. it saved money on purchasing extra copper connectors etc..

once you build your heat exchanger you need to locate your air vent and your pressure temp relief valve at the highest point of your heat exchanger so that they operate correctly.

After the panel is built you can run your water lines to your storage tank, (our storage tank serves as a storage tank for our wood fired hot water in the winter as well) so all we had to do was put in some T's and a couple of extra valves and we were pretty much set.

Since our sytstem is shared with the wood fired system, we have a second temperature controller, which is split my a center off switch, so for example: on a SUNNY winter day, you can have wood fired hot water in the morning, switch the center off switch to the other position and finish it off with SOLAR hot water... which we arent sure how many of those days we will have, but we will see.

We also put in some T's and some valves a the lowest part of the system so we can drain the water from the exchanger during the cold winter months, so it doesn't freeze,

I hope this gives you some ideas and inspiration !!
Here are some photos to give you a better idea ! There are so many ways to do this, find what works for you and go for it!

Blessings
The Cools

Arctic Blast

Ok, I am not gonna lie, I am so over old man winter.. After this last Arctic Blast, Ive moved on to warmer thoughts of gardening ( ordered some seeds!!), chicks, and another (hopefully super successful) year of Beekeeping at Bee Kind Family Farm

We have all been a little stir crazy here in this little house in the forest, and are ready to spread our wings.

In the meantime we have had some big projects to keep us busy, including and most importantly, moving our Batteries for our Off Grid system inside the house.
when we initially built everything, we decided to put the batteries outside, in a large plastic storage tote, and just insulate them really well. We knew putting them in the house was probably the best option, but being as we don't get too cold here in NW North Carolina, we figured they would be ok. It was also the easy option for my husband.

We soon discovered that we were losing about 30% of allowable usage, whenever the temp dipped below about 35 ! To give you an idea, we USE about 30% IN DAY. so we were losing about a days worth of power!

My husband finally decided ( about a month ago) to move them inside. He built a box in the bedroom, and that was that for about a month.... He knew he was going to move them in,, just needed to find the time, and a good day to do it ( we have to turn all the power off in order to do it)..

Well this Arctic Blast gave us alllllll the push we needed. With Temps plummeting to below 20, we knew we HAD to get these batteries in and quick.... these temps could do some serious damage.. and not only is it where we store all our power, they were NOT cheap.

So the day before the Blast, Robb came home from work, hooked our circulating pump from the cookstove to the generator( so we could have heat,, if you have a fire going you have to have the pump going or the stove could well, er,,,, explode, :o) and turned the power off..
He quickly and efficiently disconnected, carried and reconnected, 12 80 lbs deep cycle golf cart batteries into the house and hooked them up (using a headlamp for light).. It took about 2 hours but now we can sleep better on those cold cold nights, knowing our batteries are toasty and warm...

* To anyone thinking of going solar or off the power grid, we highly recommend you store your batteries inside, especially if you live midwest, up north etc... just be sure to vent them with a fan, to the outside of your home...

There's a Hole in the Bucket, Dear Jaime

Ok, I am pretty sure almost everyone knows this song.. I remember singing it in the backseat with my sister, as a kid,, over and over and over,, and probably driving my parents INSANE..

Ironically enough, the song has come full circle, although now I believe I am actually living it...

The Off the Grid transition has been fairly smooth, but has required constant attention and thought,,, every action has an opposite and equal reaction ( Newtons Law) comes in full play here....



Its cold in the house, Dear Rob,b Dear Robb, its cold in the house Dear Robb, its cold..
start a fire Dear Jaime, Dear Jaime, Dear Jaime, start a fire Dear Jaime, Dear Jaime A fire
Now the circulating pump is running ( too much ) dear Robb, Dear Robb, .....
well use some hot water Dear Jaime Dear Jaime, use some water Dear Jaime , some water,,..
But that turns on the well Dear RObb, Dear Robb, that turns on the well Dear RObb, the well.
Ill start the Generator Dear Jaime Dear Jaime Dear Jaime..................... ok YOU get the point...

A typical morning here:

..
- Get up at 5:am on mornings that you need to start the generator ( its been cold out and draining our batteries a bit,, more on that later).. start generator..
you can not flush the toilet use any water ,, or use any heavy loads while the generator is running.
- Start a FIRE, it was about 55 degrees in here this morning,,, Brrrrrrrr.. we heat our entire home with wood, so thats a MUST first thing...
-Put the Coffee on ( use the percolator, as the regular coffee maker is hard on the batteries,,)

Now when the fire gets started it heats up our water...... when the water gets hot, it HAS to CIRCULATE, or the stove would blow up,, NO THANK YOU....
so when the water gets hot enough,,, the circulating pump kicks on,,, when we have had a fire going for a decent amount of time it kicks on A LOT..
so whats the problem with that??? Nothing major, but it does use electricity...... so what do you do to make it turn off........
USE hot water right??? well,, If your batteries are low ( like when they are cold or when its first thing in the morning before the sun comes up) you dont want to use too much water and turn the Well Pump on, because its a quick drain on the battery.....

So we currently have 2 SMALL ISSUES
1. The batteries, we put the batteries outside,,, now we did this KNOWING the cold would effect them, but were concerned about off gassing of the batteries if we kept them in  the house ( you can vent them though).
Robb has them well insulated , but the cold is still draining them a LOT..
2. When we hooked up our cookstove to our hot water, we bought a circulating pump.... we have now found that it may be a little too big ( i think we were afraid to go to small ,, afraid of it not doing a good job and creating a dangerous situation,, exploding steam is NOTHING TO MESS WITH,, .. If my hubby wasn't such a smarty pants I am not sure I would have agreed to the hot water cookstove hook up,)

our 2 SOLUTIONS......
1. MOVE THE BATTERIES INSIDE

(This is the Solar Hot water Bread box , )

Remember the solar Hot water heater box we built??? This was to heat our water in the summer,, well , It turns out it didn't work as good as we would have hoped.....I didnt help that all it did was rain this summer either, but on a hot sunny day,, one person could take a QUICK hot shower... It worked, but we have decided to redo it.. and put it on the roof....
the GOOD NEWS is , we can use the wood from this to Build a Batter box, so we can Put the Batteries Inside.....

( that green thing is the pump)
2. Buy  a new circulating pump

we are going to sell this one and buy a smaller one.. It runs entirely too much. It we have the fire going all day, the pump is on... and I can only use so much hot water... and have to be careful because the well pump used a lot of energy,, so we dont want it continuously kicking on...



we definetaly knew we would have to adjust some things... Other than that, it is working good..
well with the exception of the generator... But I will save that story for another day......


One step forward two steps back,,, the adventure continues!

Blessings
The Cool Family

We did it!

We did it! Monday the Power Company Came out and Disconnected our power completely. We even Had him remove the powerline from the house completely.
Right before he snipped the wire he looked at my husband and said " So you really think this is going to work huh?" Robb sensed the sarcasm in his voice, but disregarded it, and let him get to work. Ignorance is Bliss I suppose ;)

The first couple days we were disconnected it was completely cloudy, so we got to know our generator pretty well. It was like walking on egg shells,while learning the system. You have to be very careful not to drain the batteries to low ( we are talking 12 deep cycle golf cart batteries, NOT CHEAP).
So for the first couple days, I limited everything, radio, computer, water, ....hehe,, I was hesitant to use anything, as I did not want to be the one to fry the batteries, and I am the one at home all day...

Lets just say there is not some little computer screen that tells you " hey, you have 80% of your battery left,,," I was really hoping ( actually I kinda thought) thats how it would be.
I had to learn about amps, volts, and watts, how to read the charge controller, the inverter, and how to start the generator.

Its been over a week, and everything is working better than I could have imagined!
Yes , I do have to limit computer, and you have to pay constant attention to your charge controller and inverter... it almost has to become second nature.....

So right now the solar panels/batteries are powering

*lights
*computer
*well Pump
*fridge
*coffee maker ( we plan on getting a french press)
*sewing machine and serger
* Iron
* circulating pump ( which circulates the hot water that comes from the wood cookstove)

Our Home is heated with wood, our hot water is heated by our cookstove( so no hot water heater at all), we cook and bake with wood on our cookstove and have purchased a propane stove to do any cooking in the summer,.. and we do not own a washer or dryer, its all done by hand..
Although there is talk from the husband that in the summer we will have plenty of power from the Solar, so I may be getting a washing machine for the summer months!

So all in all its been an AMAZINGLY smooth transition. Life is just how it was before we disconnected ...

Blessings
Jaime

spring is here and we are busy!

well, its been a long long while since my last post....
Spring is here and things are busy!
so here is what we have been up to ( I call this Blog post consolidation) since I havent had much time to Blog!


*** solar stand is built and Panels are up.. had a bit of trouble with the stand, which resulted in Robb having to put up, take down, and then completely take down then put back up stand.. before mounting panels.. but its up!

 

We have innoculated 40 Shitake logs, 5 more to go..

Robb got our solar batch collector hooked up! this will heat all of our indoor hot water in the warm months, ( the cookstove heats all of our water in the winter, you can read about that on a previous post)

 

 Decided to try out our Honey wine (mead) making skillz... seemed like a win win since we are beekeepers,, yay for free wine!~

 

and of course  ...  beekeeping,seeding, planting mulching tilling, composting, planting, weeding, planting, loving, living, learning.............

 

 

 

Happy Spring!

(The busy, and tired, but Happy family)

The Cools

Its SNOWING.. winter projects ;0

It hasn't snowed here yet... while they called for a lot last week, we didnt get a single flake, but the Mountains got a couple feet! This morning the sky spit out some rainy sleety stuff that vaguely resembled snowflakes, but all in all, it eventually turned to rain.

But even with the lack of snow piling up,, the winter projects are! I always look forward to this time of year, a time to slow down a bit, but I really feel like we have a lot on our plate this season. I am not going to rush my husband though, or myself for that matter... I am learning that taking our home off the power grid is a process, and instant gratification does not apply...
especially when funds are short and you have more projects that you can handle anway..


Santa Came early,, and look what he brought us ;) 6 240 watt solar panels ...........

and whats even cooler is they are USA MADE!!!

Plans have been drawn up , so Robb will be building the stand for the panels this winter.
This week we are Finalllllllllly hooking up our hot water to our cookstove which will most likely be my next Blog post.. so STAY TUNED!


In the meantime Im enjoying quiet crafty mornings next to the cookstove .
working on gifts for the Holidays...