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
Harnessing the solar energy to power the homes will definitely save lots of electricity and it is a much cleaner way to generate and light up homes.
ReplyDeleteThanks
Finn Felton
Kopi Luwak
You guys rock!!!!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for the kind words!
DeleteYay!! Awesome!
ReplyDeleteThanks Tree!!
DeleteMay i recommend a wringer washer? That's what i have. Still requires attention but very helpful.
ReplyDelete:) we have one, that's how I do laundry., no washer or dryer here.
DeleteI've teased my husband that one day he'll come home and the power will be disconnected. I'm so tired of paying so much money to the power company every month. We are desperate to get off grid. I'm really hoping that this will be the year that we make it happen. We've been doing a lot of research into solar well pumps, and how to get hot water off grid. We have a wood stove in the living room to heat the house. We have a wood cook stove in a workshop building outside, which I'd love to move into my kitchen. Still trying to figure it all out. I've been interested to see how you guys have done things. I look forward to catching up and seeing what else I can possibly glean from you. I envy your freedom from the grid :) Thanks for sharing your story!
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