08-12-2014, 04:26 AM
Living off grid is just sooo sooo nice 
But our neighborhood has a small group (9) Houses on Grid and without power since Thur nite. Doubt they are very high on the priority list.
We were able to lend our small Honda to one so they can at least power the fridge.
Some thoughts:
For those thinking about a generator - have a plan on how to hook up safely. Can't hook it back into the grid. Probably need appropriate wiring/rewiring. Think about fuel and fuel storage, don't forget it's cost as well.
While our neighbor may have food thanks to our generator, they don't have running water. Being on grid, they have a 240 volt pump. No way to connect to a 120 gen. Another friend lost power, has a small generator, but found it impossible to get to the fridge cord and plug as it is a built in.
A smallish, back up solar does not need to power the whole house. Choose critical circuits and wire appropriately. Being able to switch among those circuits maybe prove beneficial. Unplug the fridge after a few hours and recharge the phone. Realistically, I doubt anyone (except Oink) would seriously consider taking down their panels for a storm unless a very small system. Then it would have to be wired appropriately to charge the batteries from the generator during the storm. Doesn't it make more sense to adjust your lifestyle for a short time vs 100% of time? Oh wait, that's happening.
While DC and some 12vdc stuff are attractive now, figure out their long term utility and costs. Have an off grid neighbor who had a propane fridge for years. Something triggered him to figure his true cost including propane. That led to realizing how many more panels he could have bought. He now has a regular Sears fridge with enough room to store food for his family, even leftovers. LOL
We are very fortunate in that in our neighborhood we all care about one another during times like this, what an asset. It also means not everyone needs to have 100% on everything, we can share.
David
Ninole Resident
Please visit vacation.ninolehawaii.com
But our neighborhood has a small group (9) Houses on Grid and without power since Thur nite. Doubt they are very high on the priority list.
We were able to lend our small Honda to one so they can at least power the fridge.
Some thoughts:
For those thinking about a generator - have a plan on how to hook up safely. Can't hook it back into the grid. Probably need appropriate wiring/rewiring. Think about fuel and fuel storage, don't forget it's cost as well.
While our neighbor may have food thanks to our generator, they don't have running water. Being on grid, they have a 240 volt pump. No way to connect to a 120 gen. Another friend lost power, has a small generator, but found it impossible to get to the fridge cord and plug as it is a built in.
A smallish, back up solar does not need to power the whole house. Choose critical circuits and wire appropriately. Being able to switch among those circuits maybe prove beneficial. Unplug the fridge after a few hours and recharge the phone. Realistically, I doubt anyone (except Oink
) would seriously consider taking down their panels for a storm unless a very small system. Then it would have to be wired appropriately to charge the batteries from the generator during the storm. Doesn't it make more sense to adjust your lifestyle for a short time vs 100% of time? Oh wait, that's happening.While DC and some 12vdc stuff are attractive now, figure out their long term utility and costs. Have an off grid neighbor who had a propane fridge for years. Something triggered him to figure his true cost including propane. That led to realizing how many more panels he could have bought. He now has a regular Sears fridge with enough room to store food for his family, even leftovers. LOL
We are very fortunate in that in our neighborhood we all care about one another during times like this, what an asset. It also means not everyone needs to have 100% on everything, we can share.
David
Ninole Resident
Please visit vacation.ninolehawaii.com
Ninole Resident