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Rickant
Member
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# Posted: 13 May 2017 10:39
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So we finally found another property (third times a charm) and have a conditional agreement. It has a smallish cabin (600 sq ft) with hydro, lake water supply and septic. All appliances are electric. In anticipation that this deal goes through we are thinking ahead to going off grid. There is a treasure trove of info here, but I have a few seemingly basic questions and ideas.
1. The cabin is in a hilly area so we are thinking that we would use gravity feed water supply by placing a ubc tote or tank up the hill and filling it with lake water. We have lots of elevation I think to make this work and would pump water to fill it up occasionally. Would there be issues with storing lakes water in terms of algae etc. It would not be for eating or drinking
I'm sure that I have many more questions but these are top of mind.... Thanks.
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DaveBell
Moderator
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# Posted: 13 May 2017 12:05
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Clear will grow algae way more than Opaque.
Paint it black or buy a black/dark green water tank. They come in 50-5000+ gals.
I plan on half burying a 3000 gal uphill and using gravity feed also.
Quoting: Rickant Would there be issues with storing lakes water in terms of algae etc. It would not be for eating or drinking
Just put in some (plain!) bleach. Instructions on the Clorox bottle and online as for how much.
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silverwaterlady
Member
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# Posted: 13 May 2017 12:11
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We have a water tower and pump water from the lake to two water tanks one is 250 gallons ( cabin) and the other 125 (outdoor shower).
There is not enough water pressure to run the on demand water heater so we must use the pump ( gasoline powered) if we want hot water.
I found a table Online that tells one how much Clorox to use to purify water. We don't drink this water just use it for showers and dishes.
I personally think you are lucky to have hydro. I wish we did. It would have made live easier and cheaper since propane appliances (which I don't have yet)
are so expensive. Not to mention storing propane and finding a way to get it to camp just one more thing on the list of plenty of things to do.
Some people think going off grid is going to save them money. I just don't know how it will in your case since your cabin is totally turn key.
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NorthRick
Member
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# Posted: 13 May 2017 12:55
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Our lake water has a lot of tannins in it. The water has a brown tint to it you can't filter out. I put 1/4 cup of bleach in with a 275 gallon tote full of lake water and it cleared right up. The water sat in part shade in the white tote for 2 months and did not grow any algae. This was not for drinking.
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ForceFed70
Member
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# Posted: 13 May 2017 12:58
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What's your motivation for going off-grid? I wish I had hydro.
I think majority of people on this site are off-grid because hydro isn't available or too expensive to hook up. Not because they want to be.
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silverwaterlady
Member
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# Posted: 13 May 2017 15:15 - Edited by: silverwaterlady
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Quote to run power lines to camp $100,000.
Edit to include, we use clear water tanks. Someone was supposed to empty the 125 gallon one for us but didn't. It was 1/4 full when we got back to camp 11 months later with clear water. Good job on the Clorox.
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Rickant
Member
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# Posted: 13 May 2017 18:53
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Hydro s convenient but the cost for seasonal use is high. We would like the idea of being self sufficient if it is not too complicated.
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