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Owen Kellogg
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# Posted: 3 Jun 2012 19:42 - Edited by: Owen Kellogg
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What a great site! I've been lurking/browsing here for a few weeks, and I finally decided to join in on the discussions. A little about me:
I'm 42. Married 20 years. We have a daughter who's 19. For the last year or so, I've been conducting an off-grid cabin "experiment" - meaning that the current arrangement is only temporary. It's mostly a feasibility study to learn how solar works, as well as other off-grid devices. By the time my daughter is out of college, I plan to take the things I've learned and live permanently off-grid. For this test, I started with a pre-fab cabin:
It's marketed as a 12'x22' including the porch. The living area is a little over 10'x15' as well as the loft/bunk area above the porch. The best feature of this whole study is the fact that my boss has financed the cabin and allowed me to "lease" the wooded land (free!) for the next 5 years. He's interested in solar power and has been very accommodating in letting me gather data and knowledge.
I'm running just under 400 watts of panels at this point. I've run the numbers as to how much power I need, but I've learned more by just hooking stuff up and monitoring my battery bank's voltage. So far, my panels and about 400 amp-hour battery bank has been more than enough to run the lights, water pump, fans, a small TV, offline laptop and other small gadgets. I'm currently experimenting with a thermo-electric refrigerator, but I'm not too sure how that will work out...
The cabin is close to where I work, so I usually stop by and do small jobs through the week and I faithfully spend the night there on at least Friday nights. The past winter was pretty mild, but the coldest night I spent there was at about 12 degrees. I've got a small woodstove that kept things very toasty. Last weekend, the temps were up to the mid-90's. I stuck a 5000 BTU A/C into the window and ran it off of my Generac 3000 watt generator for a few hours in the evening. I'm more of a hot weather person anyway, so the A/C is just a guilty pleasure.
That's just a summary of my project, and I'll be glad to answer any questions anyone might have. After all, I'm going to be asking a lot of questions here myself about various things in the future.
My main weakness is my lack of knowledge in carpentry. I'm a welder by trade, so I can build things that are level, square, plumb, etc., but my problem is that I don't know how to fit wood together properly (unless someone invents a welding rod for wood!) On this project, I've learned quite a bit about electric and basic plumbing, but building with wood is an area that I've not fully explored. I hope to get some great advice here in the coming months.
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countryred
Member
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# Posted: 3 Jun 2012 20:08 - Edited by: countryred
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Welcome to the board! There are a lot of guys here who can help with the "welding the wood" together. My strength is electrical, but learning carpentry/ plumbing skills as I go.
It really is a cool site with a bunch of awesome people going on the same path.
We are just in the planning stages on our cabin. We are looking at land in southern Missouri and cabin ideas. In 5 years, we will be buying acreage and in another 5 moving in. It won't be off the grid, just using very little of it. We will be growing our own fruits and veggies and hunting and livestock will supply our meat,.or mostly anyhow.
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OwenChristensen
Member
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# Posted: 3 Jun 2012 20:08
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Wow, Owen....what a nice name. Welcome.
Owen
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Owen Kellogg
Member
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# Posted: 3 Jun 2012 20:34
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I didn't expect a couple of replies so soon. I guess this site is visited more often than I thought, which is a good thing!
Well, my name isn't really "Owen". Owen Kellogg is a minor character in the book (and movie), Atlas Shrugged. If you're familiar with the story, he's one of the first "strikers" to disappear to Galt's Gulch, hidden in the mountains of Colorado. Although I live in Kentucky, I can totally identify with this fictional character.
Thanks for the warm welcomes!
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countryred
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# Posted: 3 Jun 2012 21:14
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My real name is Country either,..so its all good. welcome aboard.
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Rob_O
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# Posted: 3 Jun 2012 21:50
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Quoting: Owen Kellogg I live in Kentucky
Yo dog, where you at? My place is about 30 minutes East of Louisville
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neb
Member
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# Posted: 3 Jun 2012 21:53
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Welcome aboard!!!!!!!!
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livfree
Member
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# Posted: 3 Jun 2012 22:35
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Sounds like you have a petty awesome job/boss!
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Bevis
Member
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# Posted: 4 Jun 2012 00:32
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Welome aboard...intrested in your solar projects.
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Owen Kellogg
Member
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# Posted: 4 Jun 2012 19:13
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Quoting: Rob_O Yo dog, where you at? My place is about 30 minutes East of Louisville
Northern KY - about 30 minutes south of Cincinnati.
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