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151. Posted: 26 Jan 2019 07:53 - Off-Grid Living / ESA approved off grid power
...e bunkie...inside, I have direct wired the other end to a GFCI receptacle under the sink and run things in series off of that outlet...the whole tiny place is GFCI protected. When I'm running on solar, the male plugs into an inverter under the bunkie. If I am low on battery power, I unplug the place from solar and plug into 1000w whisper genny! I then grab my char...
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152. Posted: 19 Jan 2019 21:54 - Off-Grid Living / In support of solar
...039;ve learned on this site that if one's mind is made up then one will fight to the end to prove themselves right. There are many diehard genny fans here that will have good arguments against solar. At the same time there are those who swear by solar and can never see themselves powering their devices with fossil fuel. Ask yourself why you need electricity at...
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154. Posted: 7 Jan 2019 21:01 - Cabin Construction / 5 years of hard work in 30min!
...he boards! We have a local sawmill to our location that sells rough cut hardwood boards, I may look into pricing from them vs big box T&G then. Didn't even think to look for a video on your solar setup! :-P
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155. Posted: 7 Jan 2019 12:14 - Off-Grid Living / Solar charging question
I am setting up a solar system. It will be comprised of four 300 watt panels wired as 2 panels in series as two strings then connected together in parallel. This will feed into a Midnight Kidd charge contr...
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156. Posted: 28 Dec 2018 15:37 - Off-Grid Living / Ice Maker Power Consumption
...I do not have an ice maker, I was hoping someone else had done some testing, before I buy an ice maker. Not sure if I can afford it. Not the cost of the unit, but the amount of power consumed from my solar setup.
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157. Posted: 25 Dec 2018 22:23 - Off-Grid Living / Solar Chack Valve
Is there such thing as an electrical check valve? For my solar setup I’d like to go from controller to a small battery that would run a few minor 12v devices, and from that battery go to a set of deep cycles that will hav...
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158. Posted: 22 Nov 2018 17:28 - Off-Grid Living / What wiring did you use for your panels?
Back with the Correct & Updated pics from my solar system. Hope it helps anyone who's doing their research. I included the panel wiring too if curious and an actual photo of the setup, I do have better photo...
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160. Posted: 12 Nov 2018 21:28 - Member's Projects and Photos / New cabin in Vermont
...ed as something MUCH less than what it turned out to be...one thing after another and here it is, could almost live in it full time!!! I have it wired for a generator but would love to get a small solar setup for lights and the radio. That will be this summer's project. Let me know what you think.
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161. Posted: 8 Nov 2018 16:13 - Off-Grid Living / Generator for off grid cabin question??????
I agree that the load estimate above seems high. But then what will you be operating and how big do you want the solar system to be? Here is my long answer to the short question from chatycady and offgrididaho. We are on a small island in an unincorporated area of NW Ontario just a few miles north of...
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162. Posted: 10 Oct 2018 21:23 - General Forum / Why are you here?
...new owner of a cabin on an island in Washington. It has an island wide water supply (reverse osmosis of sea water, pretty cool!) and septic, but no municipal power, so I will be needing to add a good solar setup so came here looking for ideas on that and found a lot more. I have spent time on various interwebnet forums (sailor and camper-vanner) and have had some mixe...
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163. Posted: 27 Aug 2018 19:56 - Off-Grid Living / Propane fridge questions
Quoting: necklessu need a solar fridge with a soft start While justifying the cost of a solar fridge one must look at using the same $ to build a more robust solar ...
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164. Posted: 25 Aug 2018 09:57 - Off-Grid Living / Propane fridge questions
Yes you can vent to the outside. Just make sure you don’t restrict the air flow. I have done mine just to keep the heat out of the cottage I don’t believe you current solar system will be large enough to run a 12v fridge. Solar is great so might be worth adding to it but you’re already setup for propane so i woul...
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165. Posted: 13 Aug 2018 09:48 - Off-Grid Living / Small dc only solar system newbie questions
I have a small DC system. 1 100 hour battery on 200 watt solar. Here is my setup. Used the Blue Sea fuse block. Also have a switch panel for my lights and stuff and a couple 12V outlets. I'm a complete novice so I could be ...
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166. Posted: 8 Aug 2018 00:19 - Off-Grid Living / Solar question
Quoting: ICCA well designed and assembled solar system can be more reliable than the power grid in many places I agree. My point is that you don't often leave the grid tied house for long periods of time. When you do you us...
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167. Posted: 7 Aug 2018 12:14 - Off-Grid Living / Solar question
... frozen food. I just don't want to take that chance or loosing $$ due to spoiled food. But if you are serious about it, it's not as expensive as you may think to go almost all solar! Check our Ontario Lakeside's setup. Even if you think that your maximum loads exceed a reasonable system, think again. Perhaps you just need the genny for run...
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168. Posted: 28 Jul 2018 20:40 - Off-Grid Living / Generator Location Considerations
...is drone to the tops of my tree canopy. 170'. You can barely see it in the photo, taken from the front of my cabin. Tomorrow he is going to climb up there and check out the possibilities for a solar setup up.
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169. Posted: 27 Jul 2018 08:49 - Off-Grid Living / Generator Location Considerations
Thanks Darz, that's about the enclosure I was thinking. My cabin power is a bit unique because I have little sun for solar, although I'm gradually pecking away at it. My lights, water pump, fans etc. are all 12v. My truck has two auxiliary deep cycle batteries in parallel. I drive it every day ei...
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170. Posted: 22 Jul 2018 13:11 - Nature / Doggy Paddle
...h. She does have web feet and loves to swim but has no fear, hence the life jacket. GoPro knock off. Feel better putting a $35 camera underwater. It is however the same camera I used to film my solar setup video. The wide angle helps when filming inside.
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171. Posted: 21 Jul 2018 22:14 - Off-Grid Living / And so it begins...
Very cool, Wilbour. TY for posting. This gives me hope and, more importantly, courage as I embark on the upgrade of the 20 year old solar setup at my camp. (Yep, everything, even the AGMs, are that old and still functioning!) P.S. Do those wind turbines drive you a little nutzy at night with the noise...
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172. Posted: 9 Jul 2018 16:47 - Off-Grid Living / 110 - 12v question
I have been powering my 12 volt surflo pump from my small 12 volt solar setup, now that my 48volt system is running I dont have a direct source of 12 volt. Whats the best / most efficient way to convert from 110 - 12volt? the pump can dr...
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173. Posted: 15 Jun 2018 16:44 - General Forum / Rotomolded cooler vs propane refrigerator
I would seriously look into solar if you have a sunny spot well before going with a propane fridge. My solar setup cost me less than $1500 and never needs fuel. The fridge was ...
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174. Posted: 14 Jun 2018 00:09 - Useful Links and Resources / Nextek DC Powered Ceiling Fans
Quoting: darz5150 # Posted: 31 May 2018 21:19 Reply Quote I have 3 of these. Great for small to medium solar setup. When I got the first one I powered it from a battery out of a kids riding toy. Worked fine. Only blows down at one speed tho. I have one mounted in a gazebo p...
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175. Posted: 31 May 2018 21:19 - Useful Links and Resources / Nextek DC Powered Ceiling Fans
I have 3 of these. Great for small to medium solar setup. When I got the first one I powered it from a battery out of a kids riding toy. Worked fine. Only blows down at one speed tho. I have one mounted in a gazebo ...
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176. Posted: 28 May 2018 15:49 - Off-Grid Living / Wireless (Or otherwise) System Monitoring
Hey all, Took delivery of an Ontario Hydro killing System from Creeky last week. Well, not really, but the cost to bring hydro to the island place was significantly more than setting up a solar system. We are already adept at running with very limited power resources, so this should be pretty sweet. Anyway, I was asking Creeky about remote switching for the CNBOU inverter h...
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177. Posted: 15 May 2018 10:26 - General Forum / Break ins/cabin security
...rage door as my main entrance which opens to my porch area then to the main slider into the cabin. Windows are few but small with safety glass and are about 7 feet off the ground. I use inexpensive solar, motion-activated security lights on all 4 sides of the cabin. And I have setup Trail cameras for security as well as recording wildlife visitors. I do like the id...
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178. Posted: 6 May 2018 12:09 - Off-Grid Living / In support of solar
...ou pay for. Also there is a thread on Yeti coolers and how great they are but costly. So it begs the question, "What if I stop thinking about all these costly ideas and just pay for a quality solar setup?" I speculate that within a year you would recoup the total cost of propane and startup of all the quality items like propane fridge and cordless tools. ...
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179. Posted: 28 Apr 2018 10:07 - Off-Grid Living / What kind of solar setup do I need?
...s they say and, unfortunately, most people are not fully satisfied with the idea that any one system "should" handle their specific needs. That's why I will be posting updates on my solar setup as it progresses. I have committed to the system that Creeky has outlined above from Creeky himself. He does know his stuff but for people who have a hard ...
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180. Posted: 18 Apr 2018 13:11 - Off-Grid Living / And so it begins...
I have made the commitment to a Lithium Solar setup for my 10 x 16 cabin. Not that it's nessesary but it's a convenience. My first idea was to power a tv/dvd player but now i will be adding a small fri...
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