WattHackers | Save Power | Go Solar | Live Green

As I’ve stated before, this project was born out of a desire to eventually build a cabin off the grid.  I have a loose design for our cabin (will need to negotiate this with Liz), researched solar and hydro for renewable power, water sources, and other aspects of this transition. Currently we are not ready to make this dream a reality, but that time is getting closer and I know one thing – it would be a major wake up call.

With that in mind, I decided the time to change our lifestyle is not when we move to the woods, but long before.  It’s true that anyone with a fair amount of discipline and resolve could move out to the country and survive with very little, but I want to live a modern, comfortable life that is largely on my terms.  Don’t get me wrong, I like camping as much as the next guy, but I also like coming home to a comfortable home, bed, and a refrigerator. 

The challenge is to create a more efficient lifestyle that results is less consumption.  Less consumption means that we will need fewer solar panels and batteries, a smaller well, septic system, and ultimately less waste.  With a little creative design, a few compromises, and a healthy dose of technology, I think we can reduce our consumption footprint to a level where it would make sense to take it off the grid.   

This will be a phased approach that may take the better part of a couple years.   I won’t go into all the details here, but we consume a lot of energy for a small household with two people and a dog (you can read about it here in Cutting Energy Consumption and those Power Bills.)     My strategy this year is to reduce as many unnecessary power loads as I can, better insulate the house, and monitor usage more closely.  If we can get our usage down to a manageable level, I would like supplement our needs by installing a medium size Photovoltaic (solar panels) grid tied system.  This would be a good test of the technology before it becomes our sole source of power.  I will post regular updates on our progress, power bills, and the various projects we undertake on this journey.  Hopefully you will come along with us and tackle some of the same challenges in your home.  As always, I look forward to your thoughts and suggestions in the forum.     

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