off grid electricity

ryan s

Well-Known Member
Hey man the more information the better. Might just throw some lights up in the generator room. You would definitely have to do some hardcore cooling in the summer though. You need a building with high ceilings and that you are able to control the environment pretty well. None of this seems like its budget-able for OP.
 

GrowerGoneWild

Well-Known Member
Just build a shed man and insulate it. Yes it will be cost effective you will save around 60 bucks a month per 1000w light for electricity plus what you have to pay to wire it which costs $$$$. You will need a battery to store the power, this might get pricy. Know that with renewable energy sources you do not get 100% efficiency or even 50% 50% of the time. The battery will cost $$$$.
My house and 20x20 detached building was less than 100K with all my grow supplies and costs of work done included in that price
He did mention "off grid" solution. He did not say if the land he had in mind has utility to it.

I'm not all in on renewable energy either, its just not dependable.
 

mikek420

Well-Known Member
I've actually been putting lots of thought into tho is actually it's me who is planning on living the next 4 or 5 months with no amenities or anything other than the grow lights. What I am planning is basically follow the co laws of 6 plants, I will clone and immediately flower them so if anyone wants to check my plant count I can have a few that are extra just in case but I can easily toss them. I have a few people in colorado who want me to be their caretaker. I have to live in co for 3 months to get the paperwork and stuff. So if I wait til spring next year, I still have 3 months to wait before I can produce anything for them . it will be winter time so I'm really not thinking outdoor is going to be a good idea, I mean the plants start freezing around 35° I'm trying to put a very simple minimal upkeep plan in effect. Next spring I won't need generators because it will be warm enough outside. I know I can ge a pound in about 4 months because I've done it before, so I'm hoping I an repeat that in December and then have a replacement crop already starting to flower. I appreciate the feedback. There are obviously lots of options but gas is not going to be good. The generators only run about 14 hours at 50% and I would need a ton of gas propane butane etc to keep it going
 

dirtpower

Well-Known Member
I was going to dig by hand. The wind turbines I am lookin at are rated for as little as 2mph winds. Does it snow a lot in San Luis I was looking for weather reports too
I would get a second opinion on that wind speed ask what wind speed will give you the 400 watts ( my bet is around 28 mph ) and the lowest mph wind speed for it to start producing SOME power ( most are ~6-8 mph) I have never heard of one as low as 2mph...what brand? I would like to look this up
 

dirtpower

Well-Known Member
It sounds like your planning on getting 100% efficiency out of the wind and solar....NOT EVER GONNA HAPPEN!!! you can slash 20% off solar right off to bat as you will never have 100% optimal conditions (like in a Lab) then you have dirt getting on the panels and degradation over time....and wind speed will never be constant.
 

Darth Vapour

Well-Known Member
It sounds like your planning on getting 100% efficiency out of the wind and solar....NOT EVER GONNA HAPPEN!!! you can slash 20% off solar right off to bat as you will never have 100% optimal conditions (like in a Lab) then you have dirt getting on the panels and degradation over time....and wind speed will never be constant.
Dude i think you got it all wrong i have off grid 7200watts 6750 watt continuous i mean i can run that 24 hrs a day....
I put in my new home and planing was done way before roof was installed people do not realize the importance of the Pitch of your roof this will determine amount of sunlight hrs you will get
down fall it was over 15,000 and another 3500 to put in .. this is something you actually leave for the pro's and from what i have learned is efficiency is not how you think of it its most efficient panels use less space for instance my set up i have 27 - 250 watts solar panels black base daily watts based on 5 sun hrs is 33,750 watts its all about getting the best power performance and that is actually having it in the correct orientation and direction also important is air flow solar panels do not like Hot and will perform better at the proper operating range i have already talked to them about another set up that actually follows the sun but ground based units
 

dirtpower

Well-Known Member
Dude i think you got it all wrong i have off grid 7200watts 6750 watt continuous i mean i can run that 24 hrs a day....
I put in my new home and planing was done way before roof was installed people do not realize the importance of the Pitch of your roof this will determine amount of sunlight hrs you will get
down fall it was over 15,000 and another 3500 to put in .. this is something you actually leave for the pro's and from what i have learned is efficiency is not how you think of it its most efficient panels use less space for instance my set up i have 27 - 250 watts solar panels black base daily watts based on 5 sun hrs is 33,750 watts its all about getting the best power performance and that is actually having it in the correct orientation and direction also important is air flow solar panels do not like Hot and will perform better at the proper operating range i have already talked to them about another set up that actually follows the sun but ground based units
Understood, but your still not going to get the full 250 watts out of a 250 watt rated solar panel and the OP isn't planning on using a tracker as far as I know
 

GrowUrOwnDank

Well-Known Member
Ok Ok. I know what your saying. I just thought we were talking off the grid type shit. Was only trying to help. Ill try again. Op get one of these. Ive put 8 dollars of gas in it and I've owned it for a little over 4 months. The saving on gas really starts to add up, then you can buy all the new shit you want!!!!!!!
What? A fucking satellite dish on the side of the house? Wait! Oh he'll yeah! OP, you will also need a satellite dish dice you will be off the grid you can still get all your Gillian's island reruns on the tube bro. Good job Frog.
 

GrowUrOwnDank

Well-Known Member
Will you dig the under ground house with a back hoe?
If you use hoes? What?
Yea i feel thats really important to off grid living.
You know. If he's going off the grid, and needs alternative means to make his own electricity. It wouldn't make much since to have a hybrid I don't think. lol.

OP. I don't know. Seems like electric generators defeat the purpose if you're on a budget. Those things are not as efficient as being on the grid. They use quite a bit of fuel. Even a small 2k one I keep for emergencies just to have a tv and a couple of lights uses about 2 gallons a day. You could do a small grow with it. But, we are talking several ounces come harvest and I'm not sure you would cover your gas expenses. Seems like you need to invest a bit heavier up front or wait til you can.
 

fandango

Well-Known Member
If you use hoes? What?

You know. If he's going off the grid, and needs alternative means to make his own electricity. It wouldn't make much since to have a hybrid I don't think. lol.

OP. I don't know. Seems like electric generators defeat the purpose if you're on a budget. Those things are not as efficient as being on the grid. They use quite a bit of fuel. Even a small 2k one I keep for emergencies just to have a tv and a couple of lights uses about 2 gallons a day. You could do a small grow with it. But, we are talking several ounces come harvest and I'm not sure you would cover your gas expenses. Seems like you need to invest a bit heavier up front or wait til you can.
Off grid means use the SUN...haul in the water and soil...still need to camp out and hell knows it is a bitch watching those dam plants grow almost for ever
 

bravedave

Well-Known Member
Dude i think you got it all wrong i have off grid 7200watts 6750 watt continuous i mean i can run that 24 hrs a day....
I put in my new home and planing was done way before roof was installed people do not realize the importance of the Pitch of your roof this will determine amount of sunlight hrs you will get
down fall it was over 15,000 and another 3500 to put in .. this is something you actually leave for the pro's and from what i have learned is efficiency is not how you think of it its most efficient panels use less space for instance my set up i have 27 - 250 watts solar panels black base daily watts based on 5 sun hrs is 33,750 watts its all about getting the best power performance and that is actually having it in the correct orientation and direction also important is air flow solar panels do not like Hot and will perform better at the proper operating range i have already talked to them about another set up that actually follows the sun but ground based units
So what was that California city that was going to be ALL solar at this point. They have had the best engineers and solar scientist working for years only to come up another solar energy fail. Sure there are individuals who have done fine and I hope you are one of them, but bottom line is in the end The industry's marketing has surpassed its engineering for 30 years.
 

fandango

Well-Known Member
So what was that California city that was going to be ALL solar at this point. They have had the best engineers and solar scientist working for years only to come up another solar energy fail. Sure there are individuals who have done fine and I hope you are one of them, but bottom line is in the end The industry's marketing has surpassed its engineering for 30 years.
The big thing about solar is they are working on storage batteries the size of a school bus and have yet to make this event happen,so just have to wait awhile.
As for us small solar users,it cost 500 bucks per panel for materials to make 200w
 

Bugeye

Well-Known Member
I just pulled 12 old solar water heater panels off my house and was thinking about putting up some electric ones, maybe in a year or two. The information I was looking at on pricing shows that the cost has come down nearly 80% over the past 6 years or so. I'm wondering if that is a subsidized cost or if the true cost has come down? It doesn't look like I can sell back to my electric provider so not sure it would make financial sense. But I love the idea of having my own power supply.
 

SSHZ

Well-Known Member
I had Solar City out to price up a system, buy and lease. Buying panels was crazy expensive, leasing (20 years) would have been around 11 cents per kilowatt with a 2.9% increase every year, around 2 cents cheaper than I'm paying now. No up front fees at all. Battery's for night time use would have been around $24,000 additional. As my electric bills averages around $400 each month, it just doesn't seem worth it right now....
 
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