reply to post by mybigunit
Sorry for any typos,
So you want to live off the grid do you? I will first start by saying that living off the grid is a full time job in and of itself. It requires
dedication, hard work, and eats up most of your free time. It is probably the most rewarding way to live having said that. So with out further
adeu:
The construction of your house should be such that the house is centralised to one heating source. No long halls preferably half walls where
aplicable. And make sure that central pipes (like water pipes are near the central heating as well (broken pipes in the middle of no where suck) you
really need to think about the design and layout of the house.
Go with a wood burning or coal burning stove. It's up to you. Pellet stoves suck. they are good in theory but in such high demand the pellets can be
hard to find. plus you can burn just about anything in a coal or wood burning stove... can't do that with a pellet one.
Construction of the house is essential. what you make your house out of will dictate how comfortable your house will be during hot and cold seasons.
You won't be running an A/C or central heating regardless of how many Battery banks you install. I recommend Adobe as it is one of the best
insulators you can build your house out of. If you want to be cheap you can go cinderblock but make sure you stuff every single block with handfuls of
fiberglass insulation (make sure blocks are completely sealed). Also, and this is important, build your house from east to west, not north and south.
This will allow for passave heating from windows in the winter and keep the house shaded for the summer.
Roofing: Go with a tin roof at an angle. It will not only reflect the sun but installing gutters around the whole thing means you can channel all rain
water into a cistern for later use.
Windows. double pained. If going for passive solar (why wouldn't you?) build large window on the appropriate side. Insulated curtains are great for
summer to keep the the heat out. And in the winter open the curtains during the day and close them at night to keep the house warmer.
Pipes: Copper or Pvc is a good option. Make sure all pipes can be acsessed somehow without having to rip apart anything like walls floors etc. build
the house with a crawl space or trapdoor to pipes and whatnot. GET ICE LOCKS for your pipes. (it's a nifty little spongy rope type thing that goes
into the pipes so if the pipes freeze they don't explode).
Hot water. This is up to you. you can go hot water heater, Inline water heater ( expensive but good) or hot water solar panel (super cheap and super
good)
Hot water solar panels can heat water up to 50 - 100 gallons 160 F even in the winter and there is no propane or electricity used.
garden: green house. go green house. you can farm in the winter. do what ever size you want but go off the 10 by 10 theory of gardening and digging
down 10 feet instead of spreading the crops out more. you can have a smaller more managable green house with less work and more crops.
Live stock: A good food supply is always good. depending on where you live you can make the decision of what to buy. Good things to have are Chickens
or quail. You always have eggs and meat) and are realitivly simple to take care off.
Electricity. You Don't need ridiculous amounts of electricity. But you will need some. depending on your needs 1 solar panel with a 6 to 12 batter
parellel array will be more than enough. you aren't going to be using things like microwaves or hairdryers or giant plasma screen tv's anyway.
Probably not even a desktop computer ( i know people who do but they are super rich and have no problem wasting lots of money of gasoline for their
back up generators evertime they run out of battery juice.) Get a wind generator as well (if you live in a windy area)