There is more to it than just putting up a couple of solar panels and an Air-X 400 wind turbine. This pipe dream that some people have of self sufficiency with minimal investment is a sign of a lack of information. I was going to say ignorance, but it carries a heavy connotation; one that people don't like. Maybe because they are ignorant of the double sense of the word.
Living off the grid for some folks means a couple of hundred watts of solar, a few batteries, an inverter, a small wind turbine (for effect mainly) 45 gallons of gasoline, 500lbs of propane and carting in endless bottles of water. This, to me is not "off the grid" it is mearly a displacement from one grid to another. Sure they don't have grid power but now they are dependant on bottled fossil fuel. Either propane, gasoline or diesel. It's a false sense of freedom. If the power goes out for a week, you're sure to run out of fuel, then what?
Living in a shack in the woods,gobbling up vast amounts of firewood to heat a poorly insulated or non-insulated building is hardly environmentaly careful either. There has to be a change in lifestyle coupled with the very best use of technology to produce a sustainable end result at an affordable cost.
It's more than putting up 5000 watts of PV power, or building a straw bale house. Sure both are great ideas. If you have $30,000 for the solar panels or are well versed on straw bale construction. It's about making changes to our needs. Really, our perceived needs. We don't actually need all the stuff we have, nor do we always make the best use of it. Most times, we have false sense of economy with many things that we have around the house.
For instance. The second fridge or freezer that is never used, holds more food than we can use and ends up being wasted because it is spoiled or freezer burnt. $35 of electricity per year (for the good ones, double that for anything over 7 years old) to save a few dollars per grocery bill, then throw 1/4 of it away (and that is generous for some people). there really is no savings. Now if you have a large garden and can keep some of it stored for the winter, then maybe you can come out ahead. Not if you look for the weekly bargain at Costo!
Lights have to be shut off. sure it's not a big deal, lighting is only a fraction of your power bill but it all adds up. Look for LED lights where possible. They last the longest and reduce power consumption even more than CFL bulbs. Plus they can last 10 times longer than CFLs. That's a long time! over 100,000 hours! A typical incandescent bulb lasts about 1000 hours.
The BIGGIE for most people is water heating. So let's convert to natural gas! NO, not the answer. sure it will reduce you heating bill, but once again, you are grid connected to a different source. Solar heating is a big solution for many people with a vast selection of heaters available on the market, plus the ability to piece together a home made system with little "pre-fab" parts. The lifestyle change come in when you reduce the amount of hot water you (think you) need. Let's face it, you don't need a 240 litre hot tub. it just isn't necessary.
There are options to consider for space heating and A/C as well. Most people don't need an A/C in their house. But if you are going to use one, why not heat your domestic hot water with the extra heat it produces? Why are all the things that spoil us always "end use" or should I say "dead end use"? None of the wasted energy is ever used for a secondary purpose. What do you think happens to all the heat that your fridge or freezer produces go? How about the A/C? Why not heat water with it. Did you know that it takes little more than an 8000 btu unit to provide all the hot water an average house uses in one day? Guess what the by-product of that unit is? A/C. Enough for 2 bedrooms or a living room. Or a fridge or a freezer, or... get my drift? Why do we produce cold air with electricity for our fridge when in Canada, the air outside is cold enough 5 months of the year? In summer, you could cool your house, your fridge and heat your water all with one efficient unit!
Now do you still think you are doing your part to conserve energy?
The long and the short of it is, to get off the grid, you have to get off the power hungry lifestyle that most of us have. Then, and only then, can it be feasible to think about it. Otherwise, you will certainly be disappointed. Getting off the grid might not be a reality for most people, but getting a huge payback in a few small lifestyle changes that really don't hurt much, at least not for very long, is a much more realistic expectation.
Could it be conceivable to be "reduced grid load" or "grid-light" or even semi-grid? I see too many people driving around in Hummers or other huge SUVs saying they would love to be off grid! Sure they would. I would love to have a million dollars too! Both are posible but not easily achievable unless you make changes. Small ones at first; to get used to it, some big ones down the road. Sooner or later, you can be on your way to liberating yourself of the grid altogether. Ok maybe not completely. But a $50 Hydro bill sure is a lot better than $400 or $500 per month. Changes will make it happen. Don't set you sights to be "off grid" when all you can be is "grid reduced".
More to come on changes that are easily attainable.
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