-3

How can we live somewhat off the grid without having to dig a well? .

Solar Energy System for the house gets you off the power grid reliance and can actually get you paid for providing energy to the grid. Buy a power Banking storage system to use instead of a generator, allows to store solar energy for emergencies. Get Rid of the gas powered stove and switch to electric. Buy a DrinkableAir C60 dehumidifier/water filtration unit. It Makes 71 gallons of pure drinking water a day with a storage of 180 gallons of water. Get a tankless electric water heater, no more wasting water waiting for hot water to start, and no gas pilot light. Electric furnace with whole house humidity control will create humidity for the dehumidifier to make water. Get a 500 gallon reserve tank for potable water. High Efficiency Dishwasher, High Efficiency Clothes Washing machine to save on water consumption. Get a smaller HE Fridge with No freezer or ice maker Get a HE Deep Freezer Get a separate icemaker that creates ice from humidity in the air. All your water and ice will be filtered and contaminant free, and you can add a water tank that you put the stones in to add mineral and ph to the pure water. Buy all this on a single home improvement loan and use the money you make from selling the electric company your solar energy to help pay for the entire thing. You'd need either a septic tank or a city sewer connection that you can cut off incoming city water and pump your storage water to supply the house for showers and toilets and dishwasher. Could be a worthwhile investment once the loan is paid off, your money youd normally pay towards utilities would go towards filters, and maintenance. I'd like to see a side by side spread sheet of the cost analysis

Can you help me understand any flaws in my reasoning, or things I forgot to factor in.

Improve this question
  • 3
    You forgot to buy a new energy efficient house with no air leaks and spray foam insulation... Led bulbs everywhere also. You are looking a a ton of money for what? To say you are off grid? How much income do you think you will get from power company? Where you live matters also and the temperature of your area. – Gunner Oct 27 '20 at 18:37
  • 1
    Since your question seems to indicate that you are within some city's limits, you likely cannot do what you want legally. Many jurisdictions require utility hookups. Also, depending on your local utility regulations, you may find that "selling" power to the utility is a losing proposition for you. First figure out what you are permitted to do, then start your calculations to figure out what makes sense. – jwh20 Oct 27 '20 at 19:26
  • 1
    I think you are also considering things that aren't cost effective as replacement items. In new construction the added cost can make sense but to replace a working refrigerator just for the energy savings of an HE model likely will never payback in your lifetime. – jwh20 Oct 27 '20 at 19:30
  • 1
    "Buy all this on a single home improvement loan and use the money you make from selling the electric company your solar energy to help pay for the entire thing" - That isn't going to happen. Utility companies like to make money. If solar was so lucrative you could finance the rest of a house with it so easily, energy companies would have shut down all other sources years ago and switched exclusively to solar and raked in the cash. They haven't, because it isn't so easy. – whatsisname Oct 28 '20 at 1:02
4

Flaws:

Cooking, heating, dehumidifying and making hot water by stored electricity requires WAY more power than you can get from solar panels and batteries for an average size house. You would need a LOT of panels spread out across your property. And with all of that, you can forget "selling" electricity to the utility.

Besides, selling power back to the utility means a "Net Metering Contract" with them, meaning you ARE connected to their grid and have a line-interactive inverter system that lets power flow both ways.

Getting a perc test and permit to operate a septic tank may not be as simple as you think, most places that have sewers do not allow them.

Improve this answer
  • Heating and making hot water by stored electricity can be practical with highly efficient heat pumps, but you are dead on right that cooking's the big bugbear, and also hit the nail on the head re: septic – ThreePhaseEel Oct 28 '20 at 0:53
  • An electric furnace with humidifier doesn't "create" humidity, it evaporates water into the air, water that comes from a source. It doesn't make sense to add moisture to the air only to condense it back out again for drinking & washing. It's much more efficient to just use the water in the first place. – Eric Simpson Nov 1 '20 at 12:14

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.