Tue 12 May 2009
Is it feasible to consider taking yourself off the electric grid in the UK?
Posted by admin under Alternative Fuel Vehicles
mark asked:
An isolated farm and am about to start renovations on it am strongly considering trying to start renovations on the future value of the property.
An isolated farm and am strongly considering trying to start renovations on the property.
An isolated farm and am about to start renovations on it am strongly considering trying to start renovations on the future value of the property.
An isolated farm and am strongly considering trying to start renovations on the property.
My friend you are doing what I have been looking at doing here in the USA. I live in the city for the most part now but see what is coming, shortage of gas, food, electric let alone the prices we will all see in the next few years as it all goes sky high.
From my research I have found that strawbale homes are about the best for insulation purposes, cheapest to build, totally green and used from items of the earth, and very strong against wind, storms, rain.
I have looked into welll water with a small solar panel on top to operate it or even to rig up a paddle wheel in a creek and run a DC motor from that and then convert it to AC power for the house.
Have also looked into solar panels for the roof to power the house, how many it would take, etc.
Along with wind turbines for power and well water pumping. Plus don’t forget about the ericsson engine (google it), I have seen some use that to pump water for a well and could be altered for many other items. Being on a farm, why burn waste when you can burn it in a ericsson engine and get something from it.
The farm part you already have me beat, just looking for garden, few chickens and maybe a horse. Figure I’ll trade with others for meat and other items.
Look on YouTube or Google Videos and just type in solar home, green home, strawbale home, solar panels, solar power, wind turbine, ericsson engine, wind power, etc. Tons of videos out there, I have watched at least 100 and gotten many good tips and ideas.
Glad to see I am not the only one who is serious bout getting off the “grid”.
Man if anyone can you are in the perfect position to do it. I live in the town and I rent but if I could stick a windmill or solar panels everywhere I would and not just for “Green” reasons but because we are all slaves to the energy companies and get charged outrageous prices at their whim - They will say no but they are profiteers and it can only get worse, they use the russian pipeline fiasco as justification, they use oil prices as justification, they use the fact that they have to burn”clean” as justification and the bottom line is that they ***** us and never reduce the costs when the wholesale price of these things go down - Of course they say that the cost never goes down but their profits are astronomical nevertheless.
If you want to take yourself off the grid, don’t pay your bill. Seriously though, I think you can have the fuses removed and the holders sealed thus taking you off the grid. However, if you stay on the grid you can sell any excess electricity back to them and you’ve always got their supply when yours fails or doesn’t produce enough. The grid is also well stabilised with regard to voltage and frequency, would your own independant supply be that good. Personally speaking I wouldn’t buy a house without mains electricity.
If you have a stream on your property to run a water wheel as well as a wind turbine I suppose it could be possible but, can you guarantee our weather?. On the other hand there hasn’t always been electricity and there is such a thing as HORSE power to fall back on.