Living off the grid has its perks, but you have to know how to power your home to get the most out of it. One new off-gridder took to Reddit to try to extend how long they could power their home and got some great advice.
The OP shared an image of their cabin in the "mountains of south central Colorado" in the r/OffGrid subreddit, and while the image has since been deleted, the discussion the post generated still involves some great advice.
The off-gridder said they were pretty new to this lifestyle, having just moved in two weeks prior to the posting. They said they were powering their home with a generator that has three 109 Ampere-hour batteries and that they have a 12-volt charger with a "3000-watt pure sine power inverter."
Unfortunately, they can only get 20 hours of power out of their current setup and are concerned about powering the home during winter. So, the OP asked the off-grid community, "How can I extend that run time?"
One Redditor came to the OP's aid and said, "Right off the bat; add some solar panels."
Installing solar panels on off-grid homes isn't uncommon for people who want energy independence. Just take this family in Tennessee that installed solar panels on their home. They installed 31 new panels and a new battery to get more efficient power.
Another person living off the grid uses solar panels to power his AC during the summer.
Installing solar panels is a great way to help you save money on your energy bills, up to $1,500 a year, and it can even help bring your bill down to $0. It may require an investment up front, but EnergySage's marketplace makes it easy to search providers in your area and compare quotes.
The energy company can even help you save $10,000 on installation through tax credits if you can complete your installation by Dec. 31. If you can't take advantage of the credits, leasing panels may make more sense. Check out Palmetto's LightReach leasing program to install panels for $0 down.
Living off the grid can also save you money, and adding solar panels to the mix can strengthen your resiliency, especially during extreme weather events, since you won't lose power.
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Sign me up 👍 Additionally, this kind of setup also uses less energy than living in a traditional home. Solar panels don't use power from dirty energy sources, which contribute to the warming of the planet and intensify extreme weather events.
Living off the grid and utilizing solar panels are two ways to reduce society's reliance on digging up old fossilized hydrocarbons and burning them into the air at totals far beyond what would happen naturally on the planet without human activity.
Beyond that, living off-grid can just be an appealing way to live life in a way that connects more to nature and the traditions of people who came before us, with solar allowing it to happen without as much of a sacrifice of modern conveniences that electricity can bring.
While some Redditors provided advice to the OP, others just admired their cabin.
One user said, "I dream of living in seclusion."
Another user commented, "Nice setup and beautiful scenery."
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