Pam called her mom, who lives next door to our property on Bleecker Mountain. She reports that the logging has begun. I have really mixed feelings on this. I love the woods and I don't like killing trees, but by the same token we need lots of open space for our house, out buildings, solar array, orchards, gardens, bee hives, and so on. You can't have it all.
I know we're going to be facing a huge mess when we return in the spring. We'll probably spend most of our free time for the first few months clearing brush and logging debris. By free time, I'm referring to the down time between our mad rush to drill a well, install a septic system, build our solar array, dig a foundation, and build a house, all in the matter of a few short months. What may slow us down considerably is waiting for the part time building inspector to do his job and approve each step in the process. While we're waiting, let's clear some brush!
On the solar array planning project, I carefully estimated the electrical needs of our tiny house. I estimated the power requirements of each appliance, calculated the irradiance at 43°12'6.96"N latitude the amount of sunshine we'll get on average), and found that I need 165 140 watt solar panels. ~sigh~. I guess (I hope!) there's a bug in there somewhere. 165 solar panels would power Microsoft, and would cost $23,000. I must have moved a decimal point somewhere.
I found a website called wholesalesolar.com. They have packages that include everything. I clicked on the link "off grid solar" and then "small off gird AC solar cabin". They claim I can get by with 4 245 watt panels for a mere $5,840 not including batteries. Now we're talkin'! Let's make it simple.
Still, I want to understand this stuff. Back to the books tomorrow.
I wonder if the Unibomber started this way? He was probably a normal guy until he got to this phase.
I know we're going to be facing a huge mess when we return in the spring. We'll probably spend most of our free time for the first few months clearing brush and logging debris. By free time, I'm referring to the down time between our mad rush to drill a well, install a septic system, build our solar array, dig a foundation, and build a house, all in the matter of a few short months. What may slow us down considerably is waiting for the part time building inspector to do his job and approve each step in the process. While we're waiting, let's clear some brush!
On the solar array planning project, I carefully estimated the electrical needs of our tiny house. I estimated the power requirements of each appliance, calculated the irradiance at 43°12'6.96"N latitude the amount of sunshine we'll get on average), and found that I need 165 140 watt solar panels. ~sigh~. I guess (I hope!) there's a bug in there somewhere. 165 solar panels would power Microsoft, and would cost $23,000. I must have moved a decimal point somewhere.
I found a website called wholesalesolar.com. They have packages that include everything. I clicked on the link "off grid solar" and then "small off gird AC solar cabin". They claim I can get by with 4 245 watt panels for a mere $5,840 not including batteries. Now we're talkin'! Let's make it simple.
Still, I want to understand this stuff. Back to the books tomorrow.
I wonder if the Unibomber started this way? He was probably a normal guy until he got to this phase.
Dave
ReplyDeleteLooks like a great project. Best of luck with it.
Regarding the blog: At least on my iPad, text is displayed as grey on a dark background of the photo. Very difficult read for my old eyes. Black on white would really be better.
Thanks.
Dan
You know it's winter here in Iowa - snow, frigid temps and awesome windchill! But a cup of hot coffee and your blog might just help me get through this nasty 2-3 months. So let's get on with it! I can supply the comments if you supply the blog! Stretch
ReplyDelete