Intro from the Northeast newb

Hi Folks, I just wanted to intoduce myself because I'm new to this forum and have Will Prowse and you veterans to thank for exposing my to the gift of solar energy done by myself. I've just completed my "playground sandbox" stage where I bought components from all over including used, new from Amazon, products recommended by Will, and good old Harbor Freight. I've settled with keeping most of by equipment besides panels and batteries Vicron. I am moving forward on setting up a 3 phase off grid system in/on a barn, and further along on another in a large residence. I'll be on the forum more as I am learning more and my appetite is voracious, easecially because I just had to call for heating oil and it was over $6 per gallon; so I'll be building as relentlessly as possible such that I can go from oil heat to heatpump. Cheers from the Northeast US!

welcome !

Welcome. Dependent on where you are in New England, mini split heat pumps are great for plus 20degree days, not so good for colder. Yes they work but the efficiency drops big time as it gets colder. Despite various attempts at convincing folks otherwise, keep your backup. In Northern NH I use a wood boiler for winter and a minisplit for shoulder seasons.

Roger that and thank you for the reply. I'm certainly keeping the primary oil source, but learning as much as I can about cascade systems and refrigerants like CO2 and it's operation in various regimes - sub trans and supercritical. Also learning what to look for when shopping for cold weather heat pumps and tonight I'm looking at the void of heat pump clothes dryers. Right now I'm ramping up the solar knowledge base rapidly and cleaning up the systems. I took on an oil delivery at near $6 USD per gallon of number two fuel oil - that was breathtaking to say the least - the delivery ticket reads "10$ off for fast payment." That's funny. I seek to deploy new funds away from the oil tank and NYSEG electic charges right into batteries and panels! I need to do more for solar water heating as well. I think I have heard that that is often the low hanging fruit of solar, but it seems so damn low that no one bends down to scoop that heat!

Solar Hot Water fell out of favor as the upfront cost is steep and the demand versus supply demand is backwards. Lots of hot water in the summer and very little in the winter. Ideally throw in a few extra PV panels and a heat pump hot water heater and with net metering, its a lower life cycle cost.

The one thing that flips the balance is if you can find a used SHW system. Old collectors and systems pop up occasionally on Craigslist/Facebook. The well built versions are pretty simple, basically fined copper coils. Basically, pressurize them over working pressure and see if they hold pressure. In many cases water has gotten inside the panel and caused fogging of the glass but in most cases the glass and the casing can be opened up and cleaned up. The gear downstairs is frequently less salvageable but worth looking at. Not sure if Rheem is still selling the hot water tanks with integrated solar coils and back up immersion element but they are a nice rig.

I’m in the White Mtns (off grid) in NH and just filled my 1000g propane tank. I was surprised the price was only about 8% more than last year. This year, I’m working on insulation, which really seem like the best investment if you have an older structure. Because I oversized my solar system, I’ve been able to use electric heat to supplement wood and propane heat.

Hi neighbor, I am up in Gorham. Yes propane is the current winner as the demand for natural gas in Europe is much higher and far less propane is shipped off shore. The problem is propane is when it gets cold, there can be supply issues moving it around and getting deliveries. As long as your demand is low and you have a few weeks of storage capacity you are in good shape. The one caveat is the dealer really push leasing a tank versus owning one and some of the deal they offer have steep surcharges for them to supply the tank. The customer has no options of shopping around, if they own they tank.they do.

peakbagger said:

Hi neighbor, I am up in Gorham. Yes propane is the current winner as the demand for natural gas in Europe is much higher and far less propane is shipped off shore. The problem is propane is when it gets cold, there can be supply issues moving it around and getting deliveries. As long as your demand is low and you have a few weeks of storage capacity you are in good shape. The one caveat is the dealer really push leasing a tank versus owning one and some of the deal they offer have steep surcharges for them to supply the tank. The customer has no options of shopping around, if they own they tank.they do.

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Yeah, that’s why I have a 1000 gallon tank (buried), getting deliveries in winter is dicey sometimes. I’m in an inholding in the national forest, I had a few winters 15 years ago or so when I had 6 feet of snow on the ground, that year I learned to fill up the tank in October (and bought a big Kubota with a front mounted snowblower…