I'm an old koot

[singing_falls]

So, I'm a crusty old Nam vet living on our private holding in Umpqua National Forest. We lived off grid for decade in Montana and now live where we are. We heated most of our water and met our electrical needs with solar starting around 1985. My solar panels are fried since they are so old. We had a couple of 116 F days and they just couldn't handle it anymore. We're on the grid now but the power goes out every year. We're on the bottom of the food chain when it comes to power company equipment. Plus we have old growth trees whacking the primaries of the area all the time. That said I'm an ARES radio operator and on the volunteer fire dept. We are mandated to have power when the system goes down. Besides, I just like the idea of being independent to a degree. No problem with solar exposure at all.
I wanted to connect with homesteaders to find out the best way to go. I hate to say it but after 50 years of homesteading my capacity to DYI is on the sketchy zone. Not saying I'm writing it off. Just saying that it's pushing the envelope for a 77 year old if you get my drift.
My wants are with this:
REC/Panasonic panels. LiFePO4 for batteries. Grid interface. Inverter. etc. You know the drill. Current power bill is around 85/month.
Ideas and suggestions are welcome.

 

[KITROBASKIN]

Welcome!
I’m guessing the experts here would like you to specify your needs regarding electric power. How much solar energy lands on your place?

 

[AZ Solar Junkie]

So, I'm a crusty old Nam vet living on our private holding in Umpqua National Forest. We lived off grid for decade in Montana and now live where we are. We heated most of our water and met our electrical needs with solar starting around 1985. My solar panels are fried since they are so old. We had a couple of 116 F days and they just couldn't handle it anymore. We're on the grid now but the power goes out every year. We're on the bottom of the food chain when it comes to power company equipment. Plus we have old growth trees whacking the primaries of the area all the time. That said I'm an ARES radio operator and on the volunteer fire dept. We are mandated to have power when the system goes down. Besides, I just like the idea of being independent to a degree. No problem with solar exposure at all.
I wanted to connect with homesteaders to find out the best way to go. I hate to say it but after 50 years of homesteading my capacity to DYI is on the sketchy zone. Not saying I'm writing it off. Just saying that it's pushing the envelope for a 77 year old if you get my drift.
My wants are with this:
REC/Panasonic panels. LiFePO4 for batteries. Grid interface. Inverter. etc. You know the drill. Current power bill is around 85/month.
Ideas and suggestions are welcome.

Hi “old koot” and thank you for your service.

The first thing to do is to understand your power needs a bit more. You can get a rough idea from your monthly consumption in kWh on your bill. Even better is to get a power monitoring system like the Emporia Vue (costs ~$150) or comparable system. Then you can really see what your peak utilization needs are, etc. A rough description of what your electrical appliances are, etc, can also help get a rough idea on what an appropriate solution would be for you.

 

[pollenface]

Welcome you old koot!

I'm sketchy, that's why I don't post pics of my setup

 

[MisterSandals]

Current power bill is around 85/month.

How many kWh per month does this amount to? This is your goal, on a daily basis if possible.

 

[singing_falls]

Welcome!
I’m guessing the experts here would like you to specify your needs regarding electric power. How much solar energy lands on your place?

Here's the lat-long. Clear skies east, south and north.
Google Earth
42°52'12.02"N 122°52'58.31"W

 

[singing_falls]

Hi “old koot” and thank you for your service.

The first thing to do is to understand your power needs a bit more. You can get a rough idea from your monthly consumption in kWh on your bill. Even better is to get a power monitoring system like the Emporia Vue (costs ~$150) or comparable system. Then you can really see what your peak utilization needs are, etc. A rough description of what your electrical appliances are, etc, can also help get a rough idea on what an appropriate solution would be for you.

Thanks for the "welcome home".
Average usage over 26 months was 550 KWH/month. Peak usage during that time was 713 KWH in August 2022. Not sure why since we don't use air conditioning. I do remember it getting to 116 F and a stretch of above 100 F. Broke records that year. Two chest freezers, I refrigerator, lights, well pumps, phone, HAM radio. We heat (masonry furnace), cook (Elmira Oval) and sauna (custom stove) with wood. Water is currently propane heated. Well water, HAM radios, internet are the main priorities.

 

[singing_falls]

How many kWh per month does this amount to? This is your goal, on a daily basis if possible.

Average usage over 26 months was 550 KWH. Peak usage during that time was 713 KWH in August 2022. Not sure why since we don't use air conditioning. I do remember it getting to 116 F and a stretch of above 100 F. Broke records that year. Two chest freezers, I refrigerator, lights, well pumps, phone, HAM radio. We heat (masonry furnace), cook (Elmira Oval) and sauna (custom stove) with wood. Water is currently propane heated. Well water, HAM radio are the main priorities.

 

[singing_falls]

Welcome you old koot!

I'm sketchy, that's why I don't post pics of my setup

I don't mind heights. Used to be a tree topper. Just a little more wobbly than I was back then That said, I've got 14 hives. Do you use solar to extract honey or wax?

 

[MisterSandals]

Peak usage during that time was 713 KWH in August

713kWh / 30 days = 24kWh per day

How many days do you want to run off batteries if grid goes down?
You’d likely use less power just to make sure you don’t run out. Do you have a feel for how much power in such a scenario you want stored in batteries?

This kWh number will be what your solution should be geared towards.

24000Wh / 51.2V battery = 469Ah battery

 

[pollenface]

Do you use solar to extract honey or wax?

Can't say I do

 

[Onehand]

Welcome sir.

These guys know their stuff. Being 70 something myself, I started thinking I had bit off more than I could chew when I started unloading all the equipment and staging it for installation. I'm just going at it real slow for now. At our age every day is a new adventure, in everything. I have been keeping bees for 25 years now and the deep weights are starting to get to me. Sometimes there ain't no better sound than a UH-1.

 

[pollenface]

Here's the lat-long. Clear skies east, south and north.
Google Earth
42°52'12.02"N 122°52'58.31"W

your place is in a beautiful part of the world!

 

[EmporiaEnergy]

Hi “old koot” and thank you for your service.

The first thing to do is to understand your power needs a bit more. You can get a rough idea from your monthly consumption in kWh on your bill. Even better is to get a power monitoring system like the Emporia Vue (costs ~$150) or comparable system. Then you can really see what your peak utilization needs are, etc. A rough description of what your electrical appliances are, etc, can also help get a rough idea on what an appropriate solution would be for you.

Hi @AZ Solar Junkie, Thanks for recommending the Emporia Gen 2 Vue Energy Monitor!

@singing_falls If you have any questions, our support team based in our Colorado-HQ is always happy to chat and help you figure out a solution for your needs. We support solar in a variety of ways. We have options for phone, email, and chat and can be quickly reached via emporiaenergy.com/contact. Hours are M-F 8-5 MST.

As, we're also on many of the forums for questions that arise outside of our official contact options! Wishing you all the best with your solar upgrade.

 

[singing_falls]

713kWh / 30 days = 24kWh per day

How many days do you want to run off batteries if grid goes down?
You’d likely use less power just to make sure you don’t run out. Do you have a feel for how much power in such a scenario you want stored in batteries?

This kWh number will be what your solution should be geared towards.

24000Wh / 51.2V battery = 469Ah battery

Very helpful. THANK YOU!

 

[singing_falls]

your place is in a beautiful part of the world!

We've been here 34 years and very much have set down roots.

 

[singing_falls]

Welcome sir.

These guys know their stuff. Being 70 something myself, I started thinking I had bit off more than I could chew when I started unloading all the equipment and staging it for installation. I'm just going at it real slow for now. At our age every day is a new adventure, in everything. I have been keeping bees for 25 years now and the deep weights are starting to get to me. Sometimes there ain't no better sound than a UH-1.

Roger that Onehand. I have 9 langstroth standard deeps and 5 langstroth long hives. Solar works great for getting the wax out of funky old comb. And yes, I ended up at around 73 getting a log splitter, rotor tiller and a BX s kubota to compensate for the age component. Prior to that is was all by hand for better part of half a century. I did train a pair of oxen some years back to skid logs. That helped a lot.