Don’t forget to turn off the breaker to the grid ahead of timeAnd what happens when you dont pay your bill
Disconnect ?
Don’t forget to turn off the breaker to the grid ahead of timeAnd what happens when you dont pay your bill
Disconnect ?
So you're saying set up an off grid system, and then get connected to the grid, but don't pay your bill so they cut you off. Then you can live off grid and it won't be your fault. And the federal government May Rush In And pay your bill just like they give you free internet. That's what I saw on a YouTube video. ?And what happens when you dont pay your bill
Disconnect ?
We have AG land, the utility refused to do the netmetering with our contractor without permits. AG statutes exempted us from those permits, but the utility forced us. Utilities think they are ABOVE the law.Good question. I haven't seen anything in either state or county regs specifically regarding power on AG land. Ours is AG zoned also and we definitely intend to have a residence on it. From what I've seen so far, we have to follow FBC and NEC regardless.
The permits are the path the tax collectors use to get $$$ out of you. If you are able to bypass permits, the tax man loses out.My View attachment 125331 is that you want an inspection and you want to follow to follow the rules in almost all instances. The rules aren't arbitrary, they're generally good practices born out of tragedies, and as long as a permit/inspection isn't a simple money grab with no value, having them double-check the calculations and inspect the installation is a real value.
The problem is when there's something wrong in the rules (e.g., the multiple ground issue) or if what you're doing supersedes the expectations but the inspector can't pass it because they don't understand it (or more likely don't want to assume any responsibility for it). Theoretically, you can get an engineer's report and get that accepted, but it's a lot a hassle for some things that should just be common sense.
So do what I do… research the laws and sue themWe have AG land, the utility refused to do the netmetering with our contractor without permits. AG statutes exempted us from those permits, but the utility forced us. Utilities think they are ABOVE the law.
If one is not currently served by a utility due to a parcels remoteness I would expect costs to be involved in bringing grid power out to you. You should not be compelled to pay a utility for hookup that is out of your pocket. Now if you are at a serviceable parcel and you want to be off-grid in the end, pay for permits, get temp meter, build, get service and get disconnected for non-payment. Don't bother to pay for interconnect at this juncture. If at anytime you want the 'luxury' of the grid as your 'battery', just pay for contractor to do solar, pay permits, pay interconnect, etc. If you want your solar to be as 'your generator' do a transfer switch and build your own off-grid generation, aka solar array, hybrid inverter, batteries. The phrase 'sue someone' is not a solution to any path.So do what I do… research the laws and sue them
What county are you in? Zip? I am in 33523.Looking for any input from anyone in Florida who is running completely off-grid with power from solar & battery. And by off-grid I mean no connection to the grid at all, no utility power on the lot, period.
We own rural AG acreage in FL with no utility power on it and intend to put up a small house run completely off-grid, but properly permitted and built to code. Private septic and well.
I'm asking this here because I have seen other people on other forum stating that off-grid is explicitly illegal in Florida, but when challenged nobody can produce the state law or county law codifying this, nor can I find one either.
Off-grid is one of my trigger words, so rant headed your way. (the other two are tiny house and homesteading).Looking for any input from anyone in Florida who is running completely off-grid with power from solar & battery. And by off-grid I mean no connection to the grid at all, no utility power on the lot, period.
We own rural AG acreage in FL with no utility power on it and intend to put up a small house run completely off-grid, but properly permitted and built to code. Private septic and well.
I'm asking this here because I have seen other people on other forum stating that off-grid is explicitly illegal in Florida, but when challenged nobody can produce the state law or county law codifying this, nor can I find one either.
Sure would help the OP and the community in general if you could articulate what the PITAs were and how you worked through them. Please?Yes you can live off grid in Florida but it’s a pain in the ass. I’m going off grid in north Florida a it was very hard but is legal. I did permit everything and was approved.
I have been going through this for the past 18 months, ground breaking this weekAs master #1, we have our county building department. Will they allow us to build a house (give you a certificate of occupancy) without an electrical grid connection? Only your county building department can tell you that for sure. There are great difference county to county and each zone type may have restrictions. Not relevant to Florida, but in a county I lived in MS, I could live in a cardboard box on my A3 zoned property, have no electricity whatsoever, dig my own well, and use either a pit toilet or dig my own septic system.
Master #2 is the health department. They tell you how you may and may not attain potable water and dispose of your grey water and human waste. They and the building department are complicit and you must obey each master's whims. Again, in MS, there were no codes or permits (in the 1980s). In the 1970s in Escambia county, I could hand drive a pitcher pump well (class IIIc I think it's officially called) up to 25 feet with no permit. I could also hand dig a grey water drain, and pour my own septic tank (it's actually not very hard) with no permit on our agriculturally zoned land.
Master # 3 is your bank if you will be borrowing any money to build this off-grid house. Will they let you do what you want, or force you to connect to the utilities? Oh, and if you borrow money, you meet master #4.
Master #4 is your insurance company, required my master #3. What will they allow?
So are you saying your county will give you the magical certificate of occupancy without a grid electrical connection? Mine (in VA ) will let me call my place a camp, and as long as I have a septic or a sewage hauling permit, I can "camp" there permanantly with whatever I want for electricity. If I call it a house, then I need to spend the $25K to connect to the power grid.I have been going through this for the past 18 months, ground breaking this week
This is what YOU can do, on YOUR own land and YOU do it.
#1 Yes you can build your own house as long as it meets all building codes. Everything needs to be stamped by an engineer and all product approvals supplied.
#2 Septic as above, stamped plans and product approvals. I managed to get my plan accepted 1st time !!! Well pump and pressure tank product approvals. You are allowed to sink your own well up to 2" internal diameter.
#3 It is almost impossible to get a bank loan to do your own build no matter what. Cash is king.
#4 Haha, they make their own rules up. Will find out.
Thanks for the clarification.I let the county know my intentions before pursuing. The county had me get an engineering foundation for my Gemma mobile home. When I went to sign my permit package they called me back and said I need to sign the electrical permit, I told them I was going solar because Duke energy wanted 60,000 to bring pole to my property. First thing out of their mouth was I can’t live on solely solar in Florida. Then they sent me an email stating that I had to show them a code or statute stating I could. I told them that was their job to find were it says I can’t. I sent them every statute I could find. We then called Ron Desantis office and they gave us a phone # inside the department of energy and departmen of agriculture. They also sent the building department the same statutes I sent them. They then back peddled and gave in. After that they required me to hire a solar contractor and get engineer drawings for my solar panel ground mount(10,530$). I also paid they solar contractor 1,000 just to fight the building department on my behalf. My permits are now now complete. I have to do all the other solar setup on my own. I have started all the work but will take time since it’s my wife and I doing all the other work. My setup consists of fema home, shed, shed insulation, and all prep work for the ground mount for my solar panels. I’m located in Sopchoppy fl and thought this would be a much smoother process.
Cesspools in Long Guyland? And from you sir, I shall hear no jokes about the south!I live in densely populated suburban Long Island NY where here in Suffolk County most of us use old fashioned cesspools. When a cheap Xss neighbor's failed, and started stinking up the whole neighborhood, and spewing human waste out into his backyard on rainy days, it was not good to live next door to this jerk. The health department now requires all new septic systems be permitted and designed by a professional engineer licensed by the state. And I think that is a good thing. It does raise the cost, but I prefer I don't have to smell your s..t or get sick from it. The one size fits all approach of all the codes can be frustrating, but you cant expect the folks at the building department to be able to follow every permutation of a design. They have their templates, and if you want to step outside of them, expect to pay.