When I mention I live off grid, many people suggest that it must be tough living without running water and electricity. Huh? I have both running water and electricity. In the following video, I decided to give a tour of our new and improved water system. We have pressurized running water between 30 and 50 … Continue reading Tour our Off Grid Water System
off grid
Learning from Others’ Mistakes… Pole Barn Dream
Continued from last week's wind "gym" sock. I use the the Zoom's new wind "gym" sock to record the sound for this video. You'll notice my hair blowing in the breeze while I stand outside and then walk around the old derelict cabin on the property. So far, my wind sock idea works pretty well … Continue reading Learning from Others’ Mistakes… Pole Barn Dream
Winter Storm Nadia is Naughty.
I remember years ago in first grade our school taking two vacation days in February to celebrate the birthdays of President Abraham Lincoln, February 12, and President George Washington, February 21st. We would work on crafts centered around both presidents and display them the entire month of February. Today, schools celebrate Presidents' Day, which complete … Continue reading Winter Storm Nadia is Naughty.
A Birthday Tradition Revisited
In this day and age, it seems that traditions are receiving a bad press. Many traditions provide a sense of comfort and stability in a world that is filled with chaos. The tradition I started for my wife's birthday is now over a decade old, and it is a tradition that is now rooted in … Continue reading A Birthday Tradition Revisited
It Really Works… Introducing the Bicycle Generator.
For the past few months, I have been trying to build our own bicycle generator. Soon it became a sort of obsession as I tried to take an old exercise bike and convert it to a human powered generator. These past few weeks, I could finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. … Continue reading It Really Works… Introducing the Bicycle Generator.
Off Grid electricity is NOT free.
I believe I am guilty of promoting free energy on the off grid homestead, and during the summer months it appears that way. However, during the winter months cloudy skies make solar energy creation improbable, and it's the battery bank that keeps the home's electricity going from day to day. When the fog and inversion … Continue reading Off Grid electricity is NOT free.
When the Battery Bank Dies…
At the end of this past summer, our battery bank of seven years decided to die. It was an interesting cascade failure event. One batter cell went dead and could not be revived, then another battery flagged a similar problem. Pretty soon I was isolating batteries that would no longer hold a 6 Volt change. … Continue reading When the Battery Bank Dies…
