When designing systems to enable house to run off solar power and be off the grid there are numerous factors to take into account.
Often visitors to our Eco Stay ask can we run a washing machine, power tools or an electric kettle for example? The answer is basically a “yes” but within certain limitations. The limitations can simply be addressed by spending more! i.e. installing a larger system allows you to generate and store more power, however the price can be daunting. However if your funding,like most, is not endless then there are steps you must take.
A solar installer should take people through the process of identifying what the power requirements for your house/ lifestyle are. This boils down to the type of appliances, how much power they use and how long each of these appliances run for. Basically an Energy Auditing process.
It is much easier and cheaper to reduce your electrical loads than attempt to just “convert” an existing house to be off grid. For example energy efficient fridges can use a third of the power a usual fridge does. Fridges are often one of the biggest loads in a house as they are on 24 hours a day. Also electric hot water heating is a massive load that can account for a 1/3 of electrical power usage in homes. So identifying the major energy users is the first step, then reducing these loads is the next logical step. It is much easier (and cheaper) to purchase an energy efficient fridge than to install a solar off grid system!
In designing an off grid system the different systems need to be considered as a whole. The design of the building itself needs to be taken into account. For example I see no point in adding solar power to a house located in a cool climate when the house in not insulated adequately! Building orientation, window locations, themal mass and ventilation all dramatically affect the energy use of a house. Thus it is crucial to look at the whole design not just individual pieces of the energy puzzle.
Living off the grid, including no normal sewage lines, does not mean one has to compromise and revert to “traditional composting toilets”. After much searching we came across this amazing system that is basically a large “contained” worm farm. I say contained as a few people have asked, “can the worms get out?”, i ahven’t seen any escapees yet!!
As far as house plumbing goes the eco-stay is bulk standard normal. Standard dual-flushing toilet, sinks and shower etc. There is no smelly composting toilet that requires sawdust added. No special chemicals, no maintenance (apart from an annual check up) and very low power usage!
The power usage was a critical factor in our purchase. As we are off grid we could not install a system that required large amounts of electricity to run.
All “grey water” is also handled by this system, something that if you have a standalone composting toilet, you still have the issue of what to do with the grey water. A hidden benefit is that you can use an “insinkerator” for disposing of vegetable waste. So all food scraps etc are processed by the worms as well. A tasty alternative meal for the worms!
Treated water from the system is pumped automatically to a dispersal field that runs 200meters through the bush.
Dr Patrick Dixon from GlobalChange.com talks about the changing world of ecotourism, adventure tourism and experience tourism. What drives people to travel?
One salient point is the notion that people do not travel in isolation. They usually travel with someone, meet people along the way, have experiences and form relationships along the way. Dr Dixon talks about the nature of travel is essentially based on relationships with other people.
What if our relationship to the planet was also part of the equation? Would this be the ultimate form of “eco travel”? Where we are aware of all our interactions with the planet and others along the journey?
One of the hidden benefits of living in an off the grid house and relying on renewable sources of energy is that you become acutely aware of the weather. From simple tasks such as doing a load of laundry, is there ample power to run the washing machine, is it sunny enough to dry the clothes on the line?
Over prolonged cloudy periods where the Photo Voltaic panels are not putting out as much power we curb power usage even more. For example we may not have our internet connection on all day, just turn it on a couple of times during the day or cut back on the coffee machine use!
Over time you actually learn to live in far more harmony with the “elements” and have a far greater appreciation for the abundance that is around us every day.
When designing systems to enable house to run off solar power and be off the grid there are numerous factors to take into account.
