6 ms·

I honestly don't think I would be comfortable off grid without 4x+ that size. Of course, environments vary so significantly that these numbers don't translate

by hx8 1y ago

I honestly don't think I would be comfortable off grid without 4x+ that size. Of course, environments vary so significantly that these numbers don't translate well when discussing them without geographic context. My primary concerns would be consecutive cloudy days, and winters with very short days. While my actual heating/cooling needs are more mild than global averages, I think the combination of short daylight hours and increased heating needs makes off-grid solar unviable for climates closer to the poles, especially those not near sea level. I do think relaying on propane or wood for heating might make off grid viable for these locations, but that introduces questions of scalability and increased carbon footprint. There is some argument that burning wood should be considered carbon neutral if the trees are replanted and used as a renewable resource (Carbon is released to the air, and then captured by the next tree in a cycle), but the land intensive approach wouldn't scale to meet the heating needs of a significant portion of the population. Additionally it ignores the carbon required to grow, harvest, process, and transport the trees or the alternative uses the wood might find elsewhere. My point is for others to take their local climate into consideration before thinking that 5kw/14kWh would be enough for them to go off grid.

sneak 1y ago
In these sorts of rare situations it is of course possible to run a generator to charge everything up. Off-grid doesn’t mean on an island. The insane energy density of fossil fuels means this is an excellent “emergency” back-up plan should the sun not shine often enough.
- hx8 1y ago
  I'm not sure it's rare to live about 45°N, where we start to see >9 hours of sunlight in the winter. The intersection of places that are both above 45°N and very cloudy (Portland, Seattle, London, Detroit, Copenhagen, Dublin, Vancouver) or in high altitude probably includes a good chunk of HN readers. Northern Europe gets down to about 6 hours of daylight in the winter. If you're in one of these regions, and you plan to use a generator to augment your energy needs, I don't think that's considered an emergency as much as a secondary power source. If one of your goals is decreasing carbon emissions then a diesel generator is going to set that back. Other regions will have their own considerations, but the primary concern is balancing harvesting sunlight with heating/cooling requirements. I'm just encouraging people to do their own homework for their own situation when considering off grid. I've seen a lot of people under build and end up spending way too much to heat their homes in winter.
londons_explore 1y ago
I think it entirely depends if you want a 'just works' solution or you're willing to adjust your lifestyle day by day based on availability of sunlight. Merely a 10 watt panel in the Netherlands has been fine whilst camping for weeks, but obviously I have to severely compromise on modern life - 10 watts powers a lamp for a few hours in the evening and a phone charge each day.

by hx8 1y ago

sneak 1y ago

In these sorts of rare situations it is of course possible to run a generator to charge everything up. Off-grid doesn’t mean on an island. The insane energy density of fossil fuels means this is an excellent “emergency” back-up plan should the sun not shine often enough.

hx8 1y ago
I'm not sure it's rare to live about 45°N, where we start to see >9 hours of sunlight in the winter. The intersection of places that are both above 45°N and very cloudy (Portland, Seattle, London, Detroit, Copenhagen, Dublin, Vancouver) or in high altitude probably includes a good chunk of HN readers. Northern Europe gets down to about 6 hours of daylight in the winter. If you're in one of these regions, and you plan to use a generator to augment your energy needs, I don't think that's considered an emergency as much as a secondary power source. If one of your goals is decreasing carbon emissions then a diesel generator is going to set that back. Other regions will have their own considerations, but the primary concern is balancing harvesting sunlight with heating/cooling requirements. I'm just encouraging people to do their own homework for their own situation when considering off grid. I've seen a lot of people under build and end up spending way too much to heat their homes in winter.

londons_explore 1y ago

I think it entirely depends if you want a 'just works' solution or you're willing to adjust your lifestyle day by day based on availability of sunlight. Merely a 10 watt panel in the Netherlands has been fine whilst camping for weeks, but obviously I have to severely compromise on modern life - 10 watts powers a lamp for a few hours in the evening and a phone charge each day.