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I'm fully off grid (even had utility power but had them remove it). Cook on electric, have electric water heater, using AC and have enough panels and batteries

I'm fully off grid (even had utility power but had them remove it). Cook on electric, have electric water heater, using AC and have enough panels and batteries to not even need a backup generator.

xnx 1y ago
This is very cool. I'm guessing you must live somewhere with mild winters. Insulation can do wonders, but it can be overcast for weeks in the north.
- deleted 1y ago
  [deleted]
- jdlshore 1y ago
  Solar panels are so cheap that it makes sense to overbuild, such that even an overcast winter day meets your electricity needs.
  - jopsen 1y ago
    I think that depends on where you are. I've heard of 20kW installations producing 500W in December. Granted 500W isn't nothing, but what if it's snows?
    - belorn 1y ago
      That is about the numbers that we get in Sweden. Those months were solar production is lowest is also the months that consumption is highest for the average household, around 400% compared to the warmest summer months. As a result, energy prices are also significant higher during winter compared to summer.
      - DamonHD 1y ago
        My home's PV produces more energy than we use in a year, including heating. But the ~1:10 swing in generation from my roof in London UK between mid-winter and mid-summer is tough, and the storage to cover that interseasonally would currently cost about the same as the house and/or use ~50% of its volume. However, we import minimally in summer and export like crazy with the help of relatively modest storage. Luckily there is this thing called a grid, and the UK has a lot of anti-correlated wind generation on it, which helps a lot. All my detailed stats are here: https://www.earth.org.uk/energy-series-dataset.html https://www.earth.org.uk/energy-series-dataset.html Also see: https://www.earth.org.uk/statscast-202012.html https://www.earth.org.uk/statscast-202012.html
  - chopin 1y ago
    In my experience this requires overbuilding by a factor of 10. That's not a good allocation of money.

I'm fully off grid (even had utility power but had them remove it). Cook on electric, have electric water heater, using AC and have enough panels and batteries to not even need a backup generator.

xnx 1y ago

This is very cool. I'm guessing you must live somewhere with mild winters. Insulation can do wonders, but it can be overcast for weeks in the north.

deleted 1y ago
[deleted]
jdlshore 1y ago
Solar panels are so cheap that it makes sense to overbuild, such that even an overcast winter day meets your electricity needs.
- jopsen 1y ago
  I think that depends on where you are. I've heard of 20kW installations producing 500W in December. Granted 500W isn't nothing, but what if it's snows?
  - belorn 1y ago
    That is about the numbers that we get in Sweden. Those months were solar production is lowest is also the months that consumption is highest for the average household, around 400% compared to the warmest summer months. As a result, energy prices are also significant higher during winter compared to summer.
    - DamonHD 1y ago
      My home's PV produces more energy than we use in a year, including heating. But the ~1:10 swing in generation from my roof in London UK between mid-winter and mid-summer is tough, and the storage to cover that interseasonally would currently cost about the same as the house and/or use ~50% of its volume. However, we import minimally in summer and export like crazy with the help of relatively modest storage. Luckily there is this thing called a grid, and the UK has a lot of anti-correlated wind generation on it, which helps a lot. All my detailed stats are here: https://www.earth.org.uk/energy-series-dataset.html https://www.earth.org.uk/energy-series-dataset.html Also see: https://www.earth.org.uk/statscast-202012.html https://www.earth.org.uk/statscast-202012.html
- chopin 1y ago
  In my experience this requires overbuilding by a factor of 10. That's not a good allocation of money.