3 years off grid! female designed & constucted homestead seeks 80 watt panel(s)

8 Posts
Jul 19, 2008 02:17 pm
3 years off grid! female designed & constucted homestead seeks 80 watt panel(s)

My 5 acre homestead is completely off grid in the mojave desert.  With no prior training or knowledge, I sought to build a homestead in the same manner as my grandfathers, without loans, construction assistance or specialized tools.  That was 3 years ago.

Although not participating in the credit game has proven difficult, my land and home stand with each nail and screw placed by my own hands testifying to my intense personal desire to be live the American homestead dream.

My pv system has room for expansion, which would allow me a swamp cooler and continuous use of refrigeration. 

I am hoping that someone has 80 watt (or?) panels that they no longer want... or want very little for. 

I do work full time... but wages are depressed as my county is very impoverished...

I have pulled county permits and passed all inspections.  My hope is to provide a financially sound model for all those who truly desire off grid lifestyle. 

Many peaceful wishes, Karen
 
220 Posts
Jul 19, 2008 11:53 pm
Re: 3 years off grid! female designed & constucted homestead seeks 80 watt panel(s)

hi karen,

  good for you. i bet your grandfathers would be proud.
please contact kerry at customer service. she has a pv module with your name on it. supply her with the shipping details and choose between the sharp ne-80eje 80 watt or the kyocera kc85t 85watt or the mitsubishi mf110ec4 110watt module. the account has been taken care of.

hope this helps, dave

karen please consider adding some gallery photos of your homestead.
 
8 Posts
Jul 20, 2008 04:35 am
Re: 3 years off grid! female designed & constucted homestead seeks 80 watt panel(s)

Dave,

I am stunned... Thank you very much!  Wow... 
Your generosity is greatly apprecieted and your kindness will make my home a little happier.  I hope you smile often. 

Your project is very impressive, was your background in electronics?  Theres sooooooooooooooooo much I don't know.
=) but I have enjoyed my learning curve.
 
I would be more than happy to post some pics... I'll try to get them up this week.  Many thanks, big smiles and peaceful wishes,  Karen
 
220 Posts
Jul 21, 2008 12:06 am
Re: 3 years off grid! female designed & constucted homestead seeks 80 watt panel(s)

karen,

  as an afterthought. i believe you should take a few minutes when you call the store to speak to mr. cormican altE's technical adviser to make sure you don't face any compatability issues adding on to your system. he  will need to know what your running now, at least the module name and number. if you can give him the voc and vmp numbers off the label so much the better he most likely would know these anyway. as well as your nominal (battery) voltage and your charge control setup. he may want you to go with an entirely different module than those we mentioned, follow his recommendations. a word of caution here when dealing with james, make sure you say photovoltaic module not "solar panel" things could get ugly real quick. all kidding aside he is brilliant and won't steer you wrong.

  karen, about the path you have chosen..i applaud you! it is what some of us have only day dreamed about. i'm not sure i would have the guts.

  as for myself i live in a small studio flat and have no way using re but have gotten my daily power usage down to less than 5kwh through conservation methods. such as leaving my electric hot water off until ten minutes before i need it. and adjusting the fridge to best economy with a kill-a-watt meter. (lowest is not always best) and teaching myself to shut things off!

  it's been sort of a game to me to try and offset my usage by producing power at other locations with different projects at my friends and families properties. your original posting brought back fond memories of hiking through joshua tree and prompted me to act on your behalf. so it is my pleasure to help out. mentally i will add .5kwh per day production to my tally.

  also that evaporative cooler should work great in your low humidity. i'm sure you've seen the charts that show your expected temperature drop across the pleats. as for refridgeration you might consider going with an lp setup.

 "vicariously living in the high desert"

all the best, dave
 
1 Posts
Jul 21, 2008 12:45 pm
Re: 3 years off grid! female designed & constucted homestead seeks 80 watt panel(s)

My 5 acre homestead is completely off grid in the mojave desert.  I have pulled county permits and passed all inspections.  My hope is to provide a financially sound model for all those who truly desire off grid lifestyle. 

Many peaceful wishes, Karen

KAren - it is really important ot prove to people this is a financially viable model - sO I wish you eveyr success. It would be greast to hear every detail on how you do it. Please could
I call you - you can send your numebr to me at my email [email protected]
 
8 Posts
Jul 27, 2008 10:03 am
Re: 3 years off grid! female designed & constucted homestead seeks 80 watt panel(s)

Nick,

I'd be more than happy to communicate with you but am not a phone talker.... you may reach me by email rearth2 @ peoplepc.com.  I look forward to hearing from you.  Karen
 
14 Posts
Sep 3, 2011 10:28 am
Re: 3 years off grid! female designed & constucted homestead seeks 80 watt panel(s)

I have 6 "solavolt" 12 volt 85 watt panels that are fairly old but still have a very good output. They have been in storage for about 5 yrs.  I think $300 a panel would suffice. email sfsep98 @ embarqmail.com for more info..
 

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