DennisK
Songster
I wish we were off grid but we live in town and can not tie to the system if we install solar or wind so we are having to move that way slowly. We are going to buy our first solar panels later this spring and build a small room for the battery storage. I can't wait. I'm also looking at building my own wind system with a vertical wind turbine.
That’s how I started out, erinszoo. I started out with eight 60 watt panels, and two Trojan Deep Cycle batteries. The good thing about that experience is that it teaches you how to live with a limited electrical supply. We now have ten 230 watt panels, with eight batteries. That seems to handle all of our household needs. We still need to use a generator to pump water from our well, but replacing the 230 volt pump with a solar pump is our next project.
Be careful choosing your wind turbine as most make a lot of noise – that might make your neighbors a little angry.