Escape to "Living Off the Grid"

By John Young

This book is what you need to have to install solar panels and live off the grid.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Newman Springs Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Oct 24, 2023
• ISBN: 9798890613295

John Young

John Young is a writer who is originally from Belfast and now lives near Edinburgh. A former lawyer, he helped found The Teapot Trust, a children's art therapy charity, with his wife Laura. He was a Scottish Book Trust New Writer Award winner in 2013.

Book preview

Table of Contents

Title

Copyright

Preface

Best States for Living Off the Grid

Heating Space in Homes

Solar Photovoltaic Arrays

Wiring Solar PV Arrays

Inefficiencies

A DC Solar Well Water Pump

DC Controllers and Combiner Boxes

Rechargeable DC Battery Banks

Sine Wave Inverters

Useful AC Appliances

Know or Use These Useful AC Formulas

AC Generators

Afterword

Glossary

About the Author

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Escape to Living Off the Grid

John Young

Copyright © 2023 John Young

All rights reserved

First Edition

NEWMAN SPRINGS PUBLISHING

320 Broad Street

Red Bank, NJ 07701

First originally published by Newman Springs Publishing 2023

ISBN 979-8-89061-328-8 (Paperback)

ISBN 979-8-89061-329-5 (Digital)

Printed in the United States of America

This book is dedicated to

Yuliet Beker

My best friend, always of immeasurable help, encouraging me in creating and writing this text.

And to

Charro Gordo,

Zeus,

Hercules,

Baby,

Chiara,

Luna,

Gordo,

and Blue.

Their continuous presence and howling provided the emotional support I needed to carry me through creating this text and writing this book.

Preface

This text was compiled for those needing or wanting accurate information about living off the grid. If you are looking to repair or maintain an existing alternative energy system, I am certain this text will be quite informative and prove useful to you. This text is very informative and useful whenever you are planning and installing an off-the-grid alternative energy system as well.

Some people have property which is too distant from the electric power company's power lines; therefore, it is not economically feasible to connect to the power grid while other people seem happier living without an electric bill.

Here in this text, there is a workable method for properly wiring solar panels for either a 24-volt DC system or a 48-volt DC system explaining all the equipment needed for several different systems depending on how much electricity you will need to produce and how much money you are willing to invest to step off and stay off the grid and/or to prevent using grid power. Initially you will buy and install the solar panels, collectively called a solar PV array or a solar photovoltaic array. You will learn how to form or wire groups of solar panels called strings from your solar PV array to control the amps, volts, and watts for an efficient and workable operation. Know this from the very start: never wire any electrical circuit with an inadequate conductor. Never ever. Big mistake! And know how to properly wire or install the conductors connecting the solar PV array to each string, how to connect each string to the combiner box, and how to connect a combiner box to your DC controller and either a 24-volt DC or a 48-volt DC battery bank. A licensed electrician will connect the battery bank to an AC sine wave inverter to power either some of your AC appliances or all your AC appliances with an added AC generator. This text is, when properly applied, exactly what any person or family needs for their off-the-grid living and/or to operate an off-the-grid alternative energy system.

It is extremely important to thoroughly study this useful text, repeatedly as necessary, to completely understand this text. Leave no chance or place for an error that would ruin your equipment. If you do this correctly, you will have something to really be proud of, but don't tell everybody because they would want you to do all their troubleshooting for them!

Best States for Living Off the Grid

If you don't see your state listed above, you should check the requirements your county and/or state imposes on you and go from there concerning your off-the-grid-living possibilities. You might find a hidden concrete wall there! How did that get there? Don't worry. There will be new laws after the collapse of the power grid. I think electricity should be taxed instead of generous government subsidies for power companies or the government will step in and socialize the electric companies, and then you will pay the government for your electricity. Yikes! Now as of the time of this printing, I have discovered that the states above might not give you too much grief about living off the grid; however, getting a building permit to install an off-the-grid alternative energy system might be a different scenario. Therefore I highly recommend that you check out what requirements you will encounter concerning relocating to any of the above-listed states. Before you pack up and move to one of these states, do your due diligence to find out if there are any major problems with the area you are considering. Some states have strict laws to protect their water rights, which will be a kind of a hassle, leaving you with no available water! Tragic experience! What about the local climate, education, and healthcare? Don't forget the local crime rate, cost of living, housing, land prices, and taxes. I think it's best to look for the advantages. There will be a lot of searching online but worth doing, and the information is usually free.

What I'm giving you here in my text is limited, and changes will happen. Do not fail to do your research. You will discover unusual but pertinent differences from state to state, county to county, and even differences within the same state.

Heating Space in Homes

After I had looked into various methods for home heating, including burning kerosene for heating, oddly enough I found an