Posted: 5/14/2007 11:08:41 PM EDT
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Hey ya'll, I don't post a lot, because my connection is soooo slow and my computer is a pile. But I'm getting pretty interested in survival preps, I've always been interested in it. I've got a good supply of gun parts and guns in common calibers and plenty of ammunition. I'm stocking up on candles and some Mountain House in cans to stick away in a corner, just in case. I know its good to stock what you eat but, this will be the contingency food, so to speak. Well the wife and I have decided to get out of town and get some land and build a house. We have the finances in a good position and we are ready to move. Some of the places where we are looking don't have any power poles..........for miles. I'm not paying the electric company to run a butt load of poles only so somebody can build after us and have to pay a fraction of what we paid. So we started looking at alternative energy. Now I plan to power the house of LP in at least a 1000 gal tank. As far as electricity, tere are no creeks or streams or hudro, not much wind, and solar is looking like it would be way too expensive. So we were thinking a LP generator to power the house. Has anyone done this? When I say power the house, I mean power it. Not like we run it for part of the time and then let it rest for a week. If need be we could have it charge a battery bank to power the house when the generator is shut down. We plan to by a bunch of new apliances like the washer drier and all, so we can get gas powered and very energy efficient models. We'll have a septic tank and a well. So my main thing is, where to find a generator that will do what we are wanting, prices and information about how this has been done before. I've searched all the alternative energy sites and all they have is information about solar and renewable energy. They only hint at generators being used in emergencies. And as far as generators, all I can find are massive industrial models, or home models that are labeled as "back-up". Any information you can give me is fantastic. It will really help. It's not too imparative I get answers now as we aren't buying the land for another 4-6 months and have yet to decide on a house floor plan. Thanks a bunch! |
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LP generators use a ton of gas. Really, all generators do. Non are a very cost effective way to power a house for long term. I think solar is going to be the way you want to go. If you change your lifestyle (use a lot less power) and shop around, you can probably install solar PV wit a small battery bank yourself for $2-5k, or figure $5-6 per watt. That is minimal there, and might not be enough. You could run fridge, heat, hot water on propane. Running a generator on propane will empty that 1000gal tank quickly. How quickly depends on the generator and load, but quickly. Normal grid tie installs (no battery) here are in excess of $8 per watt, but you could come down some if you A) do the work yourself B) shop prudently. The other issue is noise. I ran my little backup for months waiting for my power to come in, while I built my house. The last few weeks I was getting nutty from the sound. Good luck! Sounds like a fun project. |
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My neighbor actually lives of the electrical grid in this manner (well, not using propane though), the house is run on battery power and the gen set is only started to charge the batteries or when a heavy load needs to be run (laundry or the well). Everything else is done with 12V marine type lighting, pumps and propane appliances. If you are going to go this method I would highly recommend diesel as the fuel source, much more bang for your buck when it comes to fuel prices. Not having something like solar, hydo or wind power and only a generator can end up costing you more than the utility bill would be every month. However, YMMV.. c0 98% of the population is asleep. The other 2% are staring around in complete amazement, abject terror, or both. falloutshelter653.org |