Anyone have an off grid cabin?

[Rickey]

I guess I need a controller then. The panel I have from harbor freight was a single panel that had no controller unless it is internal. I know battery tender makes one but have seen good and bad reviews.

 

[kdrtk]

They aren't that expensive. Just need to match voltage and amperage to your panel. Morningstar makes a pretty good selection. This one will work with up to an 80 watt panel.
SunGuard 4.5 Amp 12 Volt Solar Charge Controller
$27.50
Just an example, they have bigger and smaller ones of course.
"Northern Arizona Wind and Sun" has alot of solar stuff.

 

[BigMike]

We have a stove/oven using a propane bottle, a small wood stove and two E27 LED lights running off a deep cycle marine battery. I'm going to be installing an inexpensive solar charger from Harbor Freight to charge the battery and unhook it when I'm not there.

 

[ALwoodsman]

Has anyone tried one of these kits? It looks like it might be a better deal than the HF.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00B...340_QL65&keywords=renology+200+watt+solar+kit



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Weasel]

Has anyone tried one of these kits? It looks like it might be a better deal than the HF.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00B...340_QL65&keywords=renology+200+watt+solar+kit

No, but I was researching that company pretty good. Good reviews and the nice thing about that kit is it is expandable so you're not stuck if you need to grow your system.

Great input everyone, thanks. I've been gathering components slowly over the winter. I'll keep you posted on my progress.

We have a stove/oven using a propane bottle, a small wood stove and two E27 LED lights running off a deep cycle marine battery. I'm going to be installing an inexpensive solar charger from Harbor Freight to charge the battery and unhook it when I'm not there.View attachment 4663

Those lights look very bright! Where did you get those?

 

[BigMike]

No, but I was researching that company pretty good. Good reviews and the nice thing about that kit is it is expandable so you're not stuck if you need to grow your system.

Great input everyone, thanks. I've been gathering components slowly over the winter. I'll keep you posted on my progress.



Those lights look very bright! Where did you get those?

https://www.superbrightleds.com/

But they've since quit making them. These are 780 lumen. The ones i just bought are 450 lumen, I think.

 

[Young MC]

One thing that has made a huge difference at our off-grid camp is the addition of a propane fridge/freezer. We had used coolers for a number of years and got our system down pretty well, but realized that our ketchup and mustard bottles were making a 2 hour commute to camp with us every weekend. We went to the local Amish store and they put us in touch with one of their vendors that had local inventory of the fridges they use. I believe the model we ended up with is a Crystal Cold CC19, http://crystalcold.com/crystal-cold-cc19/. We estimate that we feed it about 100# of propane a season.

 

[lakngolf]

Great thread. Will be back later.

 

[farmhunter]

going to build a smoke house at mine this off season - looking forward to getting it started. Will be using an old airtight wood stove for the external firebox

 

[farmhunter]

Mine is off grid, and wouldn't have it any other way. Rather than solar, I bought a used honda 4,000 watt generator. Still starts first or second pull every time. The thing will run all day on 2 gallons of gas and I highly recommend this as a backup, even if you go solar. Used the generator to power all the tools to build the cabin, it worked flawlessly. 16X24 feet on concrete pad. Wood came from oak trees in the woods, cut by local sawmill for next to nothing. I built it with 12 foot walls and steep pitch on the roof, benefit to that design is the second floor is nearly all usable space. Have all the bunk beds on second floor, downstairs has the wood stove, small bar, seating, etc. Used 3/4' foam insulation on walls and roof. Space the 1 inch braces 48.5 inches apart so that a standard 4X8' sheet of foam insulation will fit. The small wood stove will keep it warm in about any temp. Put reclaimed wood from fence on downstairs walls, looks awesome and rustic. Don't have running water, but I built a pond that is located 75 feet from the cabin. I also capture rainwater from roof, use that to mostly water trees around the cabin during dry conditions. During deer season, we catch and filet catfish for dinner at least one night. For lighting, I have one coleman propane light that will light up the entire floor. I also have two old school laterns that look much better and run off clean burning oil, they will run for days on a single fillup. The tin and insulation were by far the biggest costs. All told I probably only have about $8500 into the cabin. It's perfect for what I need.

would love to see some pictures of your cabin

 

[Mennoniteman]

I admire and respect anyone that has an off grid cabin! I had one, totally plumbed with lp gas, stove, heater, fridge, freezer, ceiling lights, dry Chem toilet. Moved to a new area and built cabin with every timesaving electric appliance there is & generator. Everyone has his hobby and mine is deer management, liked being off grid, but took too much of my deer time. Again, I enjoy reading about your setups, there's a satisfying feeling in being self sufficient and living off the land (almost)