Alternative energy info? Solar, Wind, Etc.? (Partial power only)

[knitter]

Hi all,

EDIT: This is for partial power only. It doesn't need to power the whole house at all. Maybe more of an emergency source and to cut down on bills.

BACKGROUND: (skip if you're in a hurry)

I've read your forum a lot over the years. The original thought was that I'd be saving up to build a very tiny house for myself. Plans have changed however.

My long term fella was fortunate to receive the house his beloved grandpa built with his own two hands - milled the lumber, stucco'd the walls, and everything himself. (He did building for others - so this isn't slip-shod stuff) It was never totally finished before his grandpa passed on. For almost 30 years in the interim, it was rented out.

Now it belongs to my fella - and he's invited me to join him there. We have a LOT of work to do. He'll get started in April. I'll be there on and off for a while.

TO THE POINT: ENERGY
Region is where southern meets midwestern - not too far west of the Mississippi River - where it gets darned humid, but winters aren't so bad. We have electricity, wood, and propane. We've been working out our ideas for heating and cooling (no central system has ever been installed.) Our thought at the moment is a type of heat pump (maybe a mini split heat pump with heat and cooling installed next year), backed up with electric in-wall heaters, backed up by a wood stove and fireplace, backed up by propane running something that we haven't decided on yet. (Cooling with window ACs for now.)  (Allergies are a consideration for all heating and cooling choices.)

As for the electricity, I remember reading about someone here doing a LOT of solar and wind work with their house. I thought he did it with less expense than normal. I can't find the old topic I was looking for. Does anyone know whose topic I might be meaning - and can point me there?

Or - do you have suggestions for the wind solar unrelated to that topic?

I remember reading about someone in another state having their solar generated electricity sold back to the electric company - rather than storing and using it directly. Have you heard about that? Is it something to look into, or is it problematic?

When I mentioned the solar and wind ideas - my guy was concerned about the price of the initial cost of the solar panels. He's concerned the return might not be there. Is there some way to do solar without a huge up front cost?

Years ago, I'd read about some tiny wind turbines (think super small like a toy) that were used in Japan. Was thinking those might be useful. Never heard whether they were successful however. What's good in wind these days?

Anything you could point me to would be appreciated. I'm not very aware of how these things all fit together - but if I can at least send the info to my guy he'll understand it better.

[Squirl]

I am in the process building an offgrid (hopefully) zero net energy house now.

The greatest return on investment you can get is conservation.  There are a lot of websites devoted to offgrid living, which have lots of tips on energy conservation.  A kill-a-watt meter helps.

Along those lines weather proofing and insulation are the greatest dollar return you can get.  If you are already doing renovations, generally the more you spend on insulating and sealing, the greater the return will be.  From reading, it sounds like it is an old house.  Please don't take any insult to the quality of the craftsmanship that went into it, but standards have changed.  Window technology has come a long way.  Double pane Low-E windows are a huge step up.  I replaced them in one house and it cut down on the heating and cooling by 15%.  They had a return of less than two years.  Also insulation standards were different.  Many houses of three generations ago didn't even have it.  In heating conditions, I have seen people just add it to the attic and get the money they invested back in just one winter.  Check your state guidelines for current insulation standards.  Air infiltration can be one of the greatest robbers of energy. A simple blower door test can usually tell you how airtight your house is.  They are usually pretty cheap from energy audit companies because the company wants to sell you more services.  Some utilities even do them for free.

Alternative energy.
A good website that outlines the components of each type is homepower.com.

Solar hot water is the fastest and surest return on investment.

Next is grid tied photovoltaic.  It has the least amount of components. You simply are paying for the panels and the inverter.  You can usually have a large panel array and one inverter.  The expensive part is usually the installation.  Many utilities require a licensed electrician certify the system before plugging it into the grid.  This will be a large cost on grid tied system.

Last are probably wind and off grid solar.  They both have lots of components and are even more complicated to keep safe.

[MountainDon]

grid tied photovoltaic....   A lot depends on the local electric company's plan if they have one. The co-op that would serve our cabin if we were grid tied, does not offer any grid tie power buyback.  The electric company that serves our suburban home does offer a plan. They pay the system owner more than the base rate the power company charges the hmeowner. Lots of regulations and inspections. Not impossible to do a lot of the work yourself but it takes some study and passing a test, and the inspections still apply. Power company does the final connections to their system.They will send a check if you have a surplus over time, not all do that. Some only issue credits against future use. 8 year contract at present.  Check the local utility to see if they participate and what their rules are. Can vary a lot.

As was mentioned conservation efforts likely have the best payback time.

[MountainDon]

As for the electricity, I remember reading about someone here doing a LOT of solar and wind work with their house. I thought he did it with less expense than normal. I can't find the old topic I was looking for. Does anyone know whose topic I might be meaning - and can point me there?

I don't recall a topic here with a full time home off grid. Some cabins, ours included.  One of the members (Dave Sparks) does have a 100% off grid home in CA. Nice place and pretty normal as far as living there. They run a Sanyo mini split for summer cooling and cool weather heat when sun permits. Dave chose Sanyo because its power use can be programmed to best match the PV generation system.

[waggin]

There was an article in what I think was Mother Earth News about a couple's home in Ontario, Canada several years ago.  At least one of them was a scientist, so they did a lot of experimentation and documented what worked and what didn't.  Their wood stove also heated their water, and they had both solar and wind power.  Although they were completely off-grid, the concepts should be universal.

[Abbey]

Check to see if your state has net metering. Depending on how it's set up you may be able to carry a credit for unused watts, like in the summer when you may be producing more than you're using, and then use those credits later when you're using more than you're producing.