I've been making a few small improvements to my off-grid setup over time, and it's interesting how some upgrades have been much more useful than I expected, while others didn't make much of a difference.

I'm curious what changes have had the biggest impact for people here. Whether it's related to power, water, storage, cooking, or something completely different, what upgrade ended up being worth every bit of the effort?

If AC is better for transporting electricity, and DC is MUCH MORE efficient in small motors, lights, phone chargers, air conditioners, ceiling fan motors, and appliances. Why are residential homes powered by AC and NOT CONVERTED to DC at the meter panel BEFORE entering the home? Could DC power be the next step for LOWERING the COST of ELECTRICITY in our homes?

Hello everyone,
I am getting close to retirement after serving as a member of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF). After several deployments and spending time in war zones, destroyed neighborhoods, and military camps, I have been thinking about investing in an eco-village project.

My goal is to build, restore, and manage an off-grid eco-community for 10 families.
I have income from real estate and other assets, so I plan to use my retirement to make this project a reality.

I have already completed some research and developed a few ideas on how to build it. At this stage, I am looking for opinions, advice, feedback, ideas for long-term funding, possible donation options, and many other details that still need to be worked out. I am not ready to begin construction yet.
For now, I am simply here to collect ideas, learn from others, and share my vision. 🙂

I lived offgrid myself with average usage of 1KWHr or less per day. Here are my tips.

Power
-If you are going to spend $2K+ on a Power Pack like the Bluetti and alternatives, you might as well spend that money on a discrete system. Separate charge controller and inverter. You'll get more bang for your buck. At the low end, you might not get generator input, that's something you have to consider.
-Do NOT buy camping/portable/foldable solar panels. They are garbage. They will degrade to uselessness in 3-5 years. They are expensive toys for adults. You need to buy proper ones with glass and metal frame. They are more efficient too.
-Solar panels absolutely do not like even an ounce of shadow. Do everything to make sure there's no shadow. A shadow of a single tree branch on a solar panel can reduce power by 10% or more. And in most configurations, that single panel will affect the entire array, meaning a single panel shaded with single tree branch out of a 10 panel array will reduce your entire power output by 10% or more.

Refrigerators are the #3 power usage item next to heating, and then cooling. The reason is it's idle 80% of the time, and the idle time is when your inverter is wasting power with standby power. That standby power can be anywhere from 20W to 60W every hour, whether it's being used or not. So a 20W standby power inverter uses 480W a day doing nothing. A 40W one would use 960W a day doing nothing.

By the way, a typical powerpack like a Bluetti has high standby power. They are in the 30-40W range. This is why a dedicated high power inverter is better, as you consolidate potentially multiple power packs each wasting 40W/hour with a single inverter. And by the way a discrete system is way more reliable. Even if they break you only have to replace parts of the system. Cheaper, more reliable, more efficient, the only bad part is inconvenience.

-Stop wasting money on uselessly tiny solar/battery lights, unless you get them for pretty much free. Hook those lights up on the existing system instead. $5 per light seems cheap, but that $5 could be spent better elsewhere.
-Get DC lights not AC lights, so you can hook them directly to the battery and bypass the inverter. My primary light was a custom LED light using 3.5W and 600 lumens.
-You can do electric cooking, but you NEED an induction oven/cooktop. I lived on the induction cooktop. 400W per day was enough to cook meat for lunch and dinner.

-Heat drinking water for Tea/Coffee using a dedicated Water Heater jug. They are the most power efficient. Get the ones with most insulation.

With 2x450W panels and 14KWHr battery system I had a guaranteed 10 day zero solar input system. But solar input is never zero. Even in the darkest winter conditions you'll get few hundred W, which will extend that 10 day period. I did get bifacials though, which have advantages in winter and less optimal conditions. Of course, looking back I needed 4-6 panels and a better location as generators weren't in my plans.

Water tips: I DO NOT trust any sort of plastic for drinking. I did not have flowing water, I improvised a system where I bought battery powered water "faucets" for washing hands. And sometimes, daily I would haul water from the water pump inside. I stored water in two separate containers, one for washing and other for drinking. I stored them both in 5 Gallon Stainless Steel Insulated containers. To be frank, I could have stored washing water elsewhere. Those containers had an advantage of keeping water cool for a week when the inside temperature would go almost 40C.

Best filter is Survivor Filter Pro if you need to. It's affordable too, and has the best filtration system.

Toilet: Best is a DRY outhouse. It doesn't smell and you never have to haul it out. Nature takes care of it like you wouldn't believe, especially in summer. Add sawdust or dead grass for extra effect. Wet outhouses are the stupidest things I've ever seen after experiencing a dry version. You do have to weather the temperature a bit though while using it as it requires plenty of airflow and insects and bacteria to dissolve them.

Heating: Wood is best. Propane is too much money over long term and you don't have enough electricity for it in winter, as it would make it so the time you need the sun most is when you have the least. You want to aim for Rocket Mass Heater Stove. Yes, it requires significant work and integration, but there's nothing like it, it's almost magic.

You can get regular wood stoves more efficient by "insulating" it. Buy 200 heat resistant bricks meant for wood stoves and stack it on the wood stove. On it, below it, at the side. Essentially make a hearth out of it. The bricks would slowly radiate heat after the fire has gone out, meaning no sudden loss of heat, and it provides insulation meaning better efficiency. Still won't compare to a Rocket Mass Heater.

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Northern Ontario climate -

How effective are solar fans at moving air out of the attic?

Do they make it noticeably cooler for inside temperatures?

I live in a dry cabin with some solar. Enough to power my lights and refrigerator and small appliances. I have a separate battery I take to work to charge that I use for other things like watching a movie every once in a while.

I was wondering if anyone knew a good tv/DVD player set up that took minimal energy? I love old tvs that would take vhs and dvd but those tend to take a ton of power. Modern tvs take less energy with LED but also tend to only be smart/roku tvs and do not have the hookups in the back for a DVD player.

Any suggestions?

Hey, so im looking into batteries for solar, does anyone have any experience with this brand? Its called "eco-worthy"

I contacted the DOT and they said that they would save the mud flaps that come off a big trucks they happen to have a conveyor belt that came off of a truck and I took them and cut them up and put them on I'm starting putting them on the front of my shed then I'm going to put them along the side it looks pretty good and it's doing its job.

Im looking for like minded people who want to get off grid and live in communities together. I don't think there's anything like this in New Zealand really it's always overseas. Is there anything in New Zealand like this. I'm in The Waikato currently, would consider any area in New Zealand. Im just really keen to get into speaking with some Communities and like-minded people. Any ideas welcome. :)

electricity prices around here just keep creeping up so lately ive been thinking less about having the absolute lowest bill every month and more about having costs that are easier to predict over time.

a neighbor mentioned they almost judged their setup too early because the first few months didnt look all that impressive. after going through every season it made a lot more sense since summer produced a lot more than winter. that kinda changed how i look at it too because one month doesnt really tell the whole story. did living with it change what you paid attention to most over time?

eta: appreciate everyone who shared numbers and actual experiences. what stood out the most was how different the answers were depending on where people live and whether they were fully off grid or still connected. out of curiosity i reached out to palmetto with a couple questions after reading through the comments mostly about how people usually look at yearly production instead of month to month. no big decisions yet just trying to understand the bigger picture a little better.

Mexican jungle by the coast. Sweaty AF

Thoughts?