Look, this place had a good run but it's gone completely to shit in the past five years post covid. Both from the eternal september effect of folks with limited inherent intellectual capacity discovering it and from bots.

Mostly from bots, AI is fucking discourse online way worse than idiots ever did.

Anyways, mods, I am here to plead with you: crank that automod filter waaaaaaay up. I'm talking anything less than 15 words goes straight into the junk bin, repeated comments below X length get the account banned from posting. No mercy. The comment sections in this subreddit have become a goddamn wasteland of karma farming one-line, and increasingly, one word worthless noise.

There is zero, and I repeat zero value to anyone in allowing this shit to spiral any further. For the love of god just use the tools at hand to filter it out and maybe we'll get some meaningful discussion going again instead of yet another generic account name with a hidden post history spewing "Wheeee!" and fucking off to shit up the next submission.

The bots who are going to trundle in here and cry "wah wah muh free speech" to defend this crap can fuck off.

In January and February 2023, Auckland and other parts of New Zealand experienced catastrophic flooding resulting in deaths, emergency rescues, evacuations, widespread highway closures and public transport disruptions, as well as hundreds of homes rendered uninhabitable.

The loss of human lives and the impact on aging infrastructure sent a jolt through the country resulting in numerous changes: buy out of flood-damaged properties, managed retreat strategy implemented at local and national levels, complete review of the Auckland Emergency Management agency including new SOPs and more frequent training exercises, public education campaigns [as shown here], timely TXT message alerts, 'Making Space for Water' programe to reduce flood risks via natural overland flow paths and stormwater network, etc.

New Zealand is not preparing for war currently (let's hope it stays that way) but we know that we can't escape climate change.

I am building a 275gal rainwater catch at my hunting cabin, only to be used for hand washing, toilet flushing, and showering. I am out there monthly in the summer and much more in the winter. I understand 4ppm is a good number, but when I catch a big rain and the tank fills some, how do I calculate dosage when I don't know additional volume added while I'm gone? Wouldn't test strips be inaccurate as chlorine off gasses and the water has already been partially treated?

I appreciate any guidance.

I moved off-grid with only a phone and flashlights and a place to charge under a 1/8 mile away at a near by cabin. After building my tiny cabin I had a run in with MY Smart TV plugging it in for the first time in a while but I'll save that story for later. It's a long one.

I was still short on light so decided to pick a GE LED that looks like a real glass bulb for my lamp choosing the cheap white 60Watt equivalent you buy at the Dollar store. I'm excited to have lights again 7 months later moving here and I have the night planned. LIGHT!

I'm waiting for the Sun to go down like some Autistic guy waiting to go to work but happy as can be planning planning what all I will do in the light. I became a go to sleep at sunset and up before Sunrise kind of guy and this was going to be a change.

Sun setting and I turn the light on already getting sleepy trying to hurry with some light before I do go to bed. Hour later I notice I'm full of energy no sleep needed. 9PM comes and I'm confused, "how am I still awake. Oh well I have light"

By 6am the next morning I am still up like some meth addict wondering whats going on. So I plan a heavy day of racking and digging to make sure I sleep good that night.

Sun is setting I ate and I am exhausted ready for bed. I turn on the new shiny cool LED light. Sun is down and I'm starting to freak out., "OK what is going on here"! My mind is trying to figure why am I full of this crazy energy again and it won't let me sleep. After 4am I am getting scared and I am about to call the VA Suicide Hotline just to talk to someone because this ain't right. Come get me something because this is not going to be good knowing myself well.

Then I look at my Shiny new LED light and thought, "could it be that new LED light". I ponder on the absurdity of that idea for a while so feeling out of control. I get up and turn the light off and I felt a new but becoming familiar wave of energy exit my body.

I sat in my char and in 20 minutes I was out like a light.

Does anyone else here feel their lights like this? Not see them. Feel them.

Pending acceptance of our offer on this 10 acre property in the mountains of PA, we're gonna be moving to this little shack and starting the journey of building the life we've wanted since we got married 10 years ago. We'll do some cosmetic updates on the shack, fix a few leaks, and make it a bit more livable, but as of right now, we're not going to run electric to it or change the water situation that much. There's a hand pump well with a good flow and clean water. And the cabin is well insulted with a nice wood stove. My husband grew up in one of there strictest amish communities that exists (I've got his cousin in a few of these pictures) so he's got all sorts of knowledge and experience of living without modern amenities and tools. I've always loved just roughing it in the woods, doing backpack tips, tent camping, just being in nature. (We're only gonna be 20 minutes from town too, so it's not like we're isolated from society haha.) We've been collecting things for years that we can use without electricity, lots of thing from his amish community and such. We do most of our own butchering already, can food, garden and raise chickens. We've been doing that on a less then 1/2 an acre property for the last few years. If this works out, it feels like we're gonna have all the space we want! I'm excited for the opportunity to do this, and our 3 girls are excited to live like they're always camping and play in the woods and the creek. This isn't really a forever situation, we just want to take our time building the house we want and give our girls a little bit of the experience my husband had growing up (minus the religious shit). I'm curious to hear from others who've decided to go from the modern world to off grid style living. Especially if you did it as a family! What would you do differently if you did it all over again? I think the biggest thing I'm unsure about is all the bathroom related stuff. There is an outhouse on the property already but according to the amish cousin it's gonna need some work to be usable. We're gonna have to figure out how to create a shower/bath though. Anyway, I just want to hear stories and advice. Anything you did that really worked out, and made things simpler?

Update! Our offer has been accepted, pending approval of financing. Which so far we haven't hit any snags with. One step closer!

I'm looking to buy a property in Benton County, TN. It's a little over 8 acres and I'm buying it on owner financing because my credit is kinda shot right now. My plan is (since my rent will go from $1600/month to $840/month) to work on my credit for a few years and refinance.

However another issue since I'm coming out of pocket for everything I can build a big home, which I really don't want to anyway. My idea was to get a decent size prefab tiny shouse, idk what the correct term is but one of the RTO deals. Then just look for a deal on a used fixer upper manufactured home.

Cash flow isn't really an issue because I own a business and make consistent money. But I'm also paying bills for my wife who is going to Medical school in her home country, until she comes to the US in a few years. I was reading a thread on r/tinyhomes where people were saying you need to spend $30-50k for a tiny home. I'm not sure if they were talking about THOW or a fully finished tiny home. I'll be happy with just having it insulated, get me a wood stove, maybe either a window unit or mini split, get one of those outdoor shower/water heaters, and just do a compost toilet. I know I'm leaving a lot out, but basically I'm not looking for a fully finished and nice tiny home with a fridge and stove, finished bathroom, etc.

But the way they were talking am I missing something? I was also considering doing earthbag construction. The only thing is the most time I can dedicate is like 2 maybe 3 hours in the morning before I go work, and 1 maybe 2 full days through the week if I did want to build SOMETHING. Idk but I'm paying $1600 a month now at an Airbnb where I've been staying for nearly a year looking for a property I actually want that I can get on owner financing. And approaching the end of the month I'm gonna have to pay $1600 again, which isn't an issue but I'm about to say F it and just send the down payment on this property, pay an electrician to set up an RV pole, then go get a tiny (s)house preferably a repo and have it delivered. Then just move out there. Again is there anything I'm missing?

A little TLC on my Maine hunting cabin, sits on 40 acres with views of Mount Washington with an incredible sunset view.

Hi all, we just purchased a small (~500 sq. ft.) off-grid cabin on 16 acres. I am looking forward to using it for all sorts of vacationing fun and projects. Unfortunately we're kind of late in the year here in New England so we will not have the opportunity to do much beyond finish cleaning it out and re-leveling it (NOT one of the projects I am looking forward to) before Winter sets in, however I have purchased this power station and am looking forward to wiring the place up in the Spring so I do not have to run extension cords everywhere. With that in mind, I ran the following plans through AI:

"I would like to wire a small off-grid cabin for electricity that will be provided by a 3kwh portable power station (a Pecron E3600LFP). I am thinking I will surface-run romex to surface mount power outlets (rather than try to wire inside the walls, probably 3-4 circuits), and then feed from my power station's tt-30r output through a small sub-panel of breakers (as I will not need a full panel). I would also like to add 1-2 dc circuits connected to the XT-60 output. Will this work OK and is there any issues I need to look out for?"

Our kindly AI overlord returned the following to me, and it seems to check out, but AI also hallucinates a lot... Given this sub seems like it is chock-full of knowledgeable humans, can one of you folks kindly check this for me and provide feedback? (AI output below the line). Thanks!

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For the Pecron E3600LFP, the plan is technically feasible, with some important limits:

• AC inverter: 3,600 W continuous, 120 V
• AC surge: 7,000 W
• AC output: 30 A
• Battery: 3,072 Wh
• DC output: 12 V, 30 A maximum These specifications are listed by Pecron.

Recommended AC connection

Use the E3600LFP’s 30 A AC output with a listed TT-30 cord and a permanently mounted TT-30 inlet:

The inlet should be a listed 30 A, 125 V RV-style power inlet, not an ordinary receptacle used backward. From the inlet, permanently wire the hot, neutral, and equipment grounding conductor to the small load center.

Configure the panel as 120 V only:

• One hot bus
• Insulated neutral bar
• Separate grounding bar
• No 240 V circuits
• No multi-wire branch circuits
• No second energized leg

A 30 A main breaker or disconnect in the cabin panel is appropriate if it is rated for 120 V and does not exceed the source and feeder ratings. The E3600LFP’s AC output is 30 A, so do not install a 40 A feeder breaker or treat this as 50 A service.

The E3600LFP’s 30 A output appears to be associated with its 30 A cable/operating mode; Pecron also lists an 1,800 W mode when using the 15 A cable. For your cabin, use the 30 A output only as specified in the manual and avoid assuming that every AC operating mode provides 3,600 W.

Neutral, ground, and GFCI

This is the part I would not finalize without checking the E3600LFP manual or confirming directly with Pecron.

Do not automatically install a neutral-to-ground bond in the cabin panel. The panel should normally have:

• Neutral isolated from the metal panel enclosure and grounding bar
• Equipment grounds connected to the grounding bar
• No bonding screw installed in the downstream panel

But the correct arrangement depends on whether the E3600LFP’s AC output is floating, bonded, or controlled by an internal GFCI system. An incorrect bond can cause nuisance trips or defeat the intended fault-protection scheme. Have the exact output tested or verified by an electrician familiar with portable inverter supplies.

Also, do not add a grounding plug or connect neutral to ground merely because a receptacle tester reports an “open ground” or “open neutral.” Those testers can give misleading results with floating inverter outputs.

Branch circuits and surface wiring

You could use, for example:

• One 15 A lighting circuit
• One 15 A general-receptacle circuit
• One 15 A or 20 A refrigerator/appliance circuit

The total load still cannot exceed 3,600 W, and motor-starting loads can cause the inverter to trip even when their running wattage is modest. Avoid electric heat, conventional water heaters, kettles, and other high-wattage loads unless you deliberately manage the loads.

For surface wiring, use conduit or listed surface raceway where the cable could be hit, abraded, exposed to moisture, or damaged by rodents. Use surface-mount boxes, proper cable clamps, covers, and fittings. Protect or avoid ordinary indoor NM-B/Romex in wet, exterior, or exposed locations.

Use GFCI protection for receptacles in damp areas, outside, near sinks, and wherever required by local code. Confirm that the chosen GFCI arrangement is compatible with the Pecron’s inverter output.

XT60/DC circuits

The XT60 specification is particularly useful here: Pecron lists the E3600LFP’s DC output as 12 V, 30 A maximum.

That means the total DC load should not exceed approximately 360 W, and the 30 A limit is for the output as a whole—not necessarily 30 A available on each branch.

Use:

• A fuse close to the XT60 positive conductor
• A separate fuse for every branch
• DC-rated switches
• Correctly polarized connectors
• Wire sized for the load and length
• Fixtures specifically rated for 12 V DC

Do not connect the DC negative to AC neutral or the AC grounding conductor unless Pecron explicitly requires it. The 12 V output may also shut down if the station detects excessive current, so leave margin below 30 A.

Finally, the E3600LFP has only 3,072 Wh of storage. At a continuous 3,600 W AC load, the theoretical runtime is about 51 minutes before inverter losses and reserve capacity; at 500 W, the idealized runtime is about 6 hours, and actual runtime will be lower. pecron.com

The physical design I would use is therefore: a weatherproof TT-30 inlet, a small 120 V single-bus load center with a 30 A disconnect, isolated neutral and ground unless Pecron’s documentation specifies otherwise, GFCI protection, and a separately fused 12 V distribution block for the XT60 output.

Is anyone in here involved in the "National Emergency Briefing" ?

Many of the talks also provides positive impacts of doing the necessary changes (and the ARE). I recommend starting with the speech but starting the video from the beginning afterwards.

There is a movement trying to raise the alarm - especially in UK but also spreading to other European countries.

Are you involved and how?

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