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When Sandy hit Jersey, a lot of my friends and family probably wished they were off the grid. One of my friends didn't have power for 2 weeks. She's been talking about getting solar panels ever since.
JRZ: I was there during Sandy; sat up with my mother for all of those two-weeks without power & phones. My dad lives a few counties away...I left my vehicle behind (in Wyoming) and my mother has none...so I had no idea if my father's house had survived the storm, until he pulled in my mom's driveway two weeks later. Was I worried ? yes...but 20+ yrs living on ranches out here (in Wyoming) taught me to 'roll with whatever situation presents itself'...so I can live quite serenely without phones, electric, cable-tv, internet, etc...for quite awhile before I start actually 'noticing' it's no longer there.
But watching my mother, made me feel bad for how 'modern-day society' has become so dependent on the 'grid' and leaves me with one single statement, that I hope ALL metro-suburbanites (reading this thread) will take notice of, and keep in consideration:
If you are totally dependent on the 'grid'...know this: The 'grid' WILL go down, at some point in the future. No one...not even myself knows the time, the place, or how long it will be down, or if it will ever be restored to what you all 'enjoy' now.
If you are not sufficiently prepared for that eventuality...and if you (also) are ENTIRELY dependent on the Gov't to take you by the hand and 'protect/serve your interests'...you (and likely your's) will not survive very long.
The information on how to 'survive' is out there, and readily available for anyone who wants to know how.
Yeah, but at what cost? I can you can do Pellet wood stoves instead of regular wood stoves.
I imagine that is costs more to heat homes up North. Here in Maine we go through 3 to 3 1/2 cords of firewood each year. Lots of local sell firewood, I have not bothered to cut/split any I just buy it. $600 to $700/year for heat is not very expensive in my mind. I hear tales of people paying well over $1,000/year for their heat.
The Solar-Thermal setup we are looking at will cost us around $1,500 and it should cut our firewood consumption down to less than a cord a year.
The woodstove we use now heats water, that is stored in a Thermal-Bank, which is then circulated through our radiant floor. It is pretty efficient. The Solar-Thermal array will tie right in with our existing Thermal-Bank.
Actually when electricity first came to the home there was an inventor Thomas Edison who planned that all homes would make their own electricity , and this was His plan ........ but the world had a different plan and the grid was the plan of the world and this need enormous amounts of electricity which Edison thought was way to much ...... Today some homes can be equipped with solar panels and then they can make their own electricity and get off the grid
Actually when electricity first came to the home there was an inventor Thomas Edison who planned that all homes would make their own electricity..
Then he stubbornly clung to the idea of 12 volt grid power, while it was Tesla who realized 110 was superior- and figured out how to make it work.
Perhaps it's time for Edison's revenge? Edison's Revenge: The Rise of DC Power | MIT Technology Review
IMO, paying $1000/acre for acreage 20 miles from any town with no electric service at the road isn't a bargain.
A 100 acre parcel just a half mile away from my camp, less than 5 miles from a town of 2500, fronting a paved county road with both electric and natural gas at the road, just sold for about $1300/acre.
I can purchase a 10 acre parcel within 5 miles of the city where I currently live, with electricity at the road, for under $20k.
For $2-3k/acre, you can get a 5-10 acre parcel with electricity, natural gas, and water at the road that's only a couple of miles from the local mall.
You don't necessarily have to live in remote areas to find "cheap" land in the US. You just have to be willing to live in predominantly rural areas where jobs are relatively scarce and don't pay all that well.
This is in Alaska. Towns are very far away. The next closest town is over 100 miles away. 10k for 10 acres is a relatively good deal in my area, especially consider the view I have. There is also electric at the front of the road, it will cost approx $6k to bring it to my parcel. We chose not to as we have a little solar system and battery bank that we are expanding, as well as a generator. For less than $6k we can easily provide all of our power. It's not the steal of the century but I feel it's a fair price. Didn't break the bank. A lot of 10 acre parcels by me start at 20k and go way up. I put the price in the post not to brag that it was an amazing deal, but to show that we did it with minimal start up costs. Any land cheaper than $1000 acre in Alaska is either going to be a bigger parcel (say 100+ acres and Even then) a wetland swamp, or so remote that you won't be accessing it in a car. There is actually very very little private land for sale in Alaska, which makes prices more expensive. Most of it is owned by the Feds, the state, or native tribes. Home prices and rentals are extremely expensive here, so I feel like I've saved money and that's what matters most . I'm glad you like your area and your prices, I like mine. I also prefer the area I am in as opposed to being closer to town for various reasons including, closer to mountains, and farther away from the missles
As to what the person said about what I will do about firewood when I am older.
A) I don't plan that far into the future
B) I don't see why I wouldn't be able to split it most of my whole life (I know an 80 year old woman who still splits her wood)
C) I've only burned a half of cord so far this winter, my dome is pretty efficient
D) I could always pay someone to bring my wood, I could switch to a pellet stove or oil heat or other heat source
E) Move to Hawaii
Last edited by 6.7traveler; 12-04-2015 at 04:42 PM..
I imagine that is costs more to heat homes up North. Here in Maine we go through 3 to 3 1/2 cords of firewood each year. Lots of local sell firewood, I have not bothered to cut/split any I just buy it. $600 to $700/year for heat is not very expensive in my mind. I hear tales of people paying well over $1,000/year for their heat.
The Solar-Thermal setup we are looking at will cost us around $1,500 and it should cut our firewood consumption down to less than a cord a year.
The woodstove we use now heats water, that is stored in a Thermal-Bank, which is then circulated through our radiant floor. It is pretty efficient. The Solar-Thermal array will tie right in with our existing Thermal-Bank.
We are still in thought about where to settle. My best friend thinks we should to Alaska but just the cost of moving there is more then enough to scare someone off.
We love Oregon & Washington state we thought Idaho would be work but like Alaska it can be a bit remote. We LOVE Greenville, SC as well. A long growing season not too cold in the winter & close enough to Asheville NC which has got VERY Expensive! A lot of it depends on where we end up when it comes to how far off the grid we go. We have lots of friends who live off the grid & got some great ideas from them & learned a lot. Plus research & more research!
We are still in thought about where to settle. My best friend thinks we should to Alaska but just the cost of moving there is more then enough to scare someone off.
We love Oregon & Washington state we thought Idaho would be work but like Alaska it can be a bit remote. We LOVE Greenville, SC as well. A long growing season not too cold in the winter & close enough to Asheville NC which has got VERY Expensive! A lot of it depends on where we end up when it comes to how far off the grid we go. We have lots of friends who live off the grid & got some great ideas from them & learned a lot. Plus research & more research!
Closer to home in the Carolinas seems like the logical place to look first. Good luck!
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I can you can do Pellet wood stoves instead of regular wood stoves.
. I'm glad you like your area and your prices, I like mine. I also prefer the area I am in as opposed to being closer to town for various reasons including, closer to mountains, and farther away from the missles 
