converting a historic home to solar/off-grid living

[happygeneralist]

My husband and I are talking about some big picture plans - where we want to head from here, and if that means staying where we are or moving on. I'm really interested in living off-grid, or at least having the option of doing so. We currently live in a home built in the 1830s that has plenty of issues, but also a lot of good points and meaning to us. What I don't know is how realistic it might be to consider converting to solar/etc and what might be involved/what we'd need to consider... Does anyone have any experience with this, or have any ideas of where I could find some resources? Thanks!

[ToomuchStuff]

My husband and I are talking about some big picture plans - where we want to head from here, and if that means staying where we are or moving on. I'm really interested in living off-grid, or at least having the option of doing so. We currently live in a home built in the 1830s that has plenty of issues, but also a lot of good points and meaning to us. What I don't know is how realistic it might be to consider converting to solar/etc and what might be involved/what we'd need to consider... Does anyone have any experience with this, or have any ideas of where I could find some resources? Thanks!

"Historic home" normally has legal connotations. If your in a historic preservation area, (federal or local) good luck getting approval for solar panels, or even a small satellite dish. First thing would be to find out who controls what goes on in the historic area and check out bylaws.

[Packy]

There is an old house that is currently a tourist attraction and I guess you could classify it as a Bed & Breakfast, though it has been said a good many overnight guests don't wait around for breakfast. It is the so-called "Villisca Axe Murder House", in Villisca, Iowa, that was built in the 1870's, IIRC. In 1912, a married couple, their 4 young children, and two children who were overnight guests, were murdered by an intruder in the home, who was never brought to justice. It is now presumed to have been the act of a rail-riding serial killer who was at large in the Midwest, at the time. Anyway, the house was restored by the present owner about oh, 10-12 years ago., and opened it for tours and overnight stays. They went so far in making it period-authentic, that they removed the plumbing and electrical fixtures. Overnight guests use oil lamps. I'm not sure how the place is heated--it may be wood or coal. Anyway, it is "off-the-grid", at least for the most part. I've been in the place--went in for a quick tour one day, and it really did creep littlebittymee out. Though street-view photos make the place look big, it is really what I would consider a Tiny House, by todays' standards. There are numerous stories on the internet about this museum. But anyway, I guess that is what you could do, if you have a home that has been officially designated to be in a "Historical District" and there is too much red tape involved in upgrading it to solar heat, etc. Go for the retro- upgrade. Do without electricity and modern plumbing, altogether. But, that might require permission too. Just depends on your local regulations, I suppose.

[Packy]

Also, a former co-worker, the same age as myself told me this about his parents: They lived and worked in Zurra until they retired in their 60's. They had previously acquired land in the wilderness of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, and transported a partially-assembled cabin up there to their acreage, and built it. After retirement, they moved up there, and lived totally off-the grid for 12-15 years. Wood heat, no electricity, no plumbing, VERY severe winters. Fulfilling a dream to live like pioneers, I guess. After they were well into their 70's, they finally sold out, and re-retired back to Zurra. So, it can be done. My co-worker attributed his parents long, healthy lives to their active lifestyle after they retired from modern conveniences. They were up around 90y.o. or more when they passed, which was very recently.

[awakenedsoul]

happygeneralist, Welcome to the forum! If you look on Frugalvillage.com's forums, there are some posts by a woman whose screen name is woodswife. She lives off grid in the woods with her husband. They spend very little money, and she's written some very interesting posts. She started a thread called "How we live"...

[happygeneralist]

awakenedsoul - thanks for the tip, I'll definitely check that out.

Our home is not in a historic district, not bound by any historic preservation regulations. Maybe I should have said converting a "really really old" house. Just wondering what if any special considerations might go into converting to solar/etc. when working with an almost 200 year old house.

[Gregg]

Solar is pretty easy. You need the panels, which can be on your roof or on an array in the yard. Just like any electric service you need a wire to bring the power they generate into the house. That will go to an inverter which will turn the power from DC to AC so you can use it. Extra power can feed back on to the power grid. If you want to go really off grid you can have a bank of batteries to feed the power to.

When they really look into it most people grid tie. Batteries are expensive and have to be carefully maintained. Remember, a battery bank is basically a stack of boxes full of acid that you are putting into your house. How many panels you need, what size of inverter, possibly how many batteries, etc. will depend on how much power you use. Look online or in the yellow pages, there should be someone in your area that installs solar systems. I've never heard of a company that won't review your electric bills and your site and then give you a free estimate for an appropriately sized solar array.