tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post4760621767581591834..comments2024-03-18T22:33:57.339-04:00Comments on 5 Acres & A Dream: Prepper's Total Grid Failure HandbookLeighhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02435811789823712254noreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-48666186211645582432017-06-22T09:34:49.657-04:002017-06-22T09:34:49.657-04:00Arlene, you are so welcome! It's just the book...Arlene, you are so welcome! It's just the book I've been looking for, because you all do an excellent job of explaining off-grid living in an understandable way. Based on your book I'm working on some small projects to help me get some hands-on experience and understanding. I don't see us being able to get off grid, but I do see expanding the way we use solar energy. You're my kind of folks!Leighhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02435811789823712254noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-10642862453374644462017-06-21T15:43:36.495-04:002017-06-21T15:43:36.495-04:00Hi Leigh, Thanks for the kind review of our book. ...Hi Leigh, Thanks for the kind review of our book. Alan and I were excited when we were asked to write a book about how we built our own solar system. We love educating people on how they can put together an off-grid system for under $3000 as we describe in our book. The emphasis being off-grid (no connection for selling power to the utilities) and not expecting to produce the amount of power used in the typical American home. The first decisions we had to make when jumping off the grid were what items we actually needed power for, what items we could find alternative solutions for (i.e., washing clothes manually and drying on a clothes line) and what items we could do without (so long air conditioning). Thanks again, I am enjoying looking around your site. Arlene Fiebig (off-grid-geeks.com)Arlenehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16600812460390845017noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-64557611803824417202017-05-27T21:19:38.646-04:002017-05-27T21:19:38.646-04:00Cell phone service! I believe that would be called...Cell phone service! I believe that would be called a "hot spot?" Leighhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02435811789823712254noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-67112456305210000232017-05-27T18:33:39.840-04:002017-05-27T18:33:39.840-04:00As far as the Fiebigs, they blogged via battery bu...As far as the Fiebigs, they blogged via battery but just how and where did they acquire an internet connection? Thanks! Christinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09562443495196867143noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-47996613098434152362017-05-26T21:36:00.713-04:002017-05-26T21:36:00.713-04:00I have checked out books from the library but so m...I have checked out books from the library but so many of them want to start by helping you figure out how much electricity you use in your current lifestyle, and then build the system from there. I always find that discouraging. What I like about this book is that it's helping me understand how to start small and simple, and then gradually work my way to more complex applications. We may never get totally off-grid, but we're going to be able to ease off from our dependency on it quite a bit. I hope it does the same for you!Leighhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02435811789823712254noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-69676939561577641102017-05-26T16:13:26.934-04:002017-05-26T16:13:26.934-04:00Thank you for that excellent review! I have been ...Thank you for that excellent review! I have been looking at a couple books but never got one and there was one at Walmart today that I almost got....it could have been that one but I'm not sure now. I definitely will buy this one that you reviewed! Thank you so much! It sounds like it's perfect for me...the beginner! Happy Memorial Day weekend! Sam I Am......https://www.blogger.com/profile/17358633233189452832noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-12927216092538103952017-05-25T08:46:15.304-04:002017-05-25T08:46:15.304-04:00Sandy, every little bit helps! Sandy, every little bit helps! Leighhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02435811789823712254noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-10882355316568559262017-05-25T08:45:49.058-04:002017-05-25T08:45:49.058-04:00We have the same situation - no electrical company...We have the same situation - no electrical company power to the outbuildings. I am <i>so</i> glad I went with <a href="http://www.5acresandadream.com/2016/09/solar-barn-light-and-paint.html" rel="nofollow">my solar barn light!</a>. Now I'm looking forward to trying some other small projects thanks to this book. Leighhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02435811789823712254noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-64941408339237122802017-05-24T23:41:39.426-04:002017-05-24T23:41:39.426-04:00Leigh,
Solar power and wind energy have peaked ou...Leigh,<br /><br />Solar power and wind energy have peaked our interests. Thank you for posting about this book, this is one we should add to our resource library.Sandy Livesayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06183449816586125720noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-4819775617494778452017-05-24T22:33:25.456-04:002017-05-24T22:33:25.456-04:00Deborah above took the words right out of my mouth...Deborah above took the words right out of my mouth. I am fascinated and interested in solar but I'll start reading an article or even some blog posts by people who do it and I get lost really fast. <br /><br />Our barn and shed are not connected to power yet. But in reality we don't need a lot of it out there. And we have these nice, new, big roofs just sitting there in the sun all day. We've thought that might be a good place to get our feet wet. Thanks for this, will pick up a copy. 1st Manhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04861609647607912193noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-20741644810555032852017-05-24T21:09:35.290-04:002017-05-24T21:09:35.290-04:00Wow, Rain, that's high! Very crazy indeed. I k...Wow, Rain, that's high! Very crazy indeed. I know you will really be happy to get a place of your own when the time comes.<br /><br />Our electric company offered us an equalized monthly payment plan one time, but when I did the math, I found they were adding an extra month of our average payment onto it so that in a year we would actually pay for 13 months worth of electricity. We decided to see if we could bring the cost down ourselves and were able to do so. Leighhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02435811789823712254noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-15722215084863790302017-05-24T21:05:54.419-04:002017-05-24T21:05:54.419-04:00We're in the exact same boat, and have found t...We're in the exact same boat, and have found that the energy improvements we've made to our home have made a tremendous difference. We've also been investing in small solar items like our attic fan and barn light. This book gives me hope that we can continue to head in that direction without a huge expense. Baby steps!Leighhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02435811789823712254noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-154873817470862842017-05-24T17:43:07.257-04:002017-05-24T17:43:07.257-04:00Thanks for the review Leigh. I'm struggling at...Thanks for the review Leigh. I'm struggling at the moment, paying $358 a month (yearly equalized payment plan) for the electricity and heat in this monstrously terribly insulated cottage. It's half my rent. Isn't that crazy? I can't wait until Alex and I can buy a place and set it up more efficiently. I'm looking forward to being as off grid as possible. This looks like a good start for learning. :)Rain https://www.blogger.com/profile/14377719049819222133noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-79597926989123393962017-05-24T13:49:22.636-04:002017-05-24T13:49:22.636-04:00I would love to reduce our reliability on the powe...I would love to reduce our reliability on the power suppliers but the outlay at my age wouldn't really see a return. So I rely on buying energy efficient appliances and a well insulated home. Living Alone in Your 60'shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08848266282669835475noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-71241292815762888712017-05-24T11:53:16.388-04:002017-05-24T11:53:16.388-04:00The folks who wrote this book have a Sun Oven! I l...The folks who wrote this book have a Sun Oven! I like how they defer the big energy tasks to alternatives (like cooking), and save the electricity for other things, like light and electronics. Those things I can experiment with without a huge outlay of money. If I can make some progress rather than none, I'll be happy!Leighhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02435811789823712254noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-258805906779404302017-05-24T11:48:42.419-04:002017-05-24T11:48:42.419-04:00Exactly! LOL. I've had the exact same problem,...Exactly! LOL. I've had the exact same problem, so this is a great addition to my homestead libraryLeighhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02435811789823712254noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-36874940747377447212017-05-24T11:20:23.827-04:002017-05-24T11:20:23.827-04:00Great review; makes me want to get the book even t...Great review; makes me want to get the book even though I would never get my DH on board. But given the likelihood of me outliving him, I should probably get it (and should have bought that Sun Oven, too!). ;-)Michellehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01550786937196525098noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-66800235507493712072017-05-24T10:33:23.983-04:002017-05-24T10:33:23.983-04:00many thanks, leigh.
when i read the articles on so...many thanks, leigh.<br />when i read the articles on solar energy i am lost before the first paragraph is read.<br />this book looks like it will be much help.<br />thank God someone with a brain put this together for us nontechnical types.<br />if we were all like me we wouldn't have invented the wheel yet.<br />on the other hand there would be no atom bombs, either!deb harveyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05110992898072146282noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-12567774036024391802017-05-24T07:22:24.029-04:002017-05-24T07:22:24.029-04:00Yes, budget is always the obstacle! (We have the s...Yes, budget is always the obstacle! (We have the same problem.) What's interesting about this book is that these folks work completely off of 12-volt batteries, i.e. they have a 12-volt off-grid system (direct current) as opposed to the commercial standard which uses alternating current (more complicated for DIY and hence more expensive). We recently bought a solar 12-volt battery recharger, so I'm going to try some smaller applications to see what we can do.Leighhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02435811789823712254noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1694364001063554832.post-4588333359373641012017-05-24T06:14:57.065-04:002017-05-24T06:14:57.065-04:00Sounds a good read. I'm really getting there w...Sounds a good read. I'm really getting there with the food side of self sufficiency but energy wisector I've made no head wah. Budget just doesn't allow it at the moment unfortunately. Kev Alvitihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04992625860900617194noreply@blogger.com