A Short Tour of being Off the Grid

This past Saturday, Art and I headed to a friend's house.  This was not just a "hey, let's head to X's house," this was an intentionally planned outing.  Simply for the sake of our friend and his family's privacy, I will not give his name.  We were heading to X's house to see his solar power setup.  He is completely, 100% off the electric grid.  It was quite interesting.  A solar panel array that could track the location of the sun; two parallel banks of in-line batteries totally 48 volts DC. 

X had the setup put in around seven years ago with a total cost of $25,000.  At the time, he was hooked into the electric grid, but at some time between then and now (he did not elaborate), he disconnected.

I hope to venture back to his place and get some photos if he permits.

Aside from the solar power and the propane generator to augment the dark months we have here in northern Minnesota, X and his family's lifestyle humbled me immensely.  It is not that they are simply "getting by" - they seem to be living comfortably.  Actively managing and monitoring their electricity use; taking steps to source food locally; composting everything from kitchen waste to human waste (it's called "humanure") all not to simply "save a buck," but because they feel it is what it is right.

Now, I am not quite ready to compost my own human waste or drop off the grid, but it is still food for thought.