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Thread: alternative power options for a cabin.

  1. #21
    Join Date
    Nov 2002
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    St. Pete Beach & Charleston
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    5,784

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    Post up if you use a hydro. I'm interested.

    My setup was around $4k. I did the work myself and am not an electrician but it was pretty easy. I'm only there during weekends and the batteries charge back to full during the week.

    I do have to supplement it with a generator (Honda EU7000is, LP powered), to get through the night when I'm running multiple air conditioners. I haven't figured out charging the batteries with the generator yet or bothered to buy more batteries.


    What I use at my place is:

    2-250 watt solar panels ($340)
    2-mounting rails ($40)
    1-Conext SW 4024 120/240 3.5KW inverter ($1,300)
    1-Xantrex XW SCP display ($200)
    1-Rio Rand CM30 charge controller ($47)
    4- FullRiver DC400-6 AGM 400Ah batteries ($1,800)
    Last edited by Geetch; 02-18-2020 at 05:27 PM.

  2. #22
    Join Date
    Jan 2010
    Location
    Pawleys Island
    Posts
    35,934

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    Quote Originally Posted by Steelin' Ducks View Post
    Fuel injected gasoline powered welding machine. Most are now 10 to 12,000 W of power. Not to mention you can now also Weld.
    Yeah but he’d have to have a source for steel. You keep giving it away and you’ll be out of bidness.
    Yeah, but do you consider a dog to be a filthy animal? I wouldn't go so far as to call a dog filthy but they're definitely dirty. But, a dog's got personality. Personality goes a long way.


    You might take out a dozen before they drag you from your home and skull fuck you to death. Marsh Chicken 6/21/2013

  3. #23
    Join Date
    Dec 2010
    Location
    Summerville
    Posts
    14,557

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    How possible is it to claim the house as your full time residency for a period of time? If you can claim this as full time residency the cost from Duke will be a fraction of what they quoted you. Like JAB said though, you can always run the line your self. How far off the beaten path is the cabin?

  4. #24
    Join Date
    Dec 2008
    Posts
    1,468

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    They make propane refrigerators. Propane everything and solar for lighting only.

  5. #25
    Join Date
    Dec 2010
    Location
    Summerville
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    14,557

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    Shoot...we ran our cabin off propane for a couple months. When we realized we had to mortgage the cabin, drain our 401k, and sell our kids to pay for the propane we got smart.

  6. #26
    Join Date
    Oct 2010
    Posts
    489

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    So what did you end up doing to run your cabin
    For nothing will be impossible with CHRIST Luke 1:37

  7. #27
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Location
    Lexington, SC
    Posts
    14,522

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    Quote Originally Posted by Saltydog235 View Post
    Yeah but he’d have to have a source for steel. You keep giving it away and you’ll be out of bidness.
    Too late. I retired.

  8. #28
    Join Date
    Jan 2005
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    FROG LEVEL
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    23,785

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    Better listen to Turbo and Steelin. I run our place in the HOLE on Gasoline. For short periods of time and my truck for internet, phone and TV. Truth.
    Gettin old is for pussies! AND MY NEW TRUE people say like Capt. Tom >>>>>>>>>/
    "Wow, often imitated but never duplicated. No one can do it like the master. My hat is off to you DRDUCK!"

  9. #29
    Join Date
    May 2007
    Location
    TR/Sumter/TR
    Posts
    10,512

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    Quote Originally Posted by cole2011 View Post
    So what did you end up doing to run your cabin
    Figured out a way to make the cabin a primary residence. Cost to run power underground down the driveway went down significantly.

  10. #30
    Join Date
    Oct 2010
    Posts
    489

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    How far did you have to run power
    For nothing will be impossible with CHRIST Luke 1:37

  11. #31
    Join Date
    Jan 2004
    Location
    Irmo
    Posts
    4,249

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    Quote Originally Posted by Bad Habit View Post
    water wheel worked for centuries
    That will be great for making stone ground grits too.

  12. #32
    Join Date
    May 2007
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    TR/Sumter/TR
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    Quote Originally Posted by cole2011 View Post
    How far did you have to run power
    About 1/2 mile

  13. #33
    Join Date
    Nov 2001
    Location
    Columbia, SC
    Posts
    47,894

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    whats the latest on bringing phone service to a residence?
    (sorry to hijack but if the gypsy came thru, this wont end well anyway)
    Ugh. Stupid people piss me off.

  14. #34
    Join Date
    Feb 2004
    Location
    SC
    Posts
    4,304

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    I use a 40 watt solar panel / regulator to keep our camp battery topped off and charged for running 12 volt LED lighting and our 12 volt water pump for toilet, shower, sink, etc. You can run LED lighting to lower the load on a generator and just use a 2000 watt inverter genny too.

    I use my 2000 watt inverter generator for a/c, space heater or 110 volt water heater. We pull the 220 heating elements and change to 110 to reduce load, water is scalding hot after an hour or two of heating. (of course the 2000 watt genny will only run one appliance at a time but man it's so much quieter.)

    You can consider running propane for fridge and water heater. (I use block ice in cooler and keep ice 7 days using Coleman Extreme coolers) I got away from propane for inside heater since I got a 2000 watt genny, it's plenty to run a 1500 watt space heater all night on 1- 1 1/2 gallon of gasoline. $4.50 a night on premium fuel is a safer and cheap nights sleep vs. the worry of carbon monoxide and burning lbs of propane.

    We always have a 4000 watt or larger generators at camp should one fail or we need more power for construction equipment.
    Listen to your elders. Not because they are always right but because they have more experiences of being wrong.

    "We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give" Sir Winston Churchill

  15. #35
    Join Date
    Jul 2003
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    Moncks Corner
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    I thought of you when I saw this...I must admit there's something appealing about the idea of having a place like this somewhere off of the grid...

    Ephesians 2 : 8-9



    Charles Barkley: Nobody doesn't like meat.

  16. #36
    Join Date
    Jan 2005
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    FROG LEVEL
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    Pretty much what we got but still 30 mins to walmart. Ha
    Gettin old is for pussies! AND MY NEW TRUE people say like Capt. Tom >>>>>>>>>/
    "Wow, often imitated but never duplicated. No one can do it like the master. My hat is off to you DRDUCK!"

  17. #37
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Location
    Newberry SC
    Posts
    3,522

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    How far are we talking from the Duke Energy line? That impacts my answer the most.

    FWIW The last 45-60 days have sucked for solar farms, your food would be rotten by now.

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