I like the way you think.Start a list of local females just in case. It might make your last year a little better.
A Bit Off of the Usual Topics, but….
- Thread starter memtb
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M1A1ABRAMS
Well-Known Member
And there getting harder to acquire without a script from a vet.
We have a lot of Amoxicillin! Under Samson, Cassie, Griffin, Maggie Mae.
mongo4567
Well-Known Member
I have plenty of frozen and dried food, and propane, and water....and ammo
victor3ranger
Well-Known Member
My goal right now is to install a off grid system for two freezers, one refrigerator, and a well pump.
Trying to figure out how many watts are needed from solar and how big of a battery bank will be needed to sustain them.
I have the solar water well complete with a backup system.
Water and keeping food frozen will make that part much easier
mongo4567
Well-Known Member
Most of the whole house generator companies have good calculators to help you figure out what your surge/max numbers are. A lot of the electric providers show your usage on a graph too.
I've developed a plan for long term grid failure: lots of jerky. There was a real good discussion by a guy that went through problems with Argentine bank collapse...the idea of planning for complete failure.
memtb
Well-Known Member
Victor, here's just one of many calculation sheets/forms on the internet for solar arrays/batteries/inverters/ect. memtb
www.solar-electric.com
Off Grid Solar Load Calculator | NAZ Solar Electric
Solar power equipment for homes, businesses boats and RVs. Backed by industry experts ready to help get your solar system up and running.
www.solar-electric.com
Critter Picker
Well-Known Member
Don't think Brandon had anything to freeze. They could probably store all those brains in a thimble and have room left over.I am afraid that no mater how much "Prepping" that you do it will only prolong the time you have. Eventually you will run out of supplies and then where will you be if it was a REAL TOTAL COLLAPSE OF THE SYSTEM. If it was a short term like from a natural disaster you could go weeks even a few months if you Prepped enough. If it was an event that shut down the worlds power grids -forget it! Nuclear War !! Even if you had the basic supplies to survive (bullets, traps, seeds, for a garden, knowledge) you would have to live out the hoards of gangs and the living Dead roaming the planet.
Governments would have their "Chariot and ARK" Programs in place for the wealthy & government officials to start back up the reproduction process of humanity. They would start back years after the collapse with genetics, frozen embryos, and deep hibernation of mental giants to bring back society. It is said that Joe Brandon, Mala Harris, Nancy Pelo icy, Mitch McConnel already had their brains put into deep freeze and there are just Surrogates acting in their place now.
So for all you that are interested, you are basically SOL if something big goes down.
victor3ranger
Well-Known Member
Thank youVictor, here's just one of many calculation sheets/forms on the internet for solar arrays/batteries/inverters/ect. memtb
Off Grid Solar Load Calculator | NAZ Solar Electric
Solar power equipment for homes, businesses boats and RVs. Backed by industry experts ready to help get your solar system up and running.
victor3ranger
Well-Known Member
That's awesome, it's giving me a good starting point, thank you very muchVictor, here's just one of many calculation sheets/forms on the internet for solar arrays/batteries/inverters/ect. memtb
Off Grid Solar Load Calculator | NAZ Solar Electric
Solar power equipment for homes, businesses boats and RVs. Backed by industry experts ready to help get your solar system up and running.
memtb
Well-Known Member
You bet my Friend! That was a quick search, there may be others more user friendly…..but, it should give you some basic ideas!
Good Luck. memtb
M1A1ABRAMS
Well-Known Member
How much do you think the system for the well runs. Just a rough figure would be nice.
Will.284
Well-Known Member
My wife used to work for a generator manufacturer in Mt and got USA screaming deal on a 25kw on its own trailer it's all hooked up and yes every couple weeks it gets run . As well our water in on a artisan well 850 ft deep ( I'm dead serious)) and necks down all the way to the pump house but no pump just a over flow valve that drains into 2 ponds that don't freeze unless it 40 below . Almost 70 psi at our faucet and the same with the other 12 families in town (27 people) , the water is amazing pure. We are looking at a solar power backup system to just in case
OK I am going to weigh in here to maybe dispel a bit of misconceptions, please don't take offense.
A modified sine wave inverter takes DC current and makes a stair step square wave shaped AC current. You can typically (don't take my word for it) run most computers on this because the computer power supply just converts it back to DC for use.
Typical AC motors for such things as well pumps, freezers etc. will eventually burn out if run on modified sine wave inverters. Most of them require a capacitor to start because switching from N to S and back generates no torque, there needs to be a phase difference between the coils. These capacitors suck up an enormous amount of current on startup, then they are switched off. Thus you will typically need double the nameplate power to start them. True sine wave inverters require a lot of electronics to make them work. A typical generator naturally makes sine waves which is nice. BTW those capacitors can store a lot of high voltage, and typically have a resistor that 'bleeds' them down after awhile. Best advice is to short them out before touching the terminals or you are in for a nasty and possibly fatal shock, especially if the resistor connection fails. You will see them bolted onto or near the motor.
One thing to consider is that after a power outage of more than a day or two, all of your freezers and probably the well pumps etc. are going to want to start at once, so you will need to add them all together and double that to determine the surge current. You will have to probably have an electrician read the nameplate rating because the stupid 'uses only x watts/year' rating is because they only run when the freezer gets warm.
Industrial grade motors such as for milling machines, large pumps, etc. use 3 phase power and require special transformers for the drop to the building from the power lines. Almost no residences use this, they all use single phase. Three phase motors are more efficient by a lot than single phase motors, and by their nature do not need capacitors to start.
If you have propane, by far the best option is to buy a propane fridge/freezer. They run directly from the propane, have no moving parts, do not require electricity, and are VERY efficient and highly reliable. A typical propane fridge can run well over a week on a standard 20 pound (4 gallon) propane tank. A 500 gallon propane tank holds 400 gallons of propane at max fill, 100 times more than a 20 pound tank. If you need AC electricity for pumps etc. you can get a propane generator. Be aware, however, that a 20 pound (4 gallon) propane tank will only run your generator for half a day or so, just like a gas or diesel generator.
Systems combining solar, batteries, chargers, inverters, generators, etc. are very complex and expensive and you should find someone or hire someone who really knows what they are doing. Also, there absolutely CANNOT be ANY connection between backup power and the power lines or you will be jailed when a lineman dies...
One final note is that a 1000 watt solar array is only going to give you 1000 watts on a sunny summer day when the sun is overhead, and you will lose some of that converting and using it.
A modified sine wave inverter takes DC current and makes a stair step square wave shaped AC current. You can typically (don't take my word for it) run most computers on this because the computer power supply just converts it back to DC for use.
Typical AC motors for such things as well pumps, freezers etc. will eventually burn out if run on modified sine wave inverters. Most of them require a capacitor to start because switching from N to S and back generates no torque, there needs to be a phase difference between the coils. These capacitors suck up an enormous amount of current on startup, then they are switched off. Thus you will typically need double the nameplate power to start them. True sine wave inverters require a lot of electronics to make them work. A typical generator naturally makes sine waves which is nice. BTW those capacitors can store a lot of high voltage, and typically have a resistor that 'bleeds' them down after awhile. Best advice is to short them out before touching the terminals or you are in for a nasty and possibly fatal shock, especially if the resistor connection fails. You will see them bolted onto or near the motor.
One thing to consider is that after a power outage of more than a day or two, all of your freezers and probably the well pumps etc. are going to want to start at once, so you will need to add them all together and double that to determine the surge current. You will have to probably have an electrician read the nameplate rating because the stupid 'uses only x watts/year' rating is because they only run when the freezer gets warm.
Industrial grade motors such as for milling machines, large pumps, etc. use 3 phase power and require special transformers for the drop to the building from the power lines. Almost no residences use this, they all use single phase. Three phase motors are more efficient by a lot than single phase motors, and by their nature do not need capacitors to start.
If you have propane, by far the best option is to buy a propane fridge/freezer. They run directly from the propane, have no moving parts, do not require electricity, and are VERY efficient and highly reliable. A typical propane fridge can run well over a week on a standard 20 pound (4 gallon) propane tank. A 500 gallon propane tank holds 400 gallons of propane at max fill, 100 times more than a 20 pound tank. If you need AC electricity for pumps etc. you can get a propane generator. Be aware, however, that a 20 pound (4 gallon) propane tank will only run your generator for half a day or so, just like a gas or diesel generator.
Systems combining solar, batteries, chargers, inverters, generators, etc. are very complex and expensive and you should find someone or hire someone who really knows what they are doing. Also, there absolutely CANNOT be ANY connection between backup power and the power lines or you will be jailed when a lineman dies...
One final note is that a 1000 watt solar array is only going to give you 1000 watts on a sunny summer day when the sun is overhead, and you will lose some of that converting and using it.
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