Why Choose Solar Off-Grid Systems?

Why Choose Solar Off-Grid Systems?

The advantages of off-grid solar

Over 300,000 homes are believed to be using off-grid power sources for their energy needs. Here are a few reasons why some Americans choose to live off the grid:

1. Freedom from the grid?

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This is the primary reason why people in blackout-prone regions are interested in off-grid solar. When connected to the grid, you are dependent on an external supplier — the utility company — for all your power.

When the grid shuts off, so does your power supply. This dependence doesn’t seem to be a problem until you are hit with blackouts and power failures, as those who have suffered through the?Texas power crises?can attest.

2. Environmentally-friendly

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Going off-grid reduces carbon emissions. Since most of the electricity supplied through the grid comes from burning fossil fuels, producing your own power through renewable resources (solar, wind, hydro) drastically reduces your carbon footprint.

3. Greater energy awareness

When you’re connected to the grid, it’s easy to be unaware of your power consumption habits — you consume electricity, pay the bill when it comes, and that’s that. It disconnects you from where the electricity is coming from and where it’s being used.

Your attitude when it comes to power changes completely when you go off-grid. To ensure you don’t run out of electricity, you will have to closely follow your energy generation and also re-evaluate and rationalize your energy consumption.?

4. Works almost everywhere

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When you’re seeking to power a building in a really remote location - say a hunting cabin out in the woods - there’s a good chance there’s no grid to connect to at all.?

If you contact the utility for a connection, they will probably tell you that you are out of their coverage area. Alternatively, they could offer to lay the wire to connect you to the grid — but only at an astronomical cost.?

That means that you’ll have to produce your own power. You could use a backup generator, but fuel for it is expensive, while renewable energy like hydropower and wind aren’t available in most places. This leaves solar as the only practical option for off-grid power.?

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