Off-grid living refers to the practice of living independently from the traditional power grid by generating one’s own electricity, water, and other necessities. This can be achieved through a variety of methods, such as solar power, wind power, hydropower, and even alternative energy solutions like biomass or geothermal.

One of the main benefits of off-grid living is the ability to be self-sufficient and not rely on the power grid or other public utilities. This can be especially appealing for those who live in remote or rural areas where access to the power grid is limited. Additionally, off-grid living can also be a more sustainable and environmentally-friendly lifestyle choice, as it reduces the dependence on fossil fuels and reduces the carbon footprint.

However, off-grid living also has its challenges. It can be costly to set up and maintain an off-grid system, and it requires a significant level of knowledge and expertise to install and maintain the system. Additionally, off-grid living often means living with limited resources and without the luxury of modern conveniences such as air conditioning, dishwashers, or other high-energy-consuming appliances.

In order to successfully live off-grid, it’s important to carefully plan and design the system. It’s also important to be aware of local regulations, as there may be legal restrictions or permit requirements for installing off-grid systems.

In conclusion, off-grid living is the practice of living independently from the traditional power grid by generating one’s own electricity, water, and other necessities. This can be achieved through a variety of methods such as solar power, wind power, hydropower, and alternative energy solutions. Living off-grid offers the benefits of self-sufficiency and sustainability but also comes with its own set of challenges like cost, maintenance, and limited resources. It is important to plan and design the system accordingly and be aware of local regulations.

‘There’s probably going to be a huge demand in the future’

A future landscape for many might include an electric vehicle powered by a solar grid that can run electricity for a home when the power goes out.

But it’s not that futuristic for one New Brunswick man. In fact, it’s his reality.

Cory Allen, who lives in Nasonworth, N.B., switched to electric vehicles in 2019, beginning with an SUV.

He said he still had a gas car in the garage at the time because, like many people, he was skeptical.

More recently, he got an electric pickup truck, the Ford F-150 Lightning. He said it has some “really cool” features, including being able to “back feed” electricity into the house.

In the event of a power outage, Allen’s automatic standby generator would kick in, which he said would cost around $6 or $7 per hour to run.

But then he could go to the garage and flick a transfer switch that would allow the truck to power the house. He said the truck can power the house for around two days before needing a charge.

Not only that but the truck is charged using solar energy.

Allen had a 12.8-kilowatt array of solar panels installed that feed into the garage where vehicles are charged. He said the truck takes around eight hours to go from zero power to a full charge.

He said he went with a grid-tied solar system for his home, which is different than a standard setup, so there’s no battery component.

He said when the vehicles are charging, they will take all of the solar energy that’s being produced. But when they are not actively using all of the solar energy, the meter will run backward and the power will be banked for when they need it, Allen said.

His panels are on a wooden frame in the field by his house. That was more cost-effective than putting them on the roof of his home since the field has a better southern exposure, which means increased sunlight.

Not a lot of public knowledge

The idea for the setup originally came from Epic Energy, a New Brunswick solar energy company, when Allen approached them about a solar array.

“The electrician came over and we began talking and … he just offered so many of these awesome ideas,” said Allen.

Richard Knappe, president of Epic Energy, said there isn’t a lot of public knowledge about using solar to power electric vehicles, but they have had conversations with interested clients.

He said there also aren’t many vehicles that have the necessary technology.

“There’s probably going to be a huge demand in the future,” said Knappe. “But right now, we’re pretty limited to the F-150 Ford, and the Hyundai IONIQ 5.”

When it comes to setting up these types of systems, the wiring does get pretty complicated, he said. Knappe has an electrician who does this work, but he said it is hard to find electricians with that particular knowledge.

Long-term financial benefit

Allen said having an electric vehicle is also a long-term financial benefit for him.

He said the truck is expensive upfront at roughly $100,000. Then there is around $11,000 for the solar array and about $7,000 for the electrical work.

But the cost makes sense in the long run, Allen said.

He said as a small business owner who travels a lot, he was spending a lot on gas to fuel a pickup truck.

But without having to buy gas, he said his monthly payments come out to less since he’s only making payments on the truck.

Allen said one of the things that makes him feel good about his setup is the carbon footprint.

He said there is a heavy carbon footprint at the outset for the production of electric vehicles and solar panels. But, after using them for around five years, he said his household could be net zero.

He said environmental concerns are always something he tries to keep on top of his mind.

“I often joked, ‘Well, at least I’m offsetting the gas I put through the truck with the car,'” said Allen. “But now we have the electric car and the truck, so I don’t even have to worry about that joke anymore.”

Growing up near Fort McMurray, Alta., Randall Benson started working in the oilsands like many of his family members. However, in the mid-1990s, the long hours and ecological impacts of the industry had him rethinking his occupation.

“I just found it counterintuitive to how I was raised to respect our environment, and so I made a decision to find something that was kind of the opposite,” said Benson, now 52.

The “opposite” turned out to be solar energy, which he learned about while flipping through a magazine after moving to Edmonton.

About 25 years later, Benson is pleased to see utility-scale solar projects booming — a welcome addition to the residential and community solar installations his company, Gridworks Energy, builds. Benson is working on a project commissioned by the Métis Nation of Alberta, of which he is a member, designed to generate enough power for 1,200 homes.

It’s part of a renewable energy boom in a province world-famous for its oil reserves.

There’s “almost gold rush-level activity for solar” in Alberta, said Sara Hastings-Simon, assistant professor at the University of Calgary and an expert in energy and climate policy. “The majority of solar that we have in the system in Alberta today was installed in 2021-2022. So this is a really very recent phenomenon.”

According to research by Hastings-Simon and colleagues, in 2021, renewables — solar, wind, and hydro combined — accounted for 14.3 percent of electricity on the Alberta grid, compared to less than three per cent in 2002. She expects that number to increase in 2022.

Hastings-Simon said multiple factors helped create the conditions for this growth in solar power.

Alberta and Ontario are the only Canadian provinces with deregulated wholesale energy markets. While a government with a regulated electricity market could decide to build renewables, Hastings-Simon said that a deregulated system allows for these projects to move forward because of open competition among energy suppliers and an easy route for companies to purchase renewable power directly.

The Alberta Electric System Operator is a not-for-profit organization that purchases power from an open market; the price of electricity changes hourly, set by supply and demand, Hastings-Simon said.

According to Natural Resources Canada, Alberta — in particular the south of the province — has great potential for solar power generation. Despite the vast resource and an open market, solar development was stuck in a bit of a “chicken-and-egg” situation, without anything to kick-start projects, said Hastings-Simon.

When NDP Leader Rachel Notley was premier, the province started a renewable electricity program, and while only wind projects were selected, it sent a message to corporate buyers that a renewable energy market was starting to take off in the province.

In 2018, the province put out a request for solar projects to power Alberta government facilities. This “helped to break that chicken-and-egg cycle,” said Hastings-Simon. The provincial government’s renewable energy procurement in turn sparked an “uptick in the interest of so-called non-utility procurement.”

In other words, instead of buying electricity from their utility, more companies and organizations are opting to work directly with renewable energy developers to secure electricity at a guaranteed price. This also works out well for renewable energy developers, who have to contend with variable rates when they sell power to the province.

For some companies, there was another incentive: under the federal carbon tax, solar can be used as an offset in order to comply with the cost of carbon pollution.

With the price of solar energy itself dropping, the effect was “the perfect storm” for a boom in solar development, said Hastings-Simon.

Much of the growth is happening in southern Alberta. That includes Canada’s largest solar farm to date, the Travers Solar Project in Vulcan County, which signed an agreement to sell electricity directly to Amazon.

The burst of solar activity has been welcome financially for Vulcan County. In recent years, some fossil fuel companies have walked away from properties, leaving outstanding tax bills unpaid, resulting in the county cutting its budget by 30 percent, said the county’s reeve, Jason Schneider.

According to Schneider, tax from renewable energy projects makes up 45 percent of the county’s revenue: about 25 percent of which is solar and 20 percent wind.

“It subsidizes everything,” he said. “It’s paying for libraries, it’s paying for roads, it’s paying for bridges.”

Hastings-Simon said the next hurdle the province may face will be keeping up with the capacity for solar projects to connect to the grid.

She points to Texas as an example of how to proceed. With lots of solar potentials, the state decided to “build transmission lines on the assumption that if we build it, developers will come and build renewable projects when they have that opportunity to interconnect [to the grid].”

When it comes to where public money can best be put to use to keep solar’s momentum going, she said transmission lines are “the biggest bang for the buck.”

Credits

The frontlines of solar energy say Nova Scotia Power is pushing their industry to a breaking point because of a backlog in permit approvals for hundreds of installations. The utility says it’s working diligently to get through the delay and is committed to green energy but opposition parties say that’s not the message they’re sending.

Nova Scotia’s solar energy sector went public this week with concerns over Nova Scotia Power’s processing time for solar installation permits.

“Huge demand for solar among Nova Scotians but we risk losing the summer install season with close to 1000 projects stalled,” Solar Nova Scotia tweeted on May 18, 2022.

For their part, the public utility says it is dealing with a backlog but it’s committed to working through it.

“Since January, we have processed approx. 650 electrical permitting requests and acknowledge that there continues to be a backlog which we are working to resolve as quickly as possible,” Stacy O’Rourke, Nova Scotia Power’s communications director, wrote in an email statement.

O’Rourke wrote that the utility is committed to phasing out coal and that processing permits for solar installations is a priority.

“Nova Scotia is not incentivized to bring on renewables at all, let alone in a timely fashion, and that’s a big problem,” said Claudia Chender, the Nova Scotia NDP critic for natural resources and renewables.

Chender says Nova Scotia Power’s attempt to charge solar customers a connection fee earlier this year demonstrates the need for the provincial government to reform how the utility is regulated.

“So that there’s a service standard for solar installation. So, that they’re incentivized differently not just for selling power but also for meeting our environmental targets and getting us towards renewables,” she said.

Tory Rushton, Nova Scotia’s minister of natural resources and renewables, says regulation changes are a possibility.

“I’ve been very clear right from day one, there’s nothing off the table. We made some amendments to the acts during the recent legislative sitting. We’re in the middle of regulations. This is an open file,” he said.

Rushton says the high demand from homeowners to have solar panels installed is a positive sign in Nova Scotia’s pathway to phasing out coal.

“I understand from comments made on social media from Solar Nova Scotia that there’s a high-interest rate so that’s a good thing. And we encourage Nova Scotia Power to move these things forward,” he said.

Solar power is an increasingly popular choice for powering boats and RVs, as it is a clean, renewable, and cost-effective alternative to traditional fossil fuels.

Solar panels, also known as photovoltaic (PV) panels, convert sunlight into electricity that can be used to power appliances, lights, and other electrical devices on a boat or RV. The size and power of the solar panels will depend on the specific needs of the boat or RV, as well as the amount of sunlight the panels will receive.

One of the key benefits of using solar power on a boat or RV is the ability to be off-grid. This means that a boat or RV can be parked in a remote location and still have access to power, without the need to rely on a generator or shore power. Additionally, solar power is silent and produces no emissions, which makes it a great choice for boating and RVing in sensitive or protected areas.

Solar power systems for boats and RVs typically include the solar panels, a charge controller, and a battery bank. The charge controller is responsible for ensuring that the batteries are not overcharged or undercharged, while the battery bank stores the electricity generated by the solar panels.

When it comes to solar power for boats and RVs, there are different options for the solar panel, such as flexible or semi-flexible solar panels, which are easy to install and can be attached to curved surfaces such as the deck or cabin of a boat, or traditional rigid solar panels which are more powerful but not as adaptable.

In conclusion, solar power is a clean, renewable, and cost-effective alternative to traditional fossil fuels for powering boats and RVs. It allows boaters and RVers to be off-grid, and it doesn’t produce emissions or noise. Solar power systems for boats and RVs include solar panels, charge controller, and a battery bank. There are different options for the solar panel such as flexible or traditional rigid solar panels.

Nova Scotia’s solar industry is growing. There was some uncertainty earlier this year when Nova Scotia Power proposed a fee for solar users, but after the government intervened, the solar sector saw another record-breaking year.

The solar industry in Nova Scotia is growing.

Each year for the past five to six years, the province has seen a record number of solar panel installations and there are now about 6,000 Nova Scotians with solar panels.

“With electricity prices rising, people see solar as a way to mitigate increases,” said David Brushett, chair of Solar Nova Scotia.

“Also, people care about the issues of climate change and see it as a way to take action to help reduce emissions.”

Another factor contributing to growth is the cost. Over the past decade, the price of solar panels has dropped nearly 90 percent.

“The sector has really progressed a lot over the last couple of years,” said Patrick Bateman, an energy sector consultant.

Bateman was one of the hundreds participating in the Atlantic Canada solar summit held at the Halifax Convention Centre this week. The conference offers those in the industry a chance to look at advancements in solar technology and discuss the sector’s future.

“Technology changes all the time so it’s of critical importance for people to get together, solve problems and create new opportunities,” said Bateman.

Growth in the province has largely been in the residential market, but there is hope that there will be growth in the commercial market next year.

David Miller, the director of clean electricity with the Department of Energy and Renewables, says growth in the commercial market was previously limited due to regulations but change is underway.

“Previously the max installed limit was 100 kilowatts, so it’s now 200 for some businesses and up to 1,000 for others,” he said.

In addition to that, there are new business deductions and tax incentives for businesses looking to go solar.

And while the price of solar has dropped significantly in recent years, the upfront cost is still too high for many and so the province is looking at community solar gardens as a way to make solar more accessible to all Nova Scotians.

“We’ll see larger solar projects constructed and allow individuals to subscribe to them, so you don’t have to own it, it doesn’t have to be on your roof,” he said.

“We see (this project as) opportunities to support lower-income families or middle-income families who might want to participate in the clean energy space but can’t afford that upfront cost.”

Nova Scotia has a goal of having 80 percent of its electricity come from renewable sources by 2030. While solar will play a role in this, the power generated by solar in the province is just a very small portion of what’s needed.

“Solar is a solution that you combine with other solutions,” said Bateman.

“Balancing solar with other existing resources is how we get to a cleaner future.”

Credits

LiFePO4, also known as lithium iron phosphate, is a type of lithium-ion battery that is commonly used in a wide range of applications, including electric vehicles, grid energy storage, and portable electronics.

One of the main advantages of LiFePO4 batteries is their high energy density, which means they can store a large amount of energy in a relatively small package. This makes them well-suited for use in electric vehicles, where space is often at a premium. Additionally, LiFePO4 batteries have a relatively long lifespan, with some manufacturers claiming that their batteries can last for over 20 years.

Another key benefit of LiFePO4 batteries is their safety. Unlike traditional lithium-ion batteries, which use a cobalt-based cathode, LiFePO4 batteries use an iron-based cathode. This makes them less susceptible to thermal runaway, a condition where a battery overheats and can potentially catch fire. Additionally, LiFePO4 batteries are less likely to experience voltage sag, a condition where the voltage drops rapidly during discharge.

In addition to the benefits above, LiFePO4 batteries also have some drawbacks. They are relatively heavy compared to other types of lithium-ion batteries, which can be a disadvantage for portable electronics. Additionally, they have a lower voltage than other types of lithium-ion batteries, which means they require more cells to achieve the same voltage.

In conclusion, LiFePO4 batteries are a type of lithium-ion battery that offers several benefits over traditional lithium-ion batteries. They have a high energy density, a long lifespan, and are relatively safe. They are commonly used in electric vehicles, grid energy storage, and portable electronics. However, they are relatively heavy and have a lower voltage than other types of lithium-ion batteries.

Hurricane Ian

Hurricane Ian’s catastrophic winds and flooding are likely to bring long-lasting power outages to large parts of Florida. The storm is the latest in a line of hurricanes and extreme heat and cold events that have knocked out power to millions of Americans in recent years for days at a time.

In many disasters- and outage-prone areas, people are starting to ask whether investing in rooftop solar and battery storage systems can keep the lights on and the air conditioner running when the power grid can’t.

When the grid goes down, most solar systems that lack a battery will also shut down. But with batteries, a home can disconnect from the grid. Each day, the sun powers the home and charges up the batteries, which provide power through the night.

Our team at Berkeley Lab explored what it would take for homes and commercial buildings to ride out long power outages, of three days or more, with solar and batteries.

How much can solar + storage do?
For a new report, we modeled a generic power outage for every county in the U.S., testing whether a rooftop solar system combined with a 10- or 30-kilowatt-hour battery could power critical loads, like refrigeration, lighting, internet service, and well pumps; if it could go further and also power heating and air conditioning; or if it could even power a whole home.

To put that into perspective, the most popular battery on the market, the Tesla Powerwall, has just over 13 kWh of storage.

In general, we found that even a modest system of solar plus one battery can power critical loads in a home for days at a time, practically anywhere in the country.

But our maps show that providing backup for cooling and heat can be a challenge, though not an insurmountable one. Homes in the Southeast and Pacific Northwest often have power-hogging electric resistance heaters, exceeding the capability of solar and storage during winter outages. Homes with efficient heat pumps performed better. Summer air conditioning load can be heavy in the Southwest, making it harder to meet all cooling needs with solar and storage in a summer blackout.

Larger solar and battery systems can help, but meeting demand during outages still depends on the weather, how energy efficient the home is, and other factors. For example, simple thermostat adjustments during power outages reduce heating and cooling needs and allow solar with storage to maintain backup power over longer periods.

The ability to power commercial buildings varies widely, depending on the building type. Schools and big-box retail stores, with sufficient roof space for solar relative to building power demand, fare much better than multistory, energy-intensive buildings like hospitals.

How solar would have handled 10 past disasters

We also looked at 10 real-world outage events from 2017 to 2020, including hurricanes, wildfires, and storms, and modeled building performance for specific locations and real weather patterns during and after the outages.

We found that in seven of the outages, most homes would have been able to maintain critical loads plus heating and cooling using solar with 30 kWh of storage, or just over two Powerwalls.

But the weather around the outage can have a big impact, especially for hurricanes. After Hurricane Florence knocked out power in North Carolina in 2018, cloudy skies hung around for three days, dimming or even stopping solar panels’ output.

Hurricane Harvey, on the other hand, slammed the Texas coast in August 2017 but moved on to cause widespread damage elsewhere in Texas. The skies over Corpus Christi cleared even as it took a week or more to get power restored. Solar and storage would have been a big help in that case, providing virtually all power needs for a typical single-family home, once the skies cleared.

Similarly, we found solar can do well in less cloudy events, like wildfire prevention shutoffs in California, or after the 2020 derecho windstorm in Iowa.

The heat source in a home is also a key factor. In a five-to-10-day outage following an ice storm in Oklahoma in 2020, we found that solar plus a 30-kWh battery could have supplied nearly all the critical power and heat needed for homes with natural gas heaters or heat pumps. But homes with electric resistance heating would have fallen short.

In Texas, over half of the homes are heated with electricity, primarily resistance heaters. Energy Star-rated heat pumps – which provide both heating and cooling – use half as much electricity per unit of heat output as electric resistance heaters and are also more efficient at cooling than the average new air conditioner. Converting older resistance heaters to new heat pumps can not only save money and reduce peak demand but also increase resilience during outages.

New forms of backup

Setting up solar and storage to provide backup power in a home or building takes extra work and it costs more – just one Powerwall can run from US$12,000 to $16,500 for a full system installation, before incentives and taxes. That’s as much as a fair-sized solar system. Nevertheless, a growing number of homeowners are installing both.

Over 90% of new solar installations in Hawaii in 2021 were paired with batteries after a regulation change. Now, these distributed power plants are helping power the grid as coal plants are retired.

California has over 1.5 million rooftop solar systems. A growing number of customers are retrofitting batteries on their systems, or adding new solar plus storage, in part because utilities have resorted to “public safety power shutoffs” to lower the risk of wildfires sparked by power lines during dry, windy days.

And new forms of backup power are emerging, especially from electric cars. Ford is partnering with SunRun to combine its new F150 Lightning electric pickup truck with solar and a two-way charger that can use the truck’s battery to power a house. The standard version of the truck comes with a 98-kWh battery, the equivalent of more than seven Tesla Powerwall stationary batteries.

Critical power for critical services

A fire station in Puerto Rico offers a glimpse of what solar and storage can do. After Hurricane Maria cut power for months in 2017, over 40,000 solar systems were installed on the island, often paired with battery storage. One of those is at the fire station in the town of Guánica, which had been unable to receive emergency calls in previous outages.

When Hurricane Fiona’s wind and flooding again knocked out power to most of Puerto Rico in September 2022, the fire station was still operating.

“The solar system is working beautifully!” Sgt. Luis Saez told Canary Media the day after Fiona knocked out power. “We did not lose power all throughout the hurricane.”

Off the grid living is becoming more and more popular, and with it comes an increasing need for portable energy. Vancouver’s own Royer Batteries has created the smallest and lightest Lithium battery – The Micro Smart Heated Battery – that North America has seen, that’s the perfect solution to energy needs, whether for solar off-grid homes, RVs, van-life, or marine usage. Coming with many new advantages in comparison to its old alternative, the lead acid battery, the Canadian assembled Micro Battery uses LiFePO4 chemistry and trumps it in every category while setting the stage for the future for how we store electricity.

The lead acid battery has been the traditional choice for off-grid power usage for many years, but throughout it, the battery has had faults that leave users with more stress over their electricity. Though there are different types of lead acid batteries with different strengths, the weaknesses of them all remain the same. Firstly, the lead acid battery can only use 50% (or less) of it’s rated capacity (Ah) for each cycle, leaving less usable power than advertised. For lead acid battery users this means you don’t really get what you think, energy wise – you get half of it. Furthermore, if the lead acid battery isn’t charged on a strict schedule, the lack thereof will begin to damage the battery, before it’s even used all of its power.

Cycle life – the number of times a battery can be recharged – is another issue that could be improved when it comes to lead acid batteries. At about 1500 cycles, the lead acid battery will have lost 50% capacity. Though this may still seem like a lot of cycles, it’s important to note that how much usable KWh – Kilowatt-Hour – the battery can deliver is still being reduced each cycle, meaning even before the 50% capacity loss, the lead acid battery will not be able to deliver the same amount of power even halfway into its life cycle. Overall, weighing around 4-6x times more than lithium batteries, the lead acid battery is delivering sub-optimal power, low energy density, and high maintenance needs, without even delivering longevity.

With the Micro Battery, you are truly getting what you pay for. With 100% usable capacity or depth of discharge, it overcomes the deficits of the lead acid battery, and in turn revolutionized the way off grid power is stored. The battery does not need to be constantly recharged to maintain it’s life expectancy, nor does it have the same life cycle shortage as its alternative. In comparison to the lead acid battery which loses 50% capacity over 1500 cycles, the Micro Battery comes out on top, losing only 20% capacity over a minimum of 3000 cycles, and up to 5000 in most applications. It also doesn’t lose as much capacity every cycle, ensuring you are getting the optimal amount of electricity out of your battery, every time. Over the life-time, the Micro Battery will output over 10 times the amount of usable power, greatly increasing the amount of energy a user can get out of their battery. Although it cannot be charged in 0 degrees and below, nor discharged in -20 degrees and below, the Micro Battery was designed with a low consumption automatic built-in heater, to face its weaknesses head on.

The Micro Battery not only fixes the faults of its alternative but comes with new upgrades, as well. It comes with an app that connects to the battery with Bluetooth, enabling users to not only see if there are issues with their battery, but also better understand their energy usage. This app allows users to be more energy conscious, in addition to understanding how their battery really works. Furthermore, Each battery comes with a 10 year warranty but it can easily last you up to 25 years with relevant energy density still left. The Micro Battery is completely serviceable so parts are interchangeable and exchangeable; if there is an issue out of warranty it can be repaired simply.

This battery is likely going to take the market by storm. Even with other lithium-based batteries on the market, those batteries tend to have lower kWh, up to 50% larger, up to 50% heavier, as well as have less features. With the Micro Battery, the cells are square, optimizing space. Meanwhile, weighing in at only 59 pounds, the Micro 12V 310Ah Battery is the perfect solution for mobile applications, such as van-living. Although this battery costs on average 2 times more than its lead acid alternative, over the life-time of the LiFePO4 it will cost 5 times less money per Amp-hour used.

The Micro battery will truly revolutionize the way off-grid power is used and stored. Tyrone Royer, creator of the Micro Battery from Royer Batteries, reports on how he feels about his battery and its size, saying “I just love hearing ‘No way, you can’t fit that much power in there!’” At 59 pounds 100% capacity that can be cycled up to 10000 times in its lifetime, the Micro is the best new way to store energy.