Harnessing the Sun

First-hand info on all things Solar (and a little wind power, too).

We've been living off grid and reliant on solar power and, recently, wind for nearly two years. As we've added on, modified and adjusted, I often question whether large-scale solar or wind power is feasible for whole communities. I'm leaning towards no and I'll explain why.

For those of you considering a solar system, this post is going to be useful. For those of you not considering a solar system, this post is going to be long and probably boring. Consider yourself warned.

Our solar array.

My husband, John, designed our system and it was laborious. I remember him hunched at the dining room table on his laptop for hours, jotting down notes and looking perplexed. Personally, my understanding of voltage, wattage and amperage is weak, at best, so all I could do was look on empathetically and make cookies. Building an entire power system to be reliant upon is not only intimidating but expensive. You don't want to make …