Gratefully, the solar array is working as designed. Most days, it meets all our needs, keeps the batteries charged and sells power back to the grid. Our Sol-Ark 15k hybrid inverter is a marvel. It connects directly to our 200 amp service and feeds the entire breaker panel – no need for a separate critical load …
Solar power had been part of our resiliency plan from the start, it just took a long time to come to fruition. Planning began before the house build. Our goal was to power the homestead in the event of an extended grid-down event, while reducing our dependence on the power grid. With the help of …
This was our first – and hopefully last – adventure building a home. In retrospect, it was a wonderful experience. With the build finally finished and the decorating started, it’s time for us to rejoice and rest a bit. OK, we’ll just rejoice… r We chose a very expensive time to build a new home …
A good dog is a great asset to any farm. The right dog who is well trained will protect both your property and livestock. However, if any of you knew Christi well in Marietta, she was VERY opposed to getting anymore dogs. As she used to say, “When this dog dies (referring to Kimmie), I’m …
One dream Christi has had for several years is to raise bees. In our last neighborhood, the boy next door was allergic to bee stings. Being (mostly) responsible neighbors, we opted to wait for a better location. Ninety-seven acres seems to fit that bill. Together we took an online bee keeping class over several weeks. …
From the outset, we intended to raise ruminants on pasture for our own food needs and to offset homestead expenses. The question was what to raise? Most folks around here raise cattle. There is a good market for the meat, the cattle thrive on the cool season grasses that grow here and they are …
Before embarking on our first (and hopefully only) new home build, several close friends cautioned us that the process is typically stressful and can damage even the best marriage relationship. That’s a sobering thought! So we went into this adventure with humility and much prayer. What occurred to us is that things might go …
Our objective at the outset was to build a solid, energy efficient and comfortable home. Insulation and a tight envelope play a critical role in bringing this about. Given our desire for an exceptionally tight envelope, spray foam was an obvious choice. It is more costly than fiberglass batt, but only by roughly 25 …
We looked for cost-effective long-lasting siding. after comparing options, we chose James Hardi cement plank siding with aluminum clad windows, this choice meant there would be almost no wood on the house exterior. The only wood would be the deck and porch roofs. We were impressed by the work. Each lap joint has flashing behind …
With framing complete, our objective was to get the place “dried in. That means getting a roof and windows installed. Before roofing though, we wanted to rough-in the plumbing so the roof penetrations could be flashed as part of laying shingles. Plumbing I remember when all supply plumbing was copper. Even avid DIYers knew …
