Called On Account Of Rain

We got rained out this weekend. Boo.

There was a wonderful flurry of activity last week as we dug in and got the strapping up. Now, there's just the one.... thing... left... pallet siding. We had planned to get started on prepping the pallet pieces that have already been dismantled, and also tear apart a whole lot more pallets. Well, rainy weather makes that hard work to accomplish. I even had a friend all lined up to come help!! Let's hope her gusto remains until better weather. ;) 

With Dan's classes coming to a close, he's been quite busy studiously studying, writing, and all those other things I'm so glad I don't have to do anymore. Heehee! I, on the other hand, have been just as busy hashing out our solar needs. I've been in near constant communication with a great representative from the AltE store. From the get go, customer service with this company has been phenomenal. I've had some recent customer service horror stories, so it really made me appreciate how these folks handled my inquiry. 

While many tiny houses feature panels on the roof- we plan to
use a ground mount like this couple did.
www.chrisandmalissa.com

These folks are very happy to discuss solar power needs with any person, regardless of their level of knowledge. They have endless online education articles, calculators to help you figure out your power load, and much more. I would highly recommend this company to others! They are no strangers to creating systems for folks with tiny houses. I heard of AltE through Laura LaVoie of Life In 120 Square Feet. 

I had a nice chat with Greg, a rep, after perusing the sight and fiddling with the calculators. I had a rough idea of our daily watt-hours, but that number really didn't mean much to me as far as how that translates to COST of system. haha I knew the bigger the power load, the bigger- and hence- more expensive the solar power system. I got off the phone feeling pretty good about my knowledge and knowing we would have everything we need to put together a good system. Greg said he would email me a quote once he worked up the numbers. 

WELL- that quote came back and I about fell out of my chair. With the power load I described, our system would have been almost $13,000. Wooooooooooh. After I picked up my jaw, and rubbed the huge slap of reality off my face, I immediately went back to the drawing board. I laughed at myself several times as I reworked our numbers- here I was thinking it was conservative use! HA! Not conservative enough! Our HOUSE didn't even cost that much. It's amazing how much you can take power for granted when you're enjoying life on the grid.

One small thing I did this week that has brought
me much joy every day since! Hanging pots!
It's the little things.. :)

I drastically cut our numbers, but we would still be able to run a laptop several hours a day, run lights, the cooler, a clock, a window fan, and a few other little things. With those numbers widdled down, our quote came to a much more palatable $3700. I also asked for a quote to include the use of a mini-air conditioner for the summer. That power system would be around $6500. Still manageable...and as I think back to the summer in my apartment when I thought I could live without an AC, I'm really considering the higher price tag. I was trying to play guitar totally naked, covered in sweat, and after the instrument slicked off my legs and I slid right off my faux leather couch, I threw some loose clothes on, marched right out to the store, and bought myself the magical cold box.

I'm remembering this and imagining those details PLUS being in barely 130 square feet. The more I think of it, the more I feel the price is worth it. Not to mention this will also allow additional power in the winter to run the eco-heater. What do you think? Would it be worth it to you?

Now, a quick story from life in The Pod.__________________________________



I woke up one day last week, and to my surprise discovered the front door locked and bolted. I found this strange since we typically don't. I asked Dan why he had locked the door.

"You know how you can just freak yourself out about something?" He asked, "Well, I went out last night to pee and I felt like something was out there. Like someone was watching me." 

I started to roll my eyes and say something about the wind when some movement out the big window caught my eye. There was a turkey, quietly tip-toeing around the yard. "There WAS someone out there," I smirked, "it was Tom."

"Tom who?"

"Tom the turkey!"

"Well he's a peeping Tom too! Pervert!" Dan joked.
_______________________________________________________________

Since I'm in the rhythm of quoting Dan right now, I'd like to put the following in writing:
"Every afternoon this week, except Thursday, I'm just gonna be collecting and ripping apart pallets."

I'll let you know next week what happened. ;)

Oh Hey! One more thing! I'm published!! Okay, it's just one article in Tiny House Magazine, but I feel pretty fantastic about it! Check out Issue 16 of Tiny House Magazine! You will find my article on Passive Cooling. 

Thanks for reading!
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