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Old 10-15-17, 09:48 PM   #1
oil pan 4
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Default Cistern

The new place I am moving into has county water, has a deep well.
The county water runs about $50 per month and is by far the hardest water I have ever encountered.
The well on the property, pumps pretty much the same water, really hard. Also the well is deep, I figure it would take between 1 and 2 MwH per year to pump all out water.
So I am considering rain water catching.
It would provide soft water, then I figured if the rain water is too funky tasting with out minerals I could always pump in some well water.
Obviously I will be filtering and treating the water with UV and a little choline.

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Old 10-16-17, 05:37 AM   #2
Fordguy64
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We are in the same boat. The house we just got has city water and it’s hard.. the house originally had a cistern that is still in tact under the sun room. It’s dry and the pump is still there.. it’s on my list of things to do to get the down spouts hooked back up and get it running again. Our water bill has averaged about 35 a month so far.
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Old 10-16-17, 09:23 AM   #3
oil pan 4
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35 to 50 really isn't that bad, but when you factor in a good water softener system will run up to $2k installed, might as well go all most all natural.
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Old 10-18-17, 03:03 AM   #4
Zelim
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Quote:
Originally Posted by oil pan 4 View Post
35 to 50 really isn't that bad, but when you factor in a good water softener system will run up to $2k installed, might as well go all most all natural.
I totally agree. That's not so bad
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Old 10-25-17, 06:40 AM   #5
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Default Going off grid

Buy or build a CHP system. Water cooled diesel engine driving a generator. If you can, do it with belt drive to mains alternator, add a 24V alternator to directly charge batteries, and run the cooling water through your radiators and to heat domestic water. Belt drive also means that you can run the engine well below rated RPM (you will probably need an electronic speed controller though). An exhaust cooler will further reduce waste heat, as would a turbine on the exhaust to drive a 2nd 24V alternator. I intend to drive a brushless DC motor of the type used in hobby drones*. I have something similar, but I want to add an electric heater in the water circulation to get the temperature up more quickly. The more heat that you can use, the more efficient the whole system is. I estimate that I am getting 90% efficiency.

* these motors are rated by power and KV, KV is the RPM per volt (or volts per RPM !). In this scenario, RPM will depend largely on how much current is allowed to flow. Make sure that you get the permanent magnet variant for use as an alternator. You will also need a 3-phase bridge rectifier that will handle the current. The power that these motors can produce is phenomenal.
APS 4260S Sensored Outrunner brushless motor 100KV 1200W
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Old 10-16-17, 07:12 PM   #6
where2
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Our city water/sewer bill runs $60-$65/mo. Little of the charges are actually related to the volume used, most are related to the meter service charge, and taxes.

Keep in mind, if your toilet waste disposal is not on site, the water authority is likely levying some of their charges toward waste disposal, as a ratio of the volume of water metered. They won't appreciate processing waste for water they didn't supply, just as they don't appreciate people dumping rainwater into the sanitary sewers.
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Old 10-16-17, 09:30 PM   #7
oil pan 4
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I have a septic tank. I'm like 3 miles from city limits.
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Old 10-17-17, 12:01 PM   #8
Fordguy64
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Yep I’m septic also..
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Old 10-17-17, 02:32 PM   #9
oil pan 4
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This is me inching my way off grid.
First I have decided not to get natural gas, then I am cutting way back on electric usage, get the well going and harvest my own rain water, further reduce electrical use with gshp.
Get under 20kwh per day, cut off the service drop.
The only one I don't know that I can do is off grid power.
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Old 10-17-17, 07:52 PM   #10
where2
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Quote:
Originally Posted by oil pan 4 View Post
The only one I don't know that I can do is off grid power.
Because it's mandated for a certificate of occupancy? or because you're not sure you can generate and store enough to UV sterilize, use GSHP heating, and still stay under 20kWh per day?

Get some used Volt battery packs, and a nice array... Off-Grid is going to be the next "tiny-house" phenomenon, when people realize how much power the utilities have to "tax" the homeowner.
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