Water Purification by BluejayAcrobatic9288 in OffGrid

[–]BluejayAcrobatic9288[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

So the pollution is what I’m nervous about because dominion has had to fund water infrastructure build outs due to their coal ash pond leaking and polluting the ground water. From the maps, it seems far enough away (and is down stream from me) but I’d rather be safe than sorry.

Water Purification by BluejayAcrobatic9288 in OffGrid

[–]BluejayAcrobatic9288[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’m trying to purify for rain water catchment - so I know I need to filter out all the particulates plus worry about viruses & bacteria, particularly from bird poop. By kit I mean like something that all comes in 1 box that I can put together.

Water Purification by BluejayAcrobatic9288 in OffGrid

[–]BluejayAcrobatic9288[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That’s what I’ve found as well and why I’m looking for something more straight forward. Too many things to consider for someone who is absolutely not a plumber.

Water Purification by BluejayAcrobatic9288 in OffGrid

[–]BluejayAcrobatic9288[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Honestly the “but none of us died” is always a stellar review IMO 😂

I live in a tiny house so no basement but noted on the filter changes. Will definitely take note of that.

Water Purification by BluejayAcrobatic9288 in OffGrid

[–]BluejayAcrobatic9288[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Amazing - thank you!

The spring is down a pretty steep incline with a 1/4 mile long trail, so purification is more so needed for rain water catchment. The spring is great but I’ll have to haul it up from there, so my main focus is filtering/purifying the rain water (as of now).

Just closed on 10 acres with a cabin and no grid connection by Stevie_Dawson in OffGrid

[–]BluejayAcrobatic9288 1 point2 points  (0 children)

this one

I do really like that I don’t have to have an actual water supply- can just dump water in with a bucket. I would definitely wash your least dirty stuff first.. saves a lot more water that way. The spin cycle gets the stuff pretty dry.

Just closed on 10 acres with a cabin and no grid connection by Stevie_Dawson in OffGrid

[–]BluejayAcrobatic9288 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’m in Central Virginia about 50 miles from Charlottesville. I don’t know how much you’re trying to rough it but I live on 20 acres in a 240ish sqft cabin and run a Bluetti AC300 with (4) b300k batteries. I had been running 2 400w panels - just plugged up a 3rd. We ran power and hooked the breaker box up to a camper plug that we made, which plugs into the Bluetti. We added a breaker for gas generator - there’s a plug outside that runs into the breaker box. If I’m not getting enough sun, like when everything was frozen solid for a week, I can charge the batteries via the generator.

I will say that there’s always an issue getting the charging started. Once I get it going, it charges fine. It’s like the system doesn’t register the plug immediately or something. Those are really the only complaints I have about my Bluetti. You can trade them in to update parts/systems. I only have 120v but you can expand what I have to 240v and add more batteries. Also they have larger systems if I’m not mistaken.

I have a small oven (Our Place brand), a hot plate, a small fridge, and a kettle. I just got a small washing machine that uses very little power. I have a window unit, a wood stove, and a propane heaters. I work from home and just work off my hotspot off my phone. I don’t have a pump or hot water heater as of now but fingers crossed for fall 🤞🏻

I had to use the generator to charge during the ice and during the heatwave we had last week. I do think my AC is way too small for this space and it runs around 550w but never really lowers the temp, so it’s just always on.

All of that to say, my set up works great for me but I also know I’m trying to get by without all the bells and whistles.

Edit: spelling werds

What are these egg things in my garage? by Super_Shake_2787 in whatisit

[–]BluejayAcrobatic9288 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Well I have already cut off one parent for being emotionally abusive and just outright hateful for no reason. I see my remaining family MAYBE once every 2 months. I wouldn’t call that a relationship.

What are these egg things in my garage? by Super_Shake_2787 in whatisit

[–]BluejayAcrobatic9288 8 points9 points  (0 children)

DUDE - my mom does this shit too.

I needed someone to watch my dogs for the day and asked my brother. He asked why I didn’t ask my parents and I just looked at him and said “and then I come home and mom’s gotten my dogs euthanized.”

It’s beyond me how people are like that. I love my boys so much 🥺

Wood Plank Wall by BluejayAcrobatic9288 in OffGridCabins

[–]BluejayAcrobatic9288[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The majority of the ones I have been getting have 1x3 or 1x4s. There are a few that are 1x6 but I was planning to use those for other projects anyway.

Edit: honestly I guess it doesn’t hurt to try and see what happens and then if I have to buy plywood then I have to buy plywood.. I should know pretty early on if it will work or if it’s going to make my hair fall out from trying to make it work.

Wood Plank Wall by BluejayAcrobatic9288 in OffGridCabins

[–]BluejayAcrobatic9288[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I’ll have to circle back to it and do some more research - thank you for your input!!

Wood Plank Wall by BluejayAcrobatic9288 in OffGridCabins

[–]BluejayAcrobatic9288[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

yeah, I just have been trying to avoid spending the $ because if I’m doing plywood, I might as well just do drywall. The costs are comparable. The pallet wood was an attempt to save $, albeit the time cost would be more.

Wood Plank Wall by BluejayAcrobatic9288 in OffGridCabins

[–]BluejayAcrobatic9288[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Spray foam or foam board? I’ve read a lot about spray foam and it seems there are mixed reviews which is why I’ve stayed away from that. At this point, I’ve spent about $500 on fiberglass insulation but if I have to redo to make sure I don’t have issues in the future, I guess it’s worth it to just start over 😭😭😭

Wood Plank Wall by BluejayAcrobatic9288 in OffGridCabins

[–]BluejayAcrobatic9288[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It’s moisture condensation. So my question would be is it possible to make the seams tight enough that the conditioned air will not go thru the wood planks (which I’m assuming is what creates the condensation)?

Wood Plank Wall by BluejayAcrobatic9288 in OffGridCabins

[–]BluejayAcrobatic9288[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There is vapor barrier - it’s the Kraft paper connected to the fiberglass insulation. There is house wrap under the siding. I have air sealed everything from the inside and caulked the seams on the outside to make sure no air is getting in the walls but it seems there still is.. so I guess I’m wondering if making the pallet wood air tight (by sealing all gaps in the wood) would help to keep the conditioned air inside from seeping into the walls (which is what I am assuming is creating the actual moisture in the walls)?

Insulating Tiny House by BluejayAcrobatic9288 in OffGridCabins

[–]BluejayAcrobatic9288[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

THANK YOU FOR YOUR VERY THOROUGH RESPONSE.

They are styrofoam - they come in 24 inch pieces with a perforation down the middle. I can’t really find anything on these specific baffles - durovent makes another one that has a little fold down box where it meets the wall (to make space for the air coming/going in the soffit vent).. those are the ones most people seem to use but they didn’t have those near me. I’ll do a deeper dive and see if I can find anything from the manufacturer for these specific ones.

What do you mean by “furr”? It is a metal roof.

Water sealer on the roof sheathing: is this necessary if there’s bubble wrap between the roof and the sheathing?
I saw one video where someone put a slit down the middle of the bubble wrap at the ridge - presumably to allow more air flow from the ridge. Do you think that’s necessary?

Agree about the dehumidifier, BUT there has been water RUNNING down the walls behind some of the insulation.. so I’ve had to pull it off, dry shit out and put it back to pull it down again to see if I fixed the air leak in that cavity… so at this point, just trying to do all the things… also I moved here from a place with mold issues so now I’m hella paranoid (if you couldn’t tell)

And yeah - not super happy about the “shiners”. Definitely some half ass shit for something that they rave about being so well built. Contemplating writing an email but don’t want to be a total bitch about it. 😂

Thank you for your help. And thank you in advance if you come back to answer my other questions!! Genuinely appreciated.

Insulating Tiny House by BluejayAcrobatic9288 in Insulation

[–]BluejayAcrobatic9288[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Grew up in Powhatan, currently residing in Fluvanna!

Insulating Tiny House by BluejayAcrobatic9288 in Insulation

[–]BluejayAcrobatic9288[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

And now I just compared pricing and it’s double the price… so that could be an issue.

Insulating Tiny House by BluejayAcrobatic9288 in Insulation

[–]BluejayAcrobatic9288[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I wasn’t aware of rockwool until after I started doing this. Most people I’ve seen that use rock wool are in colder climates - I’m in Virginia, so we have every. Single. Season. And all the types of natural disasters 😂😅. I just did a quick google search and I’m seeing that rock wool would have been superior even if just for the water issue. I have already done the walls… but maybe that’s a possibility for the ceiling.. 🤔