Kevin has maintained a private database for about a year, tracking 4-5 years of electricity, natural gas, and water usage at the property they currently reside at. The intent behind this is to better understand how energy use changes throughout the year, right down to the day or even the hour. This will be important when considering the specifications for off-grid electrical and rain harvesting systems. This data will help determine how large a battery bank to build, how large an inverter to install, and how much water storage capacity will be needed.
Equally important is to understand the energy and water harvesting potential of the property, which Kevin has also been researching. This information will help determine the size of the solar panel array that will be needed to recharge the battery bank within a limited seasonal window.
Project Yellow Submarine has made this information public! Check it out here:
Have any questions about the project? Let us know!