Okay, I’ll admit we had some electricity before. With Jerry being an electrical engineer, we’ll always have electricity. But we’re enjoying major improvements now: bigger solar panels and a more centralized system with wiring (still pretty funky) into the yurt. We even have a light switch (more on that in another post).
Our new solar panels charge up several batteries. With the help of an inverter, these power our super efficient Sundanzer refrigerator (backside pictured on the porch), lights, a small fan, two laptops (sometimes more w/guests), spice grinder, food processor, phone, and vacuum cleaner. Soon (very soon, I hope), they will also run a satellite dish. Our smaller panels will now take up duties in the hinterlands – running a water pump down at the spring (more on that later) and charging temporary electric fences for cattle.
The porch pictured above will be closed in this winter. We meant to do it after we arrived back here this spring, but decided we liked the shade and cool breezes running through it. Or maybe it was because we had a pair of bossy house wrens building a nest there and couldn’t imagine driving them away (though the cheeky buggers tried hard to scold us out of their territory).
Here’s a close-up of the stuff that ties the whole system together. If you want technical details, I might have to get Jerry to write a guest post. It’s way over my head.
Coming later today: a related poem
Coming soon: more yurt photos and details
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