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Have you been searching for eco-friendly and effective ways to power your tiny home? If your answer is yes, then this article is made for you. It will serve as a guide to help power your tiny home with renewable energy

Renewable energy offers a great opportunity for you to make a good choice for the environment. It can even help eliminate your utility bills. Tax incentives are making it more affordable to go for alternative energy today. 

If you have been asking “how do I power my tiny home?” here are the answers you seek.

10 Ways To Power Your Tiny Home with Renewable Energy

Please note that this list is in no particular order, and you enjoy any of them to the very best.

power your tiny home with renewable energy

1. Install Solar Panels

This is one of the best ways to power your tiny home, with solar power. It is the most common method to power your tiny home with renewable energy. Although solar panels go on rooftops, you can install them in your yard. You can generate at least 10 watts per square foot with solar panels but it depends on your latitude and the orientation of the panels though. 

A typical house needs at least a kilowatt of power. Therefore, a few square feet of solar panels should handle most of your “power” needs. You should consider using solar shingles if your current roof is approaching the end of its life span. These solar shingles take the place of your roof tiles. SolarCity recently announced its plan to start the production of solar shingles, but companies like Sun Tegra have been producing these solar shingles for many years. 

power your tiny home with renewable energy

2. Install Wind Turbines 

If you are searching for how to power your home with a windmill, wind turbines are the best available option. Although wind turbines are commonly found in wind farms or floating offshore, you can also install it on your property. The downside to wind turbines is the noise that comes from it while in operation. Also, the local laws and zoning regulations can forbid it in your location. 

If none of these disadvantages apply to you, wind power can be a great option to power your tiny home. It is more stable than solar, and a good-sized turbine can easily satisfy your electricity needs at home. 

power your tiny home with renewable energy

3. Hydropower

Before you start asking about how to power your tiny home with hydroelectricity, you must first consider your location. If there is a flowing river close by, you can consider it an option. It works by diverting a stream of water through a turbine to generate electricity to power your tiny home. You can generate a lot of power, but it is dependent on the water stream. 

power your tiny home with renewable energy

4. Use Solar Ovens to Cook

If you are not ready to power your entire home, a solar oven can help you power a part of your home. These solar ovens work by trapping sunlight to heat food. You can buy a solar oven or build one for yourself from a few common materials. A few of the major advantages are that it heats your food for free, and it works during a power outage. 

power your tiny home with renewable energy

5. Solar Air Conditioning  

This is another great way to power your tiny home with solar power

Although it might sound strange to keep your house cool using the heat of the sun, the concept is feasible and a good option. This works similarly to a solar water heater. The major difference is that it uses hot water in an air conditioning system. 

Solar air conditioning is good if you live in an environment where you regularly use your air conditioner for at least three months. You can decide to set it up with solar water heating. 

power your tiny home with renewable energy

6. Solar Water Heating

You can harness the power of the sun in many different ways to power your tiny home. Solar water heaters use the power of the sun to heat water directly. This heated water is passed through radiators, or you can decide to use it for your everyday needs at home. The major advantage is that it is one of the major renewable energy sources to implement. If your local laws don’t permit you to power your house with renewable energy, consider starting with a solar water heater.

power your tiny home with renewable energy

7. Biomass 

This is one of the latest innovations in environmental-friendly fuel. It is made from organic waste like scrap lumber, agricultural waste, manure, and other debris. Biomass doesn’t just allow you to lower your heating cost; it also produces less greenhouse gas emissions. Since we end up using most of this organic waste in landfills or burning them in open fires, using biomass helps nurture forests and crops. 

power your tiny home with renewable energy

8. Tubular Skylights

Although they don’t generate electricity to power your tiny home, they produce free natural light instead. This natural light can directly help you slash your electric light bills. A tubular skylight, also known as a “Sun Tunnel”, is made up of a clear roof-mounted dome, round metal tube, and ceiling diffuser. The metal tube runs between the dome situated on the roof and the diffuser mounted to the ceiling. 

The tube is made with a highly reflective mirror-like coating that reflects more than 90% of sunlight. The reflected sunlight is delivered through the diffuser and produces a soft but radiant glow of natural light. 

power your tiny home with renewable energy

9. Tesla Powerwall

Although it isn’t exactly renewable energy or off-grid power for a tiny home, the tesla powerwall works well with any home renewable generator. It was introduced in 2015 and could store several kilowatt-hours of electricity. You can program it to recharge from the grid when the price of electricity is low and discharge when the prices are high. This will help you to save money during peak hours. 

power your tiny home with renewable energy

10. Tidal energy  

This is the kind of energy created by harnessing the kinetic energy created from the rise and fall of ocean tides and currents. It is also called tidal flows because it converts tides into usable electricity. The downside to this is that you will need to reside close to the ocean to power your tiny home with tidal energy. 

 

Conclusion 

We have provided you with several ways to power your tiny home with solar power, windmill, and hydroelectricity. All you have to do is identify the one that suits your location to power your home. For contributions and questions on this topic, kindly use the comment box below.

 

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