Question of Resources

I was hoping to get some numbers on resource use, not so much electrical as I see those questions all the time but not necessarily NOT electrical either, haha. :laughing:

I’m just trying to get a general idea of what my own usage might look like, how much I should be able to carry of any necessary resources, as well as an estimate on what my budget for such might look like.

Any and all estimates, opinions, or what not are appreciated. Even for those not on the road yet, what you are planning on having on hand is also useful info and appreciated. :smile:

  1. What resources do you consider when “making a trip to town”? (Water, Food, Propane, Etc etc)

  2. Do you have a general list of “chores” that get done on such a run? (Laundry… Laundry is the only one I can really think of, haha.)

  3. How much water do you carry, and how much do you estimate actually gets used between fill ups? Preferred method of refilling when on the road?

  4. Electrical - Total Capacity, General Use, Method of recharging, etc etc.

  5. Propane, Kerosene, Etc etc - What other resources do you regularly carry and replace? How much do you carry / How much do you generally end up needing to replace? Any estimates on costs?

Greetings!

I’m mainly a city dweller, but do my “chores” (shopping, laundry, refill water, dump trash etc.) about once a week. Pre-pandemic, I also ate out a few times a week, but have not returned to that yet.

I carry 14 gallons of water, which is a little over 2 weeks worth, even showering daily. I refill the empty on my next shopping trip, usually from either the faucet on the bottom of a drinking fountain at a park, or from the drinking fountain directly. During a below freezing winter, I refill at grocery store refill stations.

I also carry 14 gallons of kerosene. For a normal year, I rarely average more than a gallon a month, but if it’s cold enough that can go up to a gallon a week. Once one of my 2 jugs is empty, I’ll refill it on my next shopping day, the same as I do with water. My routine is such that I never even come close to running out of anything.

The law says there’s a 72 hour limit for on street parking, so I make a point of going to the park, or something at least once every 3 days. Other than that I usually park on the street in the same place for as long as I’m in town. I know my neighbors, and they know me, and we look out for each other. I keep the whole block trash free on both sides of the street, and do the same at the parks I frequent.

I generally drive off the top half of my gas tank as well, so I always have ample reserve if the need arises.

Cheers!


"If you prepare for the worst, every thing else is easier." ~ Off Grid



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  1. Simply whatever we need

  2. Laundry day is Monday. Other than tidying the van that’s all we have

  3. 14 gallons. 2 7 gallon jugs. 1 jug typically lasts a week and we start looking to fill up at that point. Better not to run out. We fill a lot at the 39cent things at grocery stores. It’s up filtered. High ph if you get it at Whole Foods. Also sometimes whole foods machines are free. Though these machines seem more prevalent in drier areas out west.

  4. Two 92 ah AGMs so issuable capacity is 92. We have our phones, laptops, fridge, iPad, switch, lights and fan. Generally a full charge will last a day and a half without additional charging. We are currently adding 300 watts of solar that should keep our batteries full. We also have a Yamaha efi2000 if we are in a pinch. While that can charge the battery directly we run a pro mariner sport 12 4th gen. I highly recommend that or the 20 as it can be used as a shore power hook up in a sense albeit it doesn’t separate 12v charging and supply like some rv hook ups do.

  5. We switched to solely propane. Originally we used alcohol for cooking but Cali banned the sale of denatured alcohol so you would have to use some high proof grain alcohol in that state. We are looking at buying this 10g propane tank from rei that has a really nice case and a plethora of hookups with it. It’s $175 but I have deemed it worth the cost. But generally we use about a pound of propane a week. Obviously much more in winter if we run the mr buddy. That can chew through a pound in a night. Typically we have at least 4 lbs on hand.

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