Off the Grid: Modern Homes and Alternative Energy

Off the Grid confronts the ecological and cultural problems associated with the way we get and use energy, and explains how it is possible to live in a beautifully designed home using much less--no matter where your home is located.

Our homes are connected by a nearly invisible grid of infrastructure that binds us together. It is a system of electrical poles, wire, substations, hydroelectric dams, telecommunication towers, and water extraction and sewage systems. From within this system we work, play, and raise families. We have also created one of the greatest environmental challenges known to modern civilization. The signs of our impact upon the world can be recognized in the reports of environmental changes occurring across the earth, and they can also be seen in the growing failures of the energy grids across the world as the current system is stressed beyond its capacity.

Technologies that can be used to live off the grid (geothermal energy use, wind turbines, photovoltaic arrays, micro hydropower, rainwater collection and reclamation, and more) are explained as author Lori Ryker shows how to choose and incorporate these sources according to geography and climate.

Off the Grid beautifully illustrates that this is not just a concept for rural living; examples of homes that are off the grid to varying degrees are found in New York City; Ontario, Canada; Stuttgart, Germany; Belmont, California; Pipe Creek, Texas; Clyde Park, Montana; Twin Lakes, Minnesota; Laytonville, California; Venice, California; and New South Wales, Australia.

Off the Grid shows how we can take responsibility for our future choices and conveniences now, and proves that off-the-grid living is a concept that can be easily understood and adopted by everyone, regardless of where you live or how much money you make.

Lori Ryker grew up in Texas and has lived and worked in a variety of locations, including Boston, New York City, Portland, and Basel, Switzerland. She now resides in Livingston, Montana, where she teaches in the School of Architecture at Montana State University and is a partner, along with Brett W. Nave, of Ryker/Nave Design. Their work has been published in The House You Build, and Western Interiors and Design. Ryker holds a MArch from Harvard Graduate School of Design and a Ph.D. from Texas A & M University. She is the author of Mockbee Coker: Thought and Process.

Our homes are connected by a nearly invisible grid of infrastructure that binds us together. It is a system of electrical poles, wire, substations, hydroelectric dams, telecommunication towers, and water extraction and sewage systems. It is also one of the greatest environmental challenges known to modern civilization. Profiling ten beautiful homes in regions as diverse as New York City, urban Germany, suburban Southern California, rural Canada, and the remote "bush" of Australia, Off the Grid: Modern Homes + Alternative Energy shows you how to take responsibility for your future choices and conveniences by living in a beautifully designed home that uses much less energy. Off-the-grid living is a concept that can be easily understood and adopted by everyone, regardless of where you live or how much money you make. Learn why understanding a site's geography and climate are vital to knowing which off-the-grid technologies will be the most efficient. See how each technology, from geothermal heat pumps to wind turbines to photovoltaic arrays, can be integral to the beauty and design of a home. Revolutionary and responsible, Off the Grid is gorgeous proof that alternative energy speaks the language of modern design. Lori Ryker grew up in Texas and has lived and worked in a variety of locations including Boston; New York City; Portland; and Basel, Switzerland. She now resides in Livingston, Montana, where she teaches at Montana State University's School of Architecture and is a partner, along with Brett W. Nave, of Ryker/Nave Design. Their work has been published in The House You Build, and Western Interiors and Design. Ryker holds a Master of Architecture from Harvard Graduate School ofDesign and a PhD from Texas A&M University. She is the author of Mockbee Coker: Thought and Process.

Off the Grid confronts the ecological and cultural problems associated with the way we get and use energy, and explains how it is possible to live in a beautifully designed home using much less--no matter where your home is located.

Introduction The Grid Intertie: The Interconnection of Western Civilization Sustainable Living and Off-the-Grid Technologies Practicalities The Technologies The Projects: Bungalow Remodel: Solar Umbrella House Coastal Mountain Clearing: Barsotti Residence Boundary Waters Family Refuge: Twin Lakes Cabin Holistic Homesteading: Fargo and Maestas Residence A Wilder Landscape Retreat: Hill Country Jacal Suburban Sensibility: D'Souza and de la Torre Residence Metropolitan Redevelopment: Reade Street Townhouse Sophisticated Urban Pioneering: House R128 Sustainability on a Budget: Wilson Residence Self-Sufficiency on the Remote Edge: Four Horizons Autonomous House References: Projects at a Glance References Bibliography Index Photo credits