Off-Grid Guru's Tent

Your Ultimate Guide To Off-Grid Solar covers everything off-grid. We will be looking at lithium batteries vs AGM, when and why you may need a cabinet for your off-grid system, how off-grid systems are calculated and what you should look out for when going off-grid. This is a great talk for those looking to set-up an off-grid system and understand the process and system components better. 

Mike Haydon is definitely one of Australia's Off-Grid Guru's. Working with people from all-walks of life to help them setup the perfect off-grid lifestyle and teaching them how to do it as affordably as possible to meet their needs, you'll always learn something new by sending an hour with Mike. 

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In this talk he'll chat about his recent ideas in helping people acquire free land and how communities can work together to share power resources and save on the initial costs. 

A candid discussion about living with off-grid power. Utopia or an unrealistic dream? Can I be truly independent? Do I need to compromise my lifestyle? What happens if something goes wrong? What can go wrong? Is it actually a sustainable solution?

This will be a deep dive into all things off-grid power, including our experience installing & supporting off-grid power systems over the past 13 years.

Join Landon as he shares stories about family life in an off grid bus/house and travelling around Australia. He'll explain the hurdles and challenges that he and his family encounter as well as the advantages and joys.

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He'll also touch on how their business, Zero Grid, was established to help others live this dream too.

Join Jade Miles (Futuresteading) as she chats with permaculture pioneer Su Dennett about her home-based self-reliant lifeway, and Do with Su, the online course based on Su’s knowledge of seasonal eating, creative frugality, kitchen staples, building household and community resilience, goat care, and the kind of permaculture wisdom that should be on every school syllabus.

Anthony (Smitho) Smith is an Environmental Engineer and a major advocate for sustainable wastewater management. He knows the industry in and out from backyard DIY composting to large corporate systems.

In this talk/workshop you'll gain in-depth information about setting up your own system, what's right for you, the various options, and the pros & cons of different systems (made or purchased). Followed by an interactive workshop on how to build a simple composting toilet from a wheelie bin and find out how a DIY composting toilet can be built to meet the Australian Standards.

Energy Safe Victoria and Solar Victoria have launched the 'Show Your Solar Some Love' campaign to highlight the benefits of well-maintained solar PV systems while avoiding safety risks such as fire. Come along and learn about Electrical safety for off grid systems from the guys who work in the industry every day.  

Find out:

- About Energy Safe Victoria

- Requirements and obligations for off grid systems installed in Victoria

-  Electrical licensing and certificates of electrical safety

- Maintenance and servicing

And plenty of Q&A time with the audience. 

This talk will give people an overview of how to run a vehicle on Waste Vegetable Oil (WVO). It will include basic steps from sourcing and cleaning WVO to the various options for how to set-up a vehicle to use it. This will include some handouts with more detailed information on what types of vehicles are best suited to running WVO and where to do more research on what is a long but fascinating journey. It will encourage people to pursue their own fuel independence as part of off-grid living.

Disclaimer: Leo is not a mechanic or expert, the knowledge shared in this talk is from his experience and learning whilst converting his own vehicle to run on WVO. 

This will be a great introduction to Glen's longer workshop entitled "Designing Microgrid Solar and Battery Power Systems". He'll introduce you to the basic ideas, technology, compliance requirements and community based support. 

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This will be an Overview of Microgrid Systems
– Introduction to microgrid concepts and applications
– Benefits of microgrid systems
– Key components of microgrid systems

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Microgrids are a great way to empower communities to take their energy needs into their own hands and this talk will inspire you to start thinking outside the box. 

Imagine if you could take your off-grid system anywhere! Power up your small scale home, campsite, mobile business - the opportunities are endless. 

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Come along and hear innovative off-grid living stories and find out what you can achieve with this great system.

Wollangarra and Mittagundi are unique outdoor education facilities located in the Victorian High Country. Giving young people the opportunity to experience a simple, off-grid way of life.  Also giving them the opportunity to get involved in practical conservation projects and more. Come and hear the amazing story of how a local community pulled together to make these places happen, the incredible things it’s achieved over the past couple of decades and how you can get involved.

Pete is a wealth of knowledge when it comes to permaculture, come along and hear his story about moving his farm from on-grid site to a more remote off-grid in Victoria's High Country.  He'll be talking about climate, landscapes, solar, water, buildings, infrastructure, animal security and more. 

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Gain valuable insights into implementing renewable energy solutions, optimizing resource management, and fostering a resilient ecosystem in this inspiring exploration of eco-friendly farming practices

Come along and hear the personal journey of Geoffrey McGinley who successfully pioneered an affordable and impressive 'semi-house' design with help from Australian builder, ECH. ECH imports high-quality container homes from China, and in this case have mounted it on a semi-trailer to create an impressive/mobile home in a tiny house community just outside Canberra.

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There's lots to unpack along the way and Geoffrey will open up discussion about the following and more:

1. The role Tiny Houses on Wheels are playing in addressing the housing affordability crisis - touching on the regulatory grey space and associated challenges and opportunities.

2. The cost premium and challenges of building and living tiny - and why my first tiny house design blew out in cost, schedule and weight - not least because I wanted a space to dance barefooted!

3. How I stumbled across a can-do Australian Builder who imported high-quality container homes from China and was crazy enough to help me mount one on an old farm trailer and then drag it up a steep, winding dirt track!

4. The need for rigorous quality control and established relationships when importing from China - including some funny stories about translation misunderstandings and windows opening over couches

5. Launching ‘SemiHouse’, to help other families get their own ‘real house' - but on wheels.

Learn all about flexible off-grid water heating solutions for continuous, hygienic, and reliable hot water. 

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And find out how you can adapt your current water heating to make use of solar in a truly smart way can greatly increase efficiency.