Propane versus electric

I've been thinking about this also...specifically, in regards to a refrigerator in an off-grid setting. I have decided to get a small electric unit, which will require doubling my investment in solar panels, but i figure then, the power will come from the sun, and I will not have to burn propane. The up-front cost is maybe a little higher with the electric/solar panel route, but the long term benefits of not buying propane will pay off.
Regarding hot water, solar is definitely the way to go. You can easily get 80% of your hot water needs from the sun. Solar hot water is perhaps the most efficient, cost effective renewable energy setup available, on or off grid.

Not according to our electric company. We can only run it underground for a max of 150' (our cost of course).

The Wandering Quilter's Life in a Box!

this is a very interesting thread. I make all my hot water with my outdoor wood boiler. The electric hot water heater is simply a storage tank. Its been turned off at the breaker for quite some time now. We use a propane sove to cook with, or this time of year, just the pilot light gets used to dry herbs. We cook outdoors either on the propane grille, or on a wood grille (woodworker, lots of nice hardwood scraps). I have often thought about a propane fridge, but there are 2 things that stop me. The price of the units, running more line in the crawl space, and buying propane instead of electricity. Guess that was three things. In my ongoing quest to be more self sufficient, I think I'll save up for some solar panels, batterys, inverters, etc, and run as much as I can afford off the sun, and probably the wind. Unlike CJ, the way power lines look doesn't bother me, its the power company that does. I dispise them. The less money of mine they get the better. However propane keeps getting more expensive, and it seems to me, whats the difference if the power company or the propane guys get my money. I don't want either to get it.

Use propane for our stove, hot-water heater, & one space heater & it works great. Is relatively inexpensive & the company does yearly checks for leaks & in the past has updated with new lines & a new gauge on the 150 pound above ground tank.
It's good that CJ understands the importance of not letting the electric co. put lines & poles all thru her property. My 48 acres came with a big diagonal swath of power lines, poles & a transformer, yep the kind with PCBs. No right of way agreement or anything, but now I can't get the power co. to get off my property. Can't even fence around it, cause they must have acess. They destroyed a fence b/t me & my neighbors place & never repaired it & once cut down some of my big trees to supposedly clear the line--well, they paid me a few dollars for that.
We have a refrigerator in a travel trailer that runs on 110, dc, & propane, but it freezes everything & must need some adjusting.
Overall I like propane, but wish I could have solar with a back-up propane generator.

The person at the eletric company is wrong. They can bury about a mile of cable underground. It will be a pain but it can be done. I know that it can be done because in one neighborhood all the power is underground even the cables. What you are talking about is that going from overhead to a meter is only 150feet.

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God must have loved stupid people because he made so many of them.

Okay thank you all. We'll be doing some further checking into this. If we can get electric underground, then we'll set up to be as efficient as possible, and feed back into the grid.

The Wandering Quilter's Life in a Box!