March Weather: Precipitation at 170% of Average

It is a calm, damp morning after the rain from last night.

The trees in the garden look vibrant and shining, making me feel happy from the start of the day🌿

Last time, we talked about those trees and the house.

The rainy weather that followed the completion of the landscaping work in late February was truly a blessing.

Looking back at the weather in March, there were many rainy days due to low pressure systems, and the monthly precipitation on the Pacific side of Eastern Japan was—believe it or not—170% of the average!

・It was the wettest March since statistics began in 1946!

…or so they say. While this is great for plants, it meant days of worry for our off-grid home.

Even on rainy days, if it is bright, we generate a small amount of power.
However, since the power generation is low, it just balances out with our usage (plus-minus zero, a wash), so we cannot charge the storage batteries sufficiently.

As I mentioned before, I feel at ease when the battery level is around 30% right before going to bed.

Based on experience, I know that if we don't have about 30% battery capacity at bedtime, there is a high possibility of running out of power around 5:00 AM the next morning.

・On 3/26, the battery level was 21% at sunset💦

The previous day, 3/25, it rained from the morning.
We started the next day with about 30% battery capacity at bedtime.

It rained from the morning on the 26th as well.
We were generating power with the limited sunlight, but it was just enough to cover our electricity consumption during the day.

Ultimately, at sunset on the second day of rain, the battery level was 21%.
It was almost certain that we would run out of power in the early hours of the 27th (tears).

But fortunately, in March, this was the only day we ran out of power and had to purchase electricity.

Just as the saying goes that spring arrives with every rain, we have welcomed spring, which makes things much easier in terms of energy.

I will share the specific off-grid rates for March in the next post~٩( 'ω' )و

kame: Living in an off-grid house