Carpenter, plumber, electrician, find job in the trades and you'll probably do okay

Propane standby generators are great if the cost doesnt scare you. Since you already burn fuel oil for heat, maybe you can find a diesel standby generator.

Battery banks are expensive. As is solar. This is an investment, and understanding the life span of batteries is also very important before you make a decision. If you go this route do some research on grants related to renewable energy.

The cheapest option is a portable generator, which can also be powered by propane, and a transfer switch.

For the amount of times we lose power a year (in my rural town, i see 2 - 4 per year avg), i would just get a portable generator and be very diligent with fuel treatment, or run it on propane.

Its awful, im suffocating, and all my plants died months ago. Stay where you are

When in 4wd, if you start to go sideways, give it more gas and it should pull itself straight again. The opposite is true if in 2wd. Play around in a parking lot with throttle/brakes to get a feeling for your vehicle. When in doubt, punch it out.

Also, duh snow tires...if youre running summers/all seasons, you'll have a bad time.

Weight, maybe. I run an 04 tacoma, and dont have any trouble without weight but it certainly wont hurt.

Conduit size depends on wire guage. Wire guage depends on run length and amperage required.

I personally wouldnt skimp on conduit size...infact on smaller runs i often upsize. You'll thank yourself if you ever need to replace/upgrade the cable.

Chances of legally touching a stream with a piece of equipment are not good.

Sounds like thats not an option! I dont see why gmp wouldnt drop a meter for you, what they will charge is the question...who knows may be free

I dont know the answer to your question, but im sure a quick call to gmp in the morning would answer it...

How far from your house do you plan on installing the array? What obsticals will be between the two? (As far as burying cable)

Im not telling anyone to just go hunt someones land without asking. In my town it seems as though property sells, and immediately gets posted...cant say i know the back story on all of those scenarios.

As far as hiking, i personally wouldnt expect someone to ask me if they wanted to hike up to the top of my mountain and enjoy the view. Have at it. If you want to park in my driveway, i would expect you to ask.

This isnt an attack on people who post their land...your choice. My stance on it is that if you post your land, i better not find you walking on mine. Vermont is full of beautiful mountaintops, a lot of them private property. As someone who owns such property, i feel it would be very selfish to post that and not let others enjoy. As i enjoy thousands of acres in my town (respectfully) without permission.

Side note: Hunters wont just shoot you, and you should wear orange during hunting season regardless of how posted your land is. Most respectful hunters will ask before parking and hunting on your land, and certainly before setting up a tree stand.

Very little posted land, and no trespassing laws unless posted. Most land that is posted is some rich out of stater that doesnt like hunting.

Avoid big box stores. Dual stage for sure, one with a differential lock is a huge bonus. Honda track drive machines are superior but you'll pay the premium. Otherwise i would go toro over ariens

Weird, the one in montpellier has always been really good. Never tried middlebury