I used Vermont Construction Company for a roof replacement and they were absurdly expensive but it was good quality work on the agreed upon schedule. I have had better luck getting honest opinions of contractors in local Facebook groups than FPF. You can also look around on Houzz. Thankfully you're in a much more populated area than I am!

Along these lines.... figure out any sort of service person you might need in your life and get to know them/get in their books *before* you need them. If you're buying a place, schedule a plumber/electrician/handyman/landscaper/plow person well in advance to do some small job for you so that they can see you pay on time and then you become a client they'll be willing to see in an emergency. If you're looking for an emergency tradesperson and haven't had someone out to the place before, it can be extremely difficult to find someone to come (or even call you back) in a timely fashion.

Same thing for a primary care doctor/therapist/dentist/etc. Get on their books for as soon as you can so that you get in their system.

I had a ball learning to ski at Sugarbush and by this time in the season, they've got their more approachable greens open. If Jason is still teaching there, he's my strongest recommendation. I skied with a few instructions there and they were all great.

I am super comfortable on the lower mountain - it's the lift ride to the top that has me wigged out :) Hoping some of the 1-3 inches of snow per day in the forecast can stack up a bit, this is just depressing. But yes, in current conditions I'll play at the bottom of the mountain.

After Deer Run ends, which trail would you recommend tying into?

Does your 300k out the door for small and simple (let's say a 1000-1200 square foot rectangle) includes well/septic/excavation/short connection to power?

Does Ken do small homes or just garages? His work looks very nice.

Thank you, I forgot about that sub

Awesome, thank you! I'm Ok with kind of steep and wide with no obstacles (like Spring Fling at Sugarbush) but easier is definitely better for now :)

Good to know! A decent solution if you're far from a grid tie in (especially now when running wire is so expensive - maybe even a good temporary solution while we hope and wait for the price of that to go down).

OP, the biggest issue you may run into with this build is almost every lender will require you to be on grid. I believe some people on this sub before have listed some smaller local banks that may fund a project like this.

As others have said, you would need an intense battery set up and probably a big overkill on the panels themselves to make it through Thanksgiving-Valentine's Day (or maybe more). A backup generator would be a less-eco friendly but more budget friendly solution. If you're only powering maybe a fridge, lights and a television, you're going to get a lot further than if you're also doing laundry, vacuuming, cooking with an electric stove/kettle/microwave, using a hair dryer, dishwasher and electric hot water tank.

I looked into doing a battery backup on my small cabin's solar install but both companies I got quotes from told me 2 Tesla batteries would only keep my 800 square foot place powered for 2-3 days with extremely minimal or no usage of the heat pump and none of the "extras" - keeping it set to 40ish degrees or using the wood stove.

I will say it adds insult to injury that I get charged an "energy efficiency fee" by Green Mountain Power on the total kilowatts I use INCLUDING what I generate :/

If they will install a separate meter (likely), you'll almost certainly also have to pay for a transformer as well which will run around $1500. They upgrade transformers whenever a solar installation is done but you also get a credit for the existing transformer which essentially brings the cost down to labor. There is also a monthly $20 fee for having service to a meter which is a cost you'd want to factor in - net metering credits cannot be used for this.