Not knowing what you don't know

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This post will go into the general subseries of the off-the-grid main series of posts.

Edwin Aldrin, the second man on the moon, once said something like what the title of this post says.  What it means to me in my own context with this off-the-grid project is that I am learning by doing.  If you do stuff, you learn what you don't know, and then you can go about the task of learning it so that you do know.

That solar panel wiring wasn't too good, so I'm going to do it over.  This time, with mc4 connectors that I've just ordered.  Oh, no!  Not another order!  Yes, another order.  It will arrive tomorrow, so I am told.

The solar charge controller will have to be outside in the elements.  But that isn't good, because my workmanship left something to be desired.  I could do that over as well, but I've got other ideas.  I'll make a little housing that will shield the little gizmo from the elements and also allow me to monitor this one panel and battery.

All this for such small results?  Yep.  When you don't know how to walk, you crawl first.  At this point, I am at the crawling stage.  When I learn to walk, then perhaps an attempt can be made to run.  But that's not for now.

The bigger picture says that I'm not ready for prime time on this project.  The odds are that I'm staying at least another year.

Endless preparations are what the Civil War General McClellan was accused of.  General Grant was more of the type needed at that time, because he was willing to jump in there and do things even if it got ugly.  Not that I am unwilling to get ugly, but I have no Lincoln backing me.  Lincoln believed in Grant, and gave him the necessary materials to do what needed to be done.  As for me, I am on my own.  So, it will be back to the job in less than a month, most likely.

If you think the comparison was a bit grandiose, you may be right.  But I am using it as an example.  This isn't a war, and I know I am not talking about anything of great import here.  Just saying that to clear up that point in case someone thinks I am getting to be a bit too much.  Which is always a possibility.