HPFAA Proof of Loss– Summars/Buildout
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Homestead Buildout
We decided to call this place Los Veranos as work on building it out progressed. With the solid infrastructure in place and performing as expected (e.g., no frozen water or waste pipes buried at depths below frostline), no changes were required for it, although buried data communications conduit and cable were added later to provide connectivity to smart devices (charge controllers, inverters) located in the power shed which was eventually constructed to house the more advanced off-grid power system components.
After hundreds of hours of backbreaking work, this is what we ended up with for infrastructure at the homestead.
CELL SERVICE ACCESS
An important factor for business success at Los Veranos was access to internet service. Initially, this was gained via satellite internet service provider, but changed to cell service as soon as that became available at speeds and reliability necessary for my business purposes. Los Veranos has line-of-sight cell service to the towers located near Ledoux which provide high-quality, 5G service.
Building out the homestead was a never-ending process as needs and desires changed, and as technology advances provided fresh and frequently better ways to do things there. A couple of good examples are advances in internet service delivery technologies and in off-grid power systems utilizing sunlight and wind energy to produce electricity for the home/studio. Both technologies shifted, churned and advanced significantly over the seventeen-year period I lived and operated my business there, and as budget and time allowed I purchased new equipment for both and upgraded the systems to leverage some significant improvements they both ended up providing to enhance my living/working experiences over the years.
Internet access began at Los Veranos by using a satellite service and eventually ended up utilizing cell-wifi service. Just before the Hermit's Peak Fire swept across the region, 5G cell-wifi service was available for use and the service performance was fantastic.
The off-grid power system began as a basic RV-sized system using 12-volt car batteries being charged with raw power pumped out by a 300 watt PV array through a dinky little charge controller. Inside the house, a couple of low-wattage inverters were put to use to power a few appliances requiring alternating current. That little system grew over time into a modest 1KW PV array pumping sunlight-generated energy into battery banks consisting of six heavy-duty deep cycle lead-acid batteries specifically suited to off-grid applications. By the time the Hermit's Peak Fire roared through, the battery bank had been upgraded to eight brand new deep cycle lead-acid batteries. I never wanted for electrical power, even when the local electrical grid was down due to weather or whatnot.
The wind turbine installed pumped out 400 watts on a good windy day, or more importantly, at night to keep some power flowing into the battery bank sometimes long after the sun set, especially during howling blizzards and extended thunderstorms. All of these systems worked well to provide connectivity to the world and electricity to power lighting, devices, appliances, and tools used to build out Los Veranos and to run my own business in the home/studio. The isolated location, utter silence and reliable off-grid systems were all ideal for the creative services company I owned and operated for twelve years at Los Veranos.
ADDITIONAL COMPENSATION FOR NOW USELESS INFRASTRUCTURE IS REQUIRED
None of the buried infrastructure components (septic lines, tanks, tile fields, potable water lines, cisterns, water wells, well controls, water delivery piping, electrical conduit and wires, data communications conduit and cables) were lost in the fire but because the homestead site is now too environmentally hazardous for human habitation, all the infrastructure is essentially worthless to me. I must receive compensation enough to build new infrastructure on my new homestead location if there is none already existing there of comparable specification, age, and serviceability.
[ Internet Service Investment ]
[ Solar/Wind Off-Grid Power System Investment ]
[ Related DIY Labor Investment ]
ADDITIONAL COMPENSATION FOR DESTROYED DWELLING AND CONTENTS IS REQUIRED
Insurance coverage for total destruction of dwelling and contents by the fire has been received, but it was not sufficient to replace either. Not even close. Based on research conducted to replace dwelling and contents at today's prices indicates the insurance company's under insured estimates are also insufficient. Significant additional compensation for the destroyed home/studio and all of it contents is required.
Additional compensation is also required to cover cost of home/studio reconstruction labor because the bulk of build out after infrastructure and the dwelling shell were constructed by contractors was accomplished entirely as do-it-yourself (DIY) work undertaken and completed as time, budget and resources allowed over a period of more than twenty years when I was younger and much more physically fit than I am now. Attempting to undertake such work projects at my current advanced age presents unacceptable risk levels for serious injury or death which I cannot accept.
OFF-GRID POWER PLANT
The off-grid power plant was not damaged by the fire, except for minor damage to cables connecting the wind turbine to the system. Insurance covered that damage. Hence, no compensation is required for this system except for labor and transportation expense to relocate it to a comparable new property location.
COMPENSATION FOR POWER PLANT RELOCATION IS REQUIRED
WATER WELLS
Two water wells were drilled within the boundaries of the homestead property and both wells were connected to an underground storage tank via a well control pit containing necessary piping and valves as well as a pressure tank and a DC-powered potable water pump for delivery of water to the home/studio and to a single yard spigot equipped with a freeze-proof valve.
Water well number one was drilled in 2000 to a depth of 100 feet, producing 20 gallons per minute with top of water depth at 45 feet below ground surface.
Water well number two was drilled in 2004 to a depth of 210 feet, producing 28 gallons per minute with a top of water depth at 20 feet below ground surface.
NOTE: Annual amount appropriated for this domestic-use groundwater right point of diversion is three (3) acre feet per year. Each well yields more than twenty gallons/minute.
COMPENSATION FOR TWO COMPARABLY COMPLETED WATER WELLS IS REQUIRED
Water Well Number One: Depth 100 ft, Depth to Water 45 ft, Yield 20+ gallons/min
Water Well Number Two: Depth 210 ft, Depth to Water 20 ft, Yield 28 gallons/min
