Ian Schneider

Ian spent nearly a decade on experimental rocket planes and avionics at the Mojave Air and Space Port before moving to Truckee, where he lives in a self-built cabin that runs entirely on his own solar setups.

His obsession started in 2014 with a lead-acid Goal Zero Yeti 400 that shed half its capacity on sub-freezing Tahoe mornings — so now he studies how lithium handles the cold. He clocks how fast charge controllers react to pine shadows with a Fluke multimeter and data loggers, and leaves units on his 15°F deck overnight to see if their heaters can safely warm the cells before a solar charge.