Off-grid site report
Lee County, GA
31.6230, -84.2147 · 276 ft elevationRead this before you act on anything below. This is my researched starting point for Lee County, GA, not legal advice and not a guarantee. Rules change, and the deciding facts on any specific parcel (setbacks, perc results, overlay districts, deed restrictions, road frontage) live at the county or town office, not in any database. Before you buy land or build, confirm the current rules directly with the local zoning and health offices - the sources on this page tell you exactly who to call.
The local rulesLee County, GA
Zoning & raw-land occupancy
RestrictedLee County has countywide zoning, administered jointly with Leesburg and Smithville by the Planning & Zoning Department, and it's codified as Chapter 70 of the county code. Setbacks and use restrictions are enforced strictly and variances aren't handed out easily, so check with Planning & Zoning before you buy or build on raw land. source
Dwellings, tiny homes & RVs
Unclear - verifyI couldn't find a specific Lee County ordinance addressing tiny houses or living in an RV full-time. The zoning code does regulate accessory dwellings (in-law suites are capped at a percentage of the main home's footprint), which suggests alternative dwellings are addressed somewhere in Chapter 70, but I'd call the Planning & Zoning Department directly before counting on being able to live in a tiny home or RV there. source
Building permits & codes
RestrictedLee County has adopted the full set of Georgia's state minimum standard codes (building, electrical, plumbing, mechanical, fuel gas, energy, fire, and residential codes), and the county's Building Inspection Department inspects all construction, incorporated and unincorporated alike. There's no sign of an off-grid or owner-built exemption, so plan on pulling permits. source
Septic & composting toilets
Generally allowedGeorgia handles septic systems, including composting toilets, at the state level under the Department of Public Health's onsite sewage rules, with permitting run through your local County Environmental Health Office. I wasn't able to confirm the exact contact office for Lee County specifically in this round of research, so call the state DPH's directory to find the right office before you plan a system. source
Greywater reuse
Generally allowedI didn't find any Lee County ordinance that changes Georgia's statewide greywater rules, so the state baseline should apply here. Worth double-checking with Environmental Health if you're planning something beyond a simple household greywater system.
Rainwater harvesting
Generally allowedNo Lee County-specific rule on rainwater harvesting turned up in Planning & Zoning or Building Inspection materials, so it looks like the state's plumbing code baseline applies. I'd still confirm with Building Inspection if you're tying a cistern into the house plumbing.
Private wells & water rights
Generally allowedPrivate wells in Georgia are governed statewide by the Water Well Standards Act, with the Georgia EPD handling licensing of well drillers and complaint investigations. Note that Lee County's own water utility, the Lee County Utilities Authority, has separate groundwater withdrawal permits for its public water system, but that's a different matter from your private domestic well; whether the county layers on any extra requirement beyond state law wasn't confirmed, so check with EPD or the county. source
Living disconnected from utilities
Unclear - verifyI couldn't find a Lee County ordinance that directly requires hooking up to utilities or bans going fully off-grid. In practice, this gets handled indirectly through the building code (if you install electrical or plumbing it has to be code-compliant) and through the septic/well and zoning rules rather than any single 'must connect' law. Worth confirming with Code Enforcement or Planning & Zoning if full disconnection is your goal.
Sun30-year normals
- Peak-sun hours, annual average
- 5.4 hrs/day
- Worst month (sizes an off-grid array)
- 4.4 hrs/day
- Yearly output per 1 kW of panels
- 1,512 kWh
JFMAMJJASOND
Weather1991-2020
- Precipitation
- 49 in/yr
- Heating degree days
- 1,837 (mild)
- Frost-free season
- Mar 9 to Nov 22
How far help isstraight-line
- Hospital
Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital North Campus - 2.9 mi
- Fire station
Fire Station Number 2 - 3.5 mi
- Hardware store
The Home Depot - 0.6 mi
- Grocery
Walmart Supercenter - 0.2 mi
From OpenStreetMap. Road miles will be longer, often much longer in hill country.
Plan this spot
These open with this location's real numbers already filled in (ZIP 31702).
Size a solar systemHeat loss & insulationFirewood per winterRainwater harvestGarden sizePanel tilt
Looking at a specific parcel in Lee County, GA?The rules above are the jurisdiction. The land check runs the parcel itself: flood zone, soils and septic suitability, wetlands, slope, access, climate, and these verdicts, from a parcel number or coordinates.
Check a parcel →Share or save this report:New report
Sources: US Census Bureau geocoder; NLR PVWatts v8 (solar); NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 climate normals (nearest station) or Open-Meteo (ZIP-centroid) for weather; Open-Elevation; OpenStreetMap contributors. Public data retrieved Aug 22, 2026; agencies update their layers on their own schedules. Planning data, not a survey or legal advice.
New here, or not sure where this fits? Start here walks through the whole thing in order.