off grid living

[Deadfall]

anyone on here living off grid? If so, you Like it?
We bought a place last year off grid. Already had solar sort of. This last year has been a crash course!

 

[*zap*]

Simple is good (for me, solo) but not all of the off grid options are simple.

 

[Diesel]

Been living off grid for 20 years now. Gravity feed spring water, natural gas free on property that runs generator and everything else. No utility bills. Grow a big garden, take what we need in venison.

Working on a battery bank system to cut down generator use.

Food plot for the wildlife.

Finishing up building our custom plank and beam home that has taken me 5 years to design, engineer and build. Labor of love and truly turning out better than I could have hoped. Every component in the house has been handcrafted by me.

It has been quite an undertaking and it sure would have been easier with on grid electric, but it is a mile to the nearest power. Cost was too great.

It is not easy by any means to live off grid and have all the amenities, but the self reliance is looking priceless in these crazy times we have now. If you have the right location, a water source and are away from the masses it is worth it.

I would say if you are honest with yourself and evaluate your ability to cope with less than suburbia and have skills, go for it. It is a long process and still not cheap, but you will gain great confidence in yourself. Keep it as simple as you can and still meet your goals.

Good luck and don't get discouraged, there will be setbacks for sure.

 

[Deadfall]

I like being off grid. Got our electricity set up with solar, wind, and generator backup. The house was already built when we bought. Had toi completely rework the electric. The system that was in place when we bought it would get extremely hot after an hour or so of use. Stripped it all down and started over.

Do all the building work with aid of generator.

We started a small garden that her cats promptly turned into a litter box.

Been lots of learning/adventure so far.

I agree simple is key.

 

[Deadfall]

Been living off grid for 20 years now. Gravity feed spring water, natural gas free on property that runs generator and everything else. No utility bills. Grow a big garden, take what we need in venison.

Working on a battery bank system to cut down generator use.

Food plot for the wildlife.

Finishing up building our custom plank and beam home that has taken me 5 years to design, engineer and build. Labor of love and truly turning out better than I could have hoped. Every component in the house has been handcrafted by me.

It has been quite an undertaking and it sure would have been easier with on grid electric, but it is a mile to the nearest power. Cost was too great.

It is not easy by any means to live off grid and have all the amenities, but the self reliance is looking priceless in these crazy times we have now. If you have the right location, a water source and are away from the masses it is worth it.

I would say if you are honest with yourself and evaluate your ability to cope with less than suburbia and have skills, go for it. It is a long process and still not cheap, but you will gain great confidence in yourself. Keep it as simple as you can and still meet your goals.

Good luck and don't get discouraged, there will be setbacks for sure.

Have you experimented with windows? Whats best you know of for keeping house cool? Besides blinds. No ac so insulation and windows are very important, our current windows are not too good for efficiency?

Do you run propane fridg?

 

[Diesel]

We had natural gas refrigerators for years, but they are very dangerous due to carbon dioxide. The old original cabin, that is 160 years old, has single pane glass and NO insulation. You could see the curtains move with the wind. At 30 below, that makes for some cold nights.

The house we have been building is foam insulated and the windows triple pane. Ceiling is layers of batts. Expensive windows have triple panes and coating that deflect sun in the summer when the sun is at a higher angle and allow sun to penetrate the building in winter when the angle is flatter.

All this material is expensive as I am sure you have experienced, so you have to set priorities, or have a very long term plan. Since our old cabin was not worth saving, we had the need to start from scratch.

The insulation keeps it cooler in the summer and cozy in the winter. No air conditioning. We shut all power off at 11:00 PM and lose about a degree an hour over night during the coldest nights.

Sounds like you have a better starting place than where we did so that's good

Bear in mind ours has been a 20 year project and the new house a full 5 years so far.

 

[Deadfall]

Right on. Thanks for the information. Did not know about the tinting deal. Thanks

 

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Been my dream for years good luck

 

[HeavyFootHick]

I made biodiesel for our own consumption for 13 years, does that count?