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Friday 10 July 2015

Going off grid

Hello readers
I've been doing a lot of reading and research recently. I always promised myself that once my debts were paid off I would start looking into how I could make my house as off grid / self sufficient as possible. I love the idea of moving to a little cabin somewhere with an acre of land and living completely off grid. However unless I win the lottery I have to accept that this will only ever be a dream. Instead I have focused my attention on using what I already have at my disposal to create as close to that dream as I can.

Now there are ways of doing this, one being very cheaply and the other throwing lots of money at it. Either way is going to require an initial cash injection.

My first thought was saving for a solar panel system to meet all of our electric needs ( we are an all electric household no gas what so ever ). Then I started thinking my home is rented and realistically I don't think I will ever be in a position to purchase the property from my landlord. This is for many reasons one being I am a disabled lady who no one seems to want to employ due to the nature of my disability. Two if I was ever fortunate enough to become employed I will always be a one income household as I have made the decision to remain single. Three I'm 36 years old which I believe is considered quite old when it comes to someone taking on their first mortgage. I may be wrong on one or all three of these points and if I am then please feel free to correct me in the comments section. Therefore whilst I have no intention of moving I am completely at the mercy of my landlord should they ever choose to take the house back for whatever reason. Do I really want to invest such a large amount of money in a property that I will never own and could be taken away from me at any time ?

My next thought was to look for an acre of land somewhere to purchase and set up a temporary dwelling such as a yurt or large tent area and then invest in a solar panel system to generate all my electric needs. When I did a little research on land purchasing in the UK I discovered one it is difficult to find a piece of land smaller than 3 acres to buy and two there are many laws and rules in the UK regarding dwellings i.e. what constitutes a temporary or permanent dwelling etc etc. I really don't want all the hassle of legal matters and if I'm honest I would be much happier in a solid sturdy dwelling such as my house lol.

So what is a girl to do lol. Well this is what I'm going to attempt to do in the short term ..... become semi off grid / self sufficient. Meaning I'm going to cut back in every conceivable way possible investing in items and products that will enable us to be as off grid as possible and reduce our fuel consumption to a bear minimum. Here's what I have so far.....

Water

I will invest in a couple of water butts with a good filter system in place. The water from these butts will be used for bathing, cleaning, washing clothes by hand, and flushing the toilet which will operate on an if it's yellow let it mellow basis.
Cheap bottled water will be used for drinking and cooking.
If water needs to be heated up it will be done using a large metal pan on my gas bbq ( bottled gas bought from a store and used sparingly ).

Lighting

This is an easy one we will get by using wind up lanterns and beeswax candles. As I have made candles in the past I already have the moulds so will only need to purchase the beeswax and wick which will be done online and in bulk to achieve the best price possible. I will invest in 3 good quality wind up lanterns which should more than cover their cost over the lifetime of its use. I have chosen beeswax for my candles as after some research I have found out that it burns brighter, cleaner, and longer than other wax. Of course if I am able to collect part burned candles for free these will also be used to create candles completely free of charge.

Bathing and washing clothes

This will be done using water from the water butts heated up in large metal pots transferred to our current bath tub with cold water from the water butts added to get the desired temperature. Once the bath or clothes washing has been completed the water from the bath will be transferred into a slimline waterbutt next to the bath for hand washing and flushing the toilet. Clothes will be air dried using airing racks that I already have on bad days and line dried on good days.

Cooking

Cooking will be done using a gas bbq ( which I already have ) and a solar sun oven. We will use bottled water for cooking where required and the only investment in this area will be bottled gas and a solar sun oven ( which could be made very cheaply or invest in purchasing one for around £25 ).

Entertainment and communication

Computers and games consoles will be permitted for one hour per day and in an ideal world this would be powered via solar panel. However as I have made the decision not to go down that road just yet this is where the semi off grid idealism comes into play. Kindles and phones will be charged up with a solar powered charger and the children will be able to watch TV via their kindles as well as play games and keep in touch with family and friends.

Heating

We already live without heating anyway so this will be no loss to us. We wrap up warm and throw extra quilts on the bed and often jump in with each other to keep warm. Again in an ideal world I would invest in a wood burning stove to heat the house but again not sure if this is something I want to invest in in a property that does not belong to me.

Off grid concessions

These are the items we simply cannot do without so are exempt from our off grid living dream. Again in an ideal world these would be powered by a solar panel system.
Fridge
Freezer
WiFi router
One hours entertainment a day ( i.e. computer, TV, games consoles )


I plan to look into the cost of removing a solar panel system and reinstalling it to another property and the same with a wood stove to see if this is a viable option for us. I'm pretty sure my landlord would give me permission to install these items it's the thought of having to remove and reinstall should we ever have to relocate that puts me off of the idea.

Tomorrow I will talk about how we will be doing our best to become semi self sufficient when it comes to food costs. If you have any ideas or spot any holes in my thoughts please feel free to chime in all comments welcome :)

Much Love
Claire xx xx xx




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