The basic definition of 'off-grid' simply means to not be connected to mains power, mains water and town effluent. But the way people live this out in a practical sense differs widely from person to person.
Some people live in such a way they require the bare minimum amount of electricity, water and gas, choosing to return to the ways of old. They might use hand-powered tools, candles or lamps, cook and heat water by a wood oven, haul water, or collect rainwater which is gravity fed to a basic plumbing system. They might have a basic bucket toilet system or a long drop toilet. All of these are perfectly fine and it's the way many people lived for hundreds of years.
However, there are others who live off live off-grid and their homes function much like just any house on the grid. They might have a large solar system, with a big battery bank allowing them to run ordinary appliances like a fridge, freezer, washing machine, lights, hot water, internet, TV, dishwasher and normal kitchen appliances. They may have built their home to make the most of natural resources like the sun, incorporating good thermal mass for insulation into their building design. They might have a modern LPG gas oven and a backup gas hot water system. They would have a large rainwater collection and storage system which is either gravity fed or run off energy via efficient pumps. They may have their own septic system for effluent or utilize a modern composting toilet.
There are those who live off-grid and make the most of renewables. They might be utilizing their own biogas, cook over a wood oven, with a water jacket for their hot water, collect rainwater, have a solar system with a battery bank and have a composting toilet.
Or like us, be a combination of all of the above. There is no right or wrong way to be off-grid. Because in its simplest form, it just means to live independently from mains amenities.
Because there are numerous ways in which people can create their off-grid life, I thought I would work on putting together a series of blog posts over time which discusses some of the pros and cons of various off-grid options from an Australian context. These will be from our own experience, research, viewpoint and situation. What suits us, won't necessarily suit the next person. Today's post is an introductory post about some of the various off-grid aspects people will need to consider.
Electricity
A large solar system with a battery bank is ideal for any area where there is plenty of sunshine, and it is the most common source of off-grid power for private dwellings. The size of your solar system will depend on how much electricity you require. Buying energy efficient appliances, installing 12V LED lights, 12V TV/DVD, choosing between an LPG/240V fridge vs a conventional fridge are all considerations which will directly impact the size and subsequent cost of the solar system needed. I will be discussing some of our choices regarding these things in a future post.
It is wise to have a generator for back-up power and the cost of these can vary. Honda makes a top of the line diesel generator which Grant admires longingly from afar. We have bought an Adventure Kings petrol generator which is better suited to our current budget. It is quiet, fully encased, has pure sine wave, and has an eco setting which means it responds to fluctuating power requirements making it more fuel efficient. We will need to upgrade this in time, but for now, it is well suited to our requirements and had great reviews online.
There are other power sources available like wind and water, but these are not applicable to our situation.
Heating/cooking
We have an abundant supply of timber available to us which is a renewable and free resource, so for us having a wood oven was a natural choice. Our wood oven acts as a heater, an oven, stovetop and has a water jacket for hot water. There is a huge array of wood ovens available, and the prices can differ immensely. We bought a beautiful second hand Aga for $1700.
In the summer months where it is too hot to run a wood oven inside, we can run off LPG bottled gas with a BBQ and a gas burner. There are also LPG gas ovens and cooktops available, which is on our wish list come summer.
It's simple to exchange gas bottles, although it will require a trailer if you need to exchange a large LPG bottle. There are special gauges and automatic switches you can purchase so you can have two gas bottles on the go. The gauge will allow you to monitor them with ease so when ones is empty you can simply switch it across to the full bottle, disconnect the empty one and exchange it in town. In theory, this will give you continuous gas to suit your needs. Though I have lost count of the number of showers that have run cold on me with a head full of shampoo....Grant can be a little forgetful!
Water
You can never have too much water. HERE is a break down of average water usage for a town in NSW. Our family of five uses about 2000L/week on average for washing clothes, showering, cleaning etc. It is significantly less than the average household. However, we do not have a garden to water yet, we don't have a flushing toilet and showers are kept very short.
If you're not on mains water you will need to collect it. That means having a large roof, in good clean condition with gutters attached and a downpipe directing the water into a good size tank. We plan on using a couple of 10,000L tanks to collect water, and then pump up larger header tank for storage. A header tank is a tank situated either on a stand or on a hill, so that water can be gravity fed back down to the house. To achieve decent pressure the tank needs to be quite high, around 20m is recommended. Normal town water pressure measures between 50 and 100 PSI and most major appliances will require at least 20-30 PSI to work.
There are various filters you can get to filter your rainwater to drink, some are inbuilt and there are others that can simply sit on your bench and be topped up with a jug. Roof and gutters will need to be kept clean and there are catchment filters that slot over the opening of rainwater tanks which prevent leaf litter and other things fouling the water. You will also need to consider things like fluoride and if its something you want to supplement into your lifestyle or if you're happy to leave it out.
If like us, you are going to have livestock to water, then you will require dams or a permanent water source.
Living off-grid does require a different mindset, and it will take time and money to set up. But in the long run, it is cheaper as there are no on-going bills to pay. I genuinely don't believe that buying an off-grid property should be a deterrent, it just requires a little research and adaptation. Life can still be wonderfully comfortable with all the elements of modern day living, that many of us have become used to.
Much love
Emma
xx
Our off-grid yurt.
Some people live in such a way they require the bare minimum amount of electricity, water and gas, choosing to return to the ways of old. They might use hand-powered tools, candles or lamps, cook and heat water by a wood oven, haul water, or collect rainwater which is gravity fed to a basic plumbing system. They might have a basic bucket toilet system or a long drop toilet. All of these are perfectly fine and it's the way many people lived for hundreds of years.
However, there are others who live off live off-grid and their homes function much like just any house on the grid. They might have a large solar system, with a big battery bank allowing them to run ordinary appliances like a fridge, freezer, washing machine, lights, hot water, internet, TV, dishwasher and normal kitchen appliances. They may have built their home to make the most of natural resources like the sun, incorporating good thermal mass for insulation into their building design. They might have a modern LPG gas oven and a backup gas hot water system. They would have a large rainwater collection and storage system which is either gravity fed or run off energy via efficient pumps. They may have their own septic system for effluent or utilize a modern composting toilet.
There are those who live off-grid and make the most of renewables. They might be utilizing their own biogas, cook over a wood oven, with a water jacket for their hot water, collect rainwater, have a solar system with a battery bank and have a composting toilet.
Or like us, be a combination of all of the above. There is no right or wrong way to be off-grid. Because in its simplest form, it just means to live independently from mains amenities.
Because there are numerous ways in which people can create their off-grid life, I thought I would work on putting together a series of blog posts over time which discusses some of the pros and cons of various off-grid options from an Australian context. These will be from our own experience, research, viewpoint and situation. What suits us, won't necessarily suit the next person. Today's post is an introductory post about some of the various off-grid aspects people will need to consider.
Electricity
A large solar system with a battery bank is ideal for any area where there is plenty of sunshine, and it is the most common source of off-grid power for private dwellings. The size of your solar system will depend on how much electricity you require. Buying energy efficient appliances, installing 12V LED lights, 12V TV/DVD, choosing between an LPG/240V fridge vs a conventional fridge are all considerations which will directly impact the size and subsequent cost of the solar system needed. I will be discussing some of our choices regarding these things in a future post.
It is wise to have a generator for back-up power and the cost of these can vary. Honda makes a top of the line diesel generator which Grant admires longingly from afar. We have bought an Adventure Kings petrol generator which is better suited to our current budget. It is quiet, fully encased, has pure sine wave, and has an eco setting which means it responds to fluctuating power requirements making it more fuel efficient. We will need to upgrade this in time, but for now, it is well suited to our requirements and had great reviews online.
There are other power sources available like wind and water, but these are not applicable to our situation.
Our generator although quiet, still sits in a 4 sided shed to help buffer the sound.
Heating/cooking
We have an abundant supply of timber available to us which is a renewable and free resource, so for us having a wood oven was a natural choice. Our wood oven acts as a heater, an oven, stovetop and has a water jacket for hot water. There is a huge array of wood ovens available, and the prices can differ immensely. We bought a beautiful second hand Aga for $1700.
In the summer months where it is too hot to run a wood oven inside, we can run off LPG bottled gas with a BBQ and a gas burner. There are also LPG gas ovens and cooktops available, which is on our wish list come summer.
It's simple to exchange gas bottles, although it will require a trailer if you need to exchange a large LPG bottle. There are special gauges and automatic switches you can purchase so you can have two gas bottles on the go. The gauge will allow you to monitor them with ease so when ones is empty you can simply switch it across to the full bottle, disconnect the empty one and exchange it in town. In theory, this will give you continuous gas to suit your needs. Though I have lost count of the number of showers that have run cold on me with a head full of shampoo....Grant can be a little forgetful!
A wood oven dictates the rhythm of the house. It will need regular refuelling and cooking will require collecting the right kind and size of wood to achieve the desired temperature.
Wood is constantly being collected and managed for the fuel the stove.
You can never have too much water. HERE is a break down of average water usage for a town in NSW. Our family of five uses about 2000L/week on average for washing clothes, showering, cleaning etc. It is significantly less than the average household. However, we do not have a garden to water yet, we don't have a flushing toilet and showers are kept very short.
If you're not on mains water you will need to collect it. That means having a large roof, in good clean condition with gutters attached and a downpipe directing the water into a good size tank. We plan on using a couple of 10,000L tanks to collect water, and then pump up larger header tank for storage. A header tank is a tank situated either on a stand or on a hill, so that water can be gravity fed back down to the house. To achieve decent pressure the tank needs to be quite high, around 20m is recommended. Normal town water pressure measures between 50 and 100 PSI and most major appliances will require at least 20-30 PSI to work.
There are various filters you can get to filter your rainwater to drink, some are inbuilt and there are others that can simply sit on your bench and be topped up with a jug. Roof and gutters will need to be kept clean and there are catchment filters that slot over the opening of rainwater tanks which prevent leaf litter and other things fouling the water. You will also need to consider things like fluoride and if its something you want to supplement into your lifestyle or if you're happy to leave it out.
If like us, you are going to have livestock to water, then you will require dams or a permanent water source.
We have a large dam on the property but it is not holding water. We need to dig it out and rectify that by either trialling bringing in clay to line it, or by lining it with plastic.
Rubbish
We have no rubbish collection here, meaning everything that comes onto the property requires us to take it off. For all biodegradable, paper, cardboard, cotton/natural fibres we have a compost heap. This takes care of a huge amount of our household waste. Bottles and cans get recycled which leaves us with plastic to dispose of. There are various recycling centres or drop-offs for plastics, but all plastic must be clean, dry and separated carefully. We tend to deal with this weekly and Grant does it when he goes into town.
Much love
Emma
xx
