Off-grid or bust

Eco-businessman Andrew Mercer has called in the diggers to start work on the foundations of a pioneering eco-house on a hillside above Bath. So confident is he that the four-storey glass structure will fulfil its promise, he has signed a binding agreement with Bath and North East Somerset Council to demolish the property if it is not off-grid within 12 months.

He has also pledged to knock down his family’s existing house in Batheaston within six months of moving into his new home 50 yards away. (more…)

Dervaes:poster girls for green revolution

Imagine all the money you’d save if you did not buy your food at the market, in fact did not buy your food at all!  Here’s one family doing just that.

Thelma Gutierrez of CNN spent a day with a family that is self-sufficient, well, self-sufficientish.

The Dervaes family are quite possibly one of the few households in America where rising food prices are not an issue. “You just stay at home and you grow your own food in your backyard,” says URBAN HOMESTEADER, Justin Dervaes. His daughter Anais adds: “We try to cook outdoors using the sun and free energy.”

It takes vegetable oil, heat and some chemicals and makes biodiesel. The Dervaes family of four live off their land, but they do not have a big spread - just a modest three bedroom in Pasadena, California. (more…)

Geisler (left ) & Kaufman

BANGOR, Mich. (AP) - Maynard Kaufman is looking for a dozen or more families who want to go off-grid in Michigan. He has launched an eco-village on his own land and is seeking investor/partners.

Kaufman always has been a step ahead of the environmental movement. In 1970 he helped start the Environmental Studies Program at Western Michigan University, and in 1976 developed the program’s homesteading curriculum.

Today he’s still leading the way.

Kaufman and his wife, Barbara Geisler, are trying to start an off-grid residential development a mile north of Bangor on family farmland.

The houses will be built on the model of Kaufman and Geisler’s own solar and wind-powered house erected in 2001. (more…)

No power needed

The New York Times started the trend with a big story about off-grid second homes by Billie Cohen. Now the Toronto Globe and Mail has got in on the act, running a story about a weekender couple with solar panels and no mains. This story will run and run.

The Globe featured Laura Hawthorne talking about her cottage, a 500-square-foot building on South Beaver Lake in Haliburton. It was the perfect size, Ms. Hawthorne says, with a master bedroom, living room and kitchen area, second bedroom and a bathroom. There was one thing missing, however: electricity. (more…)

Commuting in Porepunkah

Australia is waking up to the idea of living off grid as Melbourne’s crippling power outages become more common.

Hundreds if not thousands of people are living off the land in the Melbourne area, reports the Melbourne Herald-Sun. Their nearest road is gravel and there’s not a train or freeway within 100km.

Ralph Whelan, 51, lives in a comfortably ramshackle house he built on a bush block beside Growlers Creek out the back of Wandiligong. He has no grid power, town water or town gas.

He grows his own fruit and veggies, runs some hens and geese, and there’s always fish, rabbits and maybe even venison available. (more…)

Before seeing the movie of Michael Reynolds’ fight to be able to build his Earthships in New Mexico I wasn’t to sure what to think of his ideas. “Garbage Warrior” wasn’t to high on my must see list either. So I figured I would wait for it to hit TV before watching it.  It is on the Sundance Channel this month and I caught it during their THE GREEN programming on Tuesday nights. 

Earthships have been written about before in our “Earthships -Another Recycling Frontier” post back in February. It was an interesting concept but it didn’t make me wish for one. I was actually put off by the idea, but I wasn’t going to write it off until I gave it some more research.  So when I saw the movie was coming on I decided now was the time to finish up that research I had promised to do.  I have to say that watching this documentary was definitely worth it. 

It not only made me wonder should I think about one for myself and family but think about what it would actually mean if we constructed like Mr. Reynolds wants too.  Use what you find around you not being used, namely trash.  Then make it into something not only functional but beautiful too.  No need for gas, electric or water to be hooked up to your home. Design, build and live in communities together.  Living in a home that is not only designed to be in harmony with it’s environment but to provide for you anything you need to survive.  He fought for his ideas and even lost his architect license over it.  Because of him the people of New Mexico have the chance to build new concepts in home design, instead of hoping it will work on paper.  They can put their ideas of how to make their “Earthships” more efficient, comfortable and use different materials to see what works and what doesn’t.

The journey he took to make that happen is a great inspration to those of us who have run up against that wall that doesn’t see that change is good, and neccessary.  I still think the “Earthship” just wouldn’t work for me and my family but I can’t help but envy those whom it does work for.  So take the time to watch his documentary or even pick up a book of his and see if his unique way of looking at things can’t inspire you too!

One day all this will be siezed

Steve James (pictured) is a tireless campaigner for the right to live off-grid. Because he wanted others to learn from his experience of building an off-grid cottage, his own home is now under threat from the planners. Here he tells his own story: You can learn more about Steve at his web site.
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Small PV System

So, you want to go off-grid? Or maybe you want to find out what it’s like before taking the plunge? How about taking one room of your house off grid? It’s a less expensive way of learning the technology, before committing yourself.

We suggest starting with a bedroom. Look around your bedroom and see what devices you have that run on electric. As I look around my room, I see one table lamp, two floor lamps, wall lamp, digital TV, Stereo, satellite box, portable dvd player, vcr, and XBox. I also have a battery powered clock, powered by rechargeables, so I�ll add the battery charger to our list. There is also a curling iron, hair dryer, and ceiling fan with lights, but we will leave those items off our list for now.

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PR snaps sell green dream

It is one of the few growth trends in the construction industry right now.

The aging cohort that has dominated our culture for the past forty years is not yet off-grid, but many are now looking for �communities that make an environmental difference,� according to Shea Homes a construction firm in Massachusetts. Last month, Shea announced the first of a planned chain of “active lifestyle,” Baby Boomer retirement developments. (more…)