Prefab cabins are the quickest way to a luxury off-grid existence.  Prices can be relatively high compared to doing it yourself, but the pay-off is somewhere quick, andjust as beautiful as the surroundings.

There has been a mushrooming of interest from architects in designing prefab off-grid homes in recent years.  
>>Keep reading “Prefabs sprout”

Here’s an update on what has been going on with us. Things have been going pretty well, we have been living here, 100% off grid for a year and a half. We have fallen into a regular routine, I cook, clean, garden, work at the Country Store and other miscellaneous things, Mountain Man Bob works on the sky castle and the various things that make our lives better and easier.  We have gone from living in a 1 room cabin, with 2 out of the 4 walls being 2 layers of building plastic, with no heat or running water, actually we slept in a tent inside the cabin because the cabin would not keep out insects. When we first got here, it was December, and it was cooooold! I know it got down to at least 14 degrees F, overnight, with the winds blowing a gale, we didn’t have our wood stove installed yet, we put all of our canned goods inside the tent in hopes that our body heat would keep the cans from freezing. We have come a long way baby!
>>Keep reading “Updates and the new shed”

Unexpected Celeb Jaws star Richard Dreyfuss and his wife Svetlana Erokhin plan to go off the power grid.

They have started work on a new Encinitas pad, which Dreyfuss hopes will be fully self-sufficient for energy. he is one of many stars, from Jesse Ventura to Daryl Hannah, who have chosen to make the transition to the low profile lifestyle.

Dreyfuss, who is currently promoting brilliant new comedy My Life In Ruins,
>>Keep reading “Now Dreyfuss gets off-grid ready”

Today I made another batch of laundry soap. I had ran out about a month ago, I was using the leftover powdered store bought soap, wow is there a difference! When I use the commercial soap, I often need to run a second rinse cycle, especially if I look at the rinse water, it’s nearly as soapy as the wash cycle, I know that is just being dried into my clothes, that can’t be good for my skin. When I use my homemade laundry soap, I use so much less, and it gets my clothes just as clean if not cleaner, and I don’t see that residue of suds in the rinse water.
>>Keep reading “DIY laundry soap - video”

In the process of becoming more and more independent, we grow much of our own foods. But there is still one thing that is still expensive and is becoming more expensive to purchase. Tobacco. The government is taxing tobacco to death (no pun intended). With the high cost of buying cigarettes, it has occurred to me that we can be growing our own tobacco. I have decided that now is the time to give it a try. I took the plunge and ordered a set of 4 different types of tobacco seeds from eBay. If smoking or the use of tobacco offends you in any way, then you probably should not read this.

>>Keep reading “DIY tobacco / video”

Rocket stoves, have you heard about them? If you have then I’m preaching to the choir, if you haven’t, then it’s high time you learned about how great these little (and sometimes big) stoves can be.

Basically a rocket stove is a very efficient heater that can be used to cook/heat food, heat water, heat spaces… It typically uses much less fuel (wood) to create heat, and it’s often made from recycled materials.
>>Keep reading “Rocket Stove Video”

Old gardeners don’t die…. One of the up sides to our current global economic crisis is indicators pointing to a dramatic increase in people’s interest in growing their own food – an important aspect of Off-Grid living.

Many first-time gardeners are purchasing seeds and regulars at playing in the dirt are expanding their efforts to grow their own vegetables. There is, however, another opportunity for people to help others while helping themselves.

>>Keep reading “Companion Gardening - with a twist”

What’s wrong with this picture? Off-Gridder Brenda Reed has money problems because her off-grid home can’t get financing. Does anyone know a good broker that can help?

My husband, Tom and I live in a rural area of Mendocino County, CA on 77 acres in the lower foothills, above a little town named Hopland. The town is so small that there is not a single traffic light and only 1 stop sign on the main road. The nearest power pole is about a mile away.
>>Keep reading “No home loan with no utilities”

Dervaes: urban homesteaders USA Today was one of the first newspapers to spot the fast growth in off-grid living. Now it has identified a related trend which sparked a massive response on the paper’s web site.

Dubbed “21st century survivalism,” the story, filed in the “offbeat” section, is about a Michigan family that, under financial pressure, decided to give up credit cards, satellite television, high-tech toys and restaurant dining, and move from the city to live on a 40-acre farm and become more self-sufficient. They relearnt skills and live happily together and feed themselves.
People are asking, “Do I really want to be 100% vulnerable with no self-sufficiency skills if something happens to the economy?” says the story.
>>Keep reading “Ready for the crash”