so ya wanna go off-grid?

Do you really want to go off grid?

what does that mean? putting your phone in airplane mode? buying a remote island? For most people it's about leaving the mainstream city and doing the off-grid full monty - like almost homesteading. For me it was about getting off the 'dreadmill' : the hamster wheel of modern living.

Now is the time. why?

because the sky is blue,
because the sooner you make the move, the happier you'll be
because it's way cheaper than the mainstream lifestyle
because there's a creeping breakdown of infrastructure services, ever

escalating fees & taxes and regulations, growing disparities in our

society, and now the COVID19 pandemic

   because the earlier you start making mistakes, the quicker you'll learn
  because taking risks by investing in yourself is the BEST way to go...

and the big one: because you're only one incident (ok, maybe two) from being homeless/broke yourself. Whether it be a medical emergency, a crime victim. That shield of middle-class comfort and insulation from slipping off the edge is getting thinner.

There's no better time to go off grid than right now. Off-grid is going mainstream - and very quickly. It's like the new, new 'in thing'. Everyone's doing it in their own way. There's even a TV series about building off-grid. Some of it is very mainstream, and a few of them take it to extremes. But what i don't get is the construction processes and environmental impact. For me the ethos of living off-grid also applies to the construction process: light site footprint, salvage materials, chemicals, access (as in destroying wild areas/meadows! with deep mud ruts, on and on...)

In northern California, the recent public safety power outages are sparking some of this - but mostly it's the inequities and dismal future promises from the mainstream that are driving many to explore going off-grid.

I'm glad I did. I never thought I'd end up this far off-grid when i made my decision 15 years ago to live it full-time. I wish i had done it earlier.
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there are so many advantages:

be your own boss, your own utility, your own provider
new off-grid technologies are finally affordable
no bills: you can be your own utility ++

there's a few disadvantages

if you don't have the skills, you'll need reliable help
... or else it'll take you twice as long to learn from good failures
Learn to deal with isolation, aloneliness? some hard times, weather

first steps

Besides the standard "dream-vision-goals-objectives-tactical process", there's a couple insights I'd like to share based on having gone thru this cycle three times. Realistically assess your most basic needs (no wants). Maslow's hierarchy is a good place to start: safety + security, food & shelter & clothing, etc. The prioritize your wants: 24/7 hot water+fridge+cooling, entertainment, communication, etc.

The more you add to your want list, the higher the costs and harder to realize off-grid. For instance just adding a microwave or Game console to your electrical needs could triple the cost of your solar/wind system to run those.

Which gets me to my big recommend: It's all about demand, not supply. It's easy to get more (supply) - materials at Home Depot, it's easy to power up for that next toy, it's easy to want more/more/more. But the key to off-grid living is to ratchet back a bit on the supply and wean yourself off a lifetime of comfy living standards where instant gratification is the driving force. It took me over 3 years before I got comfortable paring down and doing more with less. I labeled it my 'how low can you go' period. Some (most?) people that visit WinSol from comfy mainstream homes say 'i can't live like that' and they're right! True off-grid living is more about returning to a more simple lifestyle than it is about indulging in endless mainstream luxuries. Ok - enough ranting on that. Let's get down to business.

Step 1 find some land - preferably within walking distance of a transit (bus?) stop. That's the hardest part. If you haven't done a real estate transaction before, it'll be harder. I found that working directly with owners is one good way to go. Real estate agents are more for urban and suburban. Bare, rural property is difficult (not appetizing?) to sell and with low commissions.

Step 2 start materials sourcing Start doing the rounds of salvage yards, derelict buildings, construction store giveaways, ReStores, craigslist, etc. Getting familiar with what's out there takes a LOT of time. Finding good, used building materials is also quite a game - first come/first served. Start loading up on quality used materials and find a good place to store them out of the weather. I had to delay WinSol3 construction by over 6 months to locate the right windows - i wish I had bought the used windows way earlier.

Step 3 design - this actually goes before Step 2 (or even 1). Peruse the internet and look at other people's designs. Start with the basics like how much floor space you'll need. I like designing backwards: from how much rainfall there is to how big a roof I need to collect 'x' gallons per hour or water to fill 'y' number of tanks.

I even made a balsa stick model of WinSol1 & 2. With computer graphics and Google Sketch/autocad i was able to design WinSol3 without a balsa wood model. But it sure is easier visualizing your dream off-grid home in a miniature 3D model.

the most important step

What are you going to do after your off grid home is finished? Enjoy it, savor it. The first 3-5 years will be great. And then little by little things start to settle, age, bend, break... critters will have tested and found every nook and cranny to exploit. And then the real work begins: maintenance. Every design and construction misstep will wreck havoc. Extreme storms, hi winds, hail, freak snow storms will start testing your structure. You'll try to keep up. You'll retrofit some areas. And then you'll resign yourself to the endless task of keeping up with all the maintenance chores.

There's a few ways around this, but nothing beats experience. Find someone who's been there, learn about design and materials that focus on no-maintenance: like no holes in the roof (they all eventually leak), long overhangs to keep weather away from the sides ++, steel/glass/masonry are impervious to UV/pests/fire; etc. These are the lessons that must be incorporated into the initial design and then you'll reap the true beauty of being off-grid: no bills and no maintenance work (ok, maybe a little).

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https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/sep/29/sustainability-expert-michael-mobbs-im-leaving-the-city-to-prep-for-the-apocalypse

i find this article interesting. I don't know if someone can do this in the USA with all the regulations and legacy/backwards thinking/liability freaks of building departments and zoning czars.