Have you been dreaming lately of a life living off the grid? It may seem like fanciful thinking but with the right attitude and approach, off grid living can become your reality. If the problem is that you don’t even know where to begin, here are some tips that will get your journey under way.
Land and Permits
You can’t live off the grid without a piece of land, so that should be your first step. If your idea of living off the grid is becoming completely self reliant within the city limits, think again. Finding the right land to facilitate renewable power and water supplies in such a setting is a lot more difficult that it sounds.
Your land should be large enough to meet your needs and no more. For most families, 1 acre of land is more than ample space to survive. You will also have to consider building permits when planning how you want to set up your property. Living in a more remote area will likely provide you with greater freedom when it comes to building but always check with the applicable council before purchasing your land.
Off the Grid Power Supply
An almost constant supply of power has made city dwellers take many home comforts for granted. When you live off the grid, you are solely responsible for ensuring that you generate the power you need to keep cool during the summer, warm during the winter, and can use the other essential tools you will need to survive.
Solar power will become your lifeline when you are living off the grid. Most if not all of your electricity and hot water needs will rely on a combination of solar, wind and backup generators. To maximize the return that you get from your renewable power sources, it is important to construct your home with passive design elements in mind. This ever evolving system of design principles helps to better control heat and light to your advantage through building orientation, insulation, window size and positioning.
Efficient use of Resource
Living off the grid means that more often than not you will have to survive using the resources that are available. That means learning how to grow your own food, source water, maintain your home and property, and survive in more extreme conditions that you are used to if you have lived in a city all your life.
It is best to start as you mean to go on, which means getting stuck in right away by preparing your hand and generally getting your hands dirty. People who live in the city are used, for the most part, to producing a large amount of waste. When you live off the grid it is important to repurpose the materials available wherever possible.
Work & Play
There is no doubt that your living off the grid experiment will mean a lot of hard work, however it is important to remember why you opt for this life in the first place. Get into a routine of working throughout the daylight hours to ensure that you have everything you need, allowing you and your family to relax during the evenings and appreciate the benefits of what you have achieved. If you need building inspections for an off the grid property in the Northern Territory, why not reach out to the experts from Houspect today?
