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- People ·
Living in a Fire Truck
Forester Simon Danant started living in his 1980s Bedford truck last summer. Its a former Army fire engine. He moves it around Cambridgeshire, living behind…
- October 31, 2014 6:47 PM·
A DIY survival sling shot with big game capabilities
Could you survive in the wilderness with only a sling shot as your weapon? Lots would depend on your survivability. Having a means to…
- October 21, 2014 11:15 PM·
LED technology and DIY
Off-Gridders have been around for a long time, but it’s just been recently that technology has been available to make living off-grid as cushy as…
- October 19, 2014 11:40 PM·
- Food ·
Permaculture in Colorado needs a water permit
“A forest full of food” has a nice ring to it, and the concept is realized using permaculture farming techniques. Grant and Kathy Curry of…
- October 19, 2014 10:28 PM·
Pizza pizza
This past week was a hard one, my work partner and I worked extra long days so that we could have a few extra days…
- October 19, 2014 10:27 PM·
- Energy ·
Batteries not improving, so gadget efficiency is goal
WSJ 5th Oct – There is no Moore’s law for batteries. That is, while the computing power of microchips doubles every 18 months, the capacity…
- October 5, 2014 8:57 PM·
- Mobile ·
Great Autos for the Boonies
Getting away from it all – really away – is harder than most would like to think. I went to an off-grid festival last month…
- October 4, 2014 1:07 PM·
Off-Grid update
Winter is coming, it’s well into fall and the season is definitely changing. The air is cooler, especially in the mornings, crisp, I can smell…
- October 3, 2014 11:40 PM·
- Food ·
Freezing food
For the longest time, I’d buy my produce at the farmer’s market over the weekend. When the next Friday rolled around and I hadn’t used…
- October 3, 2014 7:35 PM·
- Solar ·
IEA confirm mega-trend to off-grid power
Energy harnessed from the sun is predicted to displace fossil fuels by 2050 as the cost of solar cells plummets Solar power will reach commercial…
- October 2, 2014 12:52 PM·
- Solar ·
Water-cooled solar panel
A new solar harvester that can provide power and clean water is in the works. Its hardly suprising that panels can overheat in the very…
- October 2, 2014 11:18 AM·
- People ·
Lights goes off-grid to get her Mojo back
Hanging out with hippies in a New Mexico hot spring isn’t the first place you might picture Canadian electropoop singer-songwriter Lights — finding inspiration for…
- September 29, 2014 4:27 PM·
Pro-democracy protesters go off-grid to evade police crackdown
HONG KONG (CNN) — It was 10 PM on Sunday and 22-year-old Michelle Li, a dancer, saw Facebook updates of police tear gassing pro-democracy protesters…
- September 29, 2014 8:14 AM·
- Events ·
Garlic festival
ORANGE, MASS, 28 Sept — Thousands of people began making their way to a field in the middle of nowhere Saturday to enjoy the 16th…
- September 28, 2014 4:14 PM·
The ultimate bachelor pad on wheels
Brett Sutherland built the ultimate bachelor pad on wheels to suit his need for a home, balancing cost with useability without sacrificing style, this is…
- September 27, 2014 11:13 PM·
- Land ·
Alaska to be the next Florida?
Climate change will make the most desirable places to live currently, uninhabitable by the middle of this Century – according to a scientific paper in…
- September 27, 2014 12:27 AM·
- Solar ·
Retired Engineer pimps his RV
Thomas “Tim” Lemieux lives in an unlikely showcase for green energy: a 1997 Winnebago recreational vehicle. Scale a narrow ladder up the side of the…
- September 26, 2014 11:54 AM·
- Energy ·
The battle for DC power starts in Pittsburgh
2014 OCT 4 Investment Weekly News — PITTSBURGH- Is Pittsburgh to be home of a second War of the Currents? In the late 1880s, Pittsburgh…
- September 26, 2014 3:11 AM·
New hybrid generator
UK Digger and Tractor manufacturer, JCB has launched its first hybrid diesel-electric generator set, supposedly intended for the off-grid market. But it does not allow…
- September 23, 2014 3:12 AM·
- Solar ·
How to keep solar generators running at night
* Promises more effective thermal heat storage than current methods * Company expects quick market penetration * Says can match fossil fuel-fired power plants on…
- September 23, 2014 2:52 AM·
Picking the wrong plant
Since having such a wet rainy season, as compared to the previous several rainy seasons, I have seen many more species of wild plants growing,…
- September 21, 2014 10:41 PM·
Greedy power companies in Queensland
By David French – journalist on the Queensland Times (a greedy newspaper) RATHER than embracing change, the owner-custodians of Queensland’s power industry have treated it…
- September 21, 2014 2:32 AM·
Bobbage bridge update
Strange name for a title, Bobbage, well if you have followed me for any length of time, you will know that Bobbage is what we…
- September 20, 2014 1:29 AM·
What do you miss about living off-grid?
A BBC pop-up asks folks living in Colorado what they miss about leaving the grid behind. Its a nice compilation of radio voices, with scenic…
- September 19, 2014 11:42 PM·
Make a wish, believe in it
As the end of summer slides past us, the days are getting shorter and cooler. Our rainy season has all but ended, the last few…
- September 14, 2014 11:08 PM·
Looking for Real Families living off the grid
The success of Alaska Bush people on Discovery TV has pushed off-grid living up the agenda. But its another example of choosing off-grid people because…
- September 10, 2014 1:38 AM·
- Energy ·
National Grid condemns NY families to cold winter
The effects of the polar vortex last winter are still lingering in Upstate New York, where 24,000 households had their power shut off in June…
- September 9, 2014 7:36 PM·
- Events ·
London party for Finding Infinity
London, 4 September 2014 – Fashion Designer Vivienne Westwood held the first of a series of solar-powered parties to promote the use of renewable energy.…
- September 9, 2014 7:15 PM·
Fermented foods
Earlier today, after church, I was getting ready to lay down to take a nap, the radio was playing softly in the background, I typically…
- September 7, 2014 1:22 AM·
- Events ·
Invisible Woman re-elected
They just don’t get it do they? The Green Party, once the repository for the hopes and dreams of UK environmentalists, continues to do everything…
- September 4, 2014 6:46 PM·
Now I’m a working gal – blog post
We have been living 100% off-grid since December ’07, before leaving our old life, we both worked jobs, he had his restaurant equipment repair business,…
- September 4, 2014 12:57 AM·
Building up
This young family lives in Portland Oregon on a half lot, their home is very small by most standards, preferring to build UP instead of…
- August 31, 2014 9:20 PM·
Tree house vacation
Book a tree house on the Edisto River. These tree houses have no electricity or running water, but are considered one of the South Carolina…
- August 31, 2014 12:46 AM·
- Energy ·
Cheap portable solar power setup
The chatter about solar power and energy storage over the last few years, might make you come to the wrong conclusion that such systems are…
- August 31, 2014 12:30 AM·
Yes, Texas has mountains…
…and other random thoughts. :) One of the questions I get asked when I tell people where I live (on a mountain side, in the…
- August 30, 2014 9:52 PM·
- Energy ·
Harvesting Excess Man Made Energy
Albany NY designer, Manoocher Zarif is piloting a device that converts vibrations found in urban traffic into electricity. The industrial design graduate came across the…
- August 27, 2014 1:45 AM·
- Water ·
Trout Pout – off-gridders ticked off with obscure fish
ORANGE COUNTY, Aug 24th – Mike Milligan trudges up the canyon, gesturing at bone-dry trees, streams that have turned to trickles and thick carpets of…
- August 25, 2014 10:05 AM·
Get to know your property before you build
OK, you have purchased your land, you are all excited about getting your off-grid homestead going, but before you set your first post, before you…
- August 23, 2014 1:25 AM·
Living and building off-grid on the cheap
Going off-grid on the cheap, it’s possible to do, but you should be creative and flexible, the property was the biggest expense, buying a property…
- August 16, 2014 2:27 AM·
How to start a farm with *no money – video
This video is titled, “How to start a farm with no money”, well I’m here to tell you that you need SOME money, but if…
- August 13, 2014 1:13 AM·
Legal tiny home
I love these tiny homes, this one is particularly interesting because it’s completely legal, not saying all the other tiny homes are illegal, in some…
- August 10, 2014 9:03 PM·
- Events ·
Nick Rosen appearances this month
Utah public radio, USA on 20th August at 9AM MST for one hour OFF-GRID FESTIVAL on 14th August at 3pm Contact nick@off-grid.net with any questions…
- August 5, 2014 5:12 AM·
- Energy ·
Platinum fuel cell trials in S Africa
Renewable Energy mag reports Canadian fuel cell manufacturer Ballard Power Systems and Anglo American Platinum, the world’s largest primary producer of platinum, have launched a…
- August 4, 2014 2:02 AM·
Permaculture in Moretown, Vermont
Ben Falk is a permaculture designer based in Moretown, Vermont. In this video, he speaks about different aspects of homesteading and cold weather, notably his…
- July 30, 2014 9:49 PM·
A new doc in town
I think I am in love, and it’s with another man, but it’s not what you might think :) About a month ago, I took…
- July 26, 2014 2:15 AM·
Portable tiny house and airstream-ish office
Ann Holley wanted to create an off-grid, transportable tiny house that would be technically an RV, but with an aesthetic that wouldn’t feel like living…
- July 24, 2014 3:11 PM·
- Events ·
Total Luxury with no Utilities
A luxury hotel with no mains utilities is being built on the island of Zanzibar, off the coast of Tanzania. The Uzuri Hotel Resort, anticipated…
- July 22, 2014 11:04 PM·
- Mobile ·
Delivery Van to RV for £6000
The ordinary-looking blue van has a chimney protruding from the roof. This leads down to a wood burner in the former window-glazing truck, which a…
- July 22, 2014 4:32 PM·
- Energy ·
UK industry weaning itself from the grid
British business lobby group Confederation of British Industry says UK manufacturers are looking to generate their own power to sidestep fears of rising energy prices…
- July 22, 2014 2:39 AM·
A bridge to Bobbage
Living here going on 8 years and we still have to hike up to the sky castle, the reason is because of a seasonal creek…
- July 20, 2014 5:24 PM·
- Mobile ·
Off the Grid and On the Cloud
Why do we have the slogan “off the grid and on the cloud?” Because we advocate combining ancient wisdom with the latest technology. It’s great…
- July 16, 2014 8:55 AM·
- Mobile ·
Gear you need in your bug-out location
Imagine the collapse of society because there is an extreme weather event or the Chinese economy implodes bringing down the global system No reason for…
- July 16, 2014 8:17 AM·
- Energy ·
Apple to leave the grid behind
Computer maker Apple has long been providing its own power at its HQ in Cupertino CA. Now the company has announced it is extending the…
- July 14, 2014 1:09 AM·
Gardening roundtable
About a week ago, I got a phone call from one of my neighbors and friends out here, it was time to do another gardening…
- July 13, 2014 11:41 PM·
How to build your own water cistern system
What Is A Water Cistern System? Those living in a municipality often take for granted utility services that many rural property dwellers are not privileged…
- July 10, 2014 8:35 PM·
Off-Grid village planned for New South Wales
As Australian power prices rise and alternative-energy technologies progress, a growing number of Ozzies are opting to disconnect. Retired scientist and businessman Doone Wyborn and…
- July 8, 2014 4:52 PM·
Ascalapha Odorata aka Duppy Bat
My late night visitor, these huge creatures show up each year in late spring early summer, they become active in the late evening and night,…
- July 2, 2014 12:38 AM·
- Urban ·
Interview with America Unplugged character
Sportsman Channel are running a great series about ordinary people who live off the grid or off-grid ready – meaning they COULD go off-grid if…
- June 25, 2014 1:24 PM·
Greenpeace “loses $5m” of donations
Greenpeace, the environmental charity that lost its way over a decade ago, has announced it has also lost money – over $5 MILLION dollars of…
- June 16, 2014 11:25 PM·
Happy Father’s Day
My Dad is much of the reason why I am getting to live my dream, he gave me a sense of adventure from a young…
- June 15, 2014 10:56 AM·
- Events ·
Stars of “America Unplugged” are modern MacGyvers
Ryan Lapinski always wanted to be MacGyver, the TV character solving problems with a bit of candle wax and a plastic bag. “I watched that…
- June 14, 2014 6:12 PM·
- Mobile ·
off the grid but on the cloud
Cloud computing may seem incompatible with being off-grid, but there are ways to live in the cloud even when you don’t have an Internet connection.…
- June 13, 2014 6:20 PM·
Short cycling? Problem solved :)
Short cycling, it makes me think of riding a bike a very small distance, or someone riding a really short bike…. actually it’s when a…
- June 13, 2014 12:55 PM·
Tiny Homes – the Big Picture
OFf-Grid News reports on the booming Tiny Homes movement. The houses are the size of a regular settee or a little bigger. They are painted…
- June 13, 2014 12:50 PM·
- People ·
Ex-cop predicts collapse
Harold Smith cam on our YouTube page today, commenting on our video Inside the Movement as follows: I spent 20 years in law enforcement, and…
- June 13, 2014 10:54 AM·
Spring in the Sky Castle
I do my best to see the bright side of life and everything in it, take winter for instance, the cold temps means there are…
- June 8, 2014 11:03 PM·
- Energy ·
Utility companies are toast
Latest episode of Off-Grid News focuses on the death of the Utility company business model as more people go off-grid.
- June 6, 2014 3:51 AM·
Nova Scotia bans new off-grid homes
Dear Off-Grid, I live on the south shore of Nova Scotia and I want to build a tiny, off-grid homestead. So far, it is proving…
- June 5, 2014 10:02 PM·
Lost Faith in the System
Joachim Hagopian voices the feelings of millions of Americans The forsaken American population finds itself more in poverty (46.2 million people) as well as more…
- June 5, 2014 11:31 AM·
Tiny home in Hawaii
I think we can all appreciate Johnny Sanphillippo’s situation, he worked hard at a job he loved that unfortunately didn’t net him a large salary,…
- June 5, 2014 3:56 AM·
- People ·
Online privacy – talks series
A californian hacker is touring the world giving advice on how to protect your own privacy. This summer Abhay Agarwal is hosting dozens of conversations…
- June 5, 2014 12:34 AM·
- Urban ·
Shop the bunker
The Spectator newspaper reports that an architect who usually designs Manhattan skyscrapers was recently asked to pitch for a far more interesting project. The client,…
- June 1, 2014 3:44 PM·
- Events ·
Solar Flares set to strike Friday
Three solar flares in the past 48 hours let forth a giant spray of particles from Earth’s sun. There is a risk that the particles…
- June 1, 2014 11:54 AM·
- Events ·
America Unplugged – new series
Sportsman Channel is getting unplugged in a new TV series about people living off-grid. Premiering June 5 at 8 p.m. (ET) America Unplugged, hosted by…
- May 30, 2014 2:03 AM·
Keeping it clean…
Hygiene while living off-grid, especially if you are living rough and/or just starting out, keeping clean can be one of the challenges. When PB and…
- May 30, 2014 1:44 AM·
New rural community to launch
As the nation’s housing crisis (also known as the nation’s house price bubble) intensifies, part of the solution is hiding in plain sight – cheap…
- May 29, 2014 4:26 AM·
- Energy ·
British Gas customer ripoffs – more info
British Gas workers who doubled bills ‘were treated like celebrities and given free helicopter rides for ripping off customers’ say Whistleblowers. Those producing high profits…
- May 26, 2014 8:40 AM·
Illegal to be off-grid?
Apparently it is illegal in some places, Florida makes off-grid living illegal – mandates all homes must be connected to an electricity grid. It’s no…
- May 25, 2014 9:04 PM·
- Energy ·
Smart Grid – Dumb Idea – latest from Off-Grid News
Had it with the mainstream news agenda? Let’s make our own news. “Smart Grid. Dumb Idea” is only the second episode from Off-Grid News. Its…
- May 22, 2014 11:10 AM·
Tiny home UK – £2500
A quiet corner of a farm near Birmingham has become a workplace for a busy mum-of-two. Just 20 yards from her house is Paula Fallows’…
- May 19, 2014 9:59 PM·
- Mobile ·
Satellite Panic Buttons – Boon or Bane?
Spot satellite emergency signalling devices have saved 3000 lives to date – but are they an essential piece of kit for the outward bound, or…
- May 19, 2014 5:52 PM·
Choices, we all have them….
For those of you who have followed my writing for a while, you will notice I am frequently trying to get people to go beyond…
- May 18, 2014 7:30 PM·
- Events ·
Fox Schlock Seeks to Shock
My goodness, are those people at Fox Network total scumbags or what? Their latest big idea is a show called Utopia where a bunch of…
- May 17, 2014 12:01 AM·
Mom knew best – cooking from scratch
Mother’s Day passed last weekend, for me it’s a bittersweet day, I’m happy because I’m a mother, but it’s sad because my mother is gone.…
- May 16, 2014 8:32 PM·
- Events ·
Devon smallholders win right to build home
A young family has won the right to live off the grid on their smallholding after a battle to get planning permission. Dinah and Stig…
- May 14, 2014 4:33 AM·
- People ·
Happy Mondays’ Bez to stand for election
HAPPY Mondays star Bez is living off-grid in Wales and planning a move into politics. Bez, the boggle-eyed freaky dancer from Happy Mondays, the band…
- May 12, 2014 4:35 PM·
Phantom loads
Sounds like something that should be discussed during October, it is scary, but not in a paranormal way…. a phantom load is simply electricity that…
- May 10, 2014 11:05 PM·
- Mobile ·
The wearable revolution
By Rachel Botsman – a global thought leader on the power of collaboration. What if you could draw a dollar sign in mid-air, followed by…
- May 10, 2014 1:42 AM·
Dry canning crackers
One of the things many of us do is buy up deals and sales at the store or buy in bulk from the big box…
- May 9, 2014 11:33 PM·
- Energy ·
More Brown-outs coming soon say boffins
Electrical blackouts that cause disruption to millions are a looming threat to society, argue Hugh Byrd and Steve Matthewman Hugh Byrd is a professor of…
- May 9, 2014 5:34 PM·
- Events ·
Building WIld
The task is simple — take cabin-building to new extremes. Tackling this on “Building Wild” are opposites. Pat “Tuffy” Bakaitis knows cabins; he has five…
- May 5, 2014 4:10 PM·
Another cool tiny home
If This House Doesn’t Look Like Much To You, Wait Til You Go Inside. I Love Everything About This. After spending years in the rat…
- May 3, 2014 3:55 PM·
- Events ·
China’s housing crash may topple global economy soon
So now we know what China’s biggest property developer really thinks about the Chinese housing boom and its consequences for the rest of the economy.…
- May 2, 2014 11:04 PM·
- Energy ·
Scotland’s last wildnerness
Off-grid energy company Knoydart Renewables in Scotland is one of several projects to benefit from a new GBP1m Highland Sustainable Fund. It will receive GBP75,000…
- May 1, 2014 1:42 AM·
- Urban ·
Inequality is why so many want out of the system
The war on drugs sends thousands of poor kids to prison for using the same illegal substances that rich whites can often get away with;…
- April 29, 2014 7:57 PM·
- Water ·
100 things to do on British Waterways
The Canal & River Trust (formerly British Waterways) is publishing details of 100 readymade waterway days out (canalrivertrust.org.uk/places-to-visit) to give individuals, couples and families a…
- April 29, 2014 9:22 AM·
Dark Market – the Internet you need to know
Uninformed media reports of the ‘DarkMarket’, tout it as a new system – a Silk Road the FBI could never seize. In fact its not…
- April 27, 2014 3:45 PM·
Forest Service use Eminent Domain to seize off-grid home
Andy and Ceil Barrie chose a retreat property far off the beaten path. They spent time and money developing the early C19th cabin in the…
- April 27, 2014 2:47 AM·
- Solar ·
US Army huge solar farm
Normally we do not like solar farms – they are usually built to feedinto the Grid – but not this one. The army just kicked…
- April 26, 2014 5:15 PM·
A tale of two smallholdings
The contrasting fortunes of two British smallholdings are a useful guide on how to succeed, and what NOT to do, if you are planning to…
- April 24, 2014 5:43 AM·