Energy

UNESCO Credits SOIL Course

Last month I outlined the Permaculture course available at the School of Integrated Living (SOIL) in the ecovillage Earthaven (see here). Recently, this program has…
  • February 23, 2017·
248725_3909073775685_950532978_n-7264337

Reunion in Rhode Island

Drivin’ on up! Eunice and I went on our very first weekend road trip last week! We went up to visit my Godfather, David who…
  • February 23, 2017·

Se Nuestro Invitado

¿QUIERES UNA CASA DE PRIMAVERA PERO NO TIENES PRIMAVERA? DESVIAR EL AGUA DE UN ARROYO PEQUEÑO ES UNA OPCIÓN En la Parte I , cubrí…
  • February 21, 2017·

UNESCO Acredita Curso de SOIL

El mes pasado describí el curso de Permacultura disponible en la Escuela de Vida Integrada (SOIL en inglés) en la ecoaldea Earthaven. Recientemente, este programa…
  • February 21, 2017·

Crazy things Scott Pruitt said

The new head of the EPA has vowed to dismantle US environmental protections. No suprises there, given his previous record. Once he has laid waste…
  • February 17, 2017·
Meg with husband in tiny house

Getting hooked on tiny houses

American architect and designer Meg Stevens was “immediately hooked” on tiny houses when she discovered them five years ago. She set a plan in motion to…
  • February 15, 2017·

New American homesteaders – author

In new book “The Unsettlers:- Buy it on Amazon” , three American families go beyond ditching the Utility companies –they also walk away from supermarkets,…
  • February 13, 2017·

Catch me if you Spam

Con man James Hogue, famous for impersonating a Princeton student in the 1990s, has been found living in an illegally built cabin on Aspen Mountain…
  • February 11, 2017·

Off-Grid goes to Hollywood

Living off-grid isn’t just popular – it’s going mainstream. New York Times bestselling author Gregg Hurwitz is achieving worldwide sales with his Orphan X series,…
  • February 10, 2017·

The Road to Self-Reliance

American families have been going off-grid for more than forty years, but for most it’s a gradual process, involving a lot of learning by trial…
  • February 9, 2017·

Watching TV off-grid

One question I frequently hear is how do I get TV or movies while living off-grid. I will tell you that I have been living…
  • February 8, 2017·

Tech 101: All about Batteries

New to off-grid living? Thinking about going off-grid? Have years of experience? Bet you’ve thought about batteries. Having a back-up store of energy for those…
  • February 7, 2017·

Cooking from scratch

Cooking and eating are two (of many) pleasures in life for me, I learned how to cook from watching my mother who was a fantastic…
  • February 5, 2017·
Will Obamas stay Democrats

Obamas depart Necker haven

Barack and Michelle Obama left their relaxing 10 days off-grid vacation last Thursday. They headed back to Washington and will remain there until their daughter…
  • February 2, 2017·

My Favourite Off-Grid Place

This is the place that celebrity chef Nick Knowles goes when he needs to get away – please send us details of YOUR favourite off-grid…
  • February 1, 2017·
Regen Villages, Off-grid, Sustainable, Eco-village, eco-friendly

Regenerating the Eco-village

Self-sustaining communities that can talk to each other; sounds like something from the future doesn’t it? But Regen Villages is making this a reality –…
  • January 31, 2017·

Bed shed in the bush

Given a handful of primitive hand tools, I mean a sharpened rock, a few sticks of wood and not much more, what could you build?…
  • January 29, 2017·

Inside a Dutch Houseboat

The Netherlands has long been known for its magical and magnificent houseboats across its vast network of canals, but there is a serious problem for…
  • January 26, 2017·

Off-Grid School Gets Top Marks

A cash-strapped performing arts school has traded a year’s worth of waste for 30 desks. The off-grid school collected its community’s recycling, as well as…
  • January 25, 2017·
boke and other possessions on board

Floating off the grid

Rachel Johnson loves it when people ask her where she lives ”and I say, ‘well…today its Broadway Market but next week its Victoria Park’”. Rachel…
  • January 21, 2017·
Solar hamlet - artists impression

(eco)Village within a Village

The Welsh Government is embracing low-impact housing with the unveiling of its first village within a village – the Pentre Solar “eco hamlet” within the…
  • January 19, 2017·

Who do you use?

A few weeks ago, our internet service all but stopped working for nearly 2 weeks, I finally figured out it was apparently caused by the…
  • January 18, 2017·
RV's just got futuristic: The Basecamp Airstream

The Open Road: RV Sales Boom

The all-American way to go off the grid is of course with a recreational vehicle – an RV. Buckle up. Open road. Highway 66. Freedom.…
  • January 18, 2017·
Hut, Scotland, Building Regulations, Bothies, Off-Grid

Return of the Scottish Hut

If you fancy buying an inexpensive off-grid getaway in Europe – try Scotland. The government announced changes to their building regulations early this year. This…
  • January 17, 2017·

Homeless and Roofless

By Jim Martin – Homeless Shelter Director, Delaware Every day in Southern Delaware, I work in the trenches and on the front lines of poverty,…
  • January 12, 2017·

From a Caravan to a Community

Moving into a caravan in the middle of Hill Holt Wood in 1995 gave Nigel Lowthrop his roots. His purchase of the 22-acre woodlands in…
  • January 12, 2017·

What happened to PB?

There are some things that can be (or look) fun about living off-grid, but there are many things that are less attractive, but still have…
  • January 11, 2017·

Women off-grid

When you think of someone living off-grid, chances are you either think of a man or perhaps a couple (or even a family), but it’s…
  • January 8, 2017·

Grid is over for least-developed nations

The cost of solar equipment is declining at ever-steeper rates, threatening a meltdown in Utility companies share prices and catalysing new projects and driving growth in developing countries.…
  • January 7, 2017·

Not getting sick

With winter in full blast mode, people are sniffling, sneezing and coughing all around me, I work in the public, not necessarily with the public,…
  • January 6, 2017·

Learn to live the old ways

Go to India to learn how they used to live, before power and water came to large parts of the country. Starting Jan 28, A…
  • January 2, 2017·

Twenty seventeen

I am not believing it’s 2017 already, in just 3 short years, it’s going to be the year 2020, now that will take some getting…
  • January 1, 2017·

Living in the Future

An ongoing documentary series celebrating sustainable communities and ecovillages around the world is promoting the off-grid way of life. Living in the Future hosts a free…
  • January 1, 2017·

Tiny House Nation

Omaha, Nebraska Jan 1st – The TIny house movement is closely related to the off-grid movement.  IT makes sense to have a tiny home if…
  • January 1, 2017·

Power from Tap Water

PBS News Hour just ran this report on an inventor who wants to extract the power from H20: HARI SREENIVASAN: Imagine a mini power supply…
  • December 27, 2016·

Best Beats Unplugged

It is not often that large events can call themselves self sustaining. But two upcoming music festivals on two entirely different continents are bucking the…
  • December 24, 2016·

Positively negative

I’m amazed at how the people in your life can become your biggest and loudest critics when you decide you are going to do something,…
  • December 21, 2016·

Barn living, level-expert!

I’ve seen many barn conversions but this is the best one I’ve seen to date! I LOVE the sliding barn doors that completely cover the…
  • December 18, 2016·

Tiny homes for veterans

All too often, our veterans are being left out in the cold, literally, there are many who are homeless for a variety of reasons, and…
  • December 17, 2016·

Last Minute Gifts to Unplug with

So, what’s in your off-grid Christmas gift kit? If you’re having some trouble choosing what to get for your off-grid someone, here are five suggestions to…
  • December 17, 2016·

Here we go again…

I’m very conflicted, I just signed up for a “service” that I would ordinarily want to have, especially at the monthly cost I’m going to…
  • December 15, 2016·

The egg

What does it take to be a good neighbor… One thing is being willing to help when help is needed. I don’t have really close…
  • December 10, 2016·
Doug and dog - Pumalín Park

RIP Doug Tompkins

By Aurora Herrera Can you imagine the founder of a multi-million-dollar company living off-grid? The man at the helm of the globally successful The North…
  • December 8, 2016·

Tiny home made with SIP

This video caught my eye because it used the term SIP, I didn’t know what that meant until I watched the video further, it’s structurally…
  • December 4, 2016·

No I’m knot kidding

Knots, everyone needs to know how to tie different kinds of knots, whether you are living off-grid, or in the big city, it’s a handy…
  • November 16, 2016·

Off-Grid vlog 03

Here is another chatty off-grid video shot on site on the 4th floor observation deck of the SkyCastle, the things going on lately are my…
  • November 11, 2016·

6 Months Living in beauty

We’ve been full-timing in our Airstream since April. That’s 6 months of LIB (Living in Beauty). So far, we’ve been visitors of 23 communities in…
  • November 6, 2016·

Tesla’s solar tiles may be too costly

The solar roof tile seems set to transform technological necessity into desirable object.   Elon Musk’s launch event last week was a revolutionary moment because it…
  • November 5, 2016·

Two years in a tiny home

Two years after moving into his tiny home, Bryce Langston came back for a return visit to see how Brett Sutherland is getting along, what…
  • October 30, 2016·

Park City commits to 100% renewable

  Park City, Utah is the latest American city to pledge to turn to 100% renewable energy (you can view the whole list here). The promise…
  • October 28, 2016·

WrethaOffGrid vlog 02

This is a semi-quick video where I’m chatting about what’s been going on this week. The main things are that my daughter and my 2…
  • October 25, 2016·

Now’s the time

It’s nearly Halloween here in the USA, which means the Christmas merchandise has been in the stores for at least a few weeks now… I…
  • October 23, 2016·

Canada project launched by ATCO

    A new off-grid system is capable of generating 75 kilowatts and storing 250 kilowatts hours of energy. Now that’s impressive! Last week, ATCO announced…
  • October 23, 2016·

Heard of a Walker stove?

Me neither, but once I discovered it, I am definitely intrigued, it takes the best of rocket stove, thermal mass heaters, masonry heaters and the…
  • October 22, 2016·

How safe is your drinking water?

      Reports of polluted drinking water contaminating whole communities have flooded in recently.  As if we didn’t need another reason to unplug, various…
  • October 19, 2016·

Crucial court hearing for Steward Wood

  You may remember the Steward Community Woodland Group from our previous article ‘Dartmoor community eviction‘. There’s a little summary downpage. Since then, the Woodlanders have graciously thanked…
  • October 13, 2016·

WrethaOffGrid vlog 01

I have been doing more and more reviews online, including video reviews so I have been getting more comfortable with being in front of the…
  • October 9, 2016·

Auroville, the Utopia next door

  Imagine a place free from politics, religion and money. People from every background, of all ages, living in unity and self-sufficiency. The food that…
  • October 5, 2016·

Outdoor living made a little easier

  Campfires are unpredictable and some camping stoves are bulky and let’s face it, impractical. Whether you want to heat some porridge to start your…
  • October 3, 2016·

Doomsday retailer

  Meet Scott Hunt, also known as Engineer775 on his Youtube channel where he gives expert reviews for National Geographic’s reality TV show, Doomsday Preppers.…
  • October 1, 2016·

Dartmoor community eviction

  An off-grid community located in woodland within Dartmoor National Park, UK are faced with eviction after 15 years of living side by side with nature.…
  • September 29, 2016·

Knowledge and experience

Since we aren’t naturally born with all the knowledge (and experience) we’ll ever need, we have to learn. Hopefully we are learning something new everyday,…
  • September 28, 2016·

UK Glamping Show goes down a treat

  The Glamping Show UK, made its annual appearance last week near Coventry.  The 3-day festival is for businesses and enthusiastic campers. The event included talks about…
  • September 24, 2016·

Hobbiton

I love looking at alternative type housing, even if it’s a bit of a fantasy, I do live in a SkyCastle after all :) I…
  • September 23, 2016·

Reynolds builds off-grid school

Where better to teach the next generation to be eco-friendly and self-sufficient than inside an off-grid school? This may be the future thanks to Michael…
  • September 19, 2016·

SkyCastle photos

Sometimes, you just have to shut up and let the photos do the talking :)   This is how the SkyCastle looks currently. \ The…
  • September 16, 2016·

Overcoming your fear

Fear (from Google) noun: fear; plural noun: fears 1. an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause…
  • September 16, 2016·

Floating paradise

If I weren’t living where I do now and loving it, this is how I would want to live, on a homemade island home. These…
  • September 11, 2016·

Art in the desert

You can see many things in the desert, some see desolation, others see stark beauty, yet others take what they see and transform it into…
  • September 1, 2016·

Hugelkultur

Hugelkultur, pronounced hugle (like bugle but with a “h”) culture, it’s really simple, combining raised beds with lots of organic material under and on top…
  • August 20, 2016·

Off-Grid tent living

This is interesting and unexpected, it’s a 4 season tent,  the video shows it in winter with a blanket of snow.  Unlike a yurt, this…
  • August 18, 2016·

130 square foot apartment

I like writing about tiny homes and alternative housing,  this is an interesting look at how some people live in South Korea, coming in at…
  • August 10, 2016·

Hard core van living

In this episode of our Van Life adventure we find a very rare VW mechanic and get to work putting right what “The Mother of…
  • August 7, 2016·

Kids and off-grid can work

Got kids and want to live off-grid? Think it’s not possible? Maybe you should check out this family in Canada,  they are doing it very…
  • July 30, 2016·

Floating tiny home

This is one of of the most interesting tiny home / floating homes I’ve ever seen! I love the look of this,  I could totally…
  • July 29, 2016·
Horse drawn life off the grid

UK Off-Grid Festival

August 11th – 14th Britain’s emerging community will open the doors of perception and glimpse Another World. The annual Off-Grid Festival in Exeter, Devon is…
  • July 18, 2016·

Tiny home tour

Julie Olson needed a traveling home for her mobile dog training business. With no architecture training, she drew up plans for exactly what she needed…
  • July 17, 2016·

Handy hacks

Modern technology is an amazing thing,  once open a time,  if you wanted to read about something,  to learn about something,  you had to go…
  • July 16, 2016·

What are we going to do?

We live off-grid, on a mountain side in the high desert of far west Texas, since December 2007, we have embedded ourselves quite deeply in…
  • July 9, 2016·

Off-Grid 4th of July

This year,  we had the best 4th of July celebration,  the SkyCastle has become quite the destination spot for our friends,  so PB (Primitive Bob)…
  • July 4, 2016·

SkyCastle upgrade

  The SkyCastle is getting a facelift, or an upgrade, however you wish to look at it. This all started out from PB needing to…
  • June 26, 2016·

The truth about solar

A current and interesting look at solar power today,we have truly come a long way. Of course battery technology is still pretty far behind, prices…
  • June 24, 2016·

Por Qué No Comprar Grano para Gallinas

Cuando me imagino criando pollos, siempre es de campo libre (¡por supuesto!), Veo a un granjero caminando por una bandada de hackeadores hambrientos arrojando puñados…
  • June 21, 2016·
solar shed

Cobertizos Solares en Venta

UNITY, Maine – 11 de abril – Para Joas Hochstetler, gerente de Backyard Buildings , propiedad de los Amish , la idea de fabricar un…
  • June 21, 2016·

Encuentro con un Siervo Canadiense

Aquellos que me han seguido durante algunos años deberían recordar mi encuentro con los alces hace unos tres años, causaron bastante daño, pero PB pudo…
  • June 21, 2016·