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The off-grid homesteading
Blog
Welcome to our blog!
Lessons learned on the journey toward independence
In our blog is a wealth of knowledge that we've accumulated over many years of off-grid living, as well as the lessons we've learned through trial and error. Our experience in the School of Hard Knocks has taught us valuable lessons that we are excited to share with you. In addition to our own expertise, we've also hand-selected a group of guest contributors who are experts in their respective fields. Their contributions provide even more valuable insights into homesteading, off-grid living, and emergency preparedness. We hope you enjoy learning from their knowledge and experience as much as we have!
Blog Categories
Off-Grid Power
Electricity is the kingpin in modern homes. Without it, many essential systems can't function. Learn how to make your own power with solar, micro hydro, and other sources.
Growing Food
Learn to grow your own food with tips on starting a homestead garden, including vegetable gardens, fruit orchards, small fruits, composting, and more in this section.
Storing Food
Learn to preserve and store your own food with off grid kitchen tips, recipes, and info about canning, dehydrating, and other food preservation related topics in this section.
Water
Most water systems are completely dependent on the power company. Learn how to make yours as independent as possible so your family has a reliable source of water.
Safety
Prevention and preparation are key to ensuring safety, covering physical security, home fire protection, wildland fire preparedness, and more in this section.
Communication
Communications is an often overlooked part of preparedness and homesteading. Learn how to stay in touch while living in a remote location as well as during emergencies.
most recent posts
Batteries 101 - Part 2: Battery State of Charge
How To Determine Battery State Of Charge The next question that begs an answer is "How do I calculate my battery's state of charge?" There are 3 main methods that you can use. 1. Voltmeter; 2. Charge Meter; 3. Hydrometer 1. Voltmeter The most common method for...
Batteries 101 - Part 1: Depth of Discharge
In the next two articles I will be focusing on the use of a forklift battery in off-grid renewable energy systems. However, much of the information also applies to other deep cycle batteries that are commonly used off the grid. For more information about using a...
Firewood 101
Collecting firewood is more involved than just cutting trees down, cutting them up and stacking them for use in a wood stove. Here is some very important information to follow when gathering firewood. 1. Burn only well seasoned firewood Seasoned firewood comes from...
How To Make Off Grid Hot Water in the Summer
We use a modern wood cook stove to heat our home, cook & bake our food, and heat our water (Learn how we heat our water: Hot Water for FREE). Can't imagine how we lived without it. But then summer arrives...What then? One could always cook with a propane or...
Dealing With Peach Leaf Curl Naturally
This spring as our fruit trees were blossoming and leafing out, I noticed that many of the leaves on our peach tree were abnormally shaped, with red blisters on them. Craig, my husband, looked on the internet for solutions. We determined that our peach tree was...
Planting Garlic
Our family loves garlic--and a number of years back, we discovered "gourmet garlic"--which is another name for hardneck garlic. It’s different than the garlic that you buy at the grocery store, which usually is grown in warmer climates and is sometimes called...