I've been off grid for around 2.5 months so far...

[klamath]

"Off the grid" includes no internet, are you using TOR?

Once again Off the grid means off the power grid. Whatever people have tried to change it to after that is completely subjective. It can mean living naked in the woods with no tools to some and to anyone not doing that to survive to them is NOT living off grid.
The only solid definition is the POWER GRID.

 

[presence]

Have to get back to work here but if you're curious as to how I finally got a working water solution here at the homestead hell, let me know.

I am curious. I recently developed a spring for an off grid client.

I dug a hole at the spring site by backhoe about 10 feet deep, lined the bottom with landscape fabric and 2" gravel, then dropped 5 concrete rings in it 4" wall 2' inside diameter 2' tall each. I installed a stainless pitless through the concrete below grade and hung a submersible stainless 110v pump in it, then ran 1" hdpe 100' back to a bladder tank and well switch in the house. The concrete well has a lid and a 3" pvc overflow. The pump runs off the site propane generator.

 

[presence]

I've done some research into solar water heating and it's in the plans.

look into thermosiphon; you just have to position your tank higher than your panel; that can mean tank in attic near the ridge and panel on the south roof near the gutters.

You can rig up a panel really easily with a grid of half inch copper, a 2x4 frame, some black or dark colored tile, and a sheet of glass. Just lay the tile on the roof in the 2x4's, copper on top and seal. As long as its below the tank it will cycle on its own.

 

[P3ter_Griffin]

Thanks for sharing Wooden. Sounds like its been a wild ride from the start. With your humor and determination no doubt you'll tame that bitch in no time.

 

[Wooden Indian]

Sorry for the lengthy delay between updates but we've been seeing a lot of cold wet weather and staying dry and warm was a priority.
I believe I was going to review our experience with composting and composting toilets, otherwise known as "Humanure"! Catchy, no?

It's not as exciting as it may sound and I could dress it up but I want this to be as real as possible. It's really just disposing of waste. End of story.

One issue with being off-grid is what to do with your waste. We have a septic on premises but that requires a shit-ton of water with each flush and does not equal a minimalist lifestyle. Selling this to my wife and daughter wasn't the easiest thing, but after showing them several videos on it and building one myself for their review, it was agreed upon that we would **** in a bucket.

Things you need:
3-4 Lowes or Home Depot buckets
30' or so of pine 2X4s
1 sheet of 1/2" plywood
2 hinges
1 toilet seat (designer of course)
Basic hand tools

After framing out the box, I covered it in plywood, hinged the top, and cut an oblong hole just larger than the toilet seat itself, installed the seat, sat the bucket in place, and it was complete. Easy breezy like a Sunday afternoon.

There is no smell outside of the initial odor that everyone experiences when dropping deuces and once you cover your deposit with a layer of wood chips or saw dust (your flush), it actually smells like pine. No biggie, right? The bitch is in composting it.

An eagle sours high above the snow capped majestic Poo Mountain as I work my way near the back. A bucket in my hand and determination in my heart, I take a deep breath and ascend... but there's no stink. Why? Because after depositing the bucket into the compost heap (the bucket does smell when dumped), I cover the contents in a thick layer of natural debris like hay and mulch, which keeps the middle warm and the microbes happy. They work their magic over a period of several months (you can see the pile shrink between deposits) and after a couple of years you have safe rich composting soil.

Turding in a bucket isn't going to be for everyone and composting that waste isn't going to be either, but it's doable and after a couple of months, it begins to feel the norm. I located some designs on a better approach to the composting and will probably being construction on it after this Spring rolls around, but Poo Mountain is working just fine for the time and while an incinerating toilet is desirable, the $2000 price tag has that on a back burner.

Filling sewers and septics with waste water just isn't us and this is a cheap and safe environmentally friendly alternative. Since we are not running enough water to flush a traditional toilet, how do we shower? I mean, do we walk outside through snow and ice, a couple of hundred feet to the shed that was converted into a giant bathhouse of sorts? Yes. Yes we do. And it's a nice hot shower utilizing rain, snow, and river water, whatever is handy.

Things you need:
1 Tarp
2 ....

Well, this is getting long. I can always tell you how we bathe after a nice hot poo some other time if you want. I really need to get back to work, y'all.
Thanks or reading and I promise some pics (not of Mt Poo) soon.

 

[Suzanimal]

Sorry for the lengthy delay between updates but we've been seeing a lot of cold wet weather and staying dry and warm was a priority.
I believe I was going to review our experience with composting and composting toilets, otherwise known as "Humanure"! Catchy, no?

It's not as exciting as it may sound and I could dress it up but I want this to be as real as possible. It's really just disposing of waste. End of story.

One issue with being off-grid is what to do with your waste. We have a septic on premises but that requires a shit-ton of water with each flush and does not equal a minimalist lifestyle. Selling this to my wife and daughter wasn't the easiest thing, but after showing them several videos on it and building one myself for their review, it was agreed upon that we would **** in a bucket.

Things you need:
3-4 Lowes or Home Depot buckets
30' or so of pine 2X4s
1 sheet of 1/2" plywood
2 hinges
1 toilet seat (designer of course)
Basic hand tools

After framing out the box, I covered it in plywood, hinged the top, and cut an oblong hole just larger than the toilet seat itself, installed the seat, sat the bucket in place, and it was complete. Easy breezy like a Sunday afternoon.

There is no smell outside of the initial odor that everyone experiences when dropping deuces and once you cover your deposit with a layer of wood chips or saw dust (your flush), it actually smells like pine. No biggie, right? The bitch is in composting it.

An eagle sours high above the snow capped majestic Poo Mountain as I work my way near the back. A bucket in my hand and determination in my heart, I take a deep breath and ascend... but there's no stink. Why? Because after depositing the bucket into the compost heap (the bucket does smell when dumped), I cover the contents in a thick layer of natural debris like hay and mulch, which keeps the middle warm and the microbes happy. They work their magic over a period of several months (you can see the pile shrink between deposits) and after a couple of years you have safe rich composting soil.

Turding in a bucket isn't going to be for everyone and composting that waste isn't going to be either, but it's doable and after a couple of months, it begins to feel the norm. I located some designs on a better approach to the composting and will probably being construction on it after this Spring rolls around, but Poo Mountain is working just fine for the time and while an incinerating toilet is desirable, the $2000 price tag has that on a back burner.

Filling sewers and septics with waste water just isn't us and this is a cheap and safe environmentally friendly alternative. Since we are not running enough water to flush a traditional toilet, how do we shower? I mean, do we walk outside through snow and ice, a couple of hundred feet to the shed that was converted into a giant bathhouse of sorts? Yes. Yes we do. And it's a nice hot shower utilizing rain, snow, and river water, whatever is handy.

Things you need:
1 Tarp
2 ....

Well, this is getting long. I can always tell you how we bathe after a nice hot poo some other time if you want. I really need to get back to work, y'all.
Thanks or reading and I promise some pics (not of Mt Poo) soon.

This post is the shit!

 

[luctor-et-emergo]

Sorry for the lengthy delay between updates but we've been seeing a lot of cold wet weather and staying dry and warm was a priority.
I believe I was going to review our experience with composting and composting toilets, otherwise known as "Humanure"! Catchy, no?

It's not as exciting as it may sound and I could dress it up but I want this to be as real as possible. It's really just disposing of waste. End of story.

One issue with being off-grid is what to do with your waste. We have a septic on premises but that requires a shit-ton of water with each flush and does not equal a minimalist lifestyle. Selling this to my wife and daughter wasn't the easiest thing, but after showing them several videos on it and building one myself for their review, it was agreed upon that we would **** in a bucket.

Things you need:
3-4 Lowes or Home Depot buckets
30' or so of pine 2X4s
1 sheet of 1/2" plywood
2 hinges
1 toilet seat (designer of course)
Basic hand tools

After framing out the box, I covered it in plywood, hinged the top, and cut an oblong hole just larger than the toilet seat itself, installed the seat, sat the bucket in place, and it was complete. Easy breezy like a Sunday afternoon.

There is no smell outside of the initial odor that everyone experiences when dropping deuces and once you cover your deposit with a layer of wood chips or saw dust (your flush), it actually smells like pine. No biggie, right? The bitch is in composting it.

An eagle sours high above the snow capped majestic Poo Mountain as I work my way near the back. A bucket in my hand and determination in my heart, I take a deep breath and ascend... but there's no stink. Why? Because after depositing the bucket into the compost heap (the bucket does smell when dumped), I cover the contents in a thick layer of natural debris like hay and mulch, which keeps the middle warm and the microbes happy. They work their magic over a period of several months (you can see the pile shrink between deposits) and after a couple of years you have safe rich composting soil.

Turding in a bucket isn't going to be for everyone and composting that waste isn't going to be either, but it's doable and after a couple of months, it begins to feel the norm. I located some designs on a better approach to the composting and will probably being construction on it after this Spring rolls around, but Poo Mountain is working just fine for the time and while an incinerating toilet is desirable, the $2000 price tag has that on a back burner.

Filling sewers and septics with waste water just isn't us and this is a cheap and safe environmentally friendly alternative. Since we are not running enough water to flush a traditional toilet, how do we shower? I mean, do we walk outside through snow and ice, a couple of hundred feet to the shed that was converted into a giant bathhouse of sorts? Yes. Yes we do. And it's a nice hot shower utilizing rain, snow, and river water, whatever is handy.

Things you need:
1 Tarp
2 ....

Well, this is getting long. I can always tell you how we bathe after a nice hot poo some other time if you want. I really need to get back to work, y'all.
Thanks or reading and I promise some pics (not of Mt Poo) soon.

Awesome, thanks for the review. I could live with something like this if I'd live off the grid. I'd try to make use of some other materials that would probably make it a bit less 'shithouse' and a bit more 'toilet' like. Also making it that much more expensive.

Also, if I had some kind of way to capture rain water, I'd dig in a couple 250gal caged tanks and fill those with rainwater that you can use for flushing toilets.

 

[youngbuck]

You're not in Oregon are you... around Burns?

Just how retarded are you? GTFO

 

[RJ Liberty]

I have enjoyed reading this thread. Thanks for sharing your story here, Wooden Indian.

I have spent the past four years slowly working to get as off the grid as possible. I'm on propane and am working on solar panels (but they are pretty expensive). My water comes from a well across the road. And I have been growing an orchard at the back of my property to be more self-sustaining. Little by little, I am making progress. But it is sllllloowww progress...

 

[LittleLightShining]

I had horrible experience with what was supposed to be a composting toilet. Much better off to build a solid outhouse with a back door. Composting humanure isn't that hard-- or gross-- if you do it right. I actually do have pics

I spent a lot of time in an off the grid, then on the grid, tiny cabin with my family of 5. I really enjoyed reading your posts, OP, makes me miss the good old days. There are lots of tradeoffs to the lifestyle. I would do it again in a heartbeat if I could find the right place.

Did I miss the part where you say why you burn kerosene instead of wood?

 

[LittleLightShining]

Awesome, thanks for the review. I could live with something like this if I'd live off the grid. I'd try to make use of some other materials that would probably make it a bit less 'shithouse' and a bit more 'toilet' like. Also making it that much more expensive.

Also, if I had some kind of way to capture rain water, I'd dig in a couple 250gal caged tanks and fill those with rainwater that you can use for flushing toilets.

My outhouse was pretty sweet, a two seater with a window-- and a blueboard insulation seat in winter Maintenance (beyond covering daily deposits) was a few hours a couplefew times of year (depending on how many people were using it).

 

[Deborah K]

My hat's off to ya, Wooden Indian. Not sure if you're a Adam Kokesh hater, or not, but he's homesteading in AZ. right now and doing a video log of it:







there's more..

 

[Wooden Indian]

It's been a while but I promised I would tell a little about our shower set up here at the off-grid home site.

If you are one of the many Americans that have taken a weekend trip in an RV, you are all too well aware that the shower facility often leaves much to be desired. The average man’s shoulders are as wide as the shower itself and it would be fair to say that my shoulders and back are a little more full than most. But even my wife and daughter would be unable to do more than sit facing the water, daring to not move their arms more than inches from their sides.

Luckily, that shed on the property, while dirty and experiencing rot near the front facing floor, was in otherwise fine shape after replacing the doors. So, after cleaning and some repair, what I saw was a 10X15 shower room, and driven by my need of clean balls, I sprang into action.

Things you need:
1 large heavy tarp
2 rolls of plastic
1 DC pump
1 staple gun
Drill
50 gallon tank
Hose
Stinky balls
1 Propane tank
And a propane heated Camp Shower.

First I poured a bottle of water on the floor and watched the direction it naturally ran towards and drilled a 3” hole in the floor at that corner to act as a drain, then laid down the large tarp, stapled around the edges, put up the plastic sheathing, stapled as well, hung the camp shower, drilled out a hole in the wall for the propane line, made a shelf on the back side of the shed for the tank to rest on, installed the shower unit on the other side, dragged in the 50 gal tank and placed the DC pump to its side. Then a quick connection of 2 hoses and I was ready to place the 12 volt battery.

The water is pumped from the stream to the main house tank where it is chlorinated and then run through a Whirlpool whole house filter then pumped up to the shower 50 gal tank where it will service approximately 5 showers with the small DC pump powering the Camp Shower installed on the inner wall. The water is hot and the flow adjustable. Perhaps the biggest issue is moving the battery to and from the shed as I take it out to a charger after each use.

It may not be a spa at Trump Tower, but for $300, it sure does beat the hell out of that cramped, low water pressure, closet in the RV. Coming across the yard wet and cold sucks. But that’s only for a few moments and fair trade in my caveman opinion.


House construction begins in 2 weeks and the shower room will be converted into a power room for my batteries, generators, inverters, and all that good stuff.

 

[Wooden Indian]

Also, here are a few pictures I shot during the last snow.

The first is me walking up from as far as I can drive my truck, 2nd the path leading back to the stream where I gather my water, and the last the stream itself.

 

[P3ter_Griffin]

Do you even generate, bro?

This video seems wildly appropriate.




Thanks for the update/motivation!!

 

[RJ Liberty]

Wooden Indian, every one of your off-grid posts inspires me to get my own family as off the grid and as self-reliant as possible.

This week, I planted two new fruit tree saplings in my orchard, which I started last year and which has already produced some fruit. By this summer, I will have 20 fruit trees.

 

[jbauer]

Wooden Indian, every one of your off-grid posts inspires me to get my own family as off the grid and as self-reliant as possible.

This week, I planted two new fruit tree saplings in my orchard, which I started last year and which has already produced some fruit. By this summer, I will have 20 fruit trees.

Get the berries going if you haven't already. I've got Apples, pears, peaches, nectarines and plumbs growing. Along with just about every type of berry that grows here. They seem to give better bang for the buck early on where as the trees will be in the years to come.

 

[jbauer]

Do you even generate, bro?

This video seems widely appropriate.





Thanks for the update/motivation!!

Thats a fantastic idea. The only thing I'd be worried about would be what happens during flash flooding. My creek can come up 10' if it rains very hard and fast. I could transfer the power through a gears or belt system but at some point the cost to build some thing like that out weights the power it would produce.

 

[luctor-et-emergo]

It may not be a spa at Trump Tower, but for $300, it sure does beat the hell out of that cramped, low water pressure, closet in the RV. Coming across the yard wet and cold sucks. But that’s only for a few moments and fair trade in my caveman opinion.

Who gives a shit, you made it and it works. It's cold out there so I bet a hot shower really makes you happy.

Do you have plans drawn up for your home?

 

[RJ Liberty]

Get the berries going if you haven't already. I've got Apples, pears, peaches, nectarines and plumbs growing. Along with just about every type of berry that grows here. They seem to give better bang for the buck early on where as the trees will be in the years to come.

Totally. I currently have three berry bushes and a grape vine. More will come in a few weeks. I was surprised to get a small harvest last year, since you're not supposed to get any fruit the first year, but I did. I have one acre, so there's plenty of room for more in the future.