The problem today however is that we have individuals, governments, and other organizations that have had a stranglehold on society for so long and have molded it into a lifestyle that’s forcing people to take a serious look at off-grid living.
Not because we should be doing this as a society, but it’s a natural response of wanting to be free from any tyranny. However, I believe that even in an off-grid lifestyle, there should be a focus on good abundant living where possible.
With that being said, I want to give you 5 tips I’ve learned for the possibility of going off grid.
Let’s dig in…
1. Growing Your Own Food
This goes without saying in my opinion. As human beings our most basic needs are food, water, and a shelter of some kind. The most important of these three being food and water. So knowing how to grow food is a must.
The problem today is that most people on the planet have no clue how to grow food. Not to mention enough to sustain themselves and their loved ones. If that’s you, don’t worry. You can start taking steps now to become more self sufficient in your food needs. The Self-Sufficient Backyard is an excellent resource for helping you understand how to do this on just 1/4th of an acre of land.
Here’s how you can get started growing food if you’ve never done it.
- Start a garden now
It doesn’t matter if you’ve never done it before. Also, it doesn’t matter if it’s winter outside. You can start by growing plants inside your house if you have a room that gets a lot of sun. If you don’t have that type of room, using a grow light can work as well. These can be bought off of Amazon. I’ve used this one here to start plants and it’s worked pretty well. It’s also less expensive compared to other grow lights.
If you don’t want to deal with dirt and the possibilities of pests, then a hydroponic setup can work well too. Even a Kratky type of garden can help you grow the basics like lettuce, herbs, and more.
If you don’t know what the Kratky method is, it’s the most basic hydroponic setup. See the video here:
- Expand Your Garden Every Year
The key is to just get started. If you’re brand new to it, then you’ll hit some snags and bumps, but that’s ok. The idea is to begin to gain knowledge. Learn about soil. Learn about how to deter pests. See how to get more yield from the plants you have.
Then the following year, try to go bigger. I’ve done this myself personally. I’m in my third year of gardening now and I’m doing wonderfully. My first year? I only got some jalapenos and radishes!
That’s because I didn’t know what I was doing and was messing with everything.
However, as you grow in knowledge, you’ll grow in confidence because you’ll learn more of what works and what doesn’t. Plus it’s just a nice serene atmosphere when you have the garden available to tend to.
- Save Your Seeds
This is something that I’m starting to practice. By saving seeds you’ll not only be able to replenish your garden over and over, but also have crops that are used to your environment. Not to mention, you could turn this into a business and sell the seeds.
I should note that according to others, the only seeds you really want to save are heirloom seeds.
- Turn Your House Into Productivity
There’s so many ways to get food production from your property. Not only do you have the land outside your house, but there are rooms in your house. What about your walls? Did you know you can create a grow wall with lettuces?
You can also create a makeshift grow tent from dollar store shower curtains (white) and pvc pipes. I use this myself and it works wonders. If you want to take it a step further, ordering a pack of mylar bags from Amazon can be used to cover the tent as well.
If you don’t have a house, but have an apartment the same applies. Use the balcony as a garden if you have one. And turn rooms in the house into productive grow rooms. Grow herbs on your kitchen counter.
The possibilities are totally endless if we’d only think outside the box.
2. Create Your Own Medicine
A good resource you may want to look into is the Medicinal Kit. You can add these plants to your garden and have your own pharmacy right in your backyard.
We’ve been conditioned to think health remedies come from a bottle or the person in a white coat behind the counter at our local Walgreens, but that’s not true. They all get their stuff from things that come from the ground. By learning how these plants work, you can cut out the middleman and save a ton of money on your healthcare.
3. Create A Food Supply
So that means not only will you have to be able to produce foods, but you’ll need to preserve and store them.
The Lost Ways Book is a great resource to outline how the ancestors did it and how you can tap into the same knowledge. It will show you how to create superfoods that you can store for the long term so you are not only provided for, but have nutritional needs met as well.
Another book, The Invisible Root Cellar, will show you how to build these root cellars in plain sight so you can store your food for the long haul. It doesn’t take much either. There’s not a lot of expense involved to do this.
However, if you’re like me and want to get a jump on long term food storage, I’d recommend buying an emergency food kit for at least 3 months. There are a number of them available, but I got mine from 4 Patriots.
Let me say this, about 4 Patriots. I’m not into left wing, right wing. or any other wing. I’m into the saving and sustainability of my family. What made their offer so attractive isn’t just the food kits that can last up to 25 years, but also all the additional bonuses you get with it like an additional food kit, solar kettle, garden seeds, and more.
Plus, they offer payment plans that allow you to get the package immediately. That made it worthwhile to me and gave me peace of mind in case of an emergency. If you want to see what they’re doing, check the site here.
4. Learn About Producing Energy
Solar because there’s a big lightbulb in the sky so why not take advantage of it? Wind because it’s blowing from time to time so why not capture its energy? And hydro because it’s the most constant out of the 3.
You’ll also need to know about storing that energy. That means you’ll need to become adept at battery banks and some electrical skills.
Another factor is having emergency power in the case of a crisis. You can get a solar hand cranking radio to help you keep on top of things. But if you want emergency power that can keep appliances going for a bit then I’d recommend checking out this solar generator.
Also, if you need power to charge your mobiles in a pinch in the case of an emergency then check out the pocket solar energy pack here. It’s great to help you stay in communication with families in a crisis.
5. Physical Exercise
I found one person wasn’t ready for this before going off-grid and threw their back out trying to do chores. It took 2 years for them to heal fully. That’s because they didn’t have the upper body strength they needed.
So if you’re planning to go off-grid then it’s best to start getting in some level of physical shape now. Prepare your body for the things you’ll be doing when you go off-grid or become self-sufficient.
In Conclusion…
While there are many more tips involved for being self-sufficient, these are some of the top in my opinion. Sure, you’ll need to know things about raising livestock, building projects, foraging for foods, etc.
But for most people looking to go off-grid, these things can be a bit overwhelming trying to master them all at once. Start where you can and improve from there. Don’t be afraid or intimidated either. As humans we have incredible abilities to become anything we can imagine. We can learn to do anything.
Even being self sufficient!
