Off the Grid Homes

     When one lives “off the grid,” it refers to living in a self-sufficient manner without reliance on one or more public utilities. Therefore off-grid homes are completely autonomous. These homes do not rely on municipal water supply, sewer, natural gas, electrical power grid or similar utility services. A true "off the grid" or "off-grid" house is able to operate completely independent of all traditional public utility services. These homes have seen more publicity with figues like Ed Begley Jr. and Darryl Hannah promoting it and having homes that are off-grid.

     Going off-grid can be done for noble reasons or to lower the environmental impact of living, as the typically limited amount of on-site renewable energy available is an incentive to reduce its use. It is often done to residential buildings only occasionally occupied, such as vacation cabins, to avoid high initial costs of traditional utility connections. Other people choose to live in houses where the cost of outside utilities is prohibitive, or such a distance away as to be impractical, such as in the countryside. In his book How to Live Off-Grid, Nick Rosen lists seven reasons for going off-grid. The top two are saving money, and reducing the carbon footprint. Others include survivalism, preparing for the collapse of the oil economy and bringing life back to the countryside.

     If you want to go off-grid, it is a worthy endeavor. The first thing you need to do to go off the grid is to rid yourself of dependence on electricity from your power company. The most common way to do so is by using the sun and the wind to provide your power. Neither concept is new, but more people are turning to these constant power sources to help offset or replace their reliance on electricity fueled by burning coal.

     Once you get power from the sun and wind, it's time to get yourself off the city water and sewer line. The great thing about water is that it's everywhere. It runs beneath your feet as groundwater and falls from the sky as rain. You can tap into both of these sources in order to go off the grid. According to the EPA, roughly 15 percent of homes in the United States get their water on their own, so there's no reason why you can't be one of them.

     If you go off the grid, you'll most likely need a few other things in place to ensure that you stay warm, cool and have plenty of water. Many people use propane as their source of gas. You can go all electric with your water heater and range, but that will use a great deal of your manufactured energy. Whole-house propane tanks are basically large versions of the ones that you use for your gas grill. The propane is fed into your house by pipes, just like your natural gas line, and the tank is refilled as you need it by a propane service. It works very well in most homes. You’ll also need to consider things like garabage and recycling. Try and so what work for you that has the least impact globally.