Gaye Levy
This site contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a commission from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you. Full Disclosure Here.
An updated version of this article can be found here: Six Ways to Get Ready for Going Off-Grid.
Six Things to Do to Prepare for Going Off-Grid
[DEAL] Ultrabright Tactical Flashlight
Never be Vulnerable in the Dark Again
Get This Deal →
You May Also Like...
11 Responses to “Six Things to Do to Prepare for Going Off-Grid”
L.A. based production Company seeking families that are preparing to live off the grid within the next 3-6 months or even sooner. This is a documentary setting for a highly respected cable network. Please reply if interested. Thanks.
prepping now to live off grid first of spring 2015.
I have various fire starting tools and methods … the more the merrier right. I was also reading the other day where you should take you b.o.b. and only your b.o.b. on a weekend camping trip. It’s the best way to find out what you are missing.
As for camping, we do a lot of camping, so that part we have down.
I guess I could be classified as a survivor if the thieving society would leave me alone.
I have two wells with hand pumps. 9000 gallons of propane. 500 gallons gasoline stored inside. A small effecient generator. Two + years of firewood stored indide. Enough .22 ammo to eat rabbits, squrills, etc for a loooooong time. Canning jars, salt for preserving meat etc. Garden seeds and many other items.
@Sam – Thanks for the feedback. However, I think you missed the point. This post was about “lessons learned” not the perfect off-grid trip. The purpose of the trip was to clear out some of my dad’s land and since there are no utilities on it, I knew we would be “off-grid.”
I would take exception with your definition of being a prepper. There is no one mold or type of person that would make a prepper. Eating fast food, making your own bread, making no trips to Walmart, making 100 trips to Walmart doesn’t really play in the definition. Being a prepper for 1 day or 100 years doesn’t either. We come in all shapes and sizes. I think the important part is that we move more and more to a preparedness lifestyle. I try to do that myself and hopefully share the articles and websites I read on my site for others to learn from too.
I would agree that you can go “off-grid” at home. I think that is a worthy endeavor and should be tried by everyone at some point.
Although it sounds cheesy, I believe in lifelong learning. The post was a desire to share what I learned on my trip with my dad.
Thanks again Gaye for posting it.
Peace,
Todd
another note on the generator, most if not all gas caps have vented lids, they must be adjusted or
the air will be choked off and they will quit. keep a log of how many hours a full tank will run the generator and plan on having an ample supply of fuel on hand
for a couple of weeks. you can buy Stabil gas additive to help with the new mandated ethanol, or you can render your generator incapacitated until it can be worked on with extra parts needed.
Simply making a list of your daily life-style, what you eat, how you prep foods, bathing, chores, etc. you can make a list of needed items and determine what is needed and how much to have on hand, plan for at least a weeks worth of extras. our first winter off grid taught us that running out really sucks. having extra parts for machinery is a must. practice rationing and even if you only implement a little rationing at a time, you can start getting used to having less, we do this on a daily basis, some think we’re nuts, but it may be a way of life for everyone real soon.
Eve – As you know, you are my go-to person when it comes to living off-grid. You always have great tips to offer my readers and I thank you for that!
— Gaye
Gaye,
thanks for your kind words. I try to do my best, and it’s hard work at times, but I wouldn’t change back to on grid living. I’m actually liking it. next year I will have some new things to use for barter/sell. hope all is well with everyone.
Happy Independence Day Everyone, be safe.
Wonder how many other Prepper GURUs like Todd are out there? Don’t get me wrong, I like the ‘Drudge’ format of his site and check it daily. But running to Walmart on day 1, not checking the oil in their genny before starting it, and can barely go 3 days without fast-food? That’s a typical weekend warrior around here, not a prepper.
You don’t have to go anywhere to go off-grid, just walk over to that gray metal box in your basement or closet, open the door, and flip the big switch. Then close your water and natural gas mains. Now survive comfortably for a long weekend. If you can’t at least do that, in January up north or in July down south, I wouldn’t call yourself a prepper.
I believe that more to the point, most preppers are fully able to fend for themselves if they are sheltering at home (bugging in). The real problem is when they must leave and bug-out in the wilderness or other unfamiliar territory.
Turning off the power and going off-grid in the comfort of your own home is a good drill to perform and everyone should do that from time to time. But being away from your stuff is a whole other story. Now that I think about it, I should have come up with a better title (such as Six Things to Do to Prepare for Bugging Out).
I apologize, could have worded my earlier comment better to be sure. Was reading other articles around the survival blogosphere about preppers dealing with the current eastern US power outages before I saw this one, and it just struck a nerve. Lots of unprepared ‘preppers’ out there – with no redundancy and untested plans that they just found out don’t work. That was where my off-grid testing in your own home comment came from. Anyone else shocked to see the number of bloggers/commenters on other sites having a difficult time with such a minor event like a power outage? We live off the grid in bugout country, unprepared people (except in the ‘bullets’ category probably) bugging out in our direction after a SHTF event is my greatest concern. The Walmart won’t be open, and no, I won’t lend you my spare XYZ…
I wouldn’t trust that genny Todd, the top-end may have some damage (and hopefully not the bottom end too) from the lack of oil. It almost certainly has more wear than it should based on it’s age/usage. I wouldn’t trust it for anything critical, like running a well pump in drought country.