All the Benefits of Off-grid Without the Hassle

Helpful how-tos

7 May

Living off the grid is the bomb (I mean, zero electricity bills and minimal impact on the planet are pretty cool), but the bit that no one tells you is that you don’t actually have to live off the grid to access many of the benefits.

We always planned to build off the grid, it was part of our ‘why’, and it was a financial no-brainer for us due to the high cost of connection at our property. However, if you are already connected to the grid, there is good news.

Currently, coal stations dig up coal, burn it, and then send the electricity down the existing poles and wires to our homes. The by-product of burning coal is carbon, which ends up in our atmosphere.

To tap out of this process and gain greater financial independence from your power company, you only need to install enough solar on your roof (often not a huge amount) to cover your electricity usage between 11 am and 3 pm (when the sun is high in the sky) and run all your power-hungry devices during this time.

Think pool pumps, washing machines, dishwashers, etc. You then tick the box to switch the remainder of your power usage to 100% renewable energy, and voila... you just massively reduced both your bill AND your environmental impact.

Pretty cool, huh?

However, if you are keen on building off-grid, it’s really important to get the passive design principles of your home spot-on because the smaller your energy requirements are, the smaller the system you will require, and the smaller your mortgage will be.

Do you have solar or renewables attached to your home? Do you love it? Hate it? Let me know!

For more in-depth info on off-grid, low-impact living, jump into our Simple Sustainable Build Workshop here.