Everything off grid; power, water, self-sufficiency; whether you're doing it or aspiring.
cross-posted from: https://slrpnk.net/post/20107309
Source: Bon Bagay: Permaculture, Abundance and Autonomy (scroll to bottom)
cross-posted from: https://slrpnk.net/post/20107320
Source: Bon Bagay: Permaculture, Abundance and Autonomy (scroll to bottom)
My experience using ethanol as fuel
Tldr: Pro: easy to use, versatile, low capex. Contra: high opex, hard to light in cold, fuel storage
As winter came faster than I wanted, and my cabin build always goes slower than I want, I've had to improvise on heating. So I've been burning alcohol as my main fuel source in my small cabin the last few months.
The burners are circa 10cm diameter ceramic spunges in stainless steel tins, as pictured. I made a variety of lids to the tins, with holes in them. The size and quantity of the holes affect heat output and duration of burning.
The setup cost me around 35EUR.
For high heat output, such as for cooking, I use lids with large holes. In the evening, I use multiple burners with small holes, so that they burn for longer.
Overall it works well. They're very easy to refill, and light. Unless it's really cold (<5C), then I put them, closed, in my pocket for 10 minutes to pre heat them.
As my cabin is small (2.5m by 3m), and well insulated, it heats the inside temperature
My ezpz rain collector
It's an 80l trash can.
The inverted lid has small holes drilled in them and act as the rain collector.
Two more pairs of holes, at the edge of the lid and into the container, together with some string keep the lid from blowing away.
How do
cross-posted from: https://slrpnk.net/post/16808771
Lived off grid for 10 years in North NSW, Australia. Decided to move after our massvie "Black Summer Bushfires" that were in the middle.of, now in Northern Tasmania baxk on the grid for water and power but live on 2 acres in the edge of a snall rural village. M and F couple.
Moved originally becase of climate change and moved again becase of climate change :)
Frugal, quasi minamilist,Aethiest, Anarchist :) Retired at 35 and am now 57.
Hardcore off-grid in a Manhattan apartment
A bit too hardcore for me, but can't fault his conviction.
DIY battery bank, stage 1: physical form and enclosure
They say that people who don't build battery banks while wearing a sweater will cry about the lack of battery banks in double fur coats. :)
Since today was possibly the last "sweater" weekend here, morning frost is a reality and snow has fallen 500 km northwards...
...I decided that I would be among the first and not the second group. :)
Coincidence has given me an almost unused (43 000 km driven) battery bank of a Mitsubishi i-MIEV (a crap car, don't buy unless you are an EV mechanic).
But in my house, there is already a 24V battery bank made of Nissan Leaf cells and I'm worried about lack of space and fire hazard (if lithium batteries burn, you typically need tons of water to make them do anything else - I have only one ton and pumping it requires that same battery bank).
So I decided that I'd build a new 48V battery bank outside my house, start it up with the MIEV cells and maybe migrate the Leaf cells there later too, after checking and reassembly.
However, winters are cold h
Qanat: Protecting Water From Evaporation and Cooling Homes
(Note before reading: I am aware it is very unlikely people on here can build one of these systems, so I am just posting it for those who find it interesting)
Evaporation of water from reservoirs and irrigation canals is a problem that many places struggle with today, but one desert solution was used approximately 3000 years ago.
“Throughout the arid regions of Iran, agricultural and permanent settlements are supported by the ancient qanat system of tapping alluvial aquifers at the heads of valleys and conducting the water along underground tunnels by gravity, often over many kilometres. The eleven qanats representing this system include rest areas for workers, water reservoirs and watermills. The traditional communal management system still in place allows equitable and sustainable water sharing and distribution."[unesco.org](https://whc.unesco
A District In Japan That Works Together with Fish 🐟
I understand that not everyone will have access to a stream/river with fish, but I thought people might find this interesting anyways.
Do you have videos that stick with you? "Through the Kitchen Window: A Town Living with Water [Harie, Shiga] " is one that occasionally pops back in my mind.
In Harie, Shiga(Japan), water canals run through much of the town, and the people there use it to develop a mutually beneficial relationship with fish. 🐟
Imagine a pool of water that people use for washing fruits, vegetables, and dishes. That same pool has carp that call it home, and the carp eat the scraps and keep the water crystal clear. This could be inside the home or outside, but it is constantly added to by natural spring water, and the water exits in to a canal. This system is called “Kabata,” and has been used for [over 300 years](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/298291064_The_KABATA_a_system_of_unique_water_utility_spaces_in_ja
Passive Solar
Within Arizona(USA) is a beautiful cliff-dwelling built by the Sinagua people in 1100-1425 AD. Montezuma Castle (renamed to this by colonizers) has around 20 rooms, and is built using a method that today people call “passive solar building.”
“In passive solar building design, windows, walls, and floors are made to collect, store, reflect, and distribute solar energy, in the form of heat in the winter and reject solar heat in the summer. This is called passive solar design because, unlike active solar heating systems, it does not involve the use of mechanical and electrical devices.” Wikipedia
For the cliff dwelling, that included a design that ensured the buildings were hit with the heat of the low-winter sun, but protected from the high-summer sun by overhang. It also made use of ventilat
Hot Spring Power
I know very few people in the world have access to hot springs, but I just thought people here might find this information as interesting as I do.
Japan:
Cooking Eggs:
In some other places, hot-spring pools can become a neighborhood egg-cooking spot. In Japan, these eggs are called Onsen Tamago (温泉卵), and are slow-cooked in the natural spring water.
The result is a unique custard-like texture in the yoke, while the whites are soft.
“It is said to have originated in Onsen Towns in Beppu, Oita prefecture. It is said that the first Onsen Tamago was made over 300 years ago when a traveler left his eggs in a hot spring by accident and found them cooked when he returned." MyFormosaFood
More Info:
Kangina: Ancient Method of Preserving Grapes 🍇
While it might look like those grapes are in weirdly-shaped bread, they are really in clay. A pair of clay bowls are made, and left to bake in the sun. When they are dried, they are ready to use.
“When each pair of rustic “earthenware bowls” is completely dried, around 1kg of ripe unbruised fruit are put inside, and then sealed with another serving of mud to form a single closed, air-tight vessel.” Farmizen
This is called a “Kangina” and is an ancient preservation technique still used in Afghanistan to this day.
The kangina are put somewhere cool (sometimes buried) and will remain fresh for up to [6 months](https://www.farmizen.com/the-ancient-
No Power "Fridge" 🚫⚡️
Crafted by a potter named M Sivasamy, this clay pot was designed to help keep produce cool for days.
He made a cylindrical pot made out of clay with a tap on one side and an outlet to pour water on the other side. A smaller pot fits inside the bigger one where you can place your vegetables which is then covered with a lid. The technology is simple — the water in the pot remains cool keeping the vegetables fresh and cool. - BetterIndia
For places with no or limited electricity, this could help immensely. Especially considering terracotta(earthenware) clay is almost used worldwide.
More Info:
River Powered Washing
I just thought people would find this interesting:
Within the Ukraine lives the Hutsul people. They are masters of a specific type of wool blanket technique called “lizhnyk,” which is made from Carpathian sheep wool.
Creating the blankets is a long and difficult craft, but the results are beautiful.
One of the most ingenious parts of their craft involves help from the river. A valylo is a river-powered wooden washing machine; which will beat the blankets until they are soft and lose their sheep-smell.
More info:
Teardown of Possio Greta cellular GSM fax machine
Not sure if this is useful to off-gridders but I guess if you are in an area with voice towers that do not offer data, this could be useful.
I wonder if a software fax app on a GSM phone would be able to send faxes without needing data service. Or in fact, might it have to? Otherwise I guess if it were to use mobile data it would have to run over VOIP, perhaps with sketchier results.
Freesat → MythTV would be useful. But with what hardware?
cross-posted from: https://infosec.pub/post/8864206
I bought a Silicondust HD Homerun back before they put their website on Cloudflare. I love the design of having a tuner with a cat5 port, so the tuner can work with laptops and is not dependent on being installed into a PC.
But now that Silicondust is part of Cloudflare, I will no longer buy their products. I do not patronize Cloudflare patrons.
I would love to have a satellite tuner in a separate external box that:
- tunes into free-to-air content
- has a cat5 connection
- is MythTV compatible
Any hardware suggestions other than #Silicondust?
(Portugal) off-grid village: “valley of the stars”
We travel to the Alentejo region where people are installing water and electric systems
This bbc episode covers an area of Portugal that’s said to be ideal for off-grid living, at least in part due to being sufficiently south to have plenty of sun light.
Notes on living off grid: "the snow always comes for you"
Living off grid often correlates with poorly accessible locations - because that's where the infrastructure is not.
On certain latitudes, especially near bodies of water, especially in remote locations - do not ask who the snow comes for - it always comes for you (and with a grudge). So, what ya gonna do?
Over here, a tractor being incomplete (it is great folly to go into winter with an incomplete tractor), snow is handled by an electric microcar. Since the microcar is made of thin sheet metal and plastic, it cannot carry a plow... but the rear axle being solid steel, it can pull one.
The plow is one year old, and was previously pulled by a gasoline car. It is made of construction steel: 8 mm L-profiles shaped like a letter A with double horizontal bars. The point of connection on top ensures it doesn't lift too much while plowing. It's currently fixed with an unprofessional and temporary C-clamp (there will be an U-bolt soon). It is pulled with a chain.
If snow is heavy, the L-pro