How Can I Make My Home Self Sufficient?

I hear that question all the time. The answer, of course, depends upon the individual situation and needs of the family. In general, the path to self-sufficiency should begin where you are.

Take stock of what you have, what you need, and then begin to take small steps toward your goal. George L offers a few practical ideas for those early projects.


Author: George L.

A self-sufficient house looks just like any other home. I have seen some strange looking self-sufficient houses but this doesn't mean you have to live in something others may laugh at.

If you want to make your dream self-sufficient house from scratch in a non-conformist way be my guest but if you don't want to, you can just improve your existing house with self sufficiency equipment.

Here's a few things you can add if you're just starting off:



A vegetable garden

If you don't want to spend money on complex heating and electricity systems, a vegetable garden is probably what you need. If you already have a garden that you didn't use before, it's a great asset. The food that this garden will yield may not be enough to stop you from buying groceries anymore but you'll be one step ahead others when it comes to organic food. Yes, organic food is better than that from the supermarket; everyone agrees.

A solar panel

The solar panel is the probably the first thing people have in mind when they talk about self sufficiency. What it literally spells is "zero electric bills", which excites everyone. I've already talked about how much a solar panel costs so I won't cover it here.

A wind turbine

If you live in a region where the sun doesn't shine most of the time, maybe you have plenty of wind? In that case a wind turbine is the solution. What does it do? As it starts rotating from the wind, it converts mechanical energy to electrical energy.

A rain water collector

If you ever lived in the country side when you were little, you've definitely seen this one (or something more rudimentary). It does just what its name suggests: it collects water from the rain. If you live in a rainy area this is a must have.

A solar water heater

Hot water is mandatory in any home so a system that heats it using the sun makes perfect sense. Of course, you would have to be living in an area where there's plenty of sun to make full use of this system.

For more articles about self sufficiency, green energy  and organic food, visit my self sufficiency blog.
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