Life without electricity

[aimee309]

So. I am trying to prep for life without electricity. No easy lighting, no hoover or washing machine, no internet. How would you cope?

Long term or short term?

I’m prepared for short term power outages - I keep my electronics charged and have multiple power banks; have lots of different light sources easily available; and have a wood burning stove & hot water bottles to use for heat. I make sure we always have a full gas bottle for the bbq all year round, and also have smaller camping stoves to use for boiling water or cooking basic stuff. I also always keep ice blocks in the freezer that I could transfer to a cool bag to keep food cool for as long as possible, though I accept that I will probably lose my frozen food if the power cut goes on (and then the plan would be to bbq as much of the meat as possible as it defrosts to string the use out of it another couple of days). I always make sure we have lots of shelf stable stuff like pasta, rice, tinned food, water. For entertainment, we’ve got books, board games, puzzles etc.

Longer term life without electricity is a bit more tricky - I think really you’re looking at a complete lifestyle change. A house with its own septic system, water source, land to grow food/keep chickens. For laundry you’d want to get a proper washboard or there are gadgets you can get that can spin wash clothes like this: www.freemans.com/products/hand-operated-eco-clothes-washer-for-caravans//A-51W138?utm_source=GoogleProductList&utm_medium=PLA&utm_campaign=SportsAndLeisure_Travel_TravelAccessories&utm_content=51W138&ns_campaign=SportsAndLeisure_Travel_TravelAccessories&ns_mchannel=PLA&ns_source=GoogleProductList&ns_linkname=51W138&ns_fee=0&ordermedia=F0107&name=25PERCENTOFF&orderoffercode=J3JP&entry=3

You say ‘without electricity’ but if I was thinking long term I’d look at some sort of generator to power essentials like fridge, freezer etc - solar & wind technology in particular has come a long way. There are methods of refrigeration that don’t require electricity, plus using root cellars etc, but I wouldn’t really trust that completely.

For cooking, I guess you’d be looking at a wood burning stove of some sort, maybe building a rocket stove outside?

For entertainment, it’s again that lifestyle change to encourage more imaginative play, playing outside etc.

Without a hoover, i’d want hardwood floors I can brush/mop, probably with rugs to keep things warmer that I can take outside and beat occasionally - probably would be quite therapeutic!

Get yourself a manual carpet sweeper: my mum still uses hers for a quick clean when she can’t get the hoover upstairs, it works really well. A microfiber mop (or microfiber cloth on a normal mop/brush).

Solar lights (that you can charge outside and use inside). Safe candle holders if you just want ambient lighting.

Well insulated home and warm clothes/blankets/ thermal curtains etc.

Wood burner for cooking and heating.

Manual clothes washing: plus probably realistically wearing clothes for longer. I am terrible for washing things too frequently when they don’t warrant it really.

Bathing in not sure: there are things out there using wind/solar power to run showers, but I’m not sure if it would be warm enough! Again, it’s probably something we do too often these days: 100 years ago people had proper strip washes every day, and a freshen up before bed, but didn’t have baths very often! I’d probably invest in some flannels and lots of hats (my hair looks dreadful if I don’t wash it daily!)

Can I ask you reason? Is it to cut down your bills or because you want to live off-grid, or is it for prepping purposes?

Meant to add: with log burners you need a good access to your own wood!

Hurricane lamps. Log burner. Access to wood. Dutch oven. Wind up radio (if radio broadcasts still there). Capacity to collect and heat water. Knowledge about composting toilet. Food stores including pressure canned stuff.
Prefer to have the comfort and convenience of electricity but can manage without.

@aimee309 , what's going on in your life which leaves you with electricity?

Entertainment! Books, games, crafts and hobbies that done require electricity (also things you can do that don’t need as much light - so no fine needlepoint in winter!)

Without not with

*don’t, not done!

Hi. Just trying to plan and prep in case. Ty

I was raised off grid, and it can be done, but by God it's a lot of work, and you dont ever get a day off.
Hauling water up from the stream (no electric pump) boiling it on the woodstove, and doing baths in a dipper tub, laundry by hand etc
Much harder with cleaning, trying to get all cooking and work finished before dark, and even basic things, like doing repairs need full daylight
You become reliant on batteries if you can get them for clocks, otherwise you have to be careful about winding up all the time
Also, no fridge meant sorry anything cool in jars in the stream, or in the cold cellar
No freezer, so all food storage becomes dried, or jarred
All meals have to be thought out a bit more carefully, as there isn't the same last minute options
On the plus side, you stay fit as fuck, and learn a million skills

OP, what timescale are you prepping for? And what scope of disruption… ie just domestic properties in your area, or affecting infrastructure services like sewage/pumping stations/mobile phone masts/supermarkets etc. What sort of property do you live in, ie flat, house with small garden, house with large garden?

It’s relatively easy to cope with domestic power loss for a few hours/couple of days.

Power banks for phones/small devices.
Small fold out solar panel for charging phones/power banks.
Battery powered lanterns/torches.
Hand cranked radio.
Board games/cards etc for entertainment.
Supply of candles AND safe holders for them and fire blanket/extinguisher.
Keep the freezer full at all times. Use old milk bottles, filled 75% with water to fill any empty spaces as needed.
Minimise opening/closing of fridge/freezer.
All food will be fine with powerloss up to 12 hours. After that, begin to use your discretion. Things like icecream, frozen mince, kievs, rice dishes will begin to defrost, whereas joints of meat will be fine for a good 24 hours +. We lost power for around 20 hours over the heatwave this year and the freezer stuff was fine.
Get a non-electric kettle to go on the hob.
If you don’t have a gas hob, get a camping stove/kelly kettle (USE OUTSIDE!)
Go somewhere like the pub/library for a couple of hours

Longer term/deeper infrastructural disruption. Look into homesteading options/people living off grid.
Emma Orbach (some youtube interviews and featured in a Ben Fogle documentary a couple of years ago) - she lives in a hobbit house in Wales, totally off grid, bar a landline in a hut in the next field. Self sufficient in food (veg, goats milk & eggs), bar the occasional trip to town for chocolate/rice/coffee.
Rob Greenfield (youtuber) - lived in a tiny house in San Diego. Had a rainwater purification system & Berkey filter. Bathed in the ocean. Grew his own veg. Had composting toilet. Cycled everywhere (including across the whole continent to New York!) Now living in FL in another tiny house and foraging for food.
Lots of books about homesteading/self-sufficiency/off grid living eg John Seymour, Nick Rosen.

Laundry - get some oldfashioned laundry kit, either from Amish/offgrid type suppliers in the States like Lehman’s/Columbus or your local reclamation yard or Gumtree/Ebay. Key items are a posser for agitating, galvanised buckets (or brewing/builders’ buckets), a washboard and mangle. Get hold of laundry soap bars. Watch youtube for tips and tutorials.
Heating - wood burning stove/range. Keep stocked up with logs.
Water - short term - Lifestraw, Berkey filter. Long term, install a hand pump in the garden.
Cooking - have supplies of stuff that require simple rehydrating (eg couscous dishes) or tins like baked beans/Irish stew that just need heating through.

I think you have to do a range of things

1. Examine what is critical, important or can be done without and prioritise power use

1. Consider the design of your house e.g. if you are keeping same house and you are in a suburban environment your options are going to be different to if you have a sprawling house with outbuildings and land int he country

1. Look at what kit and equipment you need and define how it can be de electrified - e,g, can if be done mechanically - well get the mechanical support in - e.g. a hand pump for water or gravity pumps etc

1. Look at solar options but remember wld need to be off grid rather than the feed systems which still draw off grid

1. Harvest rainwater for grey water functions - need to sort tanks etc

1. If you extract water from a source you need to make sure you have the right permits etc to do so - same if you use for power that is seen as extraction

1. Change your wardrobe to being more functional in terms of both working and looking after it - so things that dry easily, using coveralls for jobs, pinnies etc all aimed at keeping clothes clean.

1. Think about how bathing and showering wld work

1. Cooking is perhaps the easiest! But you still need to rethink how you will cook and what - would be different.

10 refrigeration - you could build a cold house or cellar and use less fresh and more preserved items

Plus I am sure a whole lot more

What @RB68 said. You know your set up and your household needs best.
Drinking water, Cooking, keeping clean and warm, pooping, laundry. Focus on the manageable and the realistic to keep costs in hand.

Something else to think about if there is no electric or regular power outages (rationing??) is that generators are no good - they need fuel, where does fuel come from? How does it get in and out - electric pump generally so thats screwed, which means there are issues with food transportation - lorries or diesel freight are out, electrified is out so ???

Look for own grown/raised foods and or local that can barter with etc - so set up networks now know who does what - who raises goats, chickens, sheet etc. Goats and chickens are good for sources of food ie milk, eggs and the meat of each but how are you going to butcher- could you?

Learn to cook and bake on an open fire, think about wood source - what do you have in the garden - you could grow options that can be coppiced if you have a bit of land for e..g.

Learn to preserve foods you can grow/farm - so herbs - dry and in oil (from where?) Pickles, cheesemaking, other ways of preserving foods and canning/bottling especially of Vit C rich foods for winter.

You also need to think about security - if you can do all these things and lots of people can't what is going to happen?? Raiding basically so how will you protect what is yours?

Wow. So much to think about now. Thank you all so much. Awesome support and guidance!

It highly depends on where in the world you will be.
I have lived without electricity and without running water but not both at the same time.
Where would you be?
It can definitely be done but it is easier if you are part of a big group of people 💙

I've lived in places with no power - both intermittent supply and no supply (not the same place!). Not in the UK, but somewhere which could get fairly cold.

You can get gas powered fridges - that does assume you can get gas bottles, so it depends on the scenario you're preparing for.

The hurricane lamps I've used used kerosene as a fuel. It smelt foul. Candles were much better, and gave out a similar amount of light, though they need to be indoors (no wind). I think you'd be far better off with a solar panel, battery storage, and LED lights - which also don't need fuel.

Fetching water is tedious and backbreaking - I've never done it myself (while living without power/water I was employed in education, and paid others to fetch water/cook). A bike makes a huge difference. A high quality water filter is your friend.

We had hard flooring, so hoovering not an issue. Having observed those dealing with the basics of life (fetching water, keeping a fire going, cooking food) without power, I don't think hoover levels of cleanliness will be your biggest concern.

How easy is it to cook on a wood burner? Do you need one with a cooktop? I’m planning to install one as we live rurally and have had several power cuts recently but not sure of best model to choose. Any tips?