Buying holiday house with no mains water or electricity

[CrabappleBiscuit]

Looking at a cottage for sale in isolated area that has gas canister supply, so fridge and oven are lpg and gas mantles. Water is from a spring and there’s no mobile signal but there is a fixed phone line.

Any thoughts?.

Sounds perfect, it would be my idea of heaven.

You could get a LPG generator for power.

What about sewage? Presumably a septic tank - what state is it in? How secure is the water supply?

Is heat from a wood stove, if you can install one that heats the hot water that would be ideal

Is there potential for setting up solar or even small turbine, possibly with battery storage, for the appliances to run off some of the time?

Are you planning to use it yourself or let it (or perhaps both at different times through the year)?

Some very rural areas like this can take a long time to get repairs done to the phone lines. Good idea to be prepared for phone to be cut off for a couple of weeks if storms or heavy snow.

You probably know already that getting broadband added (assuming it's not already in) could be very expensive.

Make sure you are nice to any locals and tradesmen as there may not be a lot of choice of people to do work on the place.

Does the property have exclusive use of the spring or is it shared with anyone else?

Sounds lovely. I stayed in one like that on the Scottish borders. It was like going back in time. All furnishings and décor were antique too.
If you are not nearby you might need reliable locals to help with supply problems. The gas man was the only person I saw all week.

You really need to investigate how reliable the spring is or if it is not whether you could have a borehole. Everything else is manageable!

How far away would you be from this holiday house?
In term of maintenance, etc - how will you manage that?
I'm kind of presuming it is quite isolated?
How is it heated?
What would happen if it were unheated through the Winter season ?

It’s got a jotul stove. Don’t know if it heats water. A solar panel and or wind turbine would be possible. Good point about winter and also the water source.

Sounds great!

I’d want to go for a more renewable off grid energy and battery storage solution which wouldn’t be cheap.

You could have a sat phone for emergencies if the phone line isn’t good.

+1 for reliability of the spring.

My DSis is on spring water.

She’s had no water for the last 6 weeks
Has to pay for a swim and a shower at the leisure centre , and bring camping bottles of water home to flush the loo , cook wash hands etc
I know this summer has been exceptional , but it may well happen again
Continued from above ^^😀

no mains electricity is the big one.

letting this place out as a holiday rental will be a big ask.you need guests to light and manage fires, understand limited elec and manage with no broadband or mobile. needs a lot of common sense...

There are off-grid holiday cottages - it's something some people will specifically be searching for. Renewables are usually a big feature. (Have browsed lots, but not able to use personally)

Quite possibly virtually no broadband.

Villages round here you can email ok, if slowly. Can't watch a movie, or iPlayer.

Sounds great to me.

I have spring water. Currently OK but being very careful. Also have had to have UV disinfection and filter installed within the last few years - if letting a property, check if this is a requirement.