19/02/2026
We did things the hard way first, and I'm thankful.
If it wasnt for living off grid first, we likely wouldn't have made the generator purchase a priority. Nor would we have the eco-flow portable battery bank. We probably wouldn't have extra gas cans or extra propane tanks. We probably wouldn't care as much about water catchment or know how to protect water lines from freezing in the pump house.
We lived off grid first, in an rv, at 3400' elevation during one of the worst winters they'd seen in decades 😅
I've pull started a generator, I've melted snow for toilet water, I've also had to thaw and fill a frozen toilet before being able to use it 😂 I've shoveled in 3ft of snow and cleaned off solar panels in a blizzard.
While we were off grid, we saw our neighbors struggle without being able to get propane delivered, having no power to run the pellet stoves or fridges or cooking ranges. They went for weeks without power, some without heat either because of how their homes were set up. We took that all in and learned from it.
When we bought this house we swapped everything from electric to gas if we could. On demand hot water from a propane tank that WE can take down to get filled anywhere, gas cooking range, wood stove, and a ton of oil lamps.
The power went out here Tuesday night, and the neighbors are saying pg&e told them it could not be back on until Saturday at the EARLIEST. That's definitely inconvenient, but we're solid up here 💪🏼
