Tell us a little about your journey to your homestead…
A few years ago RMan, my husband, decided that the pension policies he had been sold years before were not performing as promised / expected. Being fed up with the insurance companies getting richer, and their head offices getting larnier, he decided to cancel the policies and purchase land instead. As an investment. A risky move, some might think, as we were not that far off retirement age. But we embraced it wholeheartedly.
What inspired you to begin this journey?
After traveling many miles we finally found a piece of land we could afford – a smallholding close enough to town to visit now and then, but far enough away to remain unspoilt by urban sprawl.
We found that we wanted to visit our “spot” in order to plant trees, but the prohibitive costs of B&B’s was limiting our visits, and wasting our available money. So we bought a 2nd hand caravan that helped for a while, but it turned out to be too cold in winter (we recorded 0oC inside on a number of mornings) and too hot in summer. And too small to house the two of us, our son, and our daughter and grandson at one time. 🙂
So we decided to build something small. And, as we were starting from the bottom up – a NEW beginning – I convinced RMan to follow my dream – to build something which would encourage a simpler way of life – and an off grid lifestyle – a lifestyle which would reduce our eco-footprint as much as possible and make a more positive contribution to this planet. Our grandson was one of my main motivations – I wanted him to experience a more down to earth lifestyle from an early age, and one which was not dependent on the latest (unnecessary) electronic gadgets, and “must have” modern conveniences – that walking a more gentle path on this planet didn’t have to mean drastic changes to his lifestyle. For how could he choose his future path if he had no comparisons?
And in our build we aimed to use whatever unwanted items that we could glean through Freecycle and through recycling items we already had. And we were determined that double glazing (almost unheard of in this country) LED lights and solar power would provide for all our comfort and needs. We managed to source locally made clay bricks and floor tiles (which reduced their transport footprint), and used a high lime render on the inside and outside walls – lime render absorbs carbon dioxide from the atmosphere – which have been coated with the lowest VoC (volatile organic compounds) paint available in this country.
 |
| Water catchment system |
What do you love about where you are at now?
We have been fortunate in that we have reduced our expenses and our dependence on state provided services – the only thing we cannot do without is the mains water. However, I have discovered that the transition from a “hi-tech” lifestyle to the one we are currently living is worth so much more than I can put into words. Taking the time to use 99% manual implements (kitchen aids, good old-fashioned broom and mop, using elbow / arm power to kneed bread, etc), allowing the sun to provide for our needs, allows one the space to focus more on the job at hand and to stop trying to be superwoman.
Is there anything you would change about it all?
Not a single thing 🙂 Oh, actually, there is one. I would’ve insisted that RMan buy all the recycled resin roof tiles that we would need for phase 1 and 2 of our build, so that we didn’t have to compromise and use clay ones on phase 2 as the resin tile company had gone bust. (Resin Roof tiles are made up of recycled car bumpers (fenders), computer monitors, etc which are mixed together with sand and resin).
What new skills have you learned through your experiences and how have you applied them to other aspects of your life?
I had made a simple solar oven out of an old cooler box years ago. As we now only have a two-plate LPG stove (from the caravan) for our summer cooking I splashed out and purchased a “pukker” one – my SunCook solar oven. I have been amazed to discover that there is almost nothing that cannot be cooked in a solar oven.
I was initially hesitant to use the oven to it’s full potential, as it came with only limited instructions. In order to try and dispel the fear surrounding solar cooking, and to encourage others to ‘take the plunge’, I experimented, and ended up writing what has turned out to be a very popular “Introduction to solar cooking” (which can be downloaded for free), which then led on to my writing an equally popular solar recipe book, “Free from the Sun“.
What have been your greatest challenges on your journey?
Adapting from having electricity on tap for 58 years of our lives, to being aware of how much power we have generated through our solar panels each day, and limiting our usage, if, and when, necessary. With that said, it has been wonderful to discover how much we “wasted” in our old lifestyle – how much we took for granted, and how much power we actually need to live a very comfortable life. Limiting oneself to using the majority of our power on those sunny days, and re-connecting with others through just talking, playing card / board games or reading / hobby work, when the power needs saving. For instance, my blogging habits have changed – I’m not online (working and blogging) for 8 – 10 hours every day – I can only do that when we have enough power stored. Yes, that does limit my frequency of posting, and interaction on others blogs, but that’s part and parcel of growing in awareness – of the demands we put on ourselves, our demand from this planets resources, and the presumption with which we lived our ‘town’ lives.
If you have a passion for something – follow that passion – and share that passion. There is no greater way to encourage and inspire others than to care enough to share through your own experience.
