Firewood Hoarding/Homesteading/etc....

excellent points butcher ,and some good advise

 

Why sorry butcher? Sound reasoning.Good of you to pass along the wisdom.There R those out there that charge a fee for that.

 

I love fishing walleye around here snook in Fla.So disappointed with the trash,hooks, lines,worm containers and the lot left by the last guy.

 

What a thread... really good read. I love the thought of being off the grid at our cabin, but I'm fine that it'll never really happen. As others have said, I've learned the lessons of reality too. It sure is a lot of fun to dream about and make plans though. We burn firewood and have a tiny garden here. And, we bought this place because it was small and easy to maintain/heat... and had plenty of hardwood down back.

 

Butcher .. Well said words to the wise!

 

From my military time I've learned the crawl walk run method. This method is applied to most everything I do. We've been toying with raised bed gardening for several years now. This past year we didn't have time to get the garden in.

Problem with our current life is timing. The term simpler to me is a relative term. Right now we both run around like chickens with our heads cutoff. I am currently stuck in the corporate life of an IT professional, and definitely want of the wheel. Essentially one would be trading their current rat race to a much more rewarding lifestyle. Both lifestyles require a great deal of time and energy to make it work, but one has the self satisfaction over time that I did it.

My plan would take anywhere from 5-10 years to fully get in place.

What we do already:

1. Process load of logs for firewood. This comes at an expense that living a simpler life would require that I scavenge for trees to reduce and or eliminate the need to purchase logs.
2. Gardening - we currently have one 12'X4' long raised bed. While it works, I am going to make them into three 4'X4' boxes. This year we'll add a fourth and each year we'd look to add one or two more until we get to our magic point in vegetable production.
3. Homemade cleaning/laundry detergents. I've been doing this for about 3-4 years. My wife has not been fully onboard, but she is slowly coming around.

3-6 months

1. Increase the number of 4'X4' raised beds to 5. - 2-3 months.
2. Build a compost area to produce my own black gold.- 2-3 months.
3. Start scavenging firewood - when available. (this also depends how the wood stove does in the living room.)

6-24 months

1. Add chickens - my planning in the past has me starting with 5. These will be for eggs. I might add some for meat, but not right away.
2. Add another two 4'X4' raised beds.
3. Start canning.
4. Build a small greenhouse to extend the growing season.

??? months

1. ****When my kids are hit 18, the wife and I would look to downsize our home. Which could be our opportunity to move to NH or Maine, or we could stay in RI, but seek a out a ten acre lot elsewhere in RI. This would require us to either start over partially or completely. The move in and of itself would be to a property and home that would be more inline for our needs. I'd still love to build my own home, but don't think that would be in the cards with homesteading as my plan.

This is a high level plan with times that will evolve over time, and you'll notice I call for me to be done in 5-10 years. With changes at work, I expect layoffs next year. Should that happen, the plan might accelerate where it does not cost me much money.

 

Start composting tonight, really very little planning needed there. I'd like a bigger garden as well, struggling for the best location but mine is about 16'x8' and I think it should be 3 times as large easily. On a 1 acre plot, that's not so simple.

Canning will come, when I don't know. Unfortunately I know no one who does it around me, but I always have the internet to learn.
Chickens, goats, other animals - no thanks. No time right now with 2 little kids and 2 very destructive animals already (they chewed up the dining room table leg yesterday )

Firewood..... yeah we're ok there.

Power & off the grid - let's face it the internet is a very handy resource that I would call an essential. I've learned so much, I don't do things my parents "way" and have been my own teacher for most of my adult life. Solar is cost prohibitive, so for now I pay those utilities and do the rest myself. Peace of mind and body is important, sometimes just pay the man.

Nice thread OP

 

Looks good. As you think about and look for a piece of land, think about how far back from a public road you really want to be... that will matter a lot as you get older. We were so lucky to find this place on 14 acres along an old narrow tar road. We searched online considering hundreds before we found 10 places that we went to see. Came here twice... all my wife saw was the house... all I saw was the 12 acres of hardwood on a nice lot... :stacke:

 

That's about where I'm at. One kid in college the other will be soon. Current house is already for sale and I've got a list of properties I'm interested in, 10 acres is my minimum...oh and I'm already in Maine. I'm also planning on keeping my job at least part time because I love it, and homesteading as it fits so we have to stay reasonably close to that ~ an hour.

 

Are you gonna stay along the coast Dave or more inland?

 

Probably just inland, 10+ acres on the coast is out of my tax bracket. I'd like to go Downeast of MDI, makes getting on and off the Island a lot easier if I have to keep my job, especially in the summer, maybe I could get a boat and commute to work by water. Hancock, Sullivan, Franklin, Eastbrook, lots of space and trees out there and not many people

 

I don't mean to suggest I wouldn't work. As much as I wish I was independently wealthy that is just not happening. I'll be working like most until it's time to call it quits.

 

Nice areas. I bet you'll find the perfect lot along there. Good luck. We all know you'll have a ball with the hounds, out there lookin...

 

boettg33, Sounds like a really good plan.. the question I have is why go North.. I live there growing season is shorter. Cold is greater as is snow etc., relates to heat use... if you want solar in future south has more daylight.... your getting older (pretty good guess huh) why not west out of city.. examples west Virginia, Ohio etc? oh and to make your plan easier be close to a farmer. my neighbors are invaluable resource fresh milk.. manure.. gardening tip.. Old farmers wife's are a treasure!

 

This is good.

Internet is essential, make a plan for that. I bought a place with comcast intenet, and thought I would use the same,, but they will not provide it to me. It doesn't matter that they did previously to this address. So I had to be creative, and get my internet through my cell provider. Of course, I needed to add an amplifier to the house to get the cell phone service to work.

We pay the man for electricity, and have reduced our use to where it is about $50/month (admittedly we also have inexpensive service). Solar would be silly for us. If we have an extended outage, chances are good that it would happen in the middle of winter, therefore Solar also would not provide "backup" either. So for that, we have an inexpensive generator.

Pay people for what it makes sense to pay them for. Whether we are "self-sufficient" or not, we all do that, we just do it at different levels. Take food, for example; some folks pay for every meal at a restaurant. Some pay for food in the store, and cook their own. Some grow their own, but buy the equipment which allows them to do that. We all pay someone for something, unless we really live out there scavenging and likely stealing.

In addition to driving 5 hours a week more than I used to, just to get to work, I now have to work an extra hour or two more every night (my wife does too), and most of my weekends are spent being "self-sufficient.."

Simpler?? Depends on how you interpret that, but we are trying.

Greg

 

Efforts have been ongoing. It's just that I'll be making a more concentrated attempt.

 

You make great points, and I'm very familiar with NH and Maine winters as well as the shortened growing season. Rural VA and even rural NC were on my short list. When it comes down to it, both of our families are in RI. NH/Maine is a reasonable distance away. For all I know, we could end up in the north western part of RI which is much more rural. Too many factors to really spend too much effort on a final location now. Though, we'd be looking to possibly purchase land between now when we actually move. The one thing I can say for certain is that I do want to get away from our current home. The location is not ideal for homesteading as well as the house will be far too big for just two of us.

Like I mentioned before, I'll be making efforts on my current property to achieve my goals. If things go well, and we can move once the kids are in college or out, then we'd take a closer look at that time.

 

Here is the best resorce anyone can have who wants to start canning. http://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&ke...wo=&hvqmt=b&hvdev=c&ref=pd_sl_7umlvggnrs_b_p2

 

Our house was built in 1880, my family has been here since the turn of the last century. The house functioned with out power then, and can still do so today. We are very well suited to go for a long time with without power in the winter, and we have many times have had week long outages. Food goes outside in the garage and stays frozen, summer time we would lose the food, so I have bought a generator for the freezer. Our well is 16 feet deep and we have gotton water by pail and rope the old way many times. Kitchen stove is propane, just light a match! We grow a lot of our own food and store it, as well as canned goods. Like Butcher said, we were preppers and didn't know it. Oh, and we have all kinds of wildlife in the yard out back that could be used. I can shoot right off the deck, neighbors don't care, they shoot also. Live free or die!