Susan was always striving toward the goal of independence and sustainability.  Below are thoughts and suggestions for everyone to achieve these goals.

WHAT WE NEED TO GET SUSTAINABLE

PROPERTY WITH AS MUCH OF THE FOLLOWING AS POSSIBLE

·        An alternative water source other than public water such as a spring, stream, pond, or well.

·        An alternative heat source other than electric such as a woodstove, fire place, an attached greenhouse, or a porch that can be converted to a solarium.

·        An exterior building that will serve as an emergency living quarters with a woodstove and greenhouse.

·        Alternative food storage in the form of a basement, a shed with in ground storage, or a spring fed cold cellar.

·        Partially wooded land to provide wood for fuel, shade in the summer, and fertile soil for gardens.

·        Mature fruit trees and berries.

·        A separate building that can be converted for rental income or turned into a business.

·        The home should be less than 1000 sf to make it easier to heat and cool.

·        Within biking or scooter distance to necessities.

A PROPERTY WHERE THE FOLLOWING CONSIDERATIONS WOULD BE POSSIBLE

·        Beekeeping for wildflower production and honey production.  Also beeswax for candles.

·        Sorghum growing.

·        Selling fruits and vegetable.

·        Growing grains and baking breads in clay ovens.

THINGS WE NEED TO BUY OR MAKE

·        A separate sustainable greenhouse/guesthouse (unless the home is completely sustainable).  Include a mini wood stove or solar heat.  Resources: Mother Earth News article solar heated greenhouse/guesthouse sun shed, handy home products solar shed, backyard buildings, built it solar.  Cost: ESt $3000-$4000

·        Alternative home heating in the form of a wood stove (if there is wooded land) or solar hot water.  A wood stove would also provide alternative cooking.  Resources: Build it solar, radiantec, pacific energy, lehmans Cost: est $2000-$5000

·        Alternative cooking source in the form of a woodstove with cooktop and oven, outdoor fireplace, or solar cooker.  This will also require cast iron kettles and dutch oven.  Resources: Paper article on outdoor fireplaces, sunoven or built it solar to make a solar oven, lehmans for wood stove ovens and cast iron cookware, the book built your own earth oven by Kiko Denzer, article under sustainability in favorites  Cost Est. $100- $500 without purchasing a woodstove.

·        Alternative water source in the form of harvested water or a pond, including water purifiers and filters.  Resources: homemade water barrels, lehmans for raw water filters (from springs and streams), waterwise for distiller, Costco for water barrels with treatment kits, home depot for pond kits.  Cost Est. $20- $400

·        Alternative source of food storage in the form of preserving food.  This does not include the cost of digging a root cellar, which can be DIY and varies in cost depending on how big it is.  Resources: lehmans (food drying and preserving with pressure cookers and canners), build it solar for DIY food dryer.  Cost: $80-$500 including jars and supplies.

·        Alternative sanitary source in case of public water shortage or contamination in the form of a composting toilet and/or outdoor shower.  Resources: sun-mar for nonelectric toilet, DIY compost toilet on youtube, lovable loo for examples, built it solar for DIY solar showers, aquaquik outdoor solar showers.  Cost Up to $2000

·        Alternative light source in the form of vegetable oil lamps or candles (beeswax if we have bees)  Resources: lehmans for vegetable oil lamps (saved youtube video on how to use them).  Cost $10 and up.

·        Alternative source for home hot water in the form of solar hot water.  Resources:  Sunchaser, rheem, build it solar for DIY.  Cost: $1000 and up for DIY, $2000 and up for purchase.

·        Alternative source for home cooling in the form of solar run fans.  Resources: backwoods solar electric systems, build it solar for other ideas.   Cost: $20 and up.

·        Alternative sources of electric for luxuries like computer, air cleaner, etc.  Resources: harbor freight (see you tube video), coleman (home depot), sunforce (kmart).  Cost: $200 and up.

·        Alternative way to wash and dry clothes in the form of a hand crank washer and clothesline or wooden dryers.  Resources Lehmans.  Cost $20 and up.

·        Alternative form of transportation to gasoline powered vehicles in the form of bicycles, solar electric scooters and electric cars.  Resources: walmart and target for electric bikes, Honda and vespa for electric mopeds, zenn electric are (must have enough solar panels to charge these).  Cost: $1000 and up.

WOODSTOVES TO CONSIDER

·        Steel: Quadrafire, Lope, Avalon, regency, pacific energy, buck, Harman, blaze king.

·        Cast iron: jotil

·        Non catalytic are easier to maintain.

·        Don’t need ash pan just deep firebox so ashes don’t over flow.

·        Square box better than a rectangle.  Wide and narrow hard to load a lot of wood into.

·        Top loaders no effective, smoke goes into room.

ALTERNATIVE COOKING

·        Make an inexpensive solar cooker.  Solarcooking.org for plans.

·        Build a clay oven.  Bake bread in it to sell.   See mother earth news.  Book-build your own earth oven by Kiko Denzer-youtube videos.  Also treehugger.com, make your own mud over.  We can use the clay in the backyard

·        Cook and bake on a woodstove.  Good for alternative heating.

·        Install wood stove; must be mobile home approved.  Northern tool sells stove for $650-$1000.  Or buy a cheap wood stove and install it in the shed in the backyard.

·        Solar heat DIY start at about $1000.  Projects on builditsolar.com

·        Attach a sunspace/solar greenhouse to the house to provide heat and growing space.  See builditsolar.com.  Can turn the back deck into a greenhouse for cheap.  Plant trees for woodstove.  Contact extension to get list of fast growing trees.

·        Grow more food-plant fruit trees and fruit shrubs.  $300-$500.

ALTERNATIVE ELECTRIC

Harbor freight panels-45 watt $150 with coupons.  Northern tool 80 watt panel $500.  Videos on “renewable energy tv-harbor freight 45 watt also website, solar panel kit at harbor freight.com

GROW MORE FOOD

Plant trees and fruit bushes.  Put greenhouse/shed in backyard.  Backyardbuildings.com.  solar sheds.  Install cheap wood stove in shed as alternative heating source, insulate shed.  Cheap wood stoves, $175

PRESERVE MORE FOOD

·        Build a solar food dehydrator.  Motherearth news.com

·        Build a cold cellar

·        Store preserved food in a closet for up to a month of reserves.

ALTERNATIVE WATER SOURCE

·        More water storage outside.  Use a portable water filter.  Preparedness.com, rainharvesting.com. 

·        Ponds

·        Rain catchment on all downspouts.

·        Install a composting toilet to save money and also in case of water interruption in one of the bathrooms.

ALTERATIVE HOT WATER SOURCE

·        Solar thermal $3000-$7000

·        Hot water run through a wood stove.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSPORTATION

·        Buy bicycles/electric bicycles.  .4watts to go 40 miles-$800-$1000

·        Zero electric car-$10,000

LESS RELIANCE ON APPLIANCES

·        Outdoor clothes drying

·        Appliances that use less energy or run on solar panels.  Laptops, low energy freezers

NEEDS FOR FINANCIAL INDEPENDENCE

·        Home with shade trees and forest to use for timber/firewood, or small solar home.

·        A stream on the property for gardening and water emergencies.

·        A well on the property for free water.

·        A fireplace or woodstove.  A screened in porch or add on to install a woodstove.

·        A basement with food storage areas or an outdoor cold cellar, or south facing hill.

·        Extra building to turn into rental or small store or workshop.

·        Save enough money from sale to install a propane fireplace/refrigerator/stove and solar electric.  Also to buy laptops and led tv’s to save electric.

·        Need land near the house for garden that gets full sun.  Save enough from sale of house to put up a greenhouse to grow year round.

·        Pond for fish and water vegetables.  Alternative water supply.

NEEDS FOR NO ELECTRICITY

·        Battery operated or solar lamps

·        Oil lamps-common in thrift stores.  $20 and up.

·        Outdoor brick or stone bake oven-self built.

·        Cellar or in ground cooling spring.

·        Gas/propane refrigerator.  $1000 and up.

·        Gas water heater.

·        Non electric water pump-water wheel-windmill-hand pump.  $600 and up.

·        Propane or gas heater or wood stove.

·        James handwasher-washing machine-Wringer.  $200 and up.  Outdoor clothes line.  $20 and up.

·        Solar setup for computer/stereo/battery charing/tools.  $200 and up.

SIMPLE SOLAR SETUP

·        45 watt portable harbor freight panels.  $200 each.

·        2 deep marine batteries.  $250

·        1500 watt inverter

EMERGENCY SUPPLIES

·        Ruger 10/22 rifle.  2000 rounds amo.  Cleaning kit.

·        7 day wilderness medical kit.

·        Canning supplies

·        $300 worth of long life shelf food

·        Tent, backpacks

·        AAA solar battery charger

·        Gps

·        Flashlight

·        Wilderness camping supplies

·        Water filter-Katodyn

·        10 cases bottled water

·        Alternative cooking

·        Solar emergency radio

·        Ax/saw

·        6 gallon bucket/person