We bought a 60-acre off-grid property in Washington that’s been sitting untouched for 5+ years. Our water storage is full of collapsed insulation and rodent crap; batteries are defunct. Are we in over our heads?
My partner and I have decided to take on a huge and ridiculous project. We've been living in Salt Lake City, Utah for many years, and have loved it - but it has just gotten way too busy, and we wanted our forever home to be deep in nature, with a tight-knit community, and with healthy ecosystems that are not strained for water and resources. This led us to buying a 60 acre property in Washington, completely off-grid, that has basically been sitting uninhabited and neglected for the last five years.
The good news is that it is an incredible property with a cabin, a bunch of shop space, water infrastructure, septic system, solar, generators, etc. The bad news is that none of it works because it has been left dilapidating for years.
No running water when we arrived, the solar/battery system is basically dead, years of deferred maintenance, rodents, plumbing issues, electrical issues, broken appliances… and every time we fix one thing we seem to discover three more.
We’re also completely new to off-grid living and homesteading. This project is so big but with so much potential, that we've decided to film the process to share the journey - mostly because we would love some feedback and support from the community as we go.
There are obviously a lot of people here who know WAY more about wells, solar and batteries, land management, etc than we do. If you see us doing something stupid or know a better way to solve a problem, genuinely tell us. We hope this can also serve as a helpful blueprint for people like us who are coming to this with no experience but a deep desire to live a more intentional life.
We’re planning to post a video twice a week as we tackle these projects and share the challenges we run into. Here’s an overview of the property if anyone is curious:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KM0yA4EM034
Would also love to hear from anyone who took over an older/neglected homestead. What should we prioritize in these next couple months before winter sets in?