This is a comprehensive list of our favorite things that we use every day while living and working in our off-grid home. Some items can be purchased through affiliate links, which means we earn a commission at no additional cost to you. We only ever recommend products that actually work for us and that we trust to improve the lives of our readers.
Recommended Products:
BOROUX Water Filters
In the wake of the issues surrounding Berkey, I’ve often recommended folks to try out BOROUX water filters instead. I have an extensive review of our experience using the BOROUX Legacy filter system HERE and I highly recommend you check them out! Absolutely fantastic if you’re looking for a tested and cost-effective way to reduce your reliance on plastic bottled water. Paired with reusable bottles, I absolutely LOVE Boroux’s new filter system for reducing plastic waste and improving water quality.
BUY A BOROUX WATER FILTER SYSTEM HERE
My Green Mattress
Along with building a natural home, we’ve tried our best to live a lifestyle that is more in harmony with the earth from both waste-management and health perspectives. With that, we replaced our aging memory foam mattress with an organic mattress from My Green Mattress. I have an absolutely enormous review detailing every detail of how we chose this one from countless organic mattresses on the market, as well as critiquing its performance after many months of use. I’m very choosy about what products I promote and this one definitely earned its place on this list.
Read our comprehensive My Green Mattress Review HERE
US Mobile
Might seem like an odd choice on this list, but one of our homesteading goals has always been keeping our budget low so that we can live more sustainably. And personally, I’m not willing to pay the huge prices of being directly with one of the Big Three phone companies when it is equally good to go through a reseller.
My absolute favorite mobile reseller of any that we’ve ever been with is hands down USMobile. You can choose ANY of the three major networks, depending on what towers work best in your area. Our data is totally unlimited and tests at unthrottled network speeds (unlike some other resellers we’ve been with where we were obviously deprioritized). And as off-grid rural folks, I really appreciate the coverage options and availability of home AND travel internet.
Vego Metal Raised Garden Beds
Typically, I love doing the absolute least expensive version of a thing. I’ve made most of my garden beds out of rocks and logs, and up to this point, that’s been okay. But just okay. We’re getting to a point where we want more of our property to be intentional, not just in looks but in functionality.
As such, we’re incorporating some Vego metal raised beds into our gardening efforts and, so far we’re pretty impressed!
Grab your own Vego here and take $10 off your order with code OFA98CXH at checkout!
Radiantec DIY Radiant Heating Systems
Our off-grid home uses both a wood stove AND in-floor radiant heat to warm the house in the winter time. While I prefer the feel of wood heat, the radiant system allows us to keep the house at a stable temperature if we’re gone for extended periods. It also has a more “pervasive” heat since it’s radiating through the floor and into your body from there. It feels a bit like being warmed from the inside out, which is pretty cool! You can read more about it below:
- Read our full review of our radiant heat system
- Visit the Radiantec website
Solar Power Kit Companies
We’ve bought a lot of solar components over the years and have had a wide variety of experiences with different companies. These are some of the standout companies we have worked with and recommend to others getting started with solar power:
We also recommend learning as much about DIY solar power as possible from Heatspring, which is where Mark took his courses for obtaining his NABCEP certification back in 2020. You can really dig in with just their free course, but if you want to go deep, paid is where it’s at.
Heatspring Solar Power 101 – Free Course
Solar PV Bootcamp – Paid Course
LG 14,000 BTU Dual Inverter Air Conditioner
This is the exact air conditioner we run day and night during the summer with our solar power system.
This unit is unique in that it doesn’t have a traditional compressor using a lot of power to kick on whenever it starts to cool. Instead, it uses a dual inverter variable speed compressor to slowly ramp up the power it uses to cool. This avoids the huge startup power surge that can be problematic for off-grid power systems.
If you aren’t off-grid but are still trying to watch your power consumption or avoid tripping breakers in an older home, this unit is fantastically efficient and comfortably quiet.
Ours is 14,000 BTU and can cool around 800 square feet, which is approximately the same size as our home (minus the loft upstairs). It comes in multiple sizes to custom fit your application.
Shop LG Dual Inverter Air Conditioner on Amazon
Shop LG Dual Inverter Air Conditioner at Home Depot
Ecofan Woodstove Fan
We use this in the winter when we’re running fires in our woodstove. It sits on top of the stove and generates power to turn the fan silently from the heat of the stovetop. It requires no additional power, making it great for off-grid applications like ours.
Woodstove Thermometer
If you have a wood stove, you must burn your fires hot enough to avoid creosote buildup. You also want to avoid burning super hot and creating a dangerous situation. In these cases, we recommend a magnetic thermometer placed on top of your wood stove to help you regulate your fires.
We have a Rutland that we got at Tractor Supply (it was the only one there). It’s worked well for us and is fairly accurate, but it has a lot of bad reviews on Amazon. This one has much better reviews. Give one or both a try!
Everyday Zero-Waste Items
There are several smaller items that we use around the house every single day that don’t need to be listed out on this page. Check out this article about things we use every day to keep our waste at a minimum!
Products will be added on an ongoing basis! Check back!
