Building Ecotopia: Living without Electricity, Part I

by Chuck Hall

The ultimate in energy independence is to live without electricity, just as humankind did for thousands of years before Thomas Edison came along. Some groups, like the Amish, have always lived without electricity. Others ‘dropped out’ in the 1970s during the ‘back to nature’ movement. Still more have come to more recent decisions to live off-the-grid by living without electricity. Today it’s called ‘homesteading.’
Why on earth would anyone want to live without the modern convenience of electricity? In the words of Marci Lilly of the High Lonesome Ranch in Birch River, West Virginia, “Living without electricity is actually a lot easier than most people think. How can I not have tv, or the blender, mixer, lights? Well, many people still choose to live without all the hassle, electric bills, etc. And life actually becomes easier, slower, even more serene. You go to bed earlier, so you get up earlier in the morning.”
“We lived for over five years without electricity, and had very little adjustment. We never even missed tv. But it probably takes a week before the habit of switching it on, diminishes. Just think of the silence... sometimes that takes getting used to!”
I know from my own personal history that living without electricity puts you into a whole other world of experience. I lived without electric power for nearly a year back in the late 1990s. After a while you realize just how annoying all these electronic gadgets can be. Without a television or computer or a video game to distract you, you begin to notice the world around you. You pay attention to the details. You learn to listen to the silence.
Living without electricity doesn’t have to mean living a life of austere asceticism. Don’t forget, ancient Rome’s palaces didn’t have electricity, nor did the palaces of all the kings and queens of Europe in days gone by. It is quite possible to live a life of luxury without electricity. The secret lies in learning the alternatives to electric appliances.
For one example, let’s look at refrigeration. Think about that big energy-guzzling appliance in your kitchen. It’s there to preserve food, but could there be another way to do so? Could there be several alternatives to food preservation by refrigeration that have stood the test of time? The answer, of course, is ‘yes.’
If you are a vegetarian, you can preserve most of your food by learning how to do home canning, or by storing it in a root cellar, or by drying it on a line in the sun or in a solar-powered food dehydrator. Do you eat meat? Then a backyard smokehouse can add flavor to your meats while preserving them. I can still remember my grandfather’s smokehouse, and strings of dried apple slices strung across my grandmother’s kitchen. Sometimes the old technologies are the best technologies. These tried-and-true methods worked for the human race for centuries before refrigerators came along. If you don’t want to give up the convenience of refrigeration just yet, there are solar-powered fridges. Vegas Trailer makes one, designed for use in a travel trailer. It could just as easily be used in an electricity-free cabin or home, assuming you can get by with a small fridge. For product information, visit their site at: www.vegastrailer.com/sundanzer.
Over the next few weeks, we’ll be looking at creative alternatives to on-the-grid living. It could be that the Ecotopia of the future won’t rely on fossil fuels or other polluting energy sources at all. Only time will tell.