You can check out our Guildbrook Farm merch here: shop.spreadshirt.com/guildbrookfarm and Marina's store here: shop.spreadshirt.com/blu-designs Also as a side note, all shirts can be "edited" so you can move the image or increase or decrease size. Coupon code is on the website. Thanks for all your support!
First, let me say how much I am enjoying following along on your story of living an off grid life , homesteading and raising your own food. It's great. I gained so much from the solar power video series that I will put to use myself, hopefully, someday soon. Second, if I may, I would suggest giving a lot of thought as to the placement of your house as it relates to the boundaries of your property because, unless there is some form of restrictive covenant, a future owner of the neighboring property could, potentially, come in and turn that raw land into something you would much rather not have to see, hear, or worse, smell and taste everyday. Also, you want to protect your well from such encroachment, too. A hog lot or hazardous materials landfill right next door would be calamitous, to be sure. Just my two cents. Keep up the good work.
We lived on 7 acres when i was about 11 yrs old and it didn't have a indoor bathroom. It just had a outhouse. In the winter we heated water on our cook stove and in the summer we put our bathing suits on and my granny would spray us down with the garden hose and then we would soap ourselfs up and shampoo our hair and then we would call granny and she would come out and rinse us off with the hose. We loved it. Congrats on your beautiful homestead.
I just wanted to congratulate you guys for reaching that 80K milestone! The way it's going, you'll be over 100K in no time! I love your content and your storytelling. Every video is very informative also! Someday, I hope and pray to be living in the woods like you guys do!
I have to say that you guys are made for off grid living. You have the wherewithal to maintain the lifestyle and work ethic that is necessary for this life. You are a wealth of information and it’s just great to see how far you’ve all come and how happy and content you all are. I absolutely am over the top with your precious pupster. Great job guys. It’s so amazing to see your dedication to your off grid life.
Check out whole house fans for the new house. They are loud but they will keep the house nice and cool. I live in Florida and can attest to their worthiness. We only run it at night. But again it's loud. It is in the hallway ceiling at our place.
Note about freezer penny trick- We’ve been doing that three years now as were prone to power outages, just be aware that you should redo your frozen Penny water about every six months or a year as the air circulation will slowly road at the ice surface and could give you false readings. Won’t look like it sunk or anything, just really uneven overtime. Looks good and we can’t wait to see you guys start building your house! I’m sure you are excited too.
Keeping cool in summer and above freezing in the winter is a good goal for pantry ... And house ... Bury a good bit (hundred feet or so) of 4"-6"" corrugated plastic flex pipe ... Have both ends in pantry, one at one end high , other end of pipe other end of pantry low ... 12 vdc computer fan would move enough air and draw pittance power .,. And you only need to run daylight ... Just reverse wires to switch from winter heating to summer cooling ... Good luck on your permanent water supply ... Hope when you widen road you can use dirt to make new roadbed down the hill ...
Awesome update ..glad the water issues are fixed. Your chikens have made themselves at home in your woods.... wonder if you could buy a large chunk of dry ice and put it under regular ice if that might help cool the container so you dont lose more of your pantry... 🌻have a wonderful evening🌻
Thanks for the update! (And thanks on behalf of us here in the southern hemisphere for clarifying when you say 'summer' you mean July!) Fascinating to see how things are going. How to deal with the hot summers here in Australia is something I need to figure out before I switch to the off-grid lifestyle myself, so really looking forward to hearing what you have to say about that in the upcoming video!
Thanks so much for all the updates. I really appreciate you keeping us in the loop on the homestead events and how you arrive at the decisions you make. I love your new puppy.
Hi ya Jaime/Jeremy! Chickens r so much fun, they do get into mischief, I can tell u spent quality time with them while they while they were growing up, I could pet mine as well, love this eggs!! Slowly but surely, y’all’s place is coming together. Thank u
Just finished what appeared to be your beginning videos on the outback start. I am so jealous! So impressed too. May your every dream come true. You are so deserving of what i call the good old country life. I wish you nothing but sunshine and best wishes.
Hi again! Whewww!! Ever so happy and relieved to see things are back to ok and moving forward and mostly that you all survived and defeated the water yay!!! As I mentioned brought back way too many not so great memories! Will be so fun now to see your upcoming vids. You all do a great job! New puppy is a cutie and I'm sure will give lots of love and laughs for everyone. You all take good care and thx for sharing as always...
Every time I watch your videos I am amazed. That Jeremy is a regular MacGyver, and I love the t-shirts. Thank you for the update, looking forward to more!!
Gr8 update video. If I lived that far off grid, I think I'd get guinea's again...fantastic watch dogs and very yummy! A little noisy but that usually signals trouble anyway.
Had a couple ideas for keeping your shed cooler. 1) cooling. 2) limit heat gain. I see by the comments, (but didn't find the posting) about using a radiator with water running through it. You could gravity feed water from up the hill if available, or a bypass trickle off the house water. My second idea is to reduce the heat reaching the roof, which would entail second roof above your actual roof. It could be sheet metal (or most anything), spaced an inch or 2 above the current roof, so that an airspace exists underneath it. Nothing elaborate, but it would keep the suns primary heating rays from reaching your insulated area. You would have to weigh the cost of money & time vs value of potential food loss. And of course, going into winter soon, this would move to the bottom of the priority list. And of course time is your biggest commodity, with everything else you are trying to accomplish. Speaking of which, I don't know where you find the time to make all these videos, but I am glad that you do. Very informative & very educational! Thank you!
I wonder if a heavy tarp would serve this same function. It looks like there are trees near by to help hang it, so construction and cost should be minimal.
You might want to rethink putting your home so close to a property line. Two reasons, one there may be a minimum set back by code, and two you can't control what the other property or future property owner will do on his land near your home. I have been in many phases of construction for over 30 years, from design, thru construction, not behind a desk, but hands on. My father and I built our own home for my family (wife and 3 children) and we did 95% ourselves. We did not do excavation, septic or well. If you would like any suggestions, guidance or just someone to bounce some ideas off don't hesitate to reach out. Like your channel, I used to follow Pure Life, but I can't take it anymore. They are an example of what you can do when you have too much money.
Great video, love how far you have come. You will enjoy your new family member. Yorkshire terriers are the best, can be a little noisy at times, they take their job as watch dogs seriously! Looking forward to seeing your house being built. I finally got my building permit this week, so exciting times ahead! We are experiencing serious draught and heatwave in Scandinavia at the moment. It is really hot for us when the temp rices over 90F. Normally there is no need for airconditioners in this country. What I have learned to keep the house cool is that I close all the doors and windows on the ground floor during the day. have curtains closed when the sun is on the windows. I have an awning over my terrace, and that covers the windows on the southfacing side. I keep it out all day and night, the sun doesnt set until midnight, and is up again at 4am. I keep the windows open upstairs so we get an airflow. This has kept the house ralatively cool. I do not have aircondition or a fan. Hoping for some rain soon, the crops are so far down to 40% of normal. No rain since beginning of May. The farmers are worried, they do not have enough winterfeed to keep the animals over the winter.
Hey, cheers for the update. I realise unsolicited advice is kinda obnoxious, but if it's going to be more than a year before you have a permanent house with basement or whatever, have you maybe considered digging a small root cellar? I've seen plans for them dug into the side of hills with cinder-blocks for the walls that seemed fairly doable on a small scale - it's what I plan on doing personally when I've got the THOW built. Just a thought, anyway. You guys research everything so it's probably already crossed your minds lol, and it's not like you're lacking for projects anyway. Thanks for the videos and please keep them coming :)
Things are sounding great out there! Glad to hear the solar is exceeding your expectations and you're able to afford some creature comforts like an AC unit!
Love the idea about the penny on the frozen water. I'll definitely have to use that in my freezer. A lot cheaper than my original idea then involved half a dozen pieces of hardware and a few sensors.
If you have any timber in the future pasture, you might consider a sawmill and mill your own lumber. Hud-son makes a budget manual sawmill for $2100 plus shipping... And you might consider "silvopasture", too. Don't forget to build the house oriented to get solar heating in the winter. Just trying to help. As you make these decisions, please explain the reasons behind them as much as you can. it will help those of us who have a dream like yours and don't have enough time to make any mistakes you made. LOVE the updates like this one. Great to see the potential problems along with the successes. Can't wait to follow you guys on your journey for years to come.
Thanks for the update ! Sounds like a good kind of farm list to keep all the good things going forward :) I always enjoy your videos , teaching and sharing your journey. Congrats of the family t-shirt store start up. I agree with other viewers a small AC unit for food storage shed. yes at 7-9 amps per min. Not a small amp draw but your solar system is rocking productive right now. I know you folks always carefully weight options of food loss , money and time ( I know viewers appreciate your mind set ) . On the house consider super insulation . I built many when I was in the business . You will not regret adding this into your home designs. Plus think thermal mass for the inside of the new home :)
How about a 5,000 BTU AC for the pantry building? Since you have extra solar capacity. I bought one on eBay from refurbking for cheeeep. It's on its third season with no problems.
Thank you for sharing, my dream is to be off grid soon, and I am getting great pointers from each of your videos, I pray for your family daily, God Bless
Keeping stored food at an optimum temperature is a problem for us too. Your solar power system is great, and it's good that it works better than expected. I hope your puppy stays away from the copperheads. I've heard of vaccines for dogs to protect them from rattle snake bites, but I haven't seen such a vaccine to protect against copperheads. Guildbrook Farm is looking good.
Mr. Money Mustache (blog, not video) has a great post specifically on insulation. He recommends a very high (53=12" blown) insulation level in your ceilings. You might want to check it out especially since heat is a concern and you are finalizing your house plans. His family is in Colorado. Sorry about all the hassles with the water, solar, etc. Luv your channel. Your planning and production are sure paying off for you. Professionalism pays! Congrats!
I like the radiator idea, In your pantry shed, run the water line through a radiator from an old house, Then use solar to run a fan thru the radiator. I do like the straw bale ideal. Just have to make sure they keep dry. Good luck.
Even through set backs you guys are always moving forward with a great attitude and a plan! I look forward to planting some Jade green beans in the future. Thanks for the update and here's to continued success as the summer rolls along.
I realize I am watching a yr later. I follow Red Poppy Ranch channel. Heath is building their homestead home in Idaho as getting a GC to is difficult and expensive. he is a plumber I believe w limited construction knowledge initially. He may have some good info for y'all. Best wishes for happy healthy homesteading
People are funny, if you build at the edge of your property, the other neighbor may think there is infrastructure and want to be near you! Then you are looking at them, all day, can’t go outside without shorts on. You are successful and independent, thoughtful and I really appreciate your sharing of your experiences!! Just imagine if I lived NEXT to you and had lots of questions!!! Lol. My husband in general doesn’t like to be in crowds, but get him in a group and he is chatty Kathy! I wouldn’t want to live next to that! Is that location high? Near open area for septic and solar? Just questions, no need to directly answer.
I was wondering if you could do a video on how the heck you get so much done. Do you have a daily routine, a weekly routine, a goal routine? I know some items are season driven but I don't seem to be able to get as much done as you all seem to get done.
Have you watched The Boss of the Swamp's videos on building his iceboxes? With the DC freezer it would be a snap to keep things cool in it during the summer, and simple in the winter too.
You should look into Earthship Homes, we rented them 3 times so far off AirBnB, 2 in New Mexico and 1 in Tennessee, all 3 had no air conditioner and the home stayed 70ish F using nothing more than a pipe trenched in the ground to pull earth cooled air into the home and out the ceiling in a constant circulation manner. The one in Tennessee had a mini propane heater, but we didnt use it and temps dropped into the 30's at night outside and inside it got as cold as 65F during the night.
Loved your comment about the solar...using it “because you can!” I don’t understand the mentality that being off grid = “suffering.” Shoot if ya got it, why in the heck wouldn’t you use it? Isn’t that EXACTLY what you built it for? 🤷🏻♀️ Anywhooooo...glad things are going well for you guys!! Not that ya asked buuuut....😏😂😂😂... I’m making the leap to full time RV’ing! I’m storing all my preps with my kids, selling the rest of my crap and hittin the highway! Due to some health issues I’ve decided life’s too short and it’s time for ME! Always wanted to see the Oregon, Washington state areas and the New England area. Coast floppin. LOL I’m gonna go while I’m able and just enjoy what time I have left. Hopefully plenty but I ain’t taking no chances! Maybe when I come your way I can visit. I’ll close my eyes so I won’t know the secret location! LOL 😆 Only sharing because your can do, get it done, attitude is actually part of my inspiration. Once I got sick I kind of got a little blah and lost some of my own “kick butt” attitude. Seeing folks like you keeping spirits high, and just doing what ya gotta and more importantly, “what ya wanna,” fires me back up!! So thank you! Keep doing what you do! You are appreciated. Blessings ~Lisa
Jades are my favorite green bean. I bought a new house this year and the garden here didn't do great at all, but I have already prepped it for next year, so I hope it will do amazing next year.
G’day Jamie! Have you thought of a Root cellar in the future? This will help keep your pantry a consistent temperature. I know it’s a costly thought, and a lot of work. But the benefits could be great. They did it in the old days. I also reuse my lids and rarely have any problems. As long as they are clean and no scratches inside and the ring is intact no problem.
I don't know about where you live, but come winter in upper michigan, we can go weeks without good sunny days making our solar producing very poor, I would definitely look into wind power as you said you might do. Good video's everyone, good to see the kids involved with projects, spiders😂 or not.
Hey guys! I love your channel. I’ve watched all your videos and they just keep getting better. It’s my birthday today and I was really hoping y’all would be putting out a video and the fact that it was an update video is the best! Keep up the hard work and know that you’ve inspired me to start homesteading and beginning to start my own prepper pantry. Thanks so much. Now off to buy some t-shirts 😄
Fundamental off grid Electrical question for you, when your battery is full, where does the excess energy from the solar panels go if it is not immediately used by the house? Could it be put to use with a pump to push water up to your water barrel area and make a small pumped hydro storage pond? Add a small hydro generator at the bottom of the hill... burry the pipe so you can pump up all summer and drain down in the winter when there’s less sun? The pond would serve as a back up water source for drinking, garden water, animal water and for fire fighting.
Pumping to an underground tank on top of the hill, is a good idea. They don't have enough volume to run a generator. i did read about using excess to heat water, in super-insulated tanks. Also helps if you have solar water heating too. Lots of great hot showers.
When I used to install Network TV I was at a customer's home who had a wine room and he had a room chiller I can't remember what they were called but he told me that they are often used to keep rooms cooler than the rest of a house and that it hardly used any power if you could find something like that for your pantry shed and have it on a timer so it would run during the day it might help to offset the hottest part of the day or it might not even use that much power where you might be able to run it through the night and take advantage of the cooler night air to get ahead and cool the building down a little bit more
What temp is your water in your well in the summer? Could you use a small 12 volt pump to cycle well water through a radiator, with a dc fan behind it to cool your pantry? Add a tstat to control pump/fan motors. I know someone who cools their summer home by submerging a radiator in a lake, circulates water through their A coil of their air conditioner instead of freon. Just to get your mind thinking. :)
Ordering a couple chicken themed products... a t-shirt and an apron. I am so excited that this is my first year doing home-raised chickens, and some of your old videos have been very helpful!
Have you ever watched or heard of The Foch Family Off Grid? You should watch some of the videos. Nick Foch is a very talented, gifted & highly skilled carpenter that built their timber frame house and is in the concluding stages of building his timber frame, huge workshop! He is truly a master at what he does! His house & shop build were from trees cut down on their property. They too are up in a mountain region. It would be cool if Jeremy & Nick could hook up and share knowledge! 😀✌🇨🇱
The penny in the frozen cup? A BRRrrr-illiant idea! Having it on the floor (or near the bottom) of the freezer? Meh - not so much. If the freezer fails the food will start thawing from the top down, the food at the bottom has the benefit of many frozen bricks above it keeping it cold, now it's frozen it needs to live nearer the top where it'll defrost first. And you'll find out before you lose the contents. Won't that right of way become a real issue running next to the house? Is it a Public RoWay or just a shared path to that other piece of property & I'm sure you've fully discussed the pros & cons of building right on your boundary line I'd be interested in how that became the spot? I loved the animals doing the Usain Bolt move (probably not what they're doing but what it looks like) and Marina's "Rock Chick" ? Very Clever, in fact they're ALL pretty cool, I wish you well with them.
Wow thank you. I enjoyed every second of this video. I'm so pleased your generator and pressure tank are working good. I'm definitely buying a t.shirt. kit Is adorable. I cant believe how far you've come in this year alone. Absolutely awesomexx💟 the pigs are getting so big. Wow. Those roosters are so funny . The chicks look beautiful
There is a way to keep your shed cool without buying any equipment or using any power. Build up earth against the two side walls and the back wall. Put 6 inches to a foot on roof. Build a awning on the front. Or you can use a tarp to cover the front if you are getting direct sunlight. That should keep it between 50 and 60 in there even on the hottest days.
If you build right you do not need AC but you need to know that you will lose things like a view. Building a house to then be covered by 40+ inches of dirt with a few solar light tubes leading to the window boxes to fake windows will keep a house cool as long as you have a vent system to pull the humidity out. How nice would it be for a house that is always in the 50-60 range without any external energy input?
Love watching your videos! I just shared your new apparel site on Facebook with my peeps. It warms my heart to know we have people like you in our country. Keep up the great work - this coming from a web/marketing ops/sales enablement dude eyeballing a more simplistic life.
It took me forever to get produce this year because of all the rain in the mid-Atlantic region. I finally got my first zucchini, and I have yellow squash and tomato babies sprouting!
Hey Jim and Jamie though from Gold Brook farms you might think about a swamp cooler in your pantry it may work well for keeping things a little cooler without too much expense
Build your house into the hill.. cool in summer warm in winter.. also you considering geothermal heat cooling? Lot of people doing it in NY.. underground coils of waterline, heats with the friction and the ground also insulates so water stays warm for heating and hot water.. good to see things are coming along!! I have undergone a huge transformation after losing 10 chickens in one night to a nocturnal predator... moving all coops directly behind barn, which entailed tear down of all rabbit hutches and building them on North side of barn in nice shady spot and easy to get at to feed,clean etc.. streamlined the whole homestead.. now if I could streamline the 5000sq ft of garden weeding😁😂 keep up the good work,not easy but soooo worth it!! Question about battery bank.. what brand and Amp hr batteries you use? My 48V 208Ahr deep cell lead acid bank crapped out after 5yrs.. granted I knew nothing about maintaining them so really my fault.. looking at what to get this time around,like the idea of AGM bank... input?? Thanks!!!
Things are going well for you. Understandable as you do such great planning. But wow, there is SO much to do on a homestead. I can see where this could become overwhelming.
hey yall...all that wood when you clear it off could be seasoned for a while and used for the wood stove if you go that route....love what ya'll are doing..i'm taking notes for my off gridness when its time...thank you...
You can check out our Guildbrook Farm merch here: shop.spreadshirt.com/guildbrookfarm and Marina's store here: shop.spreadshirt.com/blu-designs Also as a side note, all shirts can be "edited" so you can move the image or increase or decrease size. Coupon code is on the website. Thanks for all your support!
Guildbrook Farm - Off Grid Living.. hiya I just went to have a look at the women's clothing, hit show all items and there's just a blank page...?
Everything seems to be up on our devices. It may just be your connection? Definitely try it again
What browser and device are you using?
First, let me say how much I am enjoying following along on your story of living an off grid life , homesteading and raising your own food. It's great. I gained so much from the solar power video series that I will put to use myself, hopefully, someday soon. Second, if I may, I would suggest giving a lot of thought as to the placement of your house as it relates to the boundaries of your property because, unless there is some form of restrictive covenant, a future owner of the neighboring property could, potentially, come in and turn that raw land into something you would much rather not have to see, hear, or worse, smell and taste everyday. Also, you want to protect your well from such encroachment, too. A hog lot or hazardous materials landfill right next door would be calamitous, to be sure. Just my two cents. Keep up the good work.
We lived on 7 acres when i was about 11 yrs old and it didn't have a indoor bathroom. It just had a outhouse. In the winter we heated water on our cook stove and in the summer we put our bathing suits on and my granny would spray us down with the garden hose and then we would soap ourselfs up and shampoo our hair and then we would call granny and she would come out and rinse us off with the hose. We loved it. Congrats on your beautiful homestead.
Your little Yorkie is so cute!
I just wanted to congratulate you guys for reaching that 80K milestone! The way it's going, you'll be over 100K in no time! I love your content and your storytelling. Every video is very informative also! Someday, I hope and pray to be living in the woods like you guys do!
Thanks Pauly!
Probably isn’t new but this is the first time I’ve seen Jeremy’s new hair and I LOVE it!! 😀
Thanks for the update & congratulations on 80,000! Wow!
I have to say that you guys are made for off grid living. You have the wherewithal to maintain the lifestyle and work ethic that is necessary for this life. You are a wealth of information and it’s just great to see how far you’ve all come and how happy and content you all are. I absolutely am over the top with your precious pupster. Great job guys. It’s so amazing to see your dedication to your off grid life.
❤️
I'm glad you guys are making progress. I am just happy I grew a few veggies on my patio. lol
Check out whole house fans for the new house. They are loud but they will keep the house nice and cool. I live in Florida and can attest to their worthiness. We only run it at night. But again it's loud. It is in the hallway ceiling at our place.
Note about freezer penny trick-
We’ve been doing that three years now as were prone to power outages, just be aware that you should redo your frozen Penny water about every six months or a year as the air circulation will slowly road at the ice surface and could give you false readings. Won’t look like it sunk or anything, just really uneven overtime.
Looks good and we can’t wait to see you guys start building your house! I’m sure you are excited too.
Keeping cool in summer and above freezing in the winter is a good goal for pantry ... And house ... Bury a good bit (hundred feet or so) of 4"-6"" corrugated plastic flex pipe ... Have both ends in pantry, one at one end high , other end of pipe other end of pantry low ... 12 vdc computer fan would move enough air and draw pittance power .,. And you only need to run daylight ... Just reverse wires to switch from winter heating to summer cooling ... Good luck on your permanent water supply ... Hope when you widen road you can use dirt to make new roadbed down the hill ...
Add a greenhouse to the pantry, to help in he winter.
So glad you were able to find your land. You seem to be very happy now. Smart couple!
Awesome update ..glad the water issues are fixed. Your chikens have made themselves at home in your woods.... wonder if you could buy a large chunk of dry ice and put it under regular ice if that might help cool the container so you dont lose more of your pantry...
🌻have a wonderful evening🌻
if you have some extra solar panels you could hook up an air conditioner to your food pantry to keep it cooler.
Were glad everything is going well with the homestead. Thank you for taking us with you to see what is going on with y'all.
Thanks for the update! (And thanks on behalf of us here in the southern hemisphere for clarifying when you say 'summer' you mean July!) Fascinating to see how things are going. How to deal with the hot summers here in Australia is something I need to figure out before I switch to the off-grid lifestyle myself, so really looking forward to hearing what you have to say about that in the upcoming video!
Thanks so much for all the updates. I really appreciate you keeping us in the loop on the homestead events and how you arrive at the decisions you make. I love your new puppy.
Hi ya Jaime/Jeremy! Chickens r so much fun, they do get into mischief, I can tell u spent quality time with them while they while they were growing up, I could pet mine as well, love this eggs!! Slowly but surely, y’all’s place is coming together. Thank u
Just finished what appeared to be your beginning videos on the outback start. I am so jealous! So impressed too. May your every dream come true. You are so deserving of what i call the good old country life. I wish you nothing but sunshine and best wishes.
Hi again! Whewww!! Ever so happy and relieved to see things are back to ok and moving forward and mostly that you all survived and defeated the water yay!!! As I mentioned brought back way too many not so great memories! Will be so fun now to see your upcoming vids. You all do a great job! New puppy is a cutie and I'm sure will give lots of love and laughs for everyone. You all take good care and thx for sharing as always...
Dig a root cell', that is how are ancestors did it. Cool in summer & warm in the winter.
Every time I watch your videos I am amazed. That Jeremy is a regular MacGyver, and I love the t-shirts. Thank you for the update, looking forward to more!!
Gr8 update video. If I lived that far off grid, I think I'd get guinea's again...fantastic watch dogs and very yummy! A little noisy but that usually signals trouble anyway.
We’ll probably get some next spring
So glad you are happy and free.
Really lovely spot for your house. That gentle sweep of the meadow below is gorgeous.
Had a couple ideas for keeping your shed cooler. 1) cooling. 2) limit heat gain. I see by the comments, (but didn't find the posting) about using a radiator with water running through it. You could gravity feed water from up the hill if available, or a bypass trickle off the house water. My second idea is to reduce the heat reaching the roof, which would entail second roof above your actual roof. It could be sheet metal (or most anything), spaced an inch or 2 above the current roof, so that an airspace exists underneath it. Nothing elaborate, but it would keep the suns primary heating rays from reaching your insulated area. You would have to weigh the cost of money & time vs value of potential food loss. And of course, going into winter soon, this would move to the bottom of the priority list. And of course time is your biggest commodity, with everything else you are trying to accomplish. Speaking of which, I don't know where you find the time to make all these videos, but I am glad that you do. Very informative & very educational! Thank you!
I wonder if a heavy tarp would serve this same function. It looks like there are trees near by to help hang it, so construction and cost should be minimal.
You might want to rethink putting your home so close to a property line. Two reasons, one there may be a minimum set back by code, and two you can't control what the other property or future property owner will do on his land near your home. I have been in many phases of construction for over 30 years, from design, thru construction, not behind a desk, but hands on. My father and I built our own home for my family (wife and 3 children) and we did 95% ourselves. We did not do excavation, septic or well. If you would like any suggestions, guidance or just someone to bounce some ideas off don't hesitate to reach out. Like your channel, I used to follow Pure Life, but I can't take it anymore. They are an example of what you can do when you have too much money.
I agree. On all points. 😏
Let me know if you are in need of any suggestions, direction or advice when it comes to the house. You can contact me at joe@jdprintwear.com
Great video, love how far you have come. You will enjoy your new family member. Yorkshire terriers are the best, can be a little noisy at times, they take their job as watch dogs seriously! Looking forward to seeing your house being built. I finally got my building permit this week, so exciting times ahead! We are experiencing serious draught and heatwave in Scandinavia at the moment. It is really hot for us when the temp rices over 90F. Normally there is no need for airconditioners in this country. What I have learned to keep the house cool is that I close all the doors and windows on the ground floor during the day. have curtains closed when the sun is on the windows. I have an awning over my terrace, and that covers the windows on the southfacing side. I keep it out all day and night, the sun doesnt set until midnight, and is up again at 4am. I keep the windows open upstairs so we get an airflow. This has kept the house ralatively cool. I do not have aircondition or a fan. Hoping for some rain soon, the crops are so far down to 40% of normal. No rain since beginning of May. The farmers are worried, they do not have enough winterfeed to keep the animals over the winter.
Hey, cheers for the update. I realise unsolicited advice is kinda obnoxious, but if it's going to be more than a year before you have a permanent house with basement or whatever, have you maybe considered digging a small root cellar? I've seen plans for them dug into the side of hills with cinder-blocks for the walls that seemed fairly doable on a small scale - it's what I plan on doing personally when I've got the THOW built. Just a thought, anyway. You guys research everything so it's probably already crossed your minds lol, and it's not like you're lacking for projects anyway. Thanks for the videos and please keep them coming :)
Things are sounding great out there! Glad to hear the solar is exceeding your expectations and you're able to afford some creature comforts like an AC unit!
I was pleasantly surprised. 👍🏻
engineered "luck"
Love the idea about the penny on the frozen water. I'll definitely have to use that in my freezer. A lot cheaper than my original idea then involved half a dozen pieces of hardware and a few sensors.
All the tidbits were very interesting! Thanks.
If you have any timber in the future pasture, you might consider a sawmill and mill your own lumber. Hud-son makes a budget manual sawmill for $2100 plus shipping... And you might consider "silvopasture", too. Don't forget to build the house oriented to get solar heating in the winter. Just trying to help. As you make these decisions, please explain the reasons behind them as much as you can. it will help those of us who have a dream like yours and don't have enough time to make any mistakes you made. LOVE the updates like this one. Great to see the potential problems along with the successes. Can't wait to follow you guys on your journey for years to come.
Thanks for the update ! Sounds like a good kind of farm list to keep all the good things going forward :) I always enjoy your videos , teaching and sharing your journey. Congrats of the family t-shirt store start up. I agree with other viewers a small AC unit for food storage shed. yes at 7-9 amps per min. Not a small amp draw but your solar system is rocking productive right now. I know you folks always carefully weight options of food loss , money and time ( I know viewers appreciate your mind set ) . On the house consider super insulation . I built many when I was in the business . You will not regret adding this into your home designs. Plus think thermal mass for the inside of the new home :)
How about a 5,000 BTU AC for the pantry building? Since you have extra solar capacity. I bought one on eBay from refurbking for cheeeep. It's on its third season with no problems.
Thank you for sharing, my dream is to be off grid soon, and I am getting great pointers from each of your videos, I pray for your family daily, God Bless
Keeping stored food at an optimum temperature is a problem for us too. Your solar power system is great, and it's good that it works better than expected. I hope your puppy stays away from the copperheads. I've heard of vaccines for dogs to protect
them from rattle snake bites, but I haven't seen such a vaccine to protect against copperheads. Guildbrook Farm is looking good.
You guys keep me motivated .
Thats my 5 year plan is to start a farm/ homestead . my dream.
I'm so glad to see you back! Can't wait to finish this video and "catch up" with you and your fam.
Mr. Money Mustache (blog, not video) has a great post specifically on insulation. He recommends a very high (53=12" blown) insulation level in your ceilings. You might want to check it out especially since heat is a concern and you are finalizing your house plans. His family is in Colorado. Sorry about all the hassles with the water, solar, etc. Luv your channel. Your planning and production are sure paying off for you. Professionalism pays! Congrats!
I like the radiator idea, In your pantry shed, run the water line through a radiator from an old house, Then use solar to run a fan thru the radiator. I do like the straw bale ideal. Just have to make sure they keep dry. Good luck.
you should keep the pine needles off the panels it will reduce the power. Nice update
Awesome video ...cant wait to watch your house being built ...love you guys
Even through set backs you guys are always moving forward with a great attitude and a plan! I look forward to planting some Jade green beans in the future. Thanks for the update and here's to continued success as the summer rolls along.
Holy cuteness that puppy!
You guys have been busy. Don't really notice it as much until it is all put together. Lot of big projects. Loved the Frozen penny truck. Looking great
Ya man. Killin it.
at least you're smiling !!!! love you guys!!!!
I realize I am watching a yr later. I follow Red Poppy Ranch channel. Heath is building their homestead home in Idaho as getting a GC to is difficult and expensive. he is a plumber I believe w limited construction knowledge initially. He may have some good info for y'all. Best wishes for happy healthy homesteading
People are funny, if you build at the edge of your property, the other neighbor may think there is infrastructure and want to be near you! Then you are looking at them, all day, can’t go outside without shorts on. You are successful and independent, thoughtful and I really appreciate your sharing of your experiences!! Just imagine if I lived NEXT to you and had lots of questions!!! Lol. My husband in general doesn’t like to be in crowds, but get him in a group and he is chatty Kathy! I wouldn’t want to live next to that! Is that location high? Near open area for septic and solar? Just questions, no need to directly answer.
I was wondering if you could do a video on how the heck you get so much done. Do you have a daily routine, a weekly routine, a goal routine? I know some items are season driven but I don't seem to be able to get as much done as you all seem to get done.
Some days it feels like a lot, others not so much lol. We have an old video on “sandbagging your goals” which covers this
thanks I didn't think I missed watching any of the videos
Have you watched The Boss of the Swamp's videos on building his iceboxes? With the DC freezer it would be a snap to keep things cool in it during the summer, and simple in the winter too.
Wow ain't God awesome! I am so happy for you & Fam! The best effient way to live! You all make me smile.
You should look into Earthship Homes, we rented them 3 times so far off AirBnB, 2 in New Mexico and 1 in Tennessee, all 3 had no air conditioner and the home stayed 70ish F using nothing more than a pipe trenched in the ground to pull earth cooled air into the home and out the ceiling in a constant circulation manner. The one in Tennessee had a mini propane heater, but we didnt use it and temps dropped into the 30's at night outside and inside it got as cold as 65F during the night.
Loved your comment about the solar...using it “because you can!” I don’t understand the mentality that being off grid = “suffering.” Shoot if ya got it, why in the heck wouldn’t you use it? Isn’t that EXACTLY what you built it for? 🤷🏻♀️ Anywhooooo...glad things are going well for you guys!! Not that ya asked buuuut....😏😂😂😂... I’m making the leap to full time RV’ing! I’m storing all my preps with my kids, selling the rest of my crap and hittin the highway! Due to some health issues I’ve decided life’s too short and it’s time for ME! Always wanted to see the Oregon, Washington state areas and the New England area. Coast floppin. LOL I’m gonna go while I’m able and just enjoy what time I have left. Hopefully plenty but I ain’t taking no chances! Maybe when I come your way I can visit. I’ll close my eyes so I won’t know the secret location! LOL 😆 Only sharing because your can do, get it done, attitude is actually part of my inspiration. Once I got sick I kind of got a little blah and lost some of my own “kick butt” attitude. Seeing folks like you keeping spirits high, and just doing what ya gotta and more importantly, “what ya wanna,” fires me back up!! So thank you! Keep doing what you do! You are appreciated. Blessings ~Lisa
Awesome Lisa! Definitely do it and do it now!
Lisa, I LOVE your attitude!! My sister and I have wanted to do the same thing. YOU are an inspiration!!!
Jades are my favorite green bean. I bought a new house this year and the garden here didn't do great at all, but I have already prepped it for next year, so I hope it will do amazing next year.
Hair cut 100% better. Thanks for the cute puppy info! ❤️❤️❤️
I like the short hair better.....makes you look younger....you're always beautiful!
you can place a small air-conditioner in the pantry shed since you have extra power in the summer
Great updates! Looks like the solar investment is really paying off! You are doing a fantastic job!
can'ty wait qo see your house hope all go wells!!
Awesome! I bet you guys are getting excited to start on your house... I can't wait to see what all ya do. I'm excited for you 👍😁
G’day Jamie! Have you thought of a Root cellar in the future? This will help keep your pantry a consistent temperature. I know it’s a costly thought, and a lot of work. But the benefits could be great. They did it in the old days. I also reuse my lids and rarely have any problems. As long as they are clean and no scratches inside and the ring is intact no problem.
I don't know about where you live, but come winter in upper michigan, we can go weeks without good sunny days making our solar producing very poor, I would definitely look into wind power as you said you might do.
Good video's everyone, good to see the kids involved with projects, spiders😂 or not.
Is there any possibility of building a root cellar when you build the house? How about a coolbot and small AC in the pantry?
When u build your new house, there are solar options, shingles that make electricity & special solar water heaters for the rooftop.
Please add a t-shirt with the sweet black hen that wants to stay in the house! She is so precious!
Hey guys! I love your channel. I’ve watched all your videos and they just keep getting better. It’s my birthday today and I was really hoping y’all would be putting out a video and the fact that it was an update video is the best! Keep up the hard work and know that you’ve inspired me to start homesteading and beginning to start my own prepper pantry. Thanks so much. Now off to buy some t-shirts 😄
Happy Birthday Hannah!
Oh boy .... what a pup!
Fundamental off grid Electrical question for you, when your battery is full, where does the excess energy from the solar panels go if it is not immediately used by the house? Could it be put to use with a pump to push water up to your water barrel area and make a small pumped hydro storage pond? Add a small hydro generator at the bottom of the hill... burry the pipe so you can pump up all summer and drain down in the winter when there’s less sun? The pond would serve as a back up water source for drinking, garden water, animal water and for fire fighting.
Pumping to an underground tank on top of the hill, is a good idea. They don't have enough volume to run a generator. i did read about using excess to heat water, in super-insulated tanks. Also helps if you have solar water heating too. Lots of great hot showers.
When I used to install Network TV I was at a customer's home who had a wine room and he had a room chiller I can't remember what they were called but he told me that they are often used to keep rooms cooler than the rest of a house and that it hardly used any power if you could find something like that for your pantry shed and have it on a timer so it would run during the day it might help to offset the hottest part of the day or it might not even use that much power where you might be able to run it through the night and take advantage of the cooler night air to get ahead and cool the building down a little bit more
Yayy, you're doing the community garden sharing, well done, it's the smartest way to go!!
God Bless you guys as you progress in this sustainable lifestyle, looking good and can't wait to see the homestead building.
What temp is your water in your well in the summer? Could you use a small 12 volt pump to cycle well water through a radiator, with a dc fan behind it to cool your pantry? Add a tstat to control pump/fan motors. I know someone who cools their summer home by submerging a radiator in a lake, circulates water through their A coil of their air conditioner instead of freon. Just to get your mind thinking. :)
You guys are amazing! I’ve learned so much from your channel. Please keep up the good work and rad videos!
Ordering a couple chicken themed products... a t-shirt and an apron. I am so excited that this is my first year doing home-raised chickens, and some of your old videos have been very helpful!
Didn't notice that I could change the size of the image... Oh well, I'm still a happy camper, er newfound chickener… LOL.
Have you thought about installing whirlybirds on your storage shed to draw the hot air out?
Have you ever watched or heard of The Foch Family Off Grid? You should watch some of the videos. Nick Foch is a very talented, gifted & highly skilled carpenter that built their timber frame house and is in the concluding stages of building his timber frame, huge workshop! He is truly a master at what he does! His house & shop build were from trees cut down on their property. They too are up in a mountain region. It would be cool if Jeremy & Nick could hook up and share knowledge! 😀✌🇨🇱
Fouch. Yes, great guy. Talented and a hard worker. 👍🏻
The penny in the frozen cup? A BRRrrr-illiant idea! Having it on the floor (or near the bottom) of the freezer? Meh - not so much. If the freezer fails the food will start thawing from the top down, the food at the bottom has the benefit of many frozen bricks above it keeping it cold, now it's frozen it needs to live nearer the top where it'll defrost first. And you'll find out before you lose the contents. Won't that right of way become a real issue running next to the house? Is it a Public RoWay or just a shared path to that other piece of property & I'm sure you've fully discussed the pros & cons of building right on your boundary line I'd be interested in how that became the spot? I loved the animals doing the Usain Bolt move (probably not what they're doing but what it looks like) and Marina's "Rock Chick" ? Very Clever, in fact they're ALL pretty cool, I wish you well with them.
Great update. Please try the Italian beans, they are quick growing, produce a lot and are very tasty. Just a thought for your next planting.
Wow thank you. I enjoyed every second of this video. I'm so pleased your generator and pressure tank are working good. I'm definitely buying a t.shirt. kit Is adorable. I cant believe how far you've come in this year alone. Absolutely awesomexx💟 the pigs are getting so big. Wow. Those roosters are so funny . The chicks look beautiful
There is a way to keep your shed cool without buying any equipment or using any power. Build up earth against the two side walls and the back wall. Put 6 inches to a foot on roof. Build a awning on the front. Or you can use a tarp to cover the front if you are getting direct sunlight. That should keep it between 50 and 60 in there even on the hottest days.
Bless you!
Yes, do it the way you want, after all you will live in the house. And not one bad comment on your t-shirts , cool!
You can stack straw bales around your shed. Then stucco over it. Cover straw bales with wire. Pour base concrete.
lookin' good ! looking forward to see the well being drilled "in the found vein". and of course new house progression.
Nice update and such an adorable dog!! Looking forward to the building videos too.
If you build right you do not need AC but you need to know that you will lose things like a view. Building a house to then be covered by 40+ inches of dirt with a few solar light tubes leading to the window boxes to fake windows will keep a house cool as long as you have a vent system to pull the humidity out. How nice would it be for a house that is always in the 50-60 range without any external energy input?
I’d rather have AC and the view
Good update but would love to see more. You all are doing such interesting stuff all the time. Learned a lot as usual.
good to see you guys again
A small bottle of water only 1/4 full and frozen upright, then laid on it's side will show if it melted asa the water will change position.
Love watching your videos! I just shared your new apparel site on Facebook with my peeps. It warms my heart to know we have people like you in our country. Keep up the great work - this coming from a web/marketing ops/sales enablement dude eyeballing a more simplistic life.
Thanks Dave!
It took me forever to get produce this year because of all the rain in the mid-Atlantic region. I finally got my first zucchini, and I have yellow squash and tomato babies sprouting!
Hey Jim and Jamie though from Gold Brook farms you might think about a swamp cooler in your pantry it may work well for keeping things a little cooler without too much expense
Build your house into the hill.. cool in summer warm in winter.. also you considering geothermal heat cooling? Lot of people doing it in NY.. underground coils of waterline, heats with the friction and the ground also insulates so water stays warm for heating and hot water.. good to see things are coming along!! I have undergone a huge transformation after losing 10 chickens in one night to a nocturnal predator... moving all coops directly behind barn, which entailed tear down of all rabbit hutches and building them on North side of barn in nice shady spot and easy to get at to feed,clean etc.. streamlined the whole homestead.. now if I could streamline the 5000sq ft of garden weeding😁😂 keep up the good work,not easy but soooo worth it!! Question about battery bank.. what brand and Amp hr batteries you use? My 48V 208Ahr deep cell lead acid bank crapped out after 5yrs.. granted I knew nothing about maintaining them so really my fault.. looking at what to get this time around,like the idea of AGM bank... input?? Thanks!!!
SimpliPhi. Did a whole series on the install about a month ago.
Awesome update video. Would like to see more from you all as you are the reason I am doing the back yard chickens and urban home steading.
Every thing looks like it is right on track i really enjoyed all you showed us and i am really excited to see more good luck
Things are going well for you. Understandable as you do such great planning. But wow, there is SO much to do on a homestead. I can see where this could become overwhelming.
It’s a process. Not for the timid.
Are you sure you want to be so close to the neighbor? I like where your current place is as it feels solitary.
Awesome update. Have a great Sunday, Andreas from Off Grid Sweden 🇸🇪
hey yall...all that wood when you clear it off could be seasoned for a while and used for the wood stove if you go that route....love what ya'll are doing..i'm taking notes for my off gridness when its time...thank you...
should go underground with the pantry ....i cant wait till we get ours built in the spring