Luckily, the spring is still running. Unluckily, the last couple hundred feet of the water hose froze. So far this has been only a minor inconvenience for getting water in winter months — much better than the alternative of a completely frozen water source. (Knocking on so much wood right now…) Running water from the […]
Practicalities
Yurt Tasks Before Winter: A Post-Snow Update
We posted a couple months ago a short list of the yurt tasks and chores we wanted and needed to get done before winter came and put a practical pause on many of our activities. Well now winter and snow are here. How’d we do? I’d confidently and proudly say that we did SO-SO! Put a […]
I Love Luci: That Yurt Featured on the MPOWERD Blog
We recently spoke with MPOWERD, a great company that makes affordable solar-powered lanterns (called the Luci), and the interview is now posted on their Bright Ideas blog. We’re so grateful for their interest in what we’re up to and how we’re getting by. We’ve been using one of their products, the Luci Lux — well, six […]
Tasks and Homestead Chores to Complete Before Winter
Fall is in full swing here in Vermont — the woodstove firing, the hills and mountains alight, the leaf peepers swarming — and our work over the summer has put us in a good position. But we still have a number of homestead chores and yurt tasks to complete before winter. Put a door on […]
The Creek Goes Dry — Well, One of Them
Mark the day! On Monday the creek went dry — the seasonal one, that is, that we’ve been using for collecting creek water. The second small seasonal creek, which meets up with the now-dry one just below where we’ve been filling our buckets, is still flowing (“trickling” is maybe more accurate), but there isn’t a convenient […]
How to Clean an Aquacera Ceramic Water Filter
The Aquacera Traveler XL water filter is ridiculously easy to clean and maintain, and the ceramic filters themselves are easy to replace when it comes time. For starters, the filter is sturdy and solid but easy to deconstruct. The lid sits atop the top (unfiltered) reservoir and this top reservoir tank sits nestled into the […]
Hauling and Filtering Water: Off-Grid Yurt Living
A main consideration in selecting property on which to build the yurt was the presence of a year-round water source so that we could filter our own drinking water — rather than, say, buying big jugs or relying on collecting rainwater (or, of course, drilling a well). Since moving off grid, we’ve found, luckily, that […]