Living Off the Grid: How a Family of City-Dwellers Discovered the Simple Life

                                                                 Alison Zeuschel

1     After living in the 24-hour city of Las Vegas, Nevada for nearly ten years, my family and I decided to slow things down. My daughter wanted a horse. My husband wanted property. My son wanted a dirt bike. I wanted our family to be more self-sufficient.

2     None of us felt that this could be accomplished where we were living and we all agreed that a move to the country would be great for everyone.

3     Before long we set about looking for a home in Yucca, Arizona, a very small town of less than 1,000 people. It was while I was scanning listings from our real estate agent that I first learned of it. There was a home for sale there on 40 acres. When I called to inquire about the property, I was informed that there was no electricity available in the area. What? No electricity? I almost dismissed the idea immediately.

4     The property was off the grid. It was not connected whatsoever to any utilities — power, water or sewer. Power was supplied by a wind turbine and solar panels. Water had to be hauled in and stored in two tanks located on the property. Forty acres would give us plenty of room for all of our animals and give my husband and son space to ride their ATVs. Besides, what better way is there to become more self-sustainable? After giving it some thought, we decided to put in an offer and moved in on Thanksgiving Day.

5     When we first moved to the property, we did some remodeling and stayed in our motor home. We were confronted with real challenges at the time. The power kept going out, the main water line to the house broke, the  plumbing backed up into the front yard and the generator died.

6     But the setbacks just made us work harder. We slowly got things fixed and moved into the house after 38 days in the RV. The next challenge was to become familiar with your power system, and to learn the ins and outs of hauling your own water and generating your own power.

7     Our off-the-grid system consists of eight solar panels (1,000 watts) that are mounted on a sun tracker rack. We also have a wind turbine that generates 3,000 watts in 24 mph winds. The energy generated by the wind and sun is stored in 16 6v golf cart batteries. We also have two 2,500-gallon above-ground water tanks and a 250-gallon propane tank. Every weekend, we haul two 275-gallon water tanks to the nearby town of Yucca and fill them with water, which we then pump into our big water tanks. 

8     While living here for the past four months has been a big adjustment, there are many benefits to living off the grid. I think one of the greatest is teaching my kids the importance of conservation. They used to take water, power and gas for granted. The first week we were here, we used almost 1,000 gallons of water. With only a 5,000-gallon water tank, it didn't take them long to understand that we had to use less water. We started taking quicker showers, doing only full loads of laundry, turning off the water while brushing our teeth or shaving.

9      Over-consumption is even more clearly demonstrated by our electricity usage. We have a digital readout of how many volts of DC power we have stored in our batteries at any given time. If you turn on a light or the TV, the number goes down. In order to protect the batteries, the system is set up to shut the inverter off if the volts get too low. Then the power goes out. When we first moved in, we lost power almost daily. After this happens a few times, it becomes clear very quickly just how often you waste electricity. Everything from lights and ceiling fans to computers and radios were left on when they were not in use. The cell phone chargers were plugged in even when they weren't charging anything. All of this uses unnecessary power. We are steadily learning to be more diligent with our power usage.

10     In addition, we are also trying to make other changes. They include reducing the amount of trash we generate by recycling and composting, growing our own organic vegetables, and reusing and repurposing things that we would normally toss. We also want to produce our own eggs and goat's milk in the near future.

11     Overall, going off the grid has been great for our family. We have learned how to conserve power and water and to really appreciate what the earth gives to us every day. I hope that once my kids move out of the house, they will keep the habits that they have learned by living off the grid.

Culture Notes

24-hour city of Las Vegas: 24-hour cities refer to those that provide activities for people around the clock. Las Vegas, with its mega casino-hotels and associated entertainment, is internationally renowned for gambling, shopping, fine dining and nightlife. 不夜城拉斯维加斯（美国内华达州东南部城市），世界著名的赌城

Thanksgiving Day: A national holiday celebrated primarily in the United States and Canada as a day of giving thanks for the blessing of the harvest and of the preceding year. In the US, it is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November. For many Americans it is the most important holiday apart from Christmas. 感恩节（美国感恩节是11月的第四个星期四）

New words and expressions

grid /ɡrɪd/ n. 电网

    off the grid 无电力供应，处于电网之外

city-dweller /ˈdwelə/ n. 城市居民

slow down 减速；放慢生活节奏

property /ˈprɒpətɪ/ n. possession(s); land and buildings 财产；房地产

self-sufficient /ˌself səˈfɪʃənt/ a. able to provide everything one needs by oneself, without help from other people 自给自足的

accomplish /əˈkʌmplɪʃ/ vt. complete successfully; achieve 完成；实现

set about start (doing sth.) esp. in a determined way 开始；着手

agent /ˈeɪdʒənt/ n. 代理人；代理商

learn of become aware of (sth.) through information or observation 获悉；听说

inquire /ɪnˈkwaɪə/ v. ask for information 询问

available /əˈveɪləbəl/ a. (of things) that can be used or obtained 可使用的；可得到的

whatsoever /ˌwɒtsəʊˈevə/ ad. used after a negative  phrase to add emphasis to the idea that is being expressed  任何（用于否定句中以加强语气）

utility /juːˈtɪlɪtɪ/ n. (usu. pl.) public service such as the supply of water, electricity, gas or a bus or rail network 公用事业

haul /hɔːl/ v. pull (sth. heavy) slowly and with difficulty 拖；拉

locate /ləʊˈkeɪt/ vt. set or establish  in a position 使安置于，使坐落于

put in present (sth.) formally 正式提出

go out come to an end; stop burning or shining 停止；不再燃烧或发光

setback /ˈsetbæk/ n. sth. that delays or prevents a process from developing 挫折

be familiar with have a good knowledge of 熟悉

system /ˈsɪstəm/ n. a set of connected things or devices that operate together 系统；组合装置

ins and outs (of sth.) the detailed or complicated facts of sth. 细节，详情

generate /ˈdʒenəreɪt/ vt. produce; cause (sth.) to exist or occur 产生；引起

consist of be made up of or formed from 由…组成

adjustment /əˈdʒʌstmənt/ n. a change in sth. that makes it better, more accurate, or more effective 调整；调节

take sth./sb. for granted expect sth. or sb. to be always available when you need them and never think how important or useful they are 认为…理所当然

laundry /ˈlɔːndrɪ/ n. clothes and sheets that need to be washed or that have been newly washed 要洗的衣物；洗好的衣物

in use being used 被使用；在使用中

diligent /ˈdɪlɪdʒənt/ a. showing care and effort in one’s work or duties 勤奋的；认真刻苦的

in addition also, as well 另外；此外

trash /træʃ/ n. waste materials or things that are no longer wanted or needed  废物；垃圾

recycle /ˌriːˈsaɪkəl/ v. treat or process (used or waste materials) so as to make suitable for reuse（使）回收利用

organic /ɔːˈɡænɪk/ a. (of food, farming methods, etc.) produced or practiced without using artificial chemicals 有机的

toss /tɒs/ vt. throw (sth.) carelessly 扔，掷，抛

overall /ˌəʊvərˈɔːl/ ad. on the whole, generally 总的来说 

appreciate /əˈpriːʃɪeɪt/ vt. be grateful or thankful for; value highly 感激；欣赏