# Starting an off grid community



## MountainMan

For years my wife and I have planned to purchase a large piece of land (100+ acres) in Ohio. We plan to have all the luxuries. We've always planned to build homes on that land for our 3 daughters (currently under 8 years old) and our other loved ones. Most of our friends and family don't plan on taking advantage of this and we have recently thought about looking for like minded people who would like to live in a small, collaborative community. Just wanted to run this past some people and see what everybody thinks. I put most of this in my first post too. Took a while to figure out the boards. lol.


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## acidlittle

I would love to do this, but cash flow is poor. It's a good idea, and if you can you can make each house basically like a corner of a castle for protection! Too bad you aren't in IA


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## Leon

I myself will either be carving a retreat of my own in a remote locale, living with my pal glockwork9 at his family's unused retreat or doing something like what you are talking about. I saw a trailer park running off grid on a solar farm they had out front up in the lower north carolinas. That would be a dream, but quite a bit goes into it. I'd be one of those folks though. My biggest thing now is making a car run low fuel or fuel free.


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## survival

I currently live on a 100+ acre farm with half of my family living on it right now. We already have 1 windmill up and I'm working on the second one so it can go up this summer. Water storage is already in progress. 175w solar panels are going up end of summer. We have ponds, creeks, shooting range(s), woods, deer, turkey, ducks, bass, bluegill, goats, honeybees, apple orchard, gardens, national forests surrounding us and are 5 miles from the lake. Riding atv's all over the place, drinking beer and shooting guns (lol) is my idea of a good time (hey, its kentucky!). All is good on the farm.

Now, for your idea of starting an off grid community for like minded folks. This is the trickly part. I would do this in a heartbeat, but as with anyone, the best neighbor is a fence as the saying says. Even with family, you can have your disagreements with them sometimes as others can validate this for me. I would be assuming you are selling lots to the other members of the off grid tie? Some other things to think of is if someone isn't pulling their weight in the community. What would you do then, and what would you do if it was a family member? 

Just some thoughts, but I'm anxious to hear what you had in mind. It could even be setup like a regulated subdivision with restrictions, duties and lot responsibilities for each person. Some would even go to where they are paying a co-op fee and the moneies being submited to the community (extra solar panels, deep cell batteries, garden seeds, fertilizer etc). Just a thought and awesome thread you started!


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## MountainMan

Leon said:


> I myself will either be carving a retreat of my own in a remote locale, living with my pal glockwork9 at his family's unused retreat or doing something like what you are talking about. I saw a trailer park running off grid on a solar farm they had out front up in the lower north carolinas. That would be a dream, but quite a bit goes into it. I'd be one of those folks though. My biggest thing now is making a car run low fuel or fuel free.


I was in the electric vehicle class in my high school. We built two vehicles from the ground up. 1 was a toyota paseo and the other was a ford ranger. Not a difficult thing to do if you follow the proper instructions but we could only go about 40 miles. That was the truck. The paseo was faster but didn't go nearly as far. It ran on one solar panel that we put up outside the school.


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## MountainMan

I have experience with 501c3 non profit work. I was thinking about setting up a board of directors for the community. Money wouldn't be as important a consideration as skills. The board could raise moneys, create rules, create a code of conduct, and delegate duties. We'd like it to be completely collaborative. We don't expect to be friends with everyone but we would certainly make sure newcomers fit well into the community. Love this site by the way. Everybody seems pretty cool and there's a lot of information here. Great discussions.


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## survival

MountainMan said:


> I have experience with 501c3 non profit work. I was thinking about setting up a board of directors for the community. Money wouldn't be as important a consideration as skills. The board could raise moneys, create rules, create a code of conduct, and delegate duties. We'd like it to be completely collaborative. We don't expect to be friends with everyone but we would certainly make sure newcomers fit well into the community. Love this site by the way. Everybody seems pretty cool and there's a lot of information here. Great discussions.


I was figuring you were going in the direction of something based on experience like a non profit. There is a little community about 40 miles from where I live where they have such a community. Its on the college campus and they build apartments with all eco environment living (solar, wind, compost, gardens, rainwater etc). The next time I go up there (for pizza!) I will stop by the community to see what info I can gather. From my understanding they built this for the environmentalist studies at the college.

And thank you very much for the warm comments about the site. Your input was very well encouraging.


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## amym505

I think that is a great idea. I always wanted to be involved in a community like that and dreamed about starting one for years. It has been one of those "If I ever win the lottery" ideas.


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## AnvilIron

MountainMan,

I was associated with a couple of OTG communities in Northern New York up along the Canadian border back in the later 70’s and 80’s. There were five in all. The people were very talented, energized and pretty well funded, but each of those communities is gone now. They eventually came apart because of a small collection of reasons.

1. There was a breakdown in moral code when it came to personal relationships. People joined as individuals and families, but the constant close contact that came out of sharing a lot of resources and space eventually led to hookups that created serious problems. Once animosities and mistrust became part of the community, couples separated and the community imploded.
2.	They were too democratic which made it very difficult to arrive at a consensus on just about anything. They left too many things open to individual determination and hadn’t laid out the details, fixed goals and guidelines before they began. Differences in opinion became divisions between families. The details should have been established as terms of a contract of sorts before they started.
3.	They didn’t have a community income or work rules/ethics. There needs to be a commercial sawmill, dairy or something of that nature and if someone in the community is not employed and contributing, they have to work in the community commercial entity a set number of hours. The communities in New York ended up with some freeloaders and didn’t establish work requirements or a ‘labor or eviction’ policy.
4.	Some people only stayed a year or so and then wanted their money back. The communities couldn’t produce the cash and had to sell resources to buy them out. It made things pretty hard on those remaining.

We all live in and are affected by a screwed-up society. Whether we live in the heart of some city or in a rural collaborative community, we bring that baggage with us. A strong society is based on strong and fair rules. It’s also based on individuals with high ethical and moral standards. Even the best book of rules is only as strong as those that follow it. Our own constitution is a case in point. 

Consider your goals and those that you would share them with or entrust them to carefully.


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## MountainMan

1. I hadn't planned on doing meals as a community on a daily basis which I think would help to keep the original lines between families in place. Don't get me wrong I want a close knit community but more of a small town feel than a commune. Also when creating our original documents I would insist that those found guilty by whatever system we have in place would face stiff consequences up to and including being evicted from the community.

2.I've already taken into consideration that the rules will have to be very detailed and strict. My wife tends to be a little on the hippie side (no offense to anyone) but I tend to much more conservative. I realize this may sound a little crazy but my opinion is that it would need to be run as a small country. The board would be in charge of setting up the initial hierarchy and constitution.Thereafter the residents would be responsible for electing new board members, pending president approval. It gives the community a stronger voice than your average non-profit but still leaves final say to the board. By approving board members instead of appointing them we should be able to ensure that we don't stray from our original purpose.

3. I had planned on having a set work policy. I hope to be almost completely self sufficient. I do, however, realize the need for some monies and hadn't really come up with plan yet. The community run business sounds like a great idea. It would work well with a non-profit. 

4. As far as people leaving, I'm a little ashamed to admit that this hadn't even occured to me. lol. I believe the non-profit will cover the community in the event that people go. There will be nothing to buy out as no individual will own the land. The land and its contents would be owned by the non-profit that would be controlled by the board of directors and president.

I really appreciate the ideas. Especially the pointing out of a couple of holes I hadn't really thought of. I'm really detail oriented and I'd hate to leave a potential problem un-addressed. You seem to be a real wealth of knowledge and anything else you could share about your time in those communities would be greatly appreciated. It's been hard for me to find anyone who has first hand experience!


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## Danny123

I would love to do this.How much would it cost?
I would love to give my kids this experience and this kind of freedom when SHTF.
Good idea


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## MountainMan

Danny123 said:


> I would love to do this.How much would it cost?
> I would love to give my kids this experience and this kind of freedom when SHTF.
> Good idea


I don't think it would cost the individual anything. I'm still working on pricing everything and can't really come up with a total cost without having a board of directors set up. I'd love to chat with you more about it. Hit me up. Looking for board members now if you're interested.


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## MountainMan

Been doing a lot of school work (back in college) and prepping work lately but I've squeezed in plenty of time for the research for this project. Happy to say that we have our first perspective board and community member (Danny123)! Hope you're still with me buddy. I'm getting the phone over the weekend and I plan to call or text sometime this week. Danny's even bringin' friends. Glad to have somebody so interested in gettin' off the grid. Even if it never hits the fan it'll be a great way to live. I have some ideas on how to run a community business that gets everyone involved and has us doing the things we're good at. It's gettin' exciting!


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## Dropy

Its a good idea. And sounds like some folks here have some good ideas as well to help you out. Keep us posted on this subject as it is one i too am interested in to an extent.


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## LaMar

A small community of like minded people can be a big help. In olden times families lived close by and shared resources and in my family we had aunts, uncles, grandparents and cousins all living within a few miles of each other for that purpose. I still live on our old homestead and many of my family are all still here and so are their kids.

If you are looking for a small inexpensive starter cabin for your community you might like my design. It is 14x14 with kitchen, dining area, living area and bathroom downstairs and large bedroom and office upstairs. Sleeps 4 comfortably. I use a solar composting toilet of my own design and hand drilled the water well. It is powered by a small 580 watt solar and 400 watt wind turbine system. Wood stove and propane backup for OD water heater, stove and furnace.

The cabin was built for under $2000 from all new materials except for doors and windows which were salvaged. Trim work is rough cut pine from a local lumber mill. Fully insulated floor to roof and very efficient.

You can see vids of my cabin and systems here: http://www.youtube.com/solarcabin

LaMar


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## MountainMan

Dude that is awesome! I have a family of 5 so it's a little small for us. 3 girls plus me and the wife. It's awesome though. Is that 2,000.00 or 20,000.00?


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## LaMar

The cabin was built for $2,000 not including the doors and windows or porch. It is designed for additions off 3 sides. Makes a good starter home, vacation cabin or survival shelter. A smaller home is cheaper to build, heat and cool and kids don't mind closeness. I have had 4 people sleeping here and it would handle sleeping 6 if needed.

Good luck with your commune idea!

LaMar


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## Schutzengel

depending on the land and resources that idea has some real merit, the only down side is everyone would have to know and like everyone else, because everything would essentially be communial... but it would be efficient, and in a SHTF situation efficient is probably the most important thing. a small close community of well skilled well prepared individuals is probably your only bet to make it through when the feces impact the ventilation system. \


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## MountainMan

The work would be communal but other than that the idea is to make it more like a small town. No regular communal meals or shared homes or showers. Going for more of a tight knit community feel than a commune feel.


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## whyspers

I LOVE these little houses. I've been looking at them for months. Maybe someday...


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## errorborne

I hope you are successful.

To have success be sure your community shares goals and purpose. 

LaMar I love the cabin.


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## askmoto

MountainMan said:


> Dude that is awesome! I have a family of 5 so it's a little small for us. 3 girls plus me and the wife. It's awesome though. Is that 2,000.00 or 20,000.00?


Hey, me and my girlfriend are serious about setting up an off the grid homestead community. I'm 21 years old, been working since I was 16, moved out of my parents house working two jobs when I was 17. I know how to make things work. We have no kids, and are tired of situational slavery, and a society based off of fear. We have some financing, mostly just to support the ourselves(and contributing to land). I myself have researched different forms of government, and a board of directors wouldn't work unless a community is over 15 persons. It would cause unrest amongst everyone, and a feel of inferiority in those not in the board. I can discuss at length what sort of government would be best, it is determinate on the background of the people, and the amount of people involved.

To set up this community, I personally feel we should limit the amount of people involved to 15 persons, not including children under the age of 15. This is what major international corporations do on teams with a complex scenario to develop and build. Once the initial seed is grown(houses built, and farms growing well, greenhouses, solar, and wind power, hydraulic ram pump for water), then this number is easily raised to 150, however, otherwise upon initiation, if you have too many, the chaos of the situation will collapse things.

To show you how serious we are, we left both our jobs in Sedona Arizona(she a massage therapist, I was doing restaurant crap), and have been on the road ever since. We are in Minnesota heading towards Michigan.

My girlfriend is a little wary of Ohio, its a little bleak, lots of cemetaries, even though it has the earthen mounds built by who knows. We are looking at land in Michigan for sale, as things grow very well there, and it remains cool during summer(we are winter folk, and we like a hot hearth). I've read some instructions on masonry stove heating, rocket stoves, how to make fire brick, etc. Clay, sand, sawdust, and a some water makes very durable fire brick and you can make them in a steel bowl with a hot wood fire.

We've looked at cob houses, super cheap, lasts forever, fire resistant, earthquake, you name it. Clay and straw with a reciprocating roof from cheap lumber would bring the cost down dramatically. Couple built theres under 3500. Needless to say, the more people focused on a subject, helping each other build each individuals housing, animal shelters, wells, setting up land for farming, and then trading is dramatically easier than doing it alone, and the synergy is immense.

Planning intelligently, with great wisdom, and acting with strength and mindfullness will erect a great situation. 


> MountainMan,
> 
> We all live in and are affected by a screwed-up society. Whether we live in the heart of some city or in a rural collaborative community, we bring that baggage with us. A strong society is based on strong and fair rules. It's also based on individuals with high ethical and moral standards. Even the best book of rules is only as strong as those that follow it. Our own constitution is a case in point.
> 
> Consider your goals and those that you would share them with or entrust them to carefully.


This guy is 100%. His reasons are spot on for the dis-assemblage of the communites he helped built, but wont be issues with another that he posts the warning too. Obviously space is very important in a homestead community operation. Not just space in space, but space of time between interactions as well once houses are set up. Also a strong moral code helps. Personally, I am a yogi. I have gone through a year of self-imposed celibacy and understand the importance of morality due to a deep intimate observance of immorality. Discipline of the mind and emotions is extremely important, which we should encourage everyone to do. Also, breaks are extremely important. I forget to take breaks most of the time, and this results in a lot of frustration for me. Once people begin dropping stuff, their nervous systems are tired, and need a break from holding stuff. Meditation, short naps work wonders. Should be no rush, but when working move with some sense of urgency to get the job done well and efficiently.

Again, I could talk about this all day long, but am tired of talking! We need to do this. Call us at 928 451 6532 . Ask for Eli if answered, if not, leave a message.

We are going to do this with or without a large number of people, but, it is easier when you have a large amount of people.
Chao
Eli $ Elise


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## PrepperRecon.com

I would love to be part of forming an Eastern Redoubt as the American Redoubt is to far from my family. I love the eastern part of Ohio and the land is a steal around there but I have a couple of years before I'll be in the financial position to purchase.


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## Dave

> I currently live on a 100+ acre farm with half of my family living on it right now. We already have 1 windmill up and I'm working on the second one so it can go up this summer. Water storage is already in progress. 175w solar panels are going up end of summer. We have ponds, creeks, shooting range(s), woods, deer, turkey, ducks, bass, bluegill, goats, honeybees, apple orchard, gardens, national forests surrounding us and are 5 miles from the lake. Riding atv's all over the place, drinking beer and shooting guns (lol) is my idea of a good time (hey, its kentucky!). All is good on the farm


So there I was clicking around the forum, when some admin comes in and starts describing some kind of heaven paradise. Must be a religious nut.


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## Hankinventor

MountainMan said:


> For years my wife and I have planned to purchase a large piece of land (100+ acres) in Ohio. We plan to have all the luxuries. We've always planned to build homes on that land for our 3 daughters (currently under 8 years old) and our other loved ones. Most of our friends and family don't plan on taking advantage of this and we have recently thought about looking for like minded people who would like to live in a small, collaborative community. Just wanted to run this past some people and see what everybody thinks. I put most of this in my first post too. Took a while to figure out the boards. lol.


Hello. Your dream has been a dream of mine for many years. Working a regular job has been in the way. Tough times have solved that and I am officially unemployed because of an injury at work, but the dream lives on. My wife and I are 54 years old. We rescently lost our home in a bankrupcy foreclosure so we are now out of debt. I had built this 2500 sq ft log home almost single handedly from the ground up. After the house was complete, I had accumulated most of the tools to allow me to start, what became a fairly sucessful construction business. Over the years, I have aquired many skills that would be very helpful in a private community such as you discribed. 
Over the last year, my wife and I have been preparing for the tough times that we think are comming, and are pretty well supplied. We now live in a small town of about 10,000, that has a very high unemployment rate and many people that will be unsafe to be around in the tough times ahead. I would very much like to check out your project to see if we would fit into your plans.


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## aeileon

im in columbus, ohio let me know..


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## ozo

"intends to be the big chief"---yogi eli

yes, I see that.


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## srpumpkin

Great thread n love the idea. I live too far away, unfortunately, so please add posts when you can. But I would add a little word of wisdom or possibly I'm a little parinoid, but please b careful. The government has been known to tract sites like this in an attempt to follow or possibly interfere with groups they feel may become a potential threat to their liberal philosophy. I've seen n heard too much on the news to feel that with the attempt to control education, guns, even the food we eat n were we live to believe this is totally innocent. So please use caution, I may b parinoid but I don't think so...good luck..


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## MountainMan

clank said:


> guys can't even agree on what rifle and load to use for shtf, and you 'think" that they will agree about disciplining kids, standing guard duty, etc.  Look, everyone with this fantasy intends to be the big chief, not the Indian doing what he's been told to do. your worst enemies are going to be inside your "walls" right along with you.


What part of the word community makes people think I'm talking some kind of hippy dippy commune. First, no need for guard duty until SHTF. Second, no one has a say in how I raise my children but me. I expect other families to behave similarly. No community meals and "Michael row the boat ashore" around the campfire. Your assumptions make you look like a jackass sir...


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## SootyBean

I am a Sergeant in the Army right now doing maintenance on Helicopters. Anyway, I just recently got into off the grid life style and was already looking for my own land. I currently don't have any savings but I am looking to eventually move into this direction. I am in Columbus, Ohio. Before joining the Army I did rough framing construction for about 5 years and remodeling work. I would definitely be interested in the idea of joining your community if the rules and ideas were right. I am very easy to get along with and would expect the same out of the members. I would like to see some progress on this though because I am about action and not just about talk and ideas.


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## PaulS

Interpersonal communication will be far worse in a SHTF senario than it is here on this board. In a community, someone has to be in "command" or there needs to be a system in place to make decisions that affect the community as a whole. Children add to the stress because parenting varies as much as food preferences. Some parents allow their children to be free to explore their nature and surroundings while others are strict disciplinarians. Having children that are not yours running around the community may bring more problems than you expect. When you get three people together with similar world views they can rarely agree on the proper approach to solutions, how do you think a community of diverse people will interact differently?

Don't get me wrong - a community would be a very good thing if the SHTF but you need to understand that people are individuals and handle stress in diverse ways. You need to have something that makes each person feel necessary to the community and you need to have programs in place that reinforce that without stifling the need to be better. You need to give to each individual something that has at least the same value to them as they feel they are giving to the community.

It is a very difficult task and I wish you good fortune in your experiment. I have too often seen things fall apart because one or two individuals wanted to "make things better" when it was only better for themselves. I will stick with family and a few close friends because we have a history of "sit down conversations" to iron out the challenges that we have faced.


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## Poeticus

I understand the benefits of a community but there needs to be a fixed set of rules to live by for it to survive any amount of time. I am more of a recluse and would rather create a small family community of ten or less. 
I am a contractor living in Palm Springs, Calif. and am looking for someone in the So. Colorado area that would like to get together and build an underground bunker in a fairly remote location near running water and arable land. I can move there and work with the other person to accomplish this task. Whether I stay there will be determined later but that is the area I am looking into. I have extensive experience building and am willing to work fairly cheap in order to establish a track record building undergrounds. If you have land then we can do it. Your property and my experience building, whether it is a house, barn, garage, outhouse, hen house and then an underground. It can be done cheaper than if you hire the whole thing out to another contractor. Any takers???
I am a Viet Nam Vet, dog handler, hunter fisherman and general outdoors man, Oath Keeper, Conservative Libertarian Constitutionalist and am aware of the critical timeline we are all in concerning the end of this mess we are in. I want to be ready when TSHTFan.


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## Moonshinedave

I've gave some thought whether to add my 2 cents to this post or not, perhaps, I've chose the wrong path to say anything? I know everyone's different, I've read enough replies on here that many think it's a great idea, and want part of it, which is great for them. I also know there is strength in numbers, and it things really really gets bad, that strength might be the only thing that gives people a chance to survive. For those who like and can deal with it, I give only my best wishes. For me, I rather not make it than live in a commune run by elders, board of directors or whatever you want to call it. I don't want a knock on my door, by good intentioned people telling me perhaps I am not pulling my weight, or if I decide, to take a day, or two, off just cause I want to, I need someone(s) permission. As it's already been posted, while something like this is not impossible to do, probably a lot harder to pull off than at first thought. Getting a bunch of people to live together, work together, without the human evils of "this person isn't doing enough" or "that person is getting better treatment".....and on and on. But again, if you can pull it off, best of luck to all of you.
For myself, and my family, while we may have friends and help each other when we can, will mostly be on our own. We might be the first to go, if so, I have some pretty cool stuff stashed around, move my bones out of the way and your welcome to it.


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## Cygnus

Check your PM's poeticus.


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## rice paddy daddy

I like my personal freedom too much. I do not play well with others.
That's why we moved to the country, to get away from city zoning boards, town rules, and the like. My wife and I both swore we would never, ever, live inside town limits again.
But that's just us, I wish ya'll well in your endeavors.


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## Ripon

I've been reading this whole thread and wondering a lot. I have land, more than I need for sure, and more than I can manage alone too. Now I
have some family to help but it still would not be enough. I often assume I'd go to Reno, Salt Lake and some other places looking for labor. We'd
have much to offer labor in terms of shelter, food, security for families.

My brother and I often wondered about trying to offer parcels of land for bugging out. You can't subdivide the property legally but you can sure
give people a contract for a space. It would be nice to have preppers around. Our land is not all continous. We have pieces 20 miles apart
so it'd be possible to set up a "community" away from our own. But I just get this negative vibe of power, control. governance, etc each time
we look at it - and no forseeable way to manage it. This prevents us from going forward with any kind of offer - each time.

rice paddy dad I applaud you for the acknowledgement and movement. I once lived in a condo complex with a condo association and all; and 
while I dont' mind playing by the rules and even enforcing them it struck me odd that people who bought a condo had so little consideration
for their neighbors to do the things they did - like rent to child molesters on the list. When it came time to sell we were required to notify the
buyer a registered child sex offender lived 7 doors away - within 300'. How do you think that impacted our sale? We lost a good offer to 
a family - and I can see why. So our dear neighbor that decided to rent his condo out to who ever paid him just cost us. I never wanted
to live in a condo again and havent'. We were lucky the market for these homes was skyrocketing and a little old lady came along and didn't
care about the molester.



rice paddy daddy said:


> I like my personal freedom too much. I do not play well with others.
> That's why we moved to the country, to get away from city zoning boards, town rules, and the like. My wife and I both swore we would never, ever, live inside town limits again.
> But that's just us, I wish ya'll well in your endeavors.


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## rice paddy daddy

My wife and I both say that if the county ever paves the road going past our place we will have to move, because that will mean we no longer live "far enough out."
I am so blessed to be married to a woman who hates shopping, malls, makeup, fancy clothes, shoes, etc.
And we have found that cows make the best neighbors.


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## pastornator

Just read through this thread. Lots of sustainable and achievable ideas! Only monkey wrench that I can for see is getting actual building or occupancy permits to make complete otherwise good plans. It takes a permit to build, to dig, to drill a well, to add a septic system, to make a road that connects to another authorized road, to introduce electrical power, water power, and they monitor the size of soft drinks in some states.


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## Ripon

LOL - you don't live far enough out of town 



pastornator said:


> Just read through this thread. Lots of sustainable and achievable ideas! Only monkey wrench that I can for see is getting actual building or occupancy permits to make complete otherwise good plans. It takes a permit to build, to dig, to drill a well, to add a septic system, to make a road that connects to another authorized road, to introduce electrical power, water power, and they monitor the size of soft drinks in some states.


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## HeIsRisen

It can be done, but I think only in a few contexts. I believe a genuine evangelical community could succeed if you were discerning enough abs the motivations were right.

Acts 2:42-47 ESV

And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.


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## PaulS

Even in an evangelical society you have conflicts. If that wasn't true then the Islamic world would be the most peaceful place on earth... ummm - it's not!

It takes a very special combination of personality types to make a community function and it takes a lot of space to provide time away from the group.


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## HeIsRisen

PaulS said:


> Even in an evangelical society you have conflicts. If that wasn't true then the Islamic world would be the most peaceful place on earth... ummm - it's not!
> 
> It takes a very special combination of personality types to make a community function and it takes a lot of space to provide time away from the group.


You talk as if conflict isn't healthy and is ever avoidable. It's healthy and imminent. How you deal with conflict is what defines a workable situation. By the way, there are communities that live this way already.


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## That Prepper Guy

That sounds interesting.

I will invest in silver and be able to live there soon enough.
However, for both of our safety precautions, it's best to get to know each other well.


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## Prepadoodle

Great idea, great thread.

You might want to take a detailed look at an Amish community. They are pretty much living the post-shtf life now, and have been doing so for a very long time. How do they make it work?

I see 2 main problems with their way of life (3 if you count the fact that I know very about it). First, their unified religious views probably won't fly in what you want to do. Perhaps this is the glue that holds them together, I don't know. The second is their strict gender roles, which seem out of place in today's modern society.

But I suspect there is still much that could be learned from taking a good hard look at their way of life. It's probably worth the time.


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## RedbeardTheZombieHunter

If you want a practical "free fuel vehicle", the choice is simple. Get yourself an M35A2 2.5 ton military truck and bob it. I feed mine waste motor oil and I aquire that oil for free. There's a couple pictures of my truck in my photos if you're curious. While feeding the beast for free is one of the biggest reasons for my owning this particular truck, there's a couple hundred other reasons why this is my vehicle of choice. Look at some videos on youtube and do a little research and you might find this is the perfect off-grid or bugout vehicle.


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## rice paddy daddy

The best "off-grid" vehicle is a horse.


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## PrepConsultant

My fiance and I have just under 200 acres in Montana. We just moved here but have been here several times before including one of the harshest winters on record. It is a very harsh land where we are. We are looking to build a very small cabin possibly with a loft. Since the only power is many miles away, we will be off grid. I am looking into solar and geothermal energies mostly with possibly some propane for emergencies. We are surrounded by almost a million acres of land with VERY few people. Our closest neighbor is about 30 miles away..I have tossed around the idea for a while of starting a small community but keep coming back to the negatives.. It is a GREAT idea in theory, I'm just not sure if it would work..If you could get the right people and rules, we could probably make a go of it..Maybe if it was set up more like a small town than a commune.. 
In a SHTF scenario, an organized community would be a great benefit.


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