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Episode-566- Cam Mather on Off Grid Living — 9 Comments

  1. An alternative for outdoor storage is a potato clamp. Basically dig up your potatoes and chuck out any damaged or diseased ones and rebury them in straw and earth. Not good for Canadian climates but worked really well in England. You can store other crops in the same way. As we say, “Google it!”

  2. Another “root cellar” option to consider is Rubbermaid trashcans (or similar). Drill holes in the bottom of the cans first. Go dig a hole large and deep enough to fit your can(s). Line the bottom with gravel and sand for drainage. Then bury the can – leaving about 3″-6″ above ground so you can put the lids back on. Put some wire mesh/screen in the bottom to deter truly persistent rodent burrowers, add a tiny bit more gravel on that, then layer it with straw, a layer of produce, etc until you reach the top (last layer to be straw). Put the lid on and maybe a concrete block to secure it. To protect from excess heat/cold you can cover it with more straw.

    Hope this helps someone!

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  5. Awesome interview, Jack. This is something that my husband has been wanting to do for such a long time. I foresee a solar/wind powered home in our future.

  6. Jack, I have the Toro Ultra Blower Vac with a metal impeller, I suck up all my red oak leaves and dump them in the garden. I got it up here at Home Depot in Canada for about 70 cdn.

  7. Also Jack, I had satellite Internet from Xplornet here in PEI, and yes, latency was an issue. The other is weather, heavy rain or snow will interfere with the signal. That would only happen to me about four times a year. I paid $150 a month for 1 megabit service, and it was closer to 800kbs down and 250kbs up. But since it is a business expense for you, you could get the uber package from your local subscriber.
    We now have DSL out in my rural area of PEI, and as Cam mentioned, the Canadian government has sunk money into rural broadband initiatives; I was one of the lucky recipients.

  8. I don’t know if Cam misspoke or was mistaken, but I wouldn’t consider a potato a good protein source. While abundant in potassium and high in carbohydrates, they only have 7 grams of protein for a large baker with the skin on. They also don’t provide a full spectrum of amino acids (not a complete protein). As an adjunct to a diet rich in meat and/or dairy, they’re great, but as a stand alone staple, they’re lacking.