When I first moved off-grid 14 years ago, I expected to give up all my appliances. Moving away from central power and convenience was intimidating. There used to be fewer options available for off-grid appliances, and I didn’t know about any of them.
Looking back, I think it was a blessing in disguise. I learned a lot about using simple, old-fashioned solutions. I have a wood cookstove, a wood heating stove, a late 19th-century treadle sewing machine, and a cute, yellow ice box.
But I also have to store frozen meats with family down the road. So I’ve been looking around at new options. And wow, the world of off-grid appliances has boomed in the past decade or so. There are effective and even attractive options for off-grid appliances of all types. Let’s take a look.
What We’ll Cover:
Power Sources
Many people use a generator or solar power and then use DC or AC electric appliances. If you go this way, then you can use any standard electric stove, oven, fridge, freezer, or washing machine. You’ll simply hook it up to your generator or solar electrical system and use your appliances as usual.
Some off-grid appliances are made to work independently of a home electrical system. Some are powered by wood or a gas source like propane or kerosene. Some have their own built-in solar power.
The other option is to use systems where you are the power system. You turn a crank or press a pedal to generate the energy.
Let’s look at heating up our food, first.
Stoves and Ovens
A functional way to cook should be your top priority when considering off-grid appliances. Most of us have seen kerosene stoves for outdoor cooking, but there are larger models made for cooking indoors.
People living off-grid have had those hulking wood-burning ovens for centuries. But if you don’t live in the middle of a forest, cooking and baking with wood can quickly get expensive. In the summer, a wood-fired oven can make the house stifling.
While outdoor, summer kitchens were popular 100 years ago, most homesteaders don’t want to have to hunt down and pay for two woodbovens – one indoors and one out.
Of course, you could build a little brick oven, but if you want something simple, there are so many new, attractive options.
Modern gas stoves still require electricity. If the power goes, you can usually manage to light a burner, but baking is out of the question. An off-grid gas range is one that uses either kerosene or propane to maintain heat without the help of electricity. Or with the support of solar.
The Perfection Kerosene Stove is made by Amish artists to enable off-grid homesteaders to cook with readily available kerosene. It runs from a one-gallon tank that you can lift out and refill as needed. It has both an oven and five burners.
The La Nordica brand of wood cookstoves comes in a wide range of sizes, from small to extra large. You can cook and bake in these woodstoves easily, and they’re not dependent on anything but the trees on your property. They can cost a pretty penny, though.
Unique, the best-known off-grid appliance company, produces a few propane-powered cookstoves that look just like the pretty gas stoves your grandma used to use. I have to admit that I’m tempted to pick up one of these for summer cooking.
Unique’s products are higher than your average big box store option, but they consistently earn great reviews from off-grid homesteaders who use them. Cooking in comfort, even in the heat of summer, might just be worth it.
Stove Tops
There are a variety of off-grid appliances if all you need is a simple stovetop. If you have a wood oven, like I do, there are times you really don’t want to kick it up.
That first pot of coffee in the morning, for example. We need that as soon as possible, and in summer, the stove’s not going all night.
Fortunately, we have options. When I first moved off-grid, we used a simple, one-burner camp stove. But times have changed.
Now, you can find a variety of multi-burner stove tops running off natural gas or propane. It’s easy to set these up and maintain a low heat, indoor kitchen while baking outside all summer.
You could even use a traditional gas stovetop and convert it to run on kerosene if you wanted. Just be sure to install gas sensors in your home in case of a leak or if someone leaves the gas on.
Off-Grid Refrigerators and Freezers
Off-grid appliances can help extend the storage life of your food. During the hottest days of summer, our ice-box struggles to maintain a cool environment for produce and dairy. We have to bring in blocks of ice every day to keep it cool.
The hottest days are usually also the sunniest, and off-grid solar refrigerators are often designed to make full use of that sun. While you can find propane-powered fridges, solar refrigerators are much more common.
Solar
Unique has some lovely, retro-style refrigerators to pair with their cute, gas ranges. Many of them can run on solar or generators. So, if the sun is out of sight for a few days, your food can stay safe.
From smaller, yurt-sized fridges to 14 cubic feet, these fridges look great and work well.
Unique also has solar-powered chest freezers. These are perfect for an off-grid hunting cabin or the homesteader in a sunny location who needs to store meat or produce long-term.
Like their refrigerators, these freezers can run on DC power when the sunny days are over.
SunStar is another well-respected brand making solar freezers and refrigerators. They are built to last. While SunStar tends to be a little more expensive than other brands, they’re products are well known for holding up in all conditions.
Propane
Depending on how much you want to depend on propane, you could also install a propane fridge or chest freezer. Unique offers propane options. If you’re off-grid in a state like Michigan, Washington, or Ohio, when sunny days aren’t a consistent part of life, it may make sense to embrace propane cooling appliances.
Propane fridges usually use one and a half gallons of propane daily to keep things cool, and in the summer, a propane freezer can have you running to refill your gas way more than you’d like.
But it’s also nice not to be dependent on something unpredictable, like sunny weather.
Diamond-brand fridges are less retro-funky and more practical looking. They have a great reputation, and if you’re lucky, you may even find one for sale second-hand. These fridges built to last.
Off-Grid Laundry
A hand-crank laundry machine is the standard for off-grid homesteads. The WonderWash from the Laundry Alternative is a cute, affordable little hand-powered washer. It’s easy to use, but if you’re doing a huge load of laundry or washing blankets, find a different option.
Of course, if you’re off-grid, you’ll hang your laundry to dry. Off-grid dryers aren’t a common option. Most homesteaders aren’t interested in using up that much propane or solar energy!
In cold climates, try rigging a dry line near your woodstove. They won’t smell like sunshine, but your freshly dried clothes will have a homey, woodsy scent.
Off-Grid Dishwashers
It sounds crazy, right? But you can even have a dishwasher in your off-grid home. I like the slow process of warming water on the stove, soaping, rinsing, and drying. But other people would rather spend that time in some other way.
Consider this a bonus in the world of off-grid appliances.
I’ve never seen an off-grid specific dishwasher, but I know plenty of off-grid families who use a small, energy-efficient conventional dishwasher connected to their solar power. If it’s a priority for you, there are plenty of ways to make it work.
Try a small, countertop option to keep energy use to a minimum and save space.
Grinding Grains and Meat
Don’t forget the smaller off-grid appliances. These can make your life much easier.
Many homesteaders use freshly ground grains in their breads and cereals. A good grinding mill is essential. Hand-crank mills have been around for a long time, but not everyone wants to have that kind of workout every day.
Unfortunately, hard work is part of the lifestyle. Unless you want to run a regular electric mill off your solar power or generator, you’re stuck cranking. But it’s really not as bad as it sounds. When we first moved off-grid, we got a hand-crank coffee grinder. It seemed to take forever. Now, we don’t even think about it.
But if you’re baking daily, you may want to mix it up a bit. Grind some on a solar-powered electric mill one day and build up your arm muscles the next. This Diamant grain mill is one of the best off-grid mills around. It’s pricey, but it will last forever. And it’s not too hard on your arms.
If you just need a small grinder for coffee or spices, there are a few rechargeable options. Kitchenaid free-standing grinders use a rechargeable battery. You can plug it in when the sun is shining and use it as needed. The battery can also be swapped out to power a mini-vacuum and a hand blender.
You can find lots of hand meat grinders out there. They usually come with multiple attachments so you can make a variety of sizes.
Slow Cookers
Now we’re getting all the perks of off-grid life without the hassle of the power grid. Yes, they even have slow cookers available for off-grid homesteaders. These are perfect in the summer because they can plug directly into your solar batteries and leave you free to garden all day.
It’s not a large slow cooker, but it can help make mealtime a little easier when you don’t want to fire up the stove.
