WattsOFF GRID
Start where you are

Self-sufficiency that starts where you are.

Water, power, food and the small enterprises that pay for them — worked out for South African conditions, against South African standards and law, in the climate you actually garden in.

Find your starting point Browse the pillars

The seven pillars

Everything here sits under one of seven headings

Each is built the same way: the system explained, the standards named, and the mistakes that cost people the most set out plainly.

01

Water

Boreholes, tanks, rainwater and greywater. Constructed wetlands, natural ponds, and a swimming pool with no chlorine in it.

BoreholesRainwaterGreywaterWetlandsThe natural pool
02

Power

Solar, batteries and inverters sized to what you actually use, not to what the installer would like to sell you.

SolarBatteriesInvertersSizing it honestlyBackup
03

Grow

Soil first — compost, worms, biochar and mulch. Then permaculture, bed types and which suits your ground, hydroponics and aquaponics.

SoilBeds & systemsPermacultureHydro & aquaponicsWhat grows here
04

Animals

Bees, chickens and fish. What they cost to keep, what they give back, and which species you may legally hold in this province.

BeesChickensFishFeed & housingWhat's legal here
05

The Still Room

Ferment, preserve, store and remedy. Beer, mead and kombucha; canning and bottling; a pantry that rotates rather than rots; the herb bed.

FermentPreserveStoreRemedy
06

Make it Pay

The enterprises that turn a smallholding from a cost into an income — and the honest arithmetic on each one.

Castings & biocharMicrogreensMushroomsHoneyPricing your work
07

Security

Private provision is permanent infrastructure in this country. What it costs to do properly, without the fear-mongering.

PerimeterPower & commsWater securityWhat it costs

Start where you are

You do not need land to begin

Pick the space you actually have. We will show you what it can carry, and what to do first.

01

Windowsill & balcony

Herbs, microgreens and a bokashi bin. The cheapest place to start.

See what fits →
02

Small garden

Four beds, a worm farm, a rain tank and two hens.

See what fits →
03

Suburban plot

Greywater, solar backup, a real compost system, one hive.

See what fits →
04

Small plot

Borehole, off-grid power, orchard, a pond that earns its keep.

See what fits →
05

Smallholding

The whole system — and the enterprises that pay for it.

See what fits →

Latest

From the ground

The newest entries in the journal — researched write-ups of the systems we are building, testing and costing, each one dated and signed.

Garden birds of South Africa feeding in an off-grid homestead vegetable garden

Off-Grid Gardening

Garden Birds of South Africa: Your Off-Grid Homestead’s Engine

Garden birds of South Africa help with pest control, pollination and early warnings on an off-grid homestead. How to feed, water and plant for them safely.

Worm castings South Africa vermicompost held in cupped hands over a raised garden bed

Off-Grid Gardening

Worm Castings South Africa: The Off-Grid Guide to Black Gold

How to collect, apply and brew worm castings in South African gardens: safe rates for seedling mixes, worm tea without the risks, and what to feed the worms.

Pelargonium sidoides rosette with heart-shaped silver-grey leaves and near-black flowers in a gravel rockery

Water-Wise Gardening

Pelargonium Sidoides: The Ultimate Water-Wise Garden Workhorse

How to grow Pelargonium sidoides in South Africa: when to plant, soil, watering, propagation and nursery prices for this drought-resistant indigenous perennial.

Solar-powered 4G security camera on a pole overlooking a farm gate

Off-Grid Security

Off-Grid Security Cameras in South Africa: Power, Data and Storage

Off-grid security cameras in South Africa: solar and battery sizing from spec sheets, 4G versus NVR, LTE data costs, local storage and POPIA.

Read the journal →

The Sunday Dispatch

One email every Sunday, from the ground

What we are building, what we have sourced, and what it costs — with the supplier named and the quote dated. No affiliate padding, no doom, no filler.

One email every Sunday. Unsubscribe in one click, any time.