Almost Off Grid Blog - Brew, Make, Forage, Grow.

  • Using a Triple Scale Home Wine and Beer Hydrometer - tips for use

    If you have arrived here because you want tips for using a triple scale home wine and beer hydrometer, you have come to the right place.
  • Rose Petal Cordial Recipe

    Suddenly there are elderflowers everywhere for Elderflower Cordial  and Elderflower Champagne and my personal favourite: Elderflower Lemon Curd. Plus there are wild roses all over the place, perfect for this Rose Petal Cordial Recipe.
  • Beginner's Guide to Solar, Storage and Saving Energy - Where to Start?

    I have talked before about retrofitting solar technology in our 100 years+ old property, which has been ongoing for 10 years. Suddenly it's Autumn ...
  • Solar Panels, Battery Storage and a Heat Pump together

    When is the best time to plant a tree? 20 years ago. When is the second best time to plant a tree? Now. This logic applies perfectly to installing solar technology in your property. There has never been, nor will there ever be, a better time than now to get started with solar technology in your home, your business or both. Here's some of the background on our set up, and how solar panels, heat pump and battery storage together are helping us to reduce our costs and our carbon footprint.

  • Hedgerow Wine Making Journal - Almost Off Grid Journal 2 is here!

    Do you want to master the art and craft of making hedgerow wines?  The  Almost Off Grid Hedgerow Wine Making Journal has everything you need to get...
  • Monitoring Outdoor Air Quality with a Sensor

    We have started monitoring outdoor air quality by installing a sensor on our Horam shop. We were approached to do this by local community action gr...
  • Storing Root Vegetables from Christmas until Spring

    Last Christmas we started an experiment, storing root vegetables from Christmas until Spring to avoid waste. We're now in March and are still eatin...
  • Using What3words for Foraging

    As I write this, I can still see sparkly crystals on the plants outside from the overnight frost, and my feet are cold. So it is hard to imagine th...
  • Ways to save water at home - order your free water saving devices

    Did you know that households across much of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland can order a range of free insulation and water-saving gadgets from their water company free of charge, to save water at home? While the goodies are funded by the water companies, the water efficiency company Save Water Save Money manages the distribution of them.
  • Solar Panels, Electric Cars and Heat Pumps... achieving Net Zero before 2030

    Tackling climate change is now top of the agenda for many countries, companies and people around the world, and we are one of them. If you follow us on Instagram, you'll know that we signed our shop up to the SME Climate Commitment this year. As our shop is on the front of our family home, the actions we take at home affect our business and vice versa. So, in effect, we are committing our Business and Home to achieving Net Zero before 2030.
  • Homemade Elderberry Syrup Recipe with Ginger, Turmeric and Raw Honey

    Elderberry Syrup is a well known natural remedy believed to boost the immune system and speed up recovery from coughs, colds and sore throats. As with a lot of these recipes rooted in folklore, there are many ways to make it. Here is my homemade Elderberry Syrup Recipe with added fresh turmeric, ginger and raw honey.
  • Medicinal Mushrooms: Turkey Tail and Birch Polypore

    As I write this, it's autumn with fungi bursting out all over. Whilst I don't claim to be an expert (or any good at all really) at identifying mushrooms, there are a few that we know well and are happy to identify and harvest. Two of those are widely regarded as medicinal mushrooms: turkey tail and birch polypore.