With a new variant of the coronavirus is spreading around the world, it’s practical to live outside of the city to avoid getting infected. With this, living off the grid has become an appealing notion for a lot of people.
While many people have been living off the grid for some time already, there are still some challenges in this lifestyle. Even if you’re ready to deal with these issues, some are only apparent when they emerge.
One of these issues is personal hygiene. Personal hygiene is important to avoid getting sick. This is particularly important these days to avoid getting infected by the coronavirus, which has affected tens of millions worldwide.
So, if you’re planning to live off the grid, here are some things you need to consider to allow you to continue practicing good hygiene.
Have Enough Supplies
Stockpiling on supplies does not only mean having a lot of things ready for you to use. You should make sure to plan the supplies you’re going to stockpile. The list should include a good inventory of hygiene and healthcare kits. So, you should list down the hygiene and healthcare items you normally use and include them in your inventory.
The list should include soap, shampoo, sanitizer, deodorant, and other things you normally use every day. The items you include in the list should be the things you find necessary. If the storage area is limited, you can scale down the items and remove the things you can live without. You can also include dual-purpose items that you can use as shampoo.
Another thing you can do is to stockpile items that you can reuse multiple times. These are normally tools and devices that may or may not use electricity. For devices using electricity, a personal solar panel can be used to power them up. For instance, you stock up on a couple of LED tooth-whitening kits to keep take care of your pearly whites. An electric razor can also be more useful than an ordinary razor. You can use the power of the sun to power up these devices when they’re low in power.
Look for a Good Clean Water Source
No person can live without water for more than three days. You can stock up on water if you’re planning to live off-grid. This water supply can include bottles of water or even huge plastic water containers. But the volume of your stock will be limited by the amount of space available in your water storage facility. Due to this, you should find a good source of clean water at the place where you’ll live.
You should also look for at least two sources in case something happens to the first source. A well is a good source of water. So, you may want to find a good place to dig one. Just make sure the well isn’t close to any source of contamination that may enter your water supply. One possible source of contamination is a pit toilet. Using a filter is also necessary to ensure the water you get from the well is free of harmful microbes.
You can also have rain barrels ready to collect rainwater. But before you make your rain-harvesting system, you should check if there are restrictions or regulations applicable to this practice. Additionally, you should also have a suitable filter for the rainwater if you want to use it for drinking or cooking.
Another good source of clean water would be a nearby stream. But similar to rainwater, you should still use a filter to remove any harmful microbes that may be found in the water. You can also boil the water to make it safe for drinking.
Keeping Yourself Clean
If you have a good source of clean water and you’re able to stockpile a good inventory of hygiene products, then you’ll be able to keep yourself clean while living off the grid. You can also take a bath at a nearby stream or pond. Just make sure to use biodegradable or natural soaps when you’re taking a dip.
You can also set up a do-it-yourself shower if you miss taking a shower in the city. Instead of a DIY shower, you can also use a camp shower or a solar shower.
Additionally, you need to make sure to wash the dishes and utensils properly. After washing them, you may have to sanitize them before putting them back in storage.
Living off the grid can be challenging for anyone who lived in the city their whole life. But if you get used to it, you can even enjoy this simple lifestyle while you’re communing with nature.