Living rural questions.

[Loopeend]

Not sure if this is the right place to post this; but I think there might be people here that have an answer.

I'm planning to move to Romania, a really, really, rural part of Romania. No sewage systems, no water pipes, no shops in the small town, only elderly neighbours living far apart.
I live in the Netherlands were there is no real rural place. I'm used to having everything I need 10 minutes on the bicycle away.

I have found out now how sceptic tanks work and water resevoirs over there and how and where I can get my medication.

But I am still unsure what I need in a rural environment. I have my basic emergency medical kit and some candles incase the power falls out over here; but I probably need more rural.

Could you help?

- Do I need a power generator when the electricity falls out?
- Some water purifying things just in case?
- What spare car parts; or how many second vehicles? (it can take up about a month to get your car fixed).
- How can I contact people in case of emergency when my phone/internet does not work?
- Guns and tasers are illigal. A big dog is not an option. What other things can I do/have when needed living somewhere where there are no neighbours to hear you scream?
- How much food reserve?

- Most of all; I feel like I'm nót seeing a lot what is needed because I'm not used to it. I feel like I am overlooking a lot of things. I realise just now I probably need a printer because atleast the first months, maybe more, we won't have internet so we need to send every form with the regular mail.. haha. I can't just walk anymore like now, when my internet is gone, to the shop next door that has free wifi :') Those kind of things.

Thank you.

 

[Ribh]

A good supply of staples is a must ~ things that won't go off like rice. Alternative cooking arrangements. I am on an island. If we lose power or transport we are very isolated. A camp stove or wood burning fire is a must as generators rely on petrol & you may not be able to get that either. Torches & extra batteries. Extra animal supplies. You don't want to be running out of chook feed. A battery run radio so you can still get weather updates. There's more stuff but that's what came to the top of my head.

 

[Al Capon]

You learn a lot around here when the power goes out for a day because of Severe weather or an Ice storm.

Do a trial run, turn off your electricity and your water. Then try to go about your daily routine using what's available. How will you provide heat, water, cook, etc when there's no power or running water. Very quickly you'll put together a list of things that are important and necessary.

 

[Loopeend]

A good supply of staples is a must ~ things that won't go off like rice. Alternative cooking arrangements. I am on an island. If we lose power or transport we are very isolated. A camp stove or wood burning fire is a must as generators rely on petrol & you may not be able to get that either. Torches & extra batteries. Extra animal supplies. You don't want to be running out of chook feed. A battery run radio so you can still get weather updates. There's more stuff but that's what came to the top of my head.

Thanks. I'm making notes. We had the wood-stove and open cooking-fireplaces with beds in closets next to them in the planning to build (how Dutch people home's were when they lived in one room before electricity). Just for fun because my partner's job is renovating/building old stuff like that. But now I read what you say it might actually be next to pretty/interesting hándy when you need a sleepingplace when the fireplace is the only heat. Foot-stoves! I have a ton of them! And axes! I thought of allways have big amounts of wood.. but forgot about the chopping axes :') And now I think of it; a LOT of fire extinguishers and fire-blankets. And batteries for a big light, or a big light that get's energy from cycling or pinching it for on my bike! For when you need help when it's dark but the car doesn't work or anything. Kind of hard to cycle to something with 0 light.. Reflector jackets. The best warmth-isolating pots (like where you store coffee in when you go to work) in case we are not the worst off during a power-shortage but the elderly neighbours could use some help getting to something warm to drink/eat.
Sorry I'm writing this all out loud but then I can later make a list of it.

Do you have tips, or anyone else, where to store frozen food when the power is out? We are building from scratch so we could make some old cellar? Would be a big waist when all the meat spoils.

 

[PirateGirl]

Partly this depends what systems your house is on.

If you have a well, your well pump for drinking water will likely be electric, which means if the power goes out, you have no drinking water.

BUT this is only if you are connected to the power grid in the first place. If you are on solar power, extra storage batteries as well as a backup generator would be good to have.

What is your heat source? If you have a wood burning stove, then have extra firewood on hand. If you have a propane tank, make sure you have it filled regularly, and call well in advance of running out in case it takes several days or weeks to be scheduled to have it filled.

Warm blankets, candles, flashlights, and a few gallons of drinking water stashed away somewhere are always useful.

Things I found I needed when I moved to a more rural home were things like yard tools, several kinds of shovels seem to be a thing I use the most. Several different tools for firewood, chainsaw (plus extra fuel for it), splitting maul, axes of various sizes. Tarps. Rope. Bungees and zip ties. Buckets. A few good pairs of work gloves. Always have various screw and nails and random hardware on hand, you'll be amazed at the things you can fix, hopefully without a trip to the hardware store.

Once you move, I'm not saying become a hoarder, but get in the habit of saving anything that seems like it might come in handy some day, even if you're not sure why.

Keep lists. Any time you think of something you might need or any time you run out of something write it down. That way when you do finally make a shopping trip to a bigger town you don't forget anything important and can make the most of it. I keep a dry erase board on the fridge and just add to it and then snap a photo of the list on my phone when I'm headed to town.

 

[OhZark Biddies]

...Do you have tips, or anyone else, where to store frozen food when the power is out?

Do you know if you can get Liquid Propane (LP) there. Here, many rural/ off grid places use LP appliances.

I don't know if that's an option for you, but here are some links that came up when i did a quick search, just to give you an idea of what's out there:
https://www.lehmans.com/category/gas-refrigerators-freezers
http://uniqueoffgrid.com/

 

[PirateGirl]

Propane is nice because when the power is out we still have heat, and hot water, and a stove to cook on, but again, only if available.

 

[Ribh]

A trip to your local camping store might be handy. They generally have lots of choice for being without power & water. They have some great light alternatives.

Depending how long you are without power & the season would depend on what you need to do about frozen goods. If we are careful not to open doors & let cold air escape our fridge will keep things frozen for @ least 48 hours. After that it gets dodgy. An esky with ice will work temporarily too.

I always kept -0 sleeping bags on hand & remember you will need extra water for the toilet & the animals. I'm not sure about super cold climates but filling a bathtub will give you a temporary water supply if you think you might lose power & will need stored water.

 

[Loopeend]

Do you know if you can get Liquid Propane (LP) there. Here, many rural/ off grid places use LP appliances.

I don't know if that's an option for you, but here are some links that came up when i did a quick search, just to give you an idea of what's out there:
https://www.lehmans.com/category/gas-refrigerators-freezers
http://uniqueoffgrid.com/

We could. I don't know in Romania. Probably we will. But it is a 2 day ride to the Netherlands (and if you are crazy and ignore sleeping-advice a 14 hour day ride). We can get it in the Netherlands. And especially the first year my partner will be riding back and forth. So that we can get.

 

[Loopeend]

A trip to your local camping store might be handy. They generally have lots of choice for being without power & water. They have some great light alternatives.

Depending how long you are without power & the season would depend on what you need to do about frozen goods. If we are careful not to open doors & let cold air escape our fridge will keep things frozen for @ least 48 hours. After that it gets dodgy. An esky with ice will work temporarily too.

I always kept -0 sleeping bags on hand & remember you will need extra water for the toilet & the animals. I'm not sure about super cold climates but filling a bathtub will give you a temporary water supply if you think you might lose power & will need stored water.

Note to self; make a back-up outhouse. It looks funny ánd is usefull when there is no water to flush the toilet.

It is not a climate with severe cold. it's -5 celcius (23 fahrenheit) on average in the winter, with some days -12 celcius (10 fahrenheit). The summers are warmer then in the Netherlands. 20 celcius (68 fahrenheit) to 30 celcius (86 fahrenheit) but they are in the summers 5 degrees celcius (41 fahrenheit) warmer then in the Netherlands. In the winter 5 degrees (41F) colder on avarage and in the summer 5 degrees warmer on average. That's no crazy harsh winter; but cold enough to be a pain in the bumbum when right at that moment the electricity goes away for a few days.
The mountains in Romania can have crazy harsh winters. Like that polar wind thing happenings now in the USA. But we hate cold. So we are planning to stay in the part that due to said mountains has a warmer climate.