Survive the Zombie Apocalypse Living Life without the Grid

The worldwide zombie craze has made shows like AMC's "The Walking Dead" increasingly popular as we watch the story of each survivor trying to stay alive and more importantly make a life for themselves in the zombie apocalypse. Of course zombies will never be wandering in herds down our streets (though I admit I do sometimes wonder how my perimeter fencing at my home would withstand a pounding by a horde of zombies) but just like the y2k incident we need to understand just how we would get by without the basic conveniences we take for granted like water and electricity. Shows like this make us start to think just how we would survive if the world and the infrastructure that we were familiar with ceased to be there to support us and how we would get by without that grid of services that we all have become so comfortable with.

What exactly is 'The Grid'?

We hear this word being tossed about by survivalists and doomsayers as the bane of human existence, making reliance on public utilities and services more like a net that holds people captive of their conveniences rather than an intricate interworking of services. 'The Grid' includes services like electricity, water and gas that are used to power each other and form an intricate grid of inter-reliance to keep everything in society currently running. From the fossil fuels that power automobiles to the electricity that powers the water services system each of these services depends on each other.

In "The Walking Dead" society gradually disintegrates as the people who work to keep the basic human services up and running gradually become zombies. There is no electricity, water or fuel to keep society up and running and basic human existence reverts back to an older way of living with campfires, candlelight and purifying water. When groups are able to hunker down they try to re-establish the lives using generators to power refrigerators, lights and other modern conveniences but these resources are finite without 'The Grid' to reestablish supplies.

So, how do you survive living life without 'The Grid'?

Providing the necessities of life

When I was growing up with a large family we used to visit our extended family members and try the tap water in their homes commenting on who had the best tasting water. Some were on city water like us and had great tasting, cool, tap water that was filtered and fortified but others had well water that varied in taste and even color and the sink basins were often stained with minerals from the tap water. As children we used to refuse the funny-tasting water that they offered telling them to get city water but as times changed and living off 'The Grid' becomes more important these wells are actually one of the keys to survival if 'The Grid' is gone. The survivors in "The Walking Dead" soon learn that finding a reliable source of water is essential since the bottled water they had relied on becomes scarcer. They take up residence at a farm house equipped with multiple wells that allow them to pump water from the ground and refill their water stores. Having a reliable water source will be essential when you are surviving without the grid and a well is the obvious choice in this situation. However, depending on where you are located a well may not be an option so you may need to consider alternatives like a stream, lake or pond.

The next consideration when surviving off the grid is food. The grid includes the infrastructure that supplies grocery stores with their goods so you will need a means to grow and store your own food to truly be off 'The Grid'. A garden is essential in this case; to provide the basic sustenance you need to survive. Hunting or raising animals for meat will also be a requirement if you choose this form of sustenance in your daily diet. Of course, when you raise animals you will also have to provide a food source for these animals to thrive, which must be considered as you develop your off 'The Grid' plans.

These daily necessities will allow you to survive day to day but in order to be more comfortable you will need a means to store this food as well as cook and prepare meals and this is where some sort of power source is required.

Becoming truly self-sufficient

The zombie apocalypse survivors in "The Walking Dead" developed a new appreciation for the finer things in life when they encountered a CDC outpost that still had enough power to heat water, power lights and provide comfortable heat. However, this outpost relied on finite stores of fossil fuels and was not fully self-sufficient resulting in the destruction of this haven and the survivors being thrust back into the zombie filled world. Now, in my opinion, this outpost could have been completely self-contained and run indefinitely by setting up a solar power system that would constantly recharge batteries and keep the facility up and running.

Solar power systems are now available that can easily power homes providing all the features that people are accustomed to having available like heat and refrigeration. These systems work by mounting panels on the roof of the home making sure that they are not blocked by trees or other foliage. The panels are then wired into the home which has batteries that are charged for use overnight while the sun is down.

The trend with new home and building designs is to be more green and self-sustaining but to be truly independent you need to cut the ties and live off 'The Grid'. The decision to live truly off 'The Grid' will mean making some essential life changes in how you go about your day to day life but the end result of being self-sufficient is very rewarding.

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