Whenever people talk about living off-grid they think about solar power or wind power or some other magical source of electricity. Or maybe they imagine living like the pioneers did. I guess those are doable, but never underestimate the power of a generator. Just go camping for a week and tell me you don’t miss things like fans or lights, or a reliable way to charge your cellphone so you can share to social media or post to your blog.

The family I’m staying with has been off-grid for 5 years. They use an outhouse year round. They bring their water home either in 5-gallon jugs or 55-gallon drums. In summer the wash water comes from the creek. And even though there is a power line accessible a few hundred feet from the house they have their power supplies by a trusty Honda 2200 generator.

Being off-grid usually brings to mind a primitive cabin far into the wilderness. And in a way the life is a bit simpler. There’s no worry about riots here. It’s more likely you would be trampled by a moose. But these kids are far from deprived. They’ve been blowing through video games all week. The 9 and 11 year olds learned how to tame and breed animals in ARK while the 17 year old is beating bosses in Ori.

The generator powers lights when needed (with the sun literally up 24/7 there’s not much need now) and fans, TV and Xbox, an air conditioner, instapot, phone chargers, etc. In winter it keeps the oil heater running. All the kids except for the 3 year old know how to restart it when it runs out of gas. The older ones know how to troubleshoot and fix it when fuel isn’t the problem. The quickest way to wake up the house is for the generator to die.

When I get my cabin built I’ll take my friend’s advice and get a Honda. I asked about the ones we walked past in Costco and she says she’s tried them but they just don’t hold up to the constant use that they put it through. They’ll last a few months where her Honda generators will last for a year or more of constant use with proper maintenance. Of course I would like to add a battery bank so my electronics don’t die every time the generator runs out of gas. We’ll see how that goes. It would be nice to have some leeway.

Having said all this and knowing more, does it seem silly that I’m intimidated by generators? I am. I want to learn how to manage them and service them and maintain them because I know that’s a valuable skill. But I’m intimidated by them. Even so, I took the first step today. When I went out “around the corner” I heard the generator stop. If I waited I know one of the kids would show up and refill it and get it back on. I decided not to be ridiculous. I was right there.

It’s just like a lawnmower, really. Open the tank, take the cap off the gas can. Put in the funnel and pour gas until full then close it up again. Give it a bit of choke and pull the starter cord. When it starts running let off the choke and walk away. Easy. Now bring on the small engine repair lessons. If it’s worth doing it’s worth doing right and I don’t relish the idea of having one die at -°30.