From Tradies to Homesteaders | Aussie Off-grid Homestead

[@karissazappelli6646]

Yes you are correct no videos of off grid living in Australia. Many thanks for yours. Blessed!

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

There’s more these days but still hard to find! Glad you enjoyed 😁

[@karissazappelli6646]

Hi thanks for letting me now that. Have been searching. Thanks for the inspiration, we are in the process of doing what you guys are doing. When you say wheatbelt, can you let me know roughly where you are? If that isn’t been too rude. I don’t need exact location, just a guide and rough idea. I’m trying to find the right location for us also and if you are in that area. That gives us hope. Cheers!! ♥️😊

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

@@karissazappelli6646 we’re in the shire of York so pretty central

[@karissazappelli6646]

@@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead lovely thank you so much 👍🏼 have a great day!!

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

@@karissazappelli6646 no worries, have a good one 👍

[@CathyEbs]

Great down-to-earth video! I'm planning to buy a 2-5 acre block of land in the next 3-5 years and am gathering ideas for the journey. I’m probably where you were before getting your current place. I think anything larger might be too much for me to handle or afford. I'll be 50 next year and want to slow down in my day job to focus more on woodworking, which is my passion. My goal is to build a big shed for my woodworking projects and enjoy some peace away from the noise of suburbia and close neighbors. I also have a KZbin channel for my woodworking hobby, but life has been busy, so I haven’t been able to upload much. I’m excited to watch the rest of your videos, and I've just subscribed to your channel!

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

@@CathyEbs hey thanks for watching! Yeah more acreage is def more work… we’ve barely touched 70acres of ours. Maybe in future when we have more livestock and more fencing 👍

[@jengarza2877]

I absolutely loved your story. My husband and I began ours in 2008 with the market crash in the United states. We found a small piece of land in the desert which had a house but we had to strip it all out because of the previous owner and the amount of animals that were kept in it. We are in our 16th yeand our fruit trees all of our trees are producing, we continue to expand our gardens, and we reduced how many animals we raise since it's just my husband and I now. We used to have the 4 kids here but they've all moved on so all we need are chickens. We go in a group to butcher a cow and also hunt for elk oryx and deer. It is so crazy when you said how fast paced the world was that's how it is for us we see how everybody but is still striving For money. We ended up with the Sacramento mountains 3 miles to our East the white sands New Mexico to our West Sierra Blanca to our North and of course the Southern border of Texas and El Paso to our south. .. Which is directly on the border of Mexico and cuidad Juarez. For me as I just found you I would love to see a house tour. I would love a background I want to get married how you met silly things like that because I deal you have a great story just by listening to this video. All the best from the Chihuahuan desert!

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Hey there! thank you for watching. We're going to be doing a bit more back story stuff soon, good to hear there's interest :-)

[@Tinachimneycreekfarm]

It’s nice to have other lovely people in the off grid community! We have 140 acres it’s such a beautiful way of life 😊

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Oh great!! What state are you guys in?

[@Tinachimneycreekfarm]

@@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead We are in northern NSW :)

[@kerristar7998]

Amazing courage! Your an inspiration, thanks for sharing your adventure to freedom and living one with nature. You both are truly rocking it🙌👏😊

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

@@kerristar7998 omg Thankyou 🙏❤️

[@gypsymaddy2870]

You are such an inspiration to me. I have just bought an old cottage on one acre and am going to permaculture it. Thank you so much.

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

@@gypsymaddy2870 oh that’s awesome!! Good luck with your adventure 🙏❤️

[@gypsymaddy2870]

@@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead thank you ❤️🇦🇺

[@Bush_Edge_Homesteading_Aus]

It is amazing how 'less' is so much 'lighter' on you as a person. The lightest I have ever felt was the 4 of us in a 16ft 2nd hand caravan that we set up as an offgrid van, travelling Australia with very little stuff. So freeing. Love your story of how you transitioned to your offgrid life.

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Thankyou! And yes, that weight lifted was incredible. We didn't even notice we were carrying it!

[@TheDixiechick12]

You have to take the pain to receive the gain. Well done

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

@@TheDixiechick12 Thankyou! Achieving long term goals is ultimately more satisfying! 🙏❤️

[@simplyoffgrid-australia]

Thanks for sharing your story Amanda and Corey. I love that your dream has become a reality 😀.

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

And we now feel like that dream might be even more than we originally imagined. Part of the fun is going with the flow and seeing where you end up 😊

[@5acrefarm]

This is such a great video!! It's so nice to learn about your journey!! What an adventure you've had :)

[@sharonburling2262]

Thank you for being on KZbin and I've found you guys! This will be our lives in about a months time.

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

I’m literally so excited for you!!! Take the time during this transition phase to reflect and journal because it’s both very bizarre and very prosaic all at once.

[@UrbanHomesteadArtist]

I loved hearing your story. It certainly would be handy being two tradies though! 😃

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Definitely handy and also having the tools etc it's saved us quite a few $$ over the years.

[@lesboucher542]

I loved the vision of turning up and finding the wedge tail on your property. In my mind, I started singing, and now I can't rid off, "Doin' the Eagle Rock" LOL I'm glad that you two followed your dream. Back in the '70's I had the chance to buy a property in Tasmania, but the lady that I was with at that time didn't want to move away from the rat race, about here you will have to excuse the tears that are dripping onto my keyboard, so I let it go. &0 odd acres, rain forest ate back of the property which ran down to the sea on the northeastern area of Tassie.... We broke up, the property disappeared, and I was left kicking myself. Now at 75 I think it might be a little too late to start over but I still dream of getting a property so.... C'Mon LOTTO... the dog and I need to get away..... ;)

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Thanks for sharing Les, there was a time long ago where I (Amanda) might have said no too... always thought I would live in a big city. But in truth I found my happiness on the land and am very glad of it.

[@themulveycottage]

Hearing your story is just so fantastic. It sounds like an absolute dream block!!

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Thank you dear lady… I loved your most recent vid. Please keep sharing ❤️

[@themulveycottage]

@@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead Thank you, I will!! 😁😁😁

[@matchnumbers7199]

We did the same 2yrs ago. If the world stopped tomorrow, we’d survive. 200ac with sheep, cattle, house cows, Guinea fowl and dual purpose chickens. Also had geese until a few weeks back but they are horrid twats. We grow in raised beds and also have orchards (2) , flat ground, melon and fodder patches and grow for livestock as well. Look forward to your videos.

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Agreed... geese are horrid twats 🤣🤣 One animal we absolutely refused to get here on this property after our experiences at our last place. Thanks so much for watching!

[@christasmicroflowerfarm2695]

Pleased to meet you both and look forward to seeing your homestead come together. I'm too old for anything more than our small acre out in Wonthaggi Victoria. Hubby and I after having lived in one home in a Melbourne suburb for 45 years are content now to enjoy our new home in a country suburb.

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Lovely to meet you! Thank you for joining us, I love expanding our community of like minded folk ❤️

[@Bethany.Loveday]

Is it possible to go off grid in terms of solar whilst in the suburbs? We’re technically semi-rural, but it’s still more of a suburb situation just with larger blocks. Anyways, I had the goal to get enough solar panels to be able to unplug from the power grid, but someone told me we’re only allowed to have so much of our power hooked up to the solar panels and we still have to stay connected to the grid… This brought my research to a halt, so I still need to get back into it and sus it all out properly, but once being told that, it was a bit deflating. Awesome video, thank you for sharing your story. I don’t know if we’ll ever move to a bigger property, as much as we have talked about it, we ultimately conclude we want to stay close to our family who live nearby, but it’s enjoyable watching other people do it 🥰

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

@@Bethany.Loveday not sure about transitioning to 100% offgrid in the suburbs but disconnecting from mains power would require battery storage essentially. There’s a lot of solar companies out there that primary do grid connected solar (their business model is around gaining gov subsidies) and don’t really know how to do stand alone systems. My advice would be to either chat to someone who has done what you want to do in the suburbs or talk to a solar supply company that does off grid systems. Lots of people think they know way more about solar than they actually do. Good luck!!

[@blackcatstudio4506]

Oh my god YESSSS some Aussie homesteaders ... We are about to put the Burbs house on the market and get out of dodge ! Scarey as hell but we r being brave like you were can't wait to share my journey

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Oh awesome! sorry just found your comment. Will head over to follow your journey too. Also if you haven't already and you're on facebook, look for a private group I started called Australian Homesteaders Community

[@janicedelp2775]

Happy to have found you! This is so interesting, and I am excited to follow how you are doing. I feel like you are actually living now. My husband and I love being in the country secluded and peaceful. I will be cheering you on. Janice from Arkansas USA

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Hey!!! Sorry we’ve been off YT for a little bit while Corey recovers from surgery. Thanks fir your comment, so appreciated 🙏❤️

[@RobsAquaponics]

Thanks for this folks. Really enjoyed the explanation & it gives me some hope for us. Cheers & have a top one.

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

You are most welcome, thanks for hanging out with us 🙌🙌

[@eddieandjulieklysz458]

Good on you guys for doing it. Don't forget to have a cellar under grand for storing food. Do not let people know about it.❤

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Thankyou! 💪

[@ozsimflyer]

Great story guys, looking forward to seeing more of your development of your land especially how your swales and leaky weirs help hydrate the property or not as the case may be. All the very best from the city. 👍

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Cheers Chris! Not much going to be happening on the water front this summer but we’ll keep tabs of the progress and hopefully each successive summer we see greater and greater benefit of water management .

[@ozsimflyer]

@@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead yup understand that it can get pretty dry your way in the peak of summer, hopefully over the next few years or so you’ll see the benefits of your efforts at water harvesting and retention.. all the best.

[@diparsons4067]

This video was great 👍 So good to go back to the beginning. Well done guys.

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Thanks Di 🙏❤️

[@deborahlee8135]

So good to see how things played out for you guys. You give me hope. I am currently doing the same from a smaller place than you had to one smaller than you have, but have 20 years on you also. I hope its sudden so i have $ for a house on the block. Living lighter and kinder in so very many ways. Love your journey. ❤

[@plowestory]

Awesome guys - so happy for you taking the step forward - enjoy every breathe. Those who wake up happy have won, keep going.

[@thenelgroup]

Thank you so much for sharing your story, truely inspiring without fear❤

[@TheUndisputedGodFather]

Great vid! Paying your way forward. Congratulations Corey and Amanda!

[@michaelmorgan6154]

Well done guys, great story. Wish you two every success in the future, and I’ll continue to watch your journey.👍🏻😎

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Thanks mate!! appreciate you hanging out with us :-)

[@johnthomas5806]

Congrags for making the move..always hard to change a life style and I do hope everything works for you over the next years as you gain a knowledge of the land, what you want to do ....and what you do to make the dreams become real....wish i was there myself.....

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Thank you 🙏

[@sunniegal4109]

18:03 cracked me up on the brain analogy, thanks for the belly laugh, cheers from another Aussie!

[@mfrodyma1480]

Glad that the KZbin Algo. showed me this video. I also see the "1K."

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Yes we made it to 1k over night 🙌🙌🤩

[@theadventuresofzoomandbettie]

What a story guys! We were so similar to you guys, except we moved from an apartment to 1 acre lol. Feels like 100 compared to the old place! I laughed so much at your low expectations of selling in 2020! We were trying to buy at that time and it was insane. We'd been looking since WELL before it all went crazy, and wish we had got off our butts and made moves quicker! I know the feels on the 6 days a week life - that was me in construction in Melbourne! Life is SO much better now! Can't believe I hadn't found your channel until now! On board to watch more!

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Yay so glad you found us! I'm sure we already follow you guys :-)

[@theadventuresofzoomandbettie]

@@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead ❤️❤️❤️

[@zioneden8142]

Loved listening to your journey guys. Sounds awesome! This is our dream too!

[@margaretljubicic328]

Omg this is near identical to our story … but we are in NSW

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Crazy how many ppl have walked similar paths ❤️

[@kesalinibritton691]

I hope yous make more vids guys 😁I'm at the mindset shift stage atm ..good on yous and thank you for your content

[@almantasj7698]

For non Australian audience-of grid living in Australia is not the same as in most other countires. You still get massive bills for Council Rates, pay car registration every year and most Aussies also pay insurances on stuff. Means you still need income of tens of thousands of dollars per year just for the wake up costs. The true offgrid where you are free from the Government and corporations unfortunately is not possible in Australia, they still have you on the hook.

[@omangamkaklazycook]

All the best guys 🙂

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Thank you :-)

[@robyntodd2284]

Love love love this video. Love a great origin story. I did have a chuckle about your driveway story. To me your driveway was small. Being in the pilbara, the longest driveway I’ve ever driven was 117kms of dirt road through a one million acre property. Miss J didn’t enjoy your driveway, but she has no real dirt road experience, and definitely not in a tiny hire car lol. Can’t wait for the next video like this. Without divulging actual dollar figures, I’d love to hear about if there was much of a financial adjustment with the move. The plus and the minus. You are obviously consuming way less, but if the earning has been a lot less, how have you managed all that while trying to build your forever dream.

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Oh dear... hopefully miss J recovered ok 🤣 Re finances... that's an interesting story too. Because part of our journey prior to Rockpile was pursuing debt freedom and during that process we drastically reduced our outgoings. Which on reflection, has been a life saver for us here. We couldn't of done this with your standard level of consumer debt most people have. We certainly don't have as much disposable income now which is part establishing new income sources outside what we had been doing for 25yrs+ and we are simple working less and enjoying life more. The main downside is our determination to cash flow rather than borrow so things sometimes feel like they are going slower than everything we can imagine we Want to do. But that's a lesson in itself too tbh. Learning to live slow. Be interesting to see how it develops year to year as we build our infrastructure and self sufficiency. I've been thinking that breaking down a homestead budget would also be an interesting topic.

[@naturewoman1274]

It's a great feeling to be debt free... congratulations guys

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Indeed! You don't understand the weight you're carrying until it's lifted!

[@debra8390]

Love hearing other people's stories. Could you expand on your power system. Which products/brands did you decide on, eg, inverter, battery bank or tesla battery etc. I find that all confusing. Good luck, thanks for sharing.

[@SandyHunter-x9q]

We call them blockies or prickle farmers in Aus

[@ontoitaussie7390]

great video guys.

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Cheers mate 👍👍

[@VEButterfly]

Ha ha I just showed this to my hubby. I’m like that’s just like me! And that’s just like you! Except he let her buy that block!

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

😂😂😂 so many of us similar stories!!! It’s so funny 😆

[@-Scotty]

I thought the term Tradie was short for Tradesman, which is anyone who has completed a 3-4 year Apprenticeship in a particular trade, including hairdressers.

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

That’s not wrong mate 👍 though colloquially it’s mostly used to refer to construction trades.

[@-Scotty]

@@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead been watching some of your recent videos and subbed, quite jealous :P wish you both all the best & look forwards to future content.

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

@@-Scotty cheers buddy, thanks for watching 👍

[@lisahuntly6792]

Have you seen "Running Amuk Off Grid" with Nic and Bob. They have KZbind their journey for the past 3yrs and a similar story to your own.

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

We have! They’re great 😁❤️

[@EmmaAppleBerry]

Its gorgeous!

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Thankyou!

[@jamesruan913]

Hello ,come across your 1st video of starting an homestead down under - will now sit and watch your journey - a question the people that purchased your old property,do you think they were an identical couple to yourselves looking for that mindset of starting a homestead ?

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Hello! Hope you enjoy 😁 the people that bought our place were in that sort of first wave of people moving out of the cities when covid hit. I don’t think they were necessarily on a homesteading journey but were starting to explore in that direction and were excited at the possibilities of the paddocks, large dam, veggie patch and chicken coop etc that was already set up ready to go.

[@honey-bee-farmstead]

I LOVE this video 🤣😂

[@theorganised_farmgal]

There are so many similarities in our start up story lol... 1.5 hour commute from home to the city and 1.5 hours back. Kids in care for 10 - 12 hours per day and just had that moment of what are we doing... The only difference was we sold our place at the top of COVID and had nothing to go to so then there was literally no going back. Must be SO handy with you both being tradies :D

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

It’s funny how similar our stories can be. I think those of us that did a “tree change” (kinda hate that term) later in life tend have similar paths to this place of nature and self sufficiency ❤️

[@mywildholm]

We really are so similar in terms of, neither of us had ever done anything at all close to this before. We had all we needed but really wanted to explore an off grid property (after years spent watching KZbin homesteads in the making). We found other similar points in your story and it resonated with us. You guys are doing so well - very courageous to just do what you felt was best and follow through! 🙌 Really nice hearing the full story... Off to watch some more episodes! Oh... and if you don't mind, question from Ryan: What is the total size of your solar system in kWh? Size of array, size of battery bank... that kind of thing.

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

It's funny how similar the stories of those of us 'of a certain age' are that end up in this life. Even across the globe and I love it!

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Solar power system: 16 330w panels (triniasolar - brand), max voltage 37.4v each, wired in four strings, 70 amps for all sixteen. Using a Vitron MPPT charge controller 150/100 which means it can handle 150 amp and 100volts 24 2v 600 amp hour batteries (Yuasa - brand) lead acid solar battery combined into a 48v 600 amp hour set up wired in series Batteries push 48v into inverter which converts it to a 240v AC for us Inverter is Vitron multi plus 48/5000/70-100 5000w Inverter can peak surge to 10000w Continuous power output in optimal temp is just under 4000w

[@mywildholm]

@@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead We do too!!!

[@frantracey8737]

I think it's a piece of the jar from the women at the well.

[@alisonmassina3868]

New subscriber here 🙋🏼‍♀️ enjoying your channel. It’s hard to find Australian content. May I ask what your business from home is? Thanks. 😊

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Welcome! If you’re on FB come join the Australian Homesteaders Community group… heaps of ways to connect with other Aussie Homesteaders in there 👍👍 I’m a copywriter 😁 I run my own copywriting business and also work a few days a week remotely for a marketing company based out of Sydney.

[@rob.christie1272]

Hi guys, thank you for your great video ! I have a question, I just wondered if you need to pay rates on your land ? I ask because I would like to do the same thing. Many thanks. Rob

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Yes we do sadly!! I guess it’s never really true freedom from that perspective

[@TheUndisputedGodFather]

Love you guys!

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Cheers mate 👍 people like you are why we keep turning on that darn camera 😂😂

[@TheUndisputedGodFather]

@@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead I start my off-grid cabin in a few weeks. I'll keep you posted, You guys inspire me everyday.

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

@@TheUndisputedGodFather just record everything. In video or pictures or writing. Even if you think it’s unimportant because you’d be surprised at how much you forget a few years down the track!

[@TheUndisputedGodFather]

@@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead Will do! Might even post a vid down the track

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

@@TheUndisputedGodFather that’d be awesome 👏

[@allandriver2066]

Is your block between Keyneton in in my Nranol ;76and Heathcote. The landscape looks familiar.

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Hey mate those don’t sound familiar but we’re in the shire of York WA. Not gonna tell you our address for obvious reasons 😂😂

[@geraldwenn9698]

You guys will miss the shop's

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Nah mate, haven’t yet 👍

[@yvettethompson8904]

How did you fund this project, and what did you start with once you bought the land?

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Hey there, good question! We've been asked similar things a few times, so we might do a video with more details. But the short story is that the first part of the build was funded by the sale of our last home, and since then, we've been cash-flowing our projects bit by bit with what we can earn. I am a copywriter who works remotely, and Corey does handyman stuff and land management services for local farmers. Not the same level of income as when we were both tradies, but it works 👍

[@tessie4136]

What state and approximately where do you live?

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Wheatbelt region WA.

[@tessie4136]

Thank you.

[@EmmaAppleBerry]

What websites did you use to find your land?

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

We looked at all the main Aussie realestate sites and you’ll see those tend to have the same stuff but it’s a good overview. We followed the realestate agents located in the towns we were interested in. And we regularly google searched and just chased down any lead that looked promising.

[@EmmaAppleBerry]

@@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead Thanks!

[@EmmaAppleBerry]

What state you guys in?

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Western Australia in the Wheatbelt

[@EmmaAppleBerry]

@@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead the boulders remind me of the granite belt here in Queensland or even down in beringup region in Victoria.

[@EmmaAppleBerry]

I assume because of your elevation youre temperate climate zone?

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Temperate to semi arid.

[@HGCUPCAKES]

Wait… so you’re telling a story about how it all started, but it’s not accurate. Lol right.

[@ROCKPILEOffgridHomestead]

Eh 99.9% accurate, we’re just humans here. If you’ve got a memory that accurately remembers day by day details from years ago mate… congratulations I guess? 🏆