Off grid
Do people seek out off grid sites?
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No. The very opposite.
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By off grid do you mean without EHU? If so then it's not for us, although there are some on here who relish using them. If you mean out of the way places then we would certainly be interested.
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Whereas I consider EHU almost a necessity and can’t understand why people actively seek to go off grid. It proves we're all different.
Relaxat, you’ll find many more views expressed in the CL section of the forum and in Tips For Making Caravanning Cheaper. As a CL owner, you're sure to find it interesting reading.
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Are there really still caravan sites without electric hook ups? I haven't seen one for 40 years and thought they were long gone.
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Generally the off grid or basic CL sites are quiet and can be in unspoilt countryside, they are generally in the £5-12 bracket so low cost. The grass can be long or short or used for grazing.There might not be WiFi or showers or even aTv signal, You might even be alone on site. It is a personal choice which we are lucky to have as members.
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personally I really really can't the point, or indeed any advantage, in going non EHU. Wouldn't live like that at home so why on holiday?But each to their own.
Maybe when these solar panels can provide a few Kw of power all day (like EHU) then I'll consider it.
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Yes, CL's and we use the C&CC Temporary Holiday Sites a lot. They run from 7 - 28 nights, good locations around the country, cheap, more outings, go went we want and come back home went we want, no booking (a few you have to)
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If off grid means a flat and large hardstanding full serviced pitch with a luxurious toilet block, occasionally with small bar and very occasionally a pool or Jacuzzi, with a nice landscaped site, then yes. If not, well..... 'er..... No!
David
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Relax
If you mean rally sites not wild camping then yes go for it.We regularly rally throughout the year along with quite a few others without the orange lead,this gives me peaceful sites ,lovely countryside and villages and the ability and flexability just to get away from it all.
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The 'point' is that folk can camp without Ehu in places other than where 'planning permission' has been given....and where a cable wouldn't reach or there is no Ehu....like small CLs, THS, Rallies, 'wild' places etc, etc....
wether there's an advantage in the actual running of a van on or off EHU is marginal, although most off gridders can run all the appliances that on gridders do, albeit by a different method or fuel...
however, for most that do this, it's the fact that they don't have to plug in that gives them the 'advantage', that of not being tied to camp where everyone else does...
we often have a few days in a row on an aire (or Aires, with no ehu) and if I was totally 'ehu dependant' this would not be possible....
its no big deal to be away from ehu for a few days but some seem to think it is....
we don't need (or necessarily want) a site every time we stop on a tour.. A day here, two days there, getting into the towns, parking up close to amenities (without having to use a car) is one of the attractions of a long trip...beetling about without reliance of site or ehu...
not for everyone, that's for sure, but rest assured we (and others who don't always stay on a site) don't 'miss out' on anything just because we aren't plugged in...
yes, when we find somewhere we want to stay, we'll get to a site, enjoy the facilities and enjoy them, but we li,e our trips to be a bit more varied than that and have a variety of stopping places.....some with, and some without, ehu.....that's just us....not right nor wrong, but certainly not disadvantaged.
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We often go without a hook up in Summer, have done for years. It sometimes means we have a location to ourselves, and that for us is much as we prefer it. There are still quite a few CLs/CSs that dont offer hook ups, admittedly they are becoming more rare. We are used to going to events as well without hook ups. Life is easier with a hook up, but if you get organised, and don't mind doing without some things, it isn't that hard in Summer. We spent a decade going back to same site in Cornwall doing without electrics other than a rechargeable battery.
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For me there is no advantage to being off grid. That is because I don't generally do what I consider 'camping'. In the past when I had young children we did do some touring, weeks on a single site but also long weekends . Our requirements for each were often different. For touring the actual site was less important and main sites when we were moving every few days suited us. Week stays were similar in the respect that most of the time off site, generally we wanted a beach where kids could swim, good rock pools and most of the time off site.
Often at weekends we wanted a CL with a large field where the kids could play and we could have family time playing ball games etc and much of the time centered around the caravan and surrounds. To me that is camping.
Now we tour mostly (rather than 'camp') and again spend less time on site. The exception is a 15 night stay over Christmas when EHU is a boon as we are not set up for staying off grid in negative temperatures.
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Interesting the number of posts that say things like 'i dont go non-EHU as i dont do 'camping' anymore'....or even 'we wouldn't live 'like that' (whatever that means) at home so why on holiday' presumably suggesting that if I unplugged the cable from the side of my van the occupants would suddenly be whisked back 30 years in time where we were struggling to keep warm or couldn't have a shower.....or eat, or wash up or watch TV or......
However, 'at home' some folk have gas heating, some have electric, some cook with electric some with gas.....could one earlier contributor possibly think that those who cook or heat with gas 'at home' (rather than using an (albeit thick) EHU cable are somehow not enjoying their holiday as it isn't 'like home'...
I know it's hard to believe but in the van if I removed the ehu cable the lights still stay on, as does the TV and the water pump and the fridge switches over to gas...bet those with a power cut 'at home' don't get this.....how on earth do they manage?
its truly amazing that folk are able to come out of a few days off grid alive
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Interesting the number of posts that say things like 'i dont go non-EHU as i dont do 'camping' anymore'.
See nothing strange there BB. Do you go off EHU just because that is an end in itself? Or is it because where you choose to camp on occasion has no EHU?
Because of my requirements regarding the type of site I use the EHU is part of the package. I do not wish to rally or to use basic CLs and so EHU is always present.
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With the motorhome I find that I'm as happy with no EHU, as I am when connected by the orange umbilical cord. Out of the way gorgeous sites in stunning countryside and coastal locations will be bypassed by people who are so reliant on an EHU to exist from day to day. And of course those who want to heat the world at the campsite's expense by using electric heaters in the awning.
There is a case for EHU and Non EHU... It's just a matter of choice.
K
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