This article is part two, to read part one about building a self sufficient house click here first.

There are many ways to heat a house in the winter without cranking up the heat and paying more for your electrical bill. Here are two ways to build a self sufficient house that will be heated without the dependency of your electrical bill.

The first option in my opinion is the best option and that is to install wood stove. Wood stoves are the simplest solution to building a self sufficient home and heating it as it requires no power whatsoever. All you need is wood and a match and you can heat up a house all winter long without paying a dime. If you do not have wood around your house you can buy wood in bulk and have it delivered. It is still cheaper to build a self sufficient house heated with a wood stove then having to pay month after month of expensive heating bills.

The second option gets more costly then the first option and that means installing a solar heater for your house when you have it built. A solar heater does cost more upfront when you have your self sufficient home built but will pay for itself in a period of ten years. If you plan on living in your home for a long time then it is a great investment and after ten years you can kiss your heating bills goodbye for good.

If you are in an apartment that does not mean you can’t live self sufficiently. Anyone can live self sufficient in an apartment if they want to. Sure, it will never be 100% self sufficient but each step you can take to be more self sufficient makes a big difference in your life.

If you live in an apartment and are interested in living self sufficiently, here are three things you can start doing today to live more self sufficient in an apartment.

If you have a few windows then that is all you need to start growing plants. Go to the store and pick up the following plants: tomato, pepper and any herbs you might like. Keep them in your window and use what you produce. These plants can thrive as indoor plants if you provide them enough sun and water. You don’t need a big garden. Living a more self sufficient life in an apartment means doing anything for yourself instead of paying for it. Every little step makes a difference.

Cook, cook and prepare. Living self sufficient in an apartment means to do the things possible without land. The biggest asset is the kitchen. It will be all you need to cook for yourself and prepare all of your meals. Learn the basics of canning, freezing and storing foods for future consumption. Stop eating out and buy the most basic ingredients that you can. Create all of your own meals, your own dressings and every part of the meal.

Be responsible with your resources. Work hard to cut your dependency on energy by only using the power you need. Recycle everything you can and don’t waste. Control your use of air conditioning and heating, replace your light bulbs to use fluorescent lights. Every step you can take to lower your consumption of power will make you more self sufficient in an apartment.

More people are taking the idea of living self sufficiently seriously and trying to take a hard look at their own lifestyles and improve upon it. People who live self sufficient tend to follow a similar set of guidelines and discipline to their lives in order to balance the demands of living in a society against the desire to live on their own and without a dependency upon a neighbor.

Here are three common traits of people who live self sufficient:

Interested in gardening: The reason I need to put this on the list is that no matter where you live, you can grow something that will take you one step closer to living a self sufficient life. People who live self sufficient tend to grow their own crops and use them in their own cooking.

Never wastes anything: Everything can be used and those people who want to live self sufficiently know how to make the most of everything. Garbage goes to the compost, electrical items are turned off and unplugged if not used, anything that cannot be reused goes to the recycle bin so that someone else can reuse it.

Is not lazy: Living self sufficiently means instead of paying someone to do something for you, you are going to do it yourself. This means you cannot be lazy but very active. You could have animals that need to be attended, crops that need to be cared for and random chores around the house to take care of.

People who live self sufficiently have a desire to do things themselves. Self sufficiency is very much a mindset and a way of life. What common traits have you noticed in the people who live self sufficient that you know?

Creating a self sufficient house serves two purposes. The first is that a self sufficient house will lower monthly bills and expenses and the second is that it helps the environment by conserving energy, lowering consumption of resources and making the most of what nature provides rather then what is manmade.

The first step on the journey to building a self sufficient house is lowering your consumption of energy. If your goal is to generate energy on your property through devices like solar or wind you need to take a hard look at how you are currently using the energy in your house and lower it greatly.

Here is a checklist of things you can do as the first step towards building a self sufficient house:

Replace all light bulbs with compact fluorescent light bulbs. Fluorescent light bulbs use less energy and will lower your over use of energy.

Install zones in your house for your heat and air conditioning. This will allow you to control where you spend the most time in your house and only heat those areas. Why heat rooms you don’t use? All it does it waste energy. Conserve your use and it will lower your bills.

Turn off all unused electrical appliances and get in the habit of unplugging anything and everything possible. Some electrical items still pull power when plugged in for example a coffee maker or microwave. Only use the power you need.

The last step to getting your house ready to be a more self sufficient house is to take a look at all of your appliances and ensure that they are energy efficient. If not, consider replacing them. New appliances can pay for themselves in the energy they do not burn within a one year period.

If you have a goal to create a self sufficient house then start now by cutting your dependency on large amounts of energy and work to lower your consumption.

Part two on how to build a self sufficient house is continued here.