Homestead How-To Connection Checklist
Base Camp with Sunjack solar panels.
Communications
on the Homestead
How To Stay Connected, On & Off the Grid
By Dana Benner
So just how important is communication on the homestead? Well, think about what could happen on any particular day to you or your family. I remember the day my friend lost his thumb, due to a dumb mistake, to the tines of a rototiller. I vividly remember the day I tripped and fell through a storm door window, carving up my arm in the process. How many times have you sliced your hand with a kitchen knife? Currently, we are dealing with a severe Nor’ easter threatening a whole lot more than just the Benner homestead. Without some form of communication, you are on your own if a situation arises.
How much thought have you put into communications, especially with all of the other things you need to deal with? How can you reach the house if something happens? More importantly, how can your family reach you? In this piece, I will look at how good communication can not only make life easier but it can also be the difference between life and death.
Communication Types
The Benner homestead has five forms of communication on hand. We have a landline, cell phones, two-way radios and good old-fashioned just telling people where we are going and when we are expected back. The fifth has nothing to do with two-way communication, but everything to do with getting information from the outside world. It is a radio that monitors channels for local news and the NOAA weather channel.
“ Why five?” Well, where I live, cell service is spotty even during the best of times, which means that the landline, which operates off of the WiFi, is the most reliable. The two-way radios are how I keep in contact with the house while I am out working in the woods or the garden. They can also be used while I am out hunting or fishing, or in the case of emergency and the phones aren’ t working, First Responders monitor dedicated public safety radio channels.
Land Lines
Many people think that the landline is“ old school”, and in a way, it is. I like it because we can reach emergency help or receive calls if my daughter or grandchildren need help. The only way the landline will go down is if there are problems with the cable connection, which does happen.
AcreageLife. com August 2026 AcreageLife 23