Living off-the-grid in The Sims 4 is not easy. You’re not relying on public utilities. You need to generate your own electricity and capture water from the atmosphere.
Wind turbines, solar panels, and dew collectors are your best friends.
Here’s how you can make your Sim’s life easier when living off the grid.
How to live off the grid in The Sims 4 Eco Lifestyle
Choose items that can function off the grid
Make sure to select household appliances that can function off the grid. You can find them in the Off the Grid category in Build Mode.
Use a composting toilet instead of a regular toilet. Just make sure to add an insect farm on your lot.
Composting toilets will randomly catch fire if you don’t feed the compost to your bugs.
Showers that function off the grid give you the option to take a quick and tepid shower. But the catch is that a quick shower won’t get your Sim’s hygiene needs in the green.
Kitchens that function off the grid have very limited cooking options. You can make all sorts of salads but you won’t be able to bake cakes, and bread, among other things.
Well, maybe your Sim doesn’t even need to cook. You can have them dumpster dive for meals.
Off-the-grid refrigerators function on ice. Your fridge will preserve food until the ice melts. Make sure to restock your icebox every day.
Use candles and lanterns to light your house.
How to get food
Your cooking options are limited when living off the grid. Growing your own food is an excellent idea. If you’re living on a small lot, you can grow vertical gardens.
Plant some vegetables and a few trees and harvest the crop when it’s ready. Your Sim can keep fruits and veggies in their inventory and eat some when they’re hungry.
You can also dumpster dive for food. Click on a dumpster and select Dive for Meals.
How to get water off-the-grid
You need to place a few dew collectors on your lot to ensure a steady flow of water. The dew collector captures water droplets from the air.
If you own Seasons, you’ll collect more water during rainy days.
Dew collectors have a green eco-footprint. They can help you lower your overall eco-footprint.
Alternatively, you can also go to any body of water and use the Gather Water interaction. Your Sim will use a bucket to bring some water back home.
I recommend using dew collectors as they’re more convenient.
Don’t forget to enable the Natural Well lot trait. You can use spring water to cover your household’s water needs.
How to get electricity off-the-grid
You can generate electricity off-the-grid via solar panels and wind turbines.
I recommend placing solar panels on the roof of your home. Ground solar panels tend to break down quite frequently.
They also take up a lot of space on your lot.
You can use Shift and [ to shrink solar panels. They still produce the same amount of electricity as they would at their regular size.
Upgrade your solar panels so they can store lighting if you own Seasons.
If your Sim is a fitness enthusiast, you can upgrade treadmills to generate power once you’ve reached Level 5 of the Handiness skill.
Make sure to tweak your bill settings to store excess power instead of selling it to the grid. Click on your mailbox, select Bill Information, and check the Store option instead of Auto Sell.
Don’t forget to enable the Geothermal lot trait. You can use natural heating to generate power.
Build an artisan business
You can create lots of things by hand and sell them at yard sales or marketplaces.
You can become a Master Maker pretty easily. Level up your Fabrication skill, get Bits and Pieces and turn them into recycled items on the Fabricator.
You can also make candles and fizz juice. They won’t make you rich, but you’ll get by.
What are the advantages of living off the grid?
Living off the grid is a cost-effective lifestyle. You don’t have to join the rat race, get a job, work for long hours, and put your hobbies on the back burner.
Your Sims can live pretty comfortably just by dumpster diving all day long.
When it comes to bills, you’ll only pay your lot taxes. There are no utility bills whatsoever.
Living off the grid is challenging. If you’re looking for new gameplay ideas, try surviving a few days off the grid.
Happy Simming!