Despite the appeal and promise of a simple life, homesteading can be expensive. Sometimes it can be even more expensive than living in town, on the grid and smack in the middle of society! Pretty much every project and every chore you undertake on your homestead will require supplies or components of one kind or another. Buying them means the bill adds up fast. Luckily, it’s easy, actually easier than ever, to find free homesteading supplies if you know where to look.
I’ve got 11 such places on the list below that will help you save a bundle and enjoy the homestead life of your dreams.
Bulletin Boards
Far and away my very favorite, and increasingly forgotten, place to get free supplies. Check bulletin boards at your local farm stores, grain and feed suppliers, livestock and equipment dealers and auctions, and everywhere else such things are found. Always, always, always stop to look at a bulletin board!
Usually you’ll see a little note, scratched out on a piece of paper or even a napkin, advertising free stuff to whoever will come and pick it up. I’ve nabbed dirt, mulch, chickens, tools, gravel and a whole lot more.
Farmers
Farmers in your county can be a great source of much needed supplies. Animal manure of all kinds – they will be more than happy to give you if you’re willing to clean it up and haul it away, but you can also expect to snag mulch, clippings, wood and other plant matter whenever they are doing improvements or bringing in harvests…
Many farmers are generous folks, too, and they may be more than happy to share eggs, fruits, veggies and more with you if you’re nice and neighborly.
Owners of Unimproved Land
I’ve used this one with great success, and you can do the same if you’re willing to put in a little sweat equity. Anyone that owns a parcel of land without any improvements, that is to say infrastructure or buildings, generally wants to take care of it but this is a big and often expensive job.
Landowners that want to improve their properties need to clear them first, and that means trees need to be brought down. If you’re willing to do the work, most are more than happy to let you haul off the wood.
Demolition and Construction Companies
Get to know and become friends with contractors, construction companies and demolition companies in your area. The first two will often have building supplies left over, or waste that’s still perfectly usable, that they don’t want to mess with after a job is finished. If you’re willing to pick up and dispose of it, they might give it to you for free.
Similarly, demolition companies might be able to hook you up with takeoff hardware, bricks, planks and who knows what else that you can put to use around your own home or for your own construction projects.
Warehouses
Warehouses are your number one best source for every homesteader’s best friend: pallets! Pallets can be used as is for fencing, gates, run-in shelters, dog houses and more, or they can be broken down to harvest the surprisingly nice hardwood they are made from.
Warehouses are always dealing with a surplus of older or janky pallets that are still perfectly good for your purposes. Hit them up and see if they won’t part with them for free.
Hardware Superstores
Don’t scroll past this one. While it is true that you can’t walk out of these big box mega stores with anything you’re not willing to pay for, there are exceptions. One of the most useful, and coveted, by homesteaders are those giant cable spools in the wiring department.
Take the time to go in and acquaint yourself with the department heads in the store or the store manager. See if they will give those spools away for free or if the companies want them back. Most don’t, and if they’re feeling charitable they’ll let you come pick them up when they are empty. They make great tables!
“Buy Nothing” Groups
Buy nothing groups are exactly what the name says; these are local social networks or online social media sites where people post things that they’re willing to give away for free and sometimes make posts requesting things people are willing to part with. Freecycle.com is one of the best.
Getting in and getting known is a wonderful way to save a fortune on all kinds of things. However, you want to contribute yourself if you’re going to stick around so don’t be greedy.
Nextdoor.com
Nextdoor.com is a unique social media site that allows membership to certain boards based on your actual geographic area that you live in. The idea is that the people you see on the site are the people that actually live around you. People post free or give away items on here all the time in my experience.
Craigslist
You know it, you love it. Craigslist is a little more than an online bulletin board service. It’s showing its age, and you got to be careful of weirdos and scumbags on here, but you can find great deals on free stuff.
Just remember to be careful, don’t meet anyone in a sketchy area and especially after nightfall, and bring some backup with you if you’re in doubt.
Facebook Marketplace
Most folks go on Facebook Marketplace to sell jet skis and ATVs, cars, furniture and knick knacks but depending on where you live and how far you want to travel you can find free deals on everything from dirt to building supplies and a whole lot more.
Family, Friends and Neighbors
Last but certainly not least, don’t neglect the power of your built-in social network. No matter who you are, you got at least a few family members, friends or neighbors. They in turn have plenty of people that they know.
Start shaking them down and letting them know what you need and what you’re looking for. The crucial item that will make your project a reality is probably someone else’s pain in the ass that they’ll be glad to be rid of.
Tim is a farm boy with vast experience on homesteads, and with survival and prepping. He lives a self-reliant lifestyle along with his aging mother in a quiet and very conservative little town in Ohio. He teaches folks about security, prepping and self-sufficiency not just through his witty writing, but also in person.
Find out more about Tim and the rest of the crew here.