A Break in the Clouds

It's now March, and these photos detail some of the work that's been done since the New Year.  The Dek Block has been set and leveled for the floor joists.  Mike Compton of Compton's Sawmill in Macon County gave me some great poplar floor joists--2x6 size ten feet long and then two twelve foot 2x6s for the end caps on the joist structure.

Also, the photos reveal that an ersatz shed has been put up some 30 feet behind the house site where the lawn tractor can be out from under direct rain/wetness now.  I have four posts up (buried at 18") and cross pieces, but the tin roofing you see here is only sitting there for now.  I have several more 'gleaned' pieces of metal roofing on site that I will cut to size and attach to the purlins.  By the way, all wood seen here has been gleaned from curb alerts, dumpsters, or Craigslist.

More and soon.

A Gear Shift of Epic Proportions

Ah, poor me!  Once again, my plans are waylaid by issues.  New wheeze:  the FIRST building on the site built by me will be...wait for it...a 12x10 guest house with a 10x10 deck.  Conventional post/beam on concrete pier footers.

Ergo, the pix attached show the footers dug this day by moi.

Also, a large cache of free wood from Craigslist is welcomed!  It's on the site, too.

My xmas gifts included almost $200 worth of gift cards to the big box DIY stores, so that helps tremendously.

More as we see the day approaching,

p.s. The pic of the open pathway is a clearing for a future disc golf hole!  Barry gets naming rights!

Here I Raise My Ebenezer--Whatever That Is

There is, on this rock outcropping, enough space so I can build my house literally on the rock.  Look closely at the second picture and you'll see a small stack of stones--that marks about the middle of where the house will be.

I shall drill holes and put rebar in the rock, seal it, and then pour a concrete foundation in a 2'x4" form around the perimeter with reinforcement in the form.  Once that sets up and the forms are removed, I can place my 2' tall by 8' long by 9" thick slip forms on the foundation and begin building the house.

Also, the local Craigslist(tm) allowed me to get 15 bags of cement that I can use once the stone laying commences.

Meanwhile, look at the view towards the north behind my house site.  On the other side of the trees to the right in that photo is my sister's house--actually you can SEE the house (white house wrap and black roof felt can be seen through the trees).  Her house will be finished in January, 2010.  That's probably when I'll get started.

Sid, my middle brother, is promising to come soon and help me drive stakes into the rock so we can layout the corners and start drilling the rebar.

From his mouth to God's ear.

The OTHER One Where I Get Great Stuff

Again, Bessie Fromm has been generous.  As she was leaving on her cross-country trip to Montana, Ms. Fromm called to say she'd left a Craftsman(tm) tool chest and some cresent wrenches and other tools in the storage shed behind her house--for me!

I flew on gossamer wings (and I don't even know what that means) over to her place to get the tool chest before the evil new landowner could swoop in and take them from my widdle fingers.

Nice, eh?

The One Where I Get Great Stuff

With apologies to all fans of Friends, this is the blog post where I gloat over my most recent freebies.  In fact, next to the free truck I'm driving (at 230,000+ miles and still going), this may be my best haul yet.

Bessie Fromm and her sweet granddaughter, Desiree, are moving from Westmoreland to Montana.  Bessie had been living on 90 acres.  She'd been using a Craftsman LT2000 to mow the front three acres where her house sat.  Bessie has now sold the house and is headed to the Big Sky country.  In leaving, she has bequeathed to me her Craftsman.  Along with it, she also gave me a fiberglass step ladder, a large two-wheeled dolly, and a small wagon for the mower.

Pictures attached.

Now, aren't you jealous?

Also, attached are pictures of some of my scavenged wood and posts, a large aluminum ladder, and a borrowed trailer on which rests my 30+ sliding glass doors, some other doors, and a disassembled garden shed--all free.

The gleaning continues...

The Plan

Clicking here or on the link above will take you to the Country Plans site where you'll see an idea of what type of place I'll be building. The major changes from what this shows to what I'm planning are the south-facing wall (the one on the bottom in the layout or on the left in the drawing) will have several sliding glass door windows and the overhang from the roof will also be longer for shading.

Besides, I'll also tweak the living space a bit (putting the stove in the upper, right-hand corner, for example).

At 24'x14' interior, it's plenty. The porch will add living space, as does the loft for sleeping and/or storage.  Presently, I'm in a 30'x15' place, and it's fine for us.

Now, imagine it having the rock look of the garden shed in the photo above! See? Nice, eh? That's what I'm going for here!

Again, it's all I and my inter-species life partner, Bucky, need.

Less is more, right?

(Photo above from Melissa's Garden Shed Hall of Fame blog)

September Update

Here is the latest update on the building site.

1.) My sister's house is going up (see pic, right). She has the foundation ready for infill so the slab can be poured. The two maples to the right of the truck in the picture (that's my truck!) have to be 'negotiated' and protected with berms, levels, and an odd assortment of beds and plantings. But they'll stay! They are on the south side of the house. This phone pic is taken then looking up the hill towards the north. To the right of the picture is the pasture; my new possible house site is to our left. In the second picture, taken the day of the clearing by my sister's contractor's crew, you can see our friend Jerry standing in what will be the living room; the two maples are directly in front of him and are seen from the north looking towards where the first picture is taken.

2.) This house sits where my March 10th post "Tree Killer" shows. That site, chosen by *moi*, was deemed by all to be the most level and the best for passive solar gain. Ah, well. I'll move, Abraham-like, to greener pastures. Or, in this case, about fifty yards west.

3.) Besides the gravel drive up to the house site(s), electricity and water are up for my sister's house. As for me and my house, I have been working with several people here who currently (no pun intended) use 12v solar power only, and they've been pushing me to stick with my original plan to be off the grid. So I shall.

4.) I think I've got a mentor! Dani Gruber, she of slip-form stone building fame and the arid steppes of Western Colorado, has kindly agreed to be a resource for SFS building methods. More on this soon.

5.) Whilst I plan to actually break ground in October, the 10+ inches of rain the area's received in the past week or so is seriously hampering my ability to get to the site and do any prep work.

6.) Yet, even on drive throughs, various and sundry wildlife is invariably seen. And Bucky loves it (see pic of him at the site, right).

More, and, I promise, soon.