Post by: PsoasHunter on December 28, 2023, 10:58:32 PM
In the short term, we've enjoyed camping, but I would like a more permanent structure for the next few years until we build, as it would be more comfortable staying out there with our young kids (3 and 10 months old) in the winter months. I'm thinking of building a 10x20 foot shed-style building that we can camp out of in the short term, and use as a storage building down the road. The building will not be plumbed.
For the framers out there, I'm thinking of full 8' studs for an 8'4.5" back wall, w/ an additional 4' 3" wall on the front, single-sloped roof, and putting a loft in the far end about 6'6" off the ground. This should give a loft height of about 5'6" or so at it's highest point. I'm not drywalling the interior, so I'm not worried about the walls being taller than 8'. The whole thing will sit on 4x8 beams I already have on pierblocks.
I'm curious on input on windows, airflow, water-proofing, heating options, conveniences found in small spaces for space utilization, ect.
So for those of you with small cabin experience, what do you like and dislike? What would you do differently?
Post by: bearpaw on December 29, 2023, 05:41:46 AM
Some friends of ours built a shop that they lived in until they could afford to build the log home they really wanted, they also used wood heat to save on expenses while saving for the new home, they stayed in the "shouse for about 20 years or a little more. About 10 years ago they built their dream log home and converted the original "shouse" to being a shop.
Here's a thought: If I was going to build a temporary shed home, I think I would use 16' studs on the front so you have good ceiling height in the upper floor and maybe 14' studs on the back side, then put beds along the lower wall. Depending on how wide the shed will be and if you will get snow in that area, you might want a little more pitch for snow to slide off so a little shorter studs might be needed on the back wall.
Right now lumber is cheap again, it's a good time to frame a building. Someday when you get your permanent home built, you could even add another side to the shed and have a good sized shop for storage, maybe even a car garage if you build the first half wide enough.
Good luck however you decide to do it.
Post by: Cougartail on December 29, 2023, 06:32:43 AM
It makes expansion so much easier having the door already in place. Plans change and your cabin should be built for changes.
My biggest regret on my first cabin build. :twocents:
Post by: baldopepper on December 29, 2023, 08:03:55 AM
Post by: trophyhunt on December 29, 2023, 10:24:09 AM
Post by: actionshooter on December 29, 2023, 06:07:16 PM
Build it as tight as you can and fill every void with the Rodent Spray Foam, screen the gable vents... we have been very lucky and only get flys coming in through the vinyl windows, other than that... no pests to speak of.
Building a garage to live in, then converting later is a good idea, just didn't work for us at the time or we would have done that.
After getting this set up, pitching a tent has gotten kind of tough. :chuckle:
Post by: PsoasHunter on January 02, 2024, 12:09:13 AM
To clarify, this is planned to be a hunting and vacation property, we don't plan on moving out there anytime in the next 30 years. Plans for a future build would be a bigger hunting cabin to sleep family. This smaller building is just to get us a place to sleep for clam digs in the winter and hunting and fishing trips in the fall. It needs to be cheaper and simpler to put up.
Post by: brew on January 02, 2024, 05:54:03 AM
Post by: birdshooter1189 on January 02, 2024, 07:11:28 AM
In my opinion, I'd prefer even a dry-pour floor with bags of quickcrete instead of the lumber-only foundation/floor that I built.
Post by: 92xj on January 02, 2024, 08:54:22 AM
Post by: LDennis24 on January 02, 2024, 12:25:16 PM
Post by: 2MANY on January 02, 2024, 12:57:39 PM
Unfortunatly.
Post by: PsoasHunter on January 02, 2024, 08:19:58 PM
This thread is a great advertisement for building permits and codes.
Unfortunatly.
Not quite sure what you mean, do you mind clarifying? I intend to permit anything legally requiring a permit, if that's what you're getting at. :dunno:
Post by: PsoasHunter on January 02, 2024, 08:24:09 PM
Post by: PsoasHunter on January 02, 2024, 08:27:23 PM
Post by: LDennis24 on January 02, 2024, 09:41:37 PM
Post by: brew on January 03, 2024, 05:47:54 AM
For the shipping containers, anyone ever add windows? I don't think I could sleep in an enclosed metal box, let alone convince my wife too. Seems uncomfortable on many Leventhal, but don't know if I'm just being paranoid.YouTube is a great source of info.
Post by: rainshadow1 on January 03, 2024, 07:58:56 AM
This thread is a great advertisement for building permits and codes.
Unfortunatly.
Not quite sure what you mean, do you mind clarifying? I intend to permit anything legally requiring a permit, if that's what you're getting at. :dunno:
Probably the other direction than what was being hinted at, but I know from limited experience that you're not going to get very far in any county in washington state once you plan to spend the night in it. This isn't really a free country. (It's free as long as you do everything the way they want, don't do anything they haven't thought of yet, and pay their fees.)
Post by: JimmyHoffa on January 03, 2024, 08:21:44 AM
Post by: buckfvr on January 03, 2024, 08:59:28 AM
Post by: Special T on January 03, 2024, 11:03:48 AM
Air sealing for heat and bugs. Run 2 circuits for power. 110 and 12 volt. So much can be runs off a small generator, small wind or solar 12 volt. I run my cabin call 12 volt led lights usb plug ins small soloar panel. I would bet that a small wood stove would work well. My brother got a wall tent stove he added firbricks to and now heats his 600 square foot shop apartment with it.
Metal roof with a rain catchment barrel and a covered outside area expand the usefulness of an outdoor retreat. Many counties have some kind of a footprint restriction for summer home cabins. Skagit county had a 20x20 limitation with a loft. If it were me I would go as big as legally allowed and build a big covered porch next to the cabin for grilling, fires and enjoying the outside until your too cold and have to go in.
Post by: Machias on January 16, 2024, 12:45:57 PM
I lived in an 16x24 foot Old Hickory Shed for 4 and a half years. No electricity or running water for most of that time. Spray foam insulate, cost a bit more, but you will never regret it. Insulate the floor. I can share a story sometime about NOT insulating the floor and having to deal with mold on everything that was a couple of inches off the floor. Cold air from the floor rising up and meeting the warm air in the cabin, causes condensation on the underside of the dressers, etc,, and walla mold issue. Propane heat puts extra moisture in the air, which equals....you guessed it, mold. Check out 509 Wood stoves (Flame Innovation) in Post Falls, ID. Best thing since sliced bread for heating your cabin. Easy to regulate the heat and last all night. Uses compressed logs. Buy it by the pallet and it's 65 cents a log. Wood stove puts out dry heat, much better for the cabin space than propane.
Post by: Boss .300 winmag on January 16, 2024, 01:10:18 PM
Look up Tin Can Cabin. The guy detailed his three shipping container cabin build. Here is two major considerations with Shipping Containers. The biggest is the floor HAS TO BE encapsulated. The floors are impregnated with some seriously nasty chemicals that continue to off gas forever. Serious health hazard if you are sleeping in one or spending any time inside. Number two, unless you spray foam insulate the walls, you WILL BE dealing with mold very soon. Even if you were to put in wall studs and insulate, even the tiniest space between the insulation and the steel container wall will sweat, condense and mold will develop.
I lived in an 16x24 foot Old Hickory Shed for 4 and a half years. No electricity or running water for most of that time. Spray foam insulate, cost a bit more, but you will never regret it. Insulate the floor. I can share a story sometime about NOT insulating the floor and having to deal with mold on everything that was a couple of inches off the floor. Cold air from the floor rising up and meeting the warm air in the cabin, causes condensation on the underside of the dressers, etc,, and walla mold issue. Propane heat puts extra moisture in the air, which equals....you guessed it, mold. Check out 509 Wood stoves (Flame Innovation) in Post Falls, ID. Best thing since sliced bread for heating your cabin. Easy to regulate the heat and last all night. Uses compressed logs. Buy it by the pallet and it's 65 cents a log. Wood stove puts out dry heat, much better for the cabin space than propane.
Could you frame out the floor with 2x4s, spat foam it then sheet with plywood for encapsulating it?
Post by: Machias on January 16, 2024, 02:27:54 PM
Look up Tin Can Cabin. The guy detailed his three shipping container cabin build. Here is two major considerations with Shipping Containers. The biggest is the floor HAS TO BE encapsulated. The floors are impregnated with some seriously nasty chemicals that continue to off gas forever. Serious health hazard if you are sleeping in one or spending any time inside. Number two, unless you spray foam insulate the walls, you WILL BE dealing with mold very soon. Even if you were to put in wall studs and insulate, even the tiniest space between the insulation and the steel container wall will sweat, condense and mold will develop.
I lived in an 16x24 foot Old Hickory Shed for 4 and a half years. No electricity or running water for most of that time. Spray foam insulate, cost a bit more, but you will never regret it. Insulate the floor. I can share a story sometime about NOT insulating the floor and having to deal with mold on everything that was a couple of inches off the floor. Cold air from the floor rising up and meeting the warm air in the cabin, causes condensation on the underside of the dressers, etc,, and walla mold issue. Propane heat puts extra moisture in the air, which equals....you guessed it, mold. Check out 509 Wood stoves (Flame Innovation) in Post Falls, ID. Best thing since sliced bread for heating your cabin. Easy to regulate the heat and last all night. Uses compressed logs. Buy it by the pallet and it's 65 cents a log. Wood stove puts out dry heat, much better for the cabin space than propane.
Could you frame out the floor with 2x4s, spat foam it then sheet with plywood for encapsulating it?
Most use epoxy or remove the floor and replace it. Here is a good site for ideas. https://www.discovercontainers.com/should-you-remove-the-plywood-floors-in-your-shipping-containers/
Post by: brokenvet on January 16, 2024, 03:43:39 PM
Post by: erk444 on February 11, 2024, 12:18:44 PM
Unfortunately this is the truth! This is a 12x16 I built and put a wood stove in. Even though it's on a tiny island in pierce county, I've been turned in to the county twice now for staying in it overnight and heating it. They're technically only supposed to be used for storage only and unheated. I can haul all the junk I want and let it rot on my property but this is against the rules >:( After multiple calls and emails to the county, the only way I can legally use it as a cabin is if I have running water and sanitation.This thread is a great advertisement for building permits and codes.
Unfortunatly.
Not quite sure what you mean, do you mind clarifying? I intend to permit anything legally requiring a permit, if that's what you're getting at. :dunno:
Probably the other direction than what was being hinted at, but I know from limited experience that you're not going to get very far in any county in washington state once you plan to spend the night in it. This isn't really a free country. (It's free as long as you do everything the way they want, don't do anything they haven't thought of yet, and pay their fees.)
Post by: CP on February 11, 2024, 12:35:28 PM
Unfortunately this is the truth! This is a 12x16 I built and put a wood stove in. Even though it's on a tiny island in pierce county, I've been turned in to the county twice now for staying in it overnight and heating it. They're technically only supposed to be used for storage only and unheated. I can haul all the junk I want and let it rot on my property but this is against the rules >:( After multiple calls and emails to the county, the only way I can legally use it as a cabin is if I have running water and sanitation.This thread is a great advertisement for building permits and codes.
Unfortunatly.
Not quite sure what you mean, do you mind clarifying? I intend to permit anything legally requiring a permit, if that's what you're getting at. :dunno:
Probably the other direction than what was being hinted at, but I know from limited experience that you're not going to get very far in any county in washington state once you plan to spend the night in it. This isn't really a free country. (It's free as long as you do everything the way they want, don't do anything they haven't thought of yet, and pay their fees.)
Throw a blue tarp over it and cover the walls with cardboard and road signs. Then no one will bother you.
Post by: Alchase on February 11, 2024, 02:33:14 PM
I asked one what they would recommend to others who are considering moving into a tiny home.
He said, have each person get rid of all their stuff, to where "everything they own" fits in a plastic storage bin. Then move into a studio apartment with the same square footage of the tiny home they are considering, and live there for a year. This will help you realize the reality before you make a sizable investment. I asked him if he made his money back when he sold it. He said, every customization you make is your own, and may not correlate to what anyone else would want in a house that small. He lost a ton of value on the sale because they house did not really ad value to the land, and the market for resale of tiny homes is a pretty fringe market.