Building...opinions please!

Homesteading & Country Living Forum

Help Support Homesteading & Country Living Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
DrJenner

DrJenner

Awesome Friend
Neighbor
Joined
Sep 21, 2021
Messages
1,310
Location
PNW, USA
So we are going back and forth with what to build on our property.
I am looking at living in a RV full time, and while a lot of people do that; I just don't think it's for me ... I like my space (especially in the kitchen) and love to cook, which isn't super feasible in an RV.

I am tossing around the idea of building a smaller place so that we can move in quicker, it's cheaper, we can do it with cash and have no payments. Then if we decide, we can always build a bigger place. The sticker is my hubby is quite a bit older than me, so the reality of building a bigger place is that it probably wouldn't happen.
We are also going off grid, so it would be easier to heat, less electricity, etc. The more I think about it, I am in favor of this idea. We are planning on building a large shop, summer kitchen, chicken coop, greenhouse, and digging a root cellar down on the side of one of the hills. So I wouldn't need a huge pantry. We are also about to become empty nesters and the more I think about it, I would rather subsidize my kids apartments then have them move back in. ;) I'm also thinking people don't need to necessarily stay with us in the house... they can always camp on the property or bring their RV (as we will have hookups).... mainly thinking of grandkids. Thoughts? Pros/cons I am not thinking of?

This is the place I am leaning toward now. I'm just having such a hard time making up my mind. I think this will be a fairly straightforward build.
https://www.architecturaldesigns.co...ouse-plan-with-flex-room-on-one-story-67816mg
 
A friend of mine started with a large shop, two story, with a utility apartment on one side. They lived in the utility apartment until the main house was finished. My buddies SIL lives in the apartment now but it would be great guest quarters.
 
DrJenner said:
So we are going back and forth with what to build on our property.
I am looking at living in a RV full time, and while a lot of people do that; I just don't think it's for me ... I like my space (especially in the kitchen) and love to cook, which isn't super feasible in an RV.

I am tossing around the idea of building a smaller place so that we can move in quicker, it's cheaper, we can do it with cash and have no payments. Then if we decide, we can always build a bigger place. The sticker is my hubby is quite a bit older than me, so the reality of building a bigger place is that it probably wouldn't happen.
We are also going off grid, so it would be easier to heat, less electricity, etc. The more I think about it, I am in favor of this idea. We are planning on building a large shop, summer kitchen, chicken coop, greenhouse, and digging a root cellar down on the side of one of the hills. So I wouldn't need a huge pantry. We are also about to become empty nesters and the more I think about it, I would rather subsidize my kids apartments then have them move back in. ;) I'm also thinking people don't need to necessarily stay with us in the house... they can always camp on the property or bring their RV (as we will have hookups).... mainly thinking of grandkids. Thoughts? Pros/cons I am not thinking of?

This is the place I am leaning toward now. I'm just having such a hard time making up my mind. I think this will be a fairly straightforward build.
https://www.architecturaldesigns.co...ouse-plan-with-flex-room-on-one-story-67816mg
Click to expand...

As you know , wife and I just downsized to 1200 sq ft on one level . 2 baths , kitchen, 1 bedroom , LR , dining area off kitchen , and a large laundry/utility room of horrors.
It is just the right size for us.

Of course we have lots of storage building space and garage space.

1200 SQ feet for 2 people is room enough for 2 hermits like us. Nobody stays over, if they did there's 2 bedrooms upstairs or the couch.

I like that plan.

Jim
 
@Caribou we thought about that too. My fear is that will be it and we won’t build something else. The other fear is that DHs son will park on us, if we have that apartment and then build a bigger place (that he would want to live in the apt). He’s kind of a free loader and we don’t want him to live with us, but my DH is a pushover sometimes.

@phideaux yes, and I think we are the same like you two. Thanks for the feedback I’m really leaning towards this plan.
 
A couple thoughts are popping in my mind.

Manufactured homes are a lot better nowadays than they used to be. You could put in your footer then have a house you picked out delivered and put in place in relatively quick time.

Build your garage/shop/building (whatever you want to call it) to a size you can pull your RV into it and have plenty of room to spare. Your RV, whether it be temporary or permanent living area is then better protected from the elements and persons not wanted. You could step out of the RV and still be in an enclosed area (the building itself). Set up a quasi-outdoor kitchen and pantry inside the building. Either open air or partition off a room and put your extended kitchen in there.
 
Perhaps a motorhome. After you move into the house the motorhome could be sold but the water and sewage connections would be left for any visiting friends with their own trailer.
 
First thing I did with a used rv I bought was move the kitchen outside. I bought a camp kitchen from Cabela's. A summer kitchen would be great for short term. (By outside I mean I ripped out the sink, cabinets, stove, plumbing, everything and made a much nicer living space)

Maybe it's age, but after 30 anything less than 600sqft is to small for one person, much less two adults.
 
@Peanut agree. We are mid 40s and mid 60s. I need my space lol
Great ideas thank you guys!
My DH actually got a sawmill as he wants to harvest the logs from our property and build this place ourselves. We thought about the manufactured home as well. I like the idea of a big shop to pull the RV into. That’s my other worry is that it’s not safe enough. Granted we are secluded on almost 50 acres way back from the road but still, one can never be too careful. People are crazy. I have half a mind to create a separate thread with all the craziness I have seen in the past 20 years with my job. Lol I trust no one!
 
A full moon on a friday night in the ER... the circus has come to town!

Friends of mine did something similar to your situation. They called up a company and had an insulated steel building erected. It was big enough for their rv, carpentry equipment, they built a real bathroom and kitchen inside. Then they built their home.
 
Our farm house was originally almost 1200 sq feet, and with the three grandkids, pretty crowded. We added on a 25 ft by 25 ft master bedroom and bath, with a full basement under it. Saved my sanity. Outbuildings, sheds, a barn are necessities. Whatever you decide, make sure it's on one floor and the bathroom is equipped how you might want it ten yrs from now. That'll save you renovations later. I love our farmhouse, even thought it leans. I do wish the kitchen was bigger. The twins are almost 17, and I know that they won't be here forever, little granddaughter is just 10. They pretty much have the run of upstairs. With building prices up, newlyweds here are building "shed homes" to start with. They actually are really nice. Our next door neighbors bought the 17 acres next to us with a very small two bedroom. They built a massive 2 story shed, the upstairs is an apartment that his sis lived in till she got married last year. It's big enough that they hold church in the bottom area.
 
Caribou said:
My choice of construction would be ICF construction with extra foam on the inside. This will provide ballistic and fire protection. I'd have polycarbonate storm windows.
https://www.amvicsystem.com/products/icf/
Click to expand...

ICF is excellent and the price of concrete is a value compared to how lumber has exploded in price. We built a structure last year with ICF with the concrete being 10 inches thick, and including the ICF it is over 13 inches thick. I love it. An 8 inch thick ICF is rated at R-30 per a spec sheet that I've seen. I am not sure what 10 inches gives me. Below is some information on ICF.

https://www.cement.org/docs/default...alls-in-residential-construction.pdf?sfvrsn=2

To your question, I also don't think I could live in a RV as well. The old homestead we bought includes a wonderful two story log cabin that was about 1,000 square feet two story structure. For two this was tight. The project above included lifting the cabin and building a 500 square foot, 10 foot deep basement underneath. 1,500 square feet is very livable.

Until you decide, maybe put a mobile home on the property while you build? Other options is a 1,200 square foot home on top of an unfinished basement? With this you might be able to double your livable space as you complete the unfinished basement. Until you finish your basement out, you would have ample storage and a kick butt cellar.
 
R-30 ICF is not as good as it sounds. The concrete acts as a heat sink. The foam on the outside slows heat loss as does the foam on the inside. An extra 2", or better yet 3", of foam inside will make a world of difference. More foam on the inside slows the flow of heat.
 
If you go with a modular home you need to get a firm delivery date.
My nephew works with a modular home place doing all their cement work. They can't get new buildings delivered and they even canceled a couple of orders they already had.
What I would do is build a 2 car garage with a 3/4 bath and an RV, preferably a 5th wheel or travel trailer parked close by. I would use the garage for a living area and put a kitchen in it that could be removed easily and sleep in the RV. The garage would be attached to the house or built as a detached garage/shop.
After I have my house built I would sell the RV.
My Uncle and my brother both did that and it worked out well.
I agree on the basement. You can never have too much storage space.
 
Thanks all. Yes I definitely want a basement. Was just thinking it would be harder, especially if we are trying to build this place on our own, but I think it will be worth it.
Need to talk DH into it. He's thinking it will be too hard.
 
DrJenner said:
Thanks all. Yes I definitely want a basement. Was just thinking it would be harder, especially if we are trying to build this place on our own, but I think it will be worth it.
Need to talk DH into it. He's thinking it will be too hard.
Click to expand...
Just a thought -

For two people, why not go with a smaller structure with a basement? For off grid purposes, that basement will be warmer in winter and cooler in summer. With an open floor plan, you could heat a 900 Sq ft basement pretty well with a wood stove or fireplace, and if done right you could have gravity fed running water to the basement. A 900 ft house with a full finished basement would give you plenty of room.

Another option is to build your shop with an efficiency apartment in it. That apartment could then be converted to an office or workspace to prevent your husband's son from boomeranging into it. It wouldn't be wonderful to live in, but it might do the trick while you build your other place...
 
Spikedriver said:
Just a thought -

For two people, why not go with a smaller structure with a basement? For off grid purposes, that basement will be warmer in winter and cooler in summer. With an open floor plan, you could heat a 900 Sq ft basement pretty well with a wood stove or fireplace, and if done right you could have gravity fed running water to the basement. A 900 ft house with a full finished basement would give you plenty of room.

Another option is to build your shop with an efficiency apartment in it. That apartment could then be converted to an office or workspace to prevent your husband's son from boomeranging into it. It wouldn't be wonderful to live in, but it might do the trick while you build your other place...
Click to expand...
Great idea. I'll bring this up with DH. He's currently calculating how much solar we are going to need.
I think I just want to go back to sleep again. 😄
 
@DrJenner Noah Bradley cautions against building a barn/apartment first because so often the house doesn't happen.
I like the plans you shared above. Our house is about 1265??? We love the size (not necessarily the house, layout, 2 stories, etc. here;)).
Here is an out of the box idea: what if you built your summer kitchen first while living in the RV, then the house. You would have a kitchen/gathering area while you are building. The sleeping/bathing requires less space and shorter amount of time so the RV wouldn't be so bad. It's an alternative to get what you want but prioritized for what is most important to you (if as you said cooking space is a main concern). Anyhoo, kinda looking at it from the other end of the stick.
 
We have a home that we built, it has 1,400 sq. ft. with one bedroom, if anyone comes they'll have to use the fold out couches or stay in our motorhome, our son and his significant other are taking care of themselves and haven't shown any indication that they want to move to our place, maybe after we're dead and gone. Our place takes a lot of work in the spring to keep the fire dangers to a minumum in the summer months.
 
The wife and I are moving to are new home stead in a week or so. And are in the same position. (Kinda) I just bought a metal building for my shop and plane to put a full bath and laundry in and then live out of the 480 sq foot cabin. Also building a outdoor kitchen for most months! Keep it simple.. I have water and septic on my property witch make it easy and me wife want to but a RV but I don’t. Think about service on your RV? And I plane on buying and bigger metal build for our house!Barndominoms ?
 
Basements sound wonderful when your knees work fine but can be a real pain as one ages. Also think about making the doorways wider than normal. Easier for wheelchairs and such to get thru.
I didn't see a budget so that will determine a lot as far as what you build. building a basement is fairly technical for me since I have only done several poured slabs and perimeter foundations myself. But I have helped others do poured walls and it is not for the inexperienced.
My dream house would be all on one level earth beamed and a walk in root cellar nearby. Defiantly living in a motorhome while constructing if the weather is agreeable to not freezing things. Used motorhomes can be found cheaply if you look. Somehow we ended up with three of them right now.
We lost one of our acreages in a forest fire but the cabin survived because i designed it too and the sprinkler on the roof kept it wet. The fire will come out of the sky and drop burning embers on you.
Good luck with your adventure.
 

Attachments

  • DSC01529.JPG
    DSC01529.JPG
    1 MB · Views: 1
A basement provides double the floorspace under the same roof. It also provides OPSEC storage. My neighbour came over, uninvited, one sunny day when I was working on my garage. She was very interested on what was on my shelves. She had already scoped out everything before I knew she was there. She is the neighbourhood gossip.
 
Amish Heart said:
With building prices up, newlyweds here are building "shed homes" to start with. They actually are really nice.
Click to expand...
I started a thread about shed homes. The reaction of some people was as though I was suggesting people live in an outhouse or something worse. I guess it taught me about some people here, but I know families who have shed homes. The Black Hills in South Dakota is a place where many people have vacation homes, and I have seen that there are many shed homes there. One family that I have watched on YouTube has a 16 x 40 shed home. They have bunk beds set up foot to toe for some of their children.
 
Weedygarden said:
I started a thread about shed homes. The reaction of some people was as though I was suggesting people live in an outhouse or something worse. I guess it taught me about some people here, but I know families who have shed homes. The Black Hills in South Dakota is a place where many people have vacation homes, and I have seen that there are many shed homes there. One family that I have watched on YouTube has a 16 x 40 shed home. They have bunk beds set up foot to toe for some of their children.
Click to expand...


I know 2 young couples doing this now, I let them raid my cull lumber piles.
 
hashbrown said:
I know 2 young couples doing this now, I let them raid my cull lumber piles.
Click to expand...
Daughter lived in an area that was being developed. I walked all over the area, walking the dog. The amount of lumber pieces in roll offs was so interesting to me. Perhaps some of it was warped or had other defects. I thought that if I had a wood burning stove that was my main source of heat, there would be plenty of firewood, even though dimensional lumber is not the best for firewood.
I was looking for bricks for my hardscape, to create paths around my property and to help with raised beds. I met a man at a brick garage take down who said he was building his own home and his main source of materials was from free on Craigslist. Not everyone could do this, but some people are resourceful and creative and can make a silk purse out of a sow's ear.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Back
Top