Outside

This frontal view of the house shows the different levels all built as one section at a time. Each section became a milestone when complete to provide incentive for the next section. This manner of building provided enjoyment at each interval and eliminated the overwhelming feelings that sometimes occur when too large a project is begun. Building in steps also keeps the expense spread out and requires less capital up front. Building in steps can definitely be a plus but certainly is not the only way to build.

This picture denotes the rear of the house which shows the foundation piers it is built upon to flow with the hard slope of the land. The main section of the house is built on footers and contains a basement. The rest of the house as it was added to over the years sets on piers which made construction much less expensive and yet just as strong. It also provided storage for various elements when needed. The right side of the picture with a sloped roof toward the bush is a root cellar which can be entered either from the outside or from the house. Many of the windows were acquired for five and ten dollars or some even for free which were cleaned, repainted and reused saving thousands of dollars. Recycling saves our natural elements and can be done in many ways just as the use of used windows show.

Here you see a basketball net and backboard which has provided many hours of enjoyment for the young. The tree provides a natural pole. Simple but effective. Behind the tree is a wood and storage shed for gardening and wood cutting/splitting equipment. The cedar shakes which you see that enhance the building were purchased for near nothing and are seconds but do nicely to create a framework to tie the three sheds together into one (Great design factor). The tarp used for a wall was a $.99 item which encloses the front of the shed and lasts for years when hanging and properly secured. These sheds conformed to one were built primarily from used lumber as well as lumber cut from the land.

This picture is just to give an idea for the young. It cost almost nothing and is created solely from used and junk materials. The two tires were bolted together and then junk steel rods were welded together and an old piece from a birch log was attached to provide a head for the horse. Children of all ages have spent many pleasurable hours swinging back and forth.

Just a idea for those who entertain the idea of hand pumping their water. Buy a few bags of concrete and pour it around the pump. It sure saves a mud mess and dragging dirt into the house for the wife. She'll love ya' for it. Here the pump was placed next to the garden which is a short distance from the house but makes it easy watering of the garden. A proper attachment hooked to the pump allows a garden hose to be attached which allows water to be directed in many directions. Also note the stainless steel cup upside down at the base of the pump overturned on a piece of pipe. There is nothing like cold water in a steel cup in the summer when it is hot. Also the water can be pumped into the house through the pipe that holds the cup into a holding tank if needed.

Here you see a tree house that was hastily built over two weekends from miscellaneous leftovers. The tree house has provided enjoyment hours on end for youngsters. There is even electric in it.

Here is a shot of the tractor shed that attaches to the wood shed.

Primarily rubber roofing which is used in commercial building was used for the house roofs. They are extremely durable and provide long life. Most roofs are flat or have minimal slope. You also see a door entry from the highest level bedroom which allows easy access to the roofs for cleaning the spouting. The small air conditioner is a 7500 BTU unit that cools the entire house by simply moving the air around to the proper places.

A small barbecue pit was built to enjoy the outdoors as needed or wanted. The table in the background is a plus.

Just a note to provide an idea on tool storage. A wood shed is a great place to align shovels, rakes, hoes, etc. hanging from a beam. You'll always know where they are. Also snow blowers, garden tractors, wood splitters, etc can be put inside as well if a little extra room is set aside.

Here a separate building houses a well pit which contains the water tank. Seems trivial but it keeps the water tank and all of its condensation that forms from dripping in the basement on the floor. Well water is cold and condenses quickly in hot weather. This shed was originally constructed over the well pit to house the water tank, electric breaker panel, etc. and was used off and on throughout the year as a campsite where a camper was positioned. It provided year around water and kept the pipes from freezing throughout the year and was always ready to be used with the camper. A new oak floor was installed recently since the shed is relatively old. Again the oak flooring was cut from the land and only cost a few dollars for cutting at the mill.

Here is shown 2"x14" Poplar rafters which were cut at a sawmill to provide sufficient strength over a long span. They are 2x14's at one end and are cut to 2x11's at the other end providing a slope of 3" which is sufficient for a nearly flat roof. The steel beam was purchased from a neighbor for $40 and provides excellent strength for the rafters. The steel beam rests on two large locusts posts again cut from the land and sunk into two holes approximately 36".

The deck was enclosed by getting a log cut at the saw mill into 2x2's, cutting them to length as needed and screwing a j-hook into the one end and then hooking it to a pre-cut/notched 2x2 with galvanized nails on 2.5" centers which the j-hooks hang on. Quick, simple, inexpensive and allows easy access to below the deck for storage if needed.

Living in the mountains seems to always produce plenty of wood for lumber or firewood if trees are not wasted as you can see.

Living in the mountains seems to always produce plenty of wood for lumber or firewood if trees are not wasted as you can see.

Just a note to show it can get rugged in the mountains when you are a half mile off the hard road and up a dirt lane. No one plows it but the guy that lives there. Guess that's me.

Yep....It's that time again to be thinking about the cold that's coming even though it is spring. We always cut and split our wood in the early spring so there is plenty of time for drying. Here you see wood cut that was left over from the previous year we are splitting which will be stacked under roof of the wood shed. We generally keep a couple of years wood supply handy. Wood cutting, splitting and stacking is such an enjoyable process and excellent exercise.

We needed a step and platform for an entrance door. I found some very heavily galvanized steel they used for platforms when constructing steel towers. It was free and it works great since it has holes and it provides a place to clean the shoes before entering. Well, I then needed a step so I headed to the woodlot and found an old oak log and cut a step the size I wanted using the chainsaw. It works just fine.