Phase One: Flooring/Foundation - COMPLETE!

Phase one is complete!

We have been separating this project into phases in order to set these short term goals and not be overwhelmed by the big picture. Phase one encompassed the trailer prep and flooring. A little detailed information about the materials required for this part of the project.

Trailer Prep:

We purchased a 2006 trailer off Craigslist for $2,100. It is in excellent condition but we decided to be extra diligent and replace all the decking on the flat bed. This required us to remove the screws that were securing that decking to the steel cross beams. However, many of these screws were stripped (happy day!). So we took a grinder and cut those screws off. In turn, this meant we needed to drill many new holes into the cross beams when it came time for us to attach the new boards.

 Ripping up the original decking boards

We purchased six 2 x 8 x 20' fir boards, which we stained for weather protection. After staining all six boards, we realized that the boards were actually 16' instead of the 20' that we had ordered. I called up our building supply guy (shout-out to Dirk at Franklin Building Supply!) who promptly apologized and offered to send us over the 20 footers at no charge. And we got to keep the 16 footers, too! SUPER HAPPY DAY!

Staining the new decking

Let me just say that it is a great idea to do some price comparisons before choosing a building supply place. We originally purchased the 2x4s for the floor framing from Home Depot because it was convenient at the time. But our local building supplier actually has way better prices than HD (about $1 cheaper per board). We now use Franklin Building Supply for all of our wood (plus other various supplies, like house wrap), Idaho Lumber for odds and ends (hardware, etc), and Construction Material Thrift for all re-purposed appliances and doors/windows.

Before screwing those boards onto the trailer, we decided to take it one step further and power brush all the surface rust off the beams, then repaint the whole trailer with rust-oleum paint. After that whole process, we finally were able to screw the decking boards on, which involved drilling a pilot hole and then self-tapping screws through the boards and beams. We placed the boards 7" apart so that the 2x8s were evenly spaced apart across the 80" wide trailer.

Trailer Decking

We plan on replacing the tires as well, which the seller mentioned to us before purchasing the trailer. All together, we will spend $3,000 on the trailer, which includes the costs of all the "upgrading", the new tires, and the hitch package we bought for Jon's car. Not bad! Trailers can go from $4,000-$6,000 for the size and GVH requirements that we had (10,000 lbs), so we figure we saved at least $1,000 with some good old fashioned elbow grease.

Flooring Prep:

Next, we went ahead and put the three sections of floor framing together (Jon did it all himself one day while I was at work. Took him only a few hours). Since we are extending the flooring to be a tad wider than the edges of the trailer, we had to frame around the wheel wells. Hence, three sections of framing. All together, the floor framing is 8' wide (the bed of the trailer is only 7' wide).

We then purchased some steel brackets/joists that we nailed at each intersection of 2x4s in the framing. These are about 42 cents per bracket and we bought about 40 of them. A relatively cheap purchase for some extra strength and support.

Then we took the styrofoam board insulation that we purchased and cut it so that they fit into each section of the floor framing.

Styrofoam insulation cut to fit

Installation:

House wrap goes on first over the decking boards - secured with nails. 

Floor framing goes on after! Framing attaches to the decking with brackets and lag screws.

With the trailer and the flooring prepped, we nailed some house wrap over the trailer decking in order to place a weather-proof barrier between the outside and the insulation. We have seen other tiny house builders do this in order to prevent water from splashing up underneath the trainer, through the decking boards, and into the insulation.

After the house wrap was nailed on, we placed the floor framing on top. Keeping it in place with a couple clamps, we nailed on a few more brackets/joists where the framing met the decking boards for an initial loose attachment, plus extra security in the long-run. It will be SUPER DUPER strengthened once we drill the lag bolts up through the bottom of the trailer and through the framing. But that doesn't have to be done immediately.

Next we placed the pre-cut insulation boards into their appropriate slots, followed by spray foam around the edges to make sure we filled in any cracks and achieved a tight seal.

 Jon securing on some more brackets

Spray foam that we used

Spray foaming the edges

FINALLY, we placed two 4x8 OSB plywood boards onto the framing, creating our flooring! OSB is the cheapest kind of plywood you can get, and is actually stronger than the expensive plywood that people tend to buy for siding their homes (Bat & Board, i.e.). The reason for this, is that instead of the OSB being solid wood, it also has a very strong glue mixed into the wood particles that make it up. It is uglier than regular plywood, which is why people don't use it when it is visible from the outside. The OSB will eventually be covered up when we install our flooring on top of it.

BOOM! FLOORING! DONESKI.

Now onto Phase 2, which is the exterior walls...stay tuned, people!

Kind of a bad picture of the finished product. But in conclusion, we have a floor! 

224 Square Feet

Well this would be about my third attempt to start a blog. I am building upon my already-existing one in  an effort to keep a little continuity. Everyone cross your fingers that I actually update this thing.

WE ARE BUILDING A TINY HOUSE OMGOMG. So after much consideration and lots of number-crunching, we have decided to build a tiny house on a 8' x 20' trailer (with a loft for a total of 224 square feet). Our reasoning being that we are having a hard time affording rent in this area and getting ahead at the same time. We are also so busy that we find ourselves outside more often than inside...camping in a tent or chillin in a yurt. We would like to explore this life of tininess and minimalism. It's an exciting thought to soon trim ourselves of the "fat" and decide which items in our lives are essential. Yes...a Yard Sale is in the works!

It was pretty nerve-wracking to actually take the money out to buy the trailer - our first step in this project. Now that we have done that, it's official...this shit's happening.

As we were doing research these past few weeks, we were having a hard time finding blogs or websites that give cost breakdowns for tiny house building (from scratch), so we intend to share all of that information for future builders. Most tiny houses out there seem to cost around $25,000 and many of them can be purchased from Tiny House building companies, such as Tumbleweed (awesome company, check them out!). However, we intend to cut those costs in half by doing everything ourselves.

Our budget is $10,000 and it's all we've got, so it better happen! Hopefully I will be diligent enough to share some of our techniques here regularly, such as the nifty binder I put together to keep track of all our costs, receipts, ideas, and mock-ups. We have also given ourselves 13 weeks to build this thing, so we are going to need crossed fingers, fairy dust, a perfect alignment of stars and planets, and any other voodoo magic tricks to actually get this thing built in time. Send us positivity and encouragement!!

BUILDING PHASE 1:
For now, we are working on Phase 1 (as we call it), which is to get the trailer set up for the flooring, and then to build the floor framing, attach it to the trailer floor, insulate it, and sheath it. Essentially, our foundation. We just purchased a 2006 flat bed trailer that we found on CraigsList for $2,100. This will be one of the most expensive parts of the entire project.

Now that we have it parked and ready to be messed with, we are cutting off/removing parts of the trailer that add unnecessary weight (metals ramps that extend out for getting small vehicles onto the trailer, etc). Next, we noticed the wood flooring of the flat bed trailer was dried out, cracking, and fragile. Therefore, we are removing all that wood and replacing it. Not an easy task, as the screws that attach it to the metal frame of the trailer are stripped. So we are in demo-mode, taking a pry bar and just rippin those babies off.

All for now - will hopefully keep everyone updated as we go along! Here are some pictures of where we are at:

Our trailer and the first batch of materials we will need for the flooring

Surprise! The wood flooring needs to be replaced

Rippin boards

Arts & Crafts Time: DIY Mason Jar Soap Dispenser

I have been the WORST at keeping up with this blog, but I recently received a request from a friend to put up the instructions on how to make this. So here we go!


What you will need:

1 Mason Jar (I bought mine at an antique fair for $7 and it is one of the original, old mason jars with the zinc lid...I'm pretty sure buying a Mason canning jar at the super market would work just as well)

1 Screw Driver

1 Hammer

1 Pair of Pliers

1 Soap or Lotion Pump (I bought a cheap bottle of hand soap and used its pump...make sure you are using a pump with a long enough dip tube for the jar you bought...keep in mind you can always trim the dip tube if it's too long)

1 Bottle of Super Glue

Step one: Unscrew the lid from the jar and look underneath. If you have a mason jar just like the one in my picture then you will see a white, ceramic plate. This needs to be removed. In order to do this, turn the lid right side up and place the screw driver on the top, right in the middle. Use the hammer to drive the screw driver into the lid. This should create a hole in the lid and shatter the ceramic underneath.

Next, use the pliers (try and use needle-nose if you have them - it's easier... but all I had was a flat pair and it worked just fine). With the pliers, you should turn the lid upside down and use the hole you've created to grab the metal and peel it back until the hole is wide enough for the pump to fit into. That's what he said. 

The pump should fit very snug, so widen the hole very slowly and keep testing it until it just barely squeezes in there. That's what he said.

Once the pump is in the hole, use the super glue to secure the pump even more on the inside. Put as much as you feel is adequate around where the jagged hole and pump meet. I try to press down the jagged parts with the plier first, although you're not in that much danger of cutting yourself. 

And that's it!!! Wait 20-ish minutes for the glue to dry and then screw the lid back on :)

P.S. I saw online that some people use hot glue underneath the lid instead of super glue; however, I read one post saying that the hot glue can get kind of grimy. Not sure what is true, but figured super glue is pretty hard core so you can't lose!

ENJOY

Bozeman Comes to Idaho

Well it's been awhile since I've blogged since my computer has been sick for weeks now. So sad!! Anyway, last weekend Kevin came to visit us in Sun Valley with Maya, Cip, Drew, Colin, and Becca. It was definitely a full house, and lots of fun to have visitors. Here is the gang at Galena Summit after a full day of skinning and skiing in the backcountry. From left to right, Drew, Cip, Kev, and Colin. Maya and Becca opted out of the backcountry experience, so it was these guys plus Jon and me.

Despite the warm temperatures, we had an awesome day of skiing. The weather was perfect, since the snow pack was stable and great for skiing, plus we could skin in t-shirts on the way up. Kevin also brought a flask of bourbon....that was NOT on the gear list, but clearly it was on his gear list. See below:

The day I was able to ski with these guys was on a Sunday, and I wasn't able to go out with them again the next day since I had to work. But from what I hear, Monday was another solid day of skiing. Sunday afternoon after a full day in the backcountry, we all headed to the hot springs to get further loaded. I forgot that hanging out with Kev and the gang means that bourbon and PBRs are fully stocked at every location. I seriously miss it!

         Kevin and Maya                                                        Becca and Colin

                        Me and the rock that was helping me stay anchored


The hot springs were awesome and we even saw a big herd of elk slowly walking by us as we sat there just watching them. Big "nature is cool" moment for everyone.

And the weekend just couldn't come to a good close without an East Coast Drunk Night. Apparently Monday night was the night for this and despite having to get up for work the next morning I drove the mom van around to the local bars. Although no one ended up shitting on the side walk, it was a solid night of partying. Cip even got to cross of an item on his bucket list of taking a picture behind some moose antlers. This group was crazy....let me tell you.

I can't wait to hang out with this group again when Jon and I visit them in Montana this summer!! The odds are against us staying with Kevin in his apartment, with a lawn chair being his only piece of furniture....but we are going to make it happen! Check out some more pictures below from the weekend:

It's Official: We're Hippies.

Well, I'm sick and Jon just had a busy work week, which means this weekend was a low-key one. We have been talking about creating an indoor herb garden for about a month now, so figured we might as well get started! Since everything Hailey is so expensive, even buying a rudimentary shelving unit to store the pots was way too pricey. So, we got a little creative and came up with a pretty simple indoor garden.

First, we had to decide which plants could germinate and thrive in a winter climate. Sure, we are going to keep the heat at a certain level, but can't make it too hot. I checked out a book from the library called Rosemary Gladstar's Medicinal Herbs, A Beginner's Guide. The book is full of information on various herbs and flowers that have medicinal properties. It even lists certain ones that are more hardy than others and can grow easier indoors during the winter. We chose to start out with Spinach, Echinacea, Basil, Lavender, St John's Wort, and Red Clover.

Here are some of their medicinal uses (I put them in their true colors):

Spinach: It tastes good in omelettes. 

Echinacea: Boosts the immune system, has antifungal and antibacterial properties,  and is "particularly effective against bronchial and respiratory infections, sore throat, and oral infections". Overall, it helps to fortify the immune system.

Basil: Eases gas and stomach cramps, helps in relieving nausea/vomiting, helpful in treating irritability, fatigue, depression, anxiety, and insomnia, and also has antibacterial properties.

Lavender: Helps relieve tension, stress, and insomnia, has calming effects, and is also proven to be affective in treating infections (i.e. staph, strep, colds, flus, yeast infections, ringworm, etc).

St John's Wort:  Effective in treating depression, stress, tension, nerve damage, and seasonal affect disorder. It is also promotes tissue repair and helps soothe and heal bruises, sprains, burns, etc (any injury to the skin). 

Red Clover: Is super rich in nutrients (beta-crotene, calcium, vitamin C, and many B vitamins) as well as minerals (magnesium, manganese, zinc, copper, and selenium). It has been used to treat skin problems such as eczema and psoriasis. Can help menopausal women by diminishing hot flashes, mood swings, and night sweats.

Clearly, the basil and spinach can be used in cooking, but we like the fact that we can also make them into a tea, salve, or oil and use them for other purposes as well. We are obviously turning into dirty hippies...

The book describes in much more detail how these herbs have the effects that they do. I suggest anyone interested in natural remedies to check this book out, because it is an easy read with lots of pictures. Also, I personally like knowing why something has the effect I am being told it has. I like knowing the scientific/biological explanations of how the properties of these herbs interact with the properties of the human body in order to produce these desired effects. All of this is in the book, and squeezed into a nice little paragraph...not 3 pages.

So here is our dirty hippie indoor greenhouse that we created today:

Ingredients:

4 pots from the thrift store = $10

2 desk lights = free (already had them)

2 hand towels = free (already had them)

1 manila file folder = free (already had it)

1 thermometer = free (already had it...Thanks to Gram, Christmas 2012)

1 cardboard tubing system for heat = free (Jon's science project today)

4 bags of SEEDS = $10

As you can tell, we haven't started growing the St John's Wort or the Red Clover yet. We weren't able to find those seeds at our local stores, so we are ordering them online. I hope we have room for them once they arrive.

The hand towels were to place on the windowsill (southwest facing) for cleanliness, and the cardboard tube you see sticking up is to direct heat from the floor vents to the general direction of the plants. Obviously, the thermometer is so we can keep track of the temperature, which we are trying to keep at around 68-ish degrees Farenheit. If we notice that the temperature is not getting up high enough, we are considering putting clear plastic over the whole operation to trap in some of the heat during the day.

Here is a closer picture, and you can see the temperature right now (at night) is at 66F. Not bad! Now for the file folder, we decided to keep track of the daily temperature and height of the plants. We want to see how long it takes certain plants to germinate and which ones thrive better depending on the temperature (although, we hope it doesn't fluctuate too much). The info will hopefully help us next winter as well, to remember what conditions the plants grew in this year. Exhibit A:

Well, that's all for now! We probably won't be seeing any green popping up for another few weeks, since many of these plants take 10-20 days to germinate. What's cool is that a lot of these herbs are actually flowers, and it will be nice to see some color!

Climbing in January

Ian belaying Jon on a 5.12

So Sunday was a day of interesting things. One, we went rock climbing in the middle of winter (epic!). Two, our friends, Robyn and Ethan, introduced us to a magical place called WinCo...this is a grocery store with the biggest bulk food section you can imagine (minds blown, money well spent). Three, it was unexpectedly the day before I would quit my job in a crazy turn of events (but I got another one in less than 48 hours with better pay, so they can sit on it).  :) :)

So Ethan and Robyn invited us along with them to climb down in Twin Falls at a place called Dierkes. Despite the rock being cold, we learned some pretty neat winter climbing tricks to keep our feet and hands warm.

Tip #1: Keep hand warmers in your chalk bag
Tip #2: Keep your climbing shoes zipped inside your puffy while you aren't climbing

It was sort of annoying to be constantly changing from climbing shoes, to regular shoes, to climbing shoes again, but it was totally worth it. I felt really accomplished when I completed two 5.7s, which was a first for me :) I attempted a 5.8 but was pumped out at that point. I'm determined to climb it next time!

It was cool climbing with such talented people. Ethan, Robyn, and Jon were climbing 5.12s, which was very impressive. We also met up with another couple, Ian and Lindsay, and they were equally as talented. All of us were from Hailey, so it's nice to have found a solid group of climbers to meet at the climbing wall or take trips with.

Here are some pics:

At the top of my first 5.7

Taking a little tiger snooze on my second 5.7

Stupid sun spot on my camera sort of washed Jon out in this one, but here he is climbing a 5.10

Ethan climbing a 5.12d? I wish I remembered the names of these routes.

After we finished up with rope climbing, we headed over to do some bouldering (which I did not participate in--but at least I was there to take pictures!). There, we met up with some more people, and joined forces to tackle some problems. Check it out:

Bo attempting a problem

Ethan reaching the top

Ian flashing his problem

I wish I had taken pictures of WinCo, because it honestly is worthy of pictures. But instead, here are some miscellaneous pictures of the rest of the day:

Some pretty cool bright, green moss growing on the icy rock

Robyn and her new friend, Bagheera

The Perrine Bridge in Twin Falls. We missed seeing a base jumper jump off this thing by seconds.

The falls of Twin Falls?