The Building Brows: DIY house construction & life of a large VT family living small

Building Supply Prices Continue to Increase

With this economic crunch and things only predicted to get worse, I look at my surroundings and heave a sigh of relief that we aren't yet in the house. I cannot imagine the fuel costs (or tax rates we're not yet ready for).

Worse, costs of construction materials has skyrocketed, and is predicted to continue. Now is definitely not the time to buy building supplies.

Within two month's time, the cost of shingles alone is expected to rise significantly, stressing businesses in construction trades, those trying to build, and homeowners needing home repairs. It hasn't been overnight, though. Prices began to sharply increase after Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans in the USA about two years ago, August, 29, 2005, driving up demand.

I look back at these past two years knowing the frustrations we've endured living small, and must acknowledge that God knew all of this would happen and kept us here for a reason. We are not living beyond our means and are not threatened by bankruptcy, and that piece of mind is huge.

We retain hope that building supplies will drop in price. (And Lord help us, gasoline/oil/kerosene/propane too.) Then, perhaps, we will be ready to build. In the mean time, I trust God has been, and continues to, position us properly for whatever comes.

Labels: Building, Economy, Finances

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BYB Sunday: No Debt Load

Welcome to Blog Your Blessings Sunday.

I've been reading a lot lately about how people nationwide are struggling financially as gas and food prices rise. The stimulus payments that will start to flow to Americans tomorrow will, by necessity, go to help fill the gap these higher prices are causing. I realize steep inflation is forewarned in the Bible, but living through it doesn't make it easier.

When the Lamb opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, "Come!" I looked, and there before me was a black horse! Its rider was holding a pair of scales in his hand. Then I heard what sounded like a voice among the four living creatures, saying, "Two pounds of wheat for a day's wages, and six pounds of barley for a day's wages, and do not damage the oil and the wine!" Revelation 6:5-6 TNIV

Complaining (again) yesterday about our tiny home and how hard it is to keep clean when it seems gremlins follow me to mess up what I fix, my understanding opened. Many people right now carry vehicle loans and mortgages, and as prices skyrocket, it becomes harder to pay for them.

I may never like this sardine can of a house, but it's time for me to once again count my blessings that we fully own our vehicles, land, mobile home, and house under construction. And because we followed what God showed us and did not get a loan or charge credit for building supplies to get in our house sooner, we don't have debt making it even tougher to pay the essentials.

Living in 800 square feet with eight people and a Great Dane may challenge us and make me want to scream at times, but at least the added stress of losing the little we have does not exist like it has for us before and does now for others.

Thank You, God, for this. It is a blessing indeed.

But what if you have that mortgage, loans, or car payments choking you? Is there blessing you can find when you're feeling strangled by gas and food prices?

I believe there is, but like beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so are blessings. These you must search out and find yourself. (Try asking God, first.) In the mean time, take heart. Spring is upon us and there's no finer time to learn to plant a garden or manage indoor vegetable-bearing plants to help ease the cost of food. And to look into hydrogen powered cars fueled by water... (Jim's new hobby)

Tech Tags: food ~ gas ~ price increase ~ inflation ~ stress ~ blessing ~ finances ~ struggle

Labels: Blog Your Blessings Sunday, Building, Family, Finances, Introspection, National Events, The Mobile Home

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Tax man arrives with hope for resuming house construction

The tax man has cometh. Most people want to hide from him, but Jim and I have been waiting expectantly for his arrival. I've alluded before to a plan we were following to resume house construction. For the past several years we'd been looking at something significant with the power to impact our financial health, but did not count on anything until it happened. Now with the tax man's arrival, it has, and I can share.

Roofing is a tough industry in New England because it's a three-season job. It's difficult for a family to live on a roofer's income when he's just the worker and has no income in the winter, 4-5 months of the year, so these past fifteen years have been very tight financially. It's why we're living in a tiny mobile home and could not afford a normal mortgage or rent or car payments. (Not that we want them anyway...) But we knew there was hope on the horizon because my dad talked of giving Jim the business.

This past year was the first year Jim and Dad were business partners. We had no idea what our finances would look like until the tax man arrived, and we kept things strung tight the entire year not knowing how the winter would be without unemployment or income and still having to pay quarterly taxes. It looks like we've done OK and will continue to as long as we mind our budget.

We are now be able to pay ourselves a small mortgage to put into building supplies, so work should resume this year. I can't tell you how happy and relieved this makes me. When you sit in tiny hole year round looking at your unfinished house untouched for the second year in a row, it gets depressing, especially when you can't see a way to change things.

I'm grateful to God for supplying our needs through good old fashioned hard work, and for helping us hang on and be faithful to roofing when God asked us to even before talk of ownership began. That's the toughest part of faith--following what God asks when you can't see any logical reason for it. It borders on lunacy, and would be if not orchestrated by God. (All the more reason to know God to discern His direction.)

So we'll keep budgeting and start building up house funds, and hopefully we'll be back in that house pounding nails soon. Yippee!

Tech Tags: taxes roofing house construction budgeting mortgage building DIY

Labels: Building, Family, Finances, Lifestyle, True Story

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Nearby Vermont family gets a home makeover

The Vitale family in Athens Vermont, a town nearby, now has a new home thanks to Extreme Makeover Home Edition.

I'm very glad for the family, and I can't help but remember how we almost applied for the show. What if we had and had been chosen? This family who needed the home more than we did to care for their son who suffers from numerous health problems would have not gotten the new home they received this week.

I'm a little disappointed, though. In one news report, the show's producer said this was the only home makeover they would do in Vermont due to Vermont's demographics. Applying for the show was still an option for us until I heard that this week. It makes things clear. We and our new house really are solely in God's hands. But they always were. Now I feel it. But it is good.

Besides, with our current finances we wouldn't be able to afford the taxes!

Technorati Tags: family ^ parenting ^ kids ^ house construction ^ building ^ Vitale ^ extreme makeover ^ home edition

Labels: Building, Construction, FYI, Special Interests, True Story

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Quoted in Avoiding Hazards of Home Remodeling article

I just learned that I am quoted in the Home Style Today article "Avoiding the Hazards of Home Remodeling" by Alyson English about keeping kids safe during remodeling. My quotes talk about our family's experience with lead poisoning.

Our daughter had become lead poisoned in our old house when we removed French doors because we were concerned about our then two kids breaking and getting cut on the glass. It exposed lead paint, and she ate some chips off the floor. Her lead level hit 19, one point before the state comes in and removes the family from the home.

Through it we became approved for our state's lead abatement program. (You can read more about it on the Home Style Today article.) The one cool thing that came from this scary experience (our daughter turned out OK) is that we remodeled the entire house on that program and increased the value of our home 200%, which is how we got the initial money for building supplies for our current house under construction.

The article includes other hazards of home remodeling like asbestos, poisonous building supplies (e.g. pressure treated lumber), and kid curiosity that can lead to serious accidents. I hope you take a moment to read this article. It's worth the read.

Labels: Building, Family, Health, Safety, Writing

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Not the Builder

It's obvious I'm not the builder. I took one look at the uneven posts when Jim first put them in and wondered how he was going to put them farther into the ground since the holes were already filled.

When I went out the door last night to bring CJ to Girl Scouts, I saw the evened posts. My face flushed. Of course. He sawed them off.

Duh.

Feeling stupid now.

Labels: Building, Construction, The Mobile Home

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Building on the Trailer?

I'm a little excited. Since yesterday's fiasco with the sandy winter gear I had to clean up just to see the front door, Jim's hashed numbers and is right now out pricing material to build not just an entry way, but a 8'x14' extension. He reasoned that if he had to spend $500 worth of materials on an entry way, he might as well spend a few extra more for a place for the kids to sleep to get them out of the TV room.

Since selling our Jetta, we're able to do this, and even though we'd like to put the money into the house, realistically, it's a wise investment to help us keep sane.

I hesitate to really think about an extra room and outer wear storage. Could it really be? No. Can't go there. Must stay focused and keep cleaning.

On the up side, I've finally crawled out from underneath Christmas mess. With the tree out of the house and a foam bed thrown away (and another rocking chair shipped off to Dad's for storage) I can actually walk in our TV room again. Yay!

Labels: Building, Family, Introspection, Lifestyle, The Mobile Home

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Time? Time! Time.

Where has the time gone? What have I been doing with myself? Where are the stories and articles I was supposed to have written by now?

These questions swept through my mind as I swept sand into my dustpan for the third time that day. Evaluation of the way I've spent my time the past few months--this past year--brought shocking revelation. All I do is pick up and clean, and pick up and clean what I've already picked up and cleaned. I spend about 70 percent of my waking hours on meaningless chores.

In an average house, I wouldn't have to do so much, but because we live in a mobile home, narrow hallways and cramped entry ways demand clutter-free floors for passage. And sand necessitates several sweeping sessions to keep it from grinding underfoot or falling into the register despite that all shoes come off at the door. Let's face it, shoes for eight people just don't fit into three square feet of space, even if four feet high. And of course, what I've done at the beginning the day, I turn around later to find one of my kids has undone in a big way.

No wonder I feel like I have nothing to show for a day's work. I keep doing the same meaningless tasks over and over that look like it should have taking maybe an hour tops to complete.

Last night in bed, after six hours cleaning the four hours of house cleaning my kids undid midday, I recalled living in our former house we thought then was small. Ha! It had THREE bedrooms, TWO bathrooms, sixteen square feet of closet space for coats and footwear, and a dishwasher. The electronic kind.

So, all that extra chore duty each day leaves 30 percent of my waking hours to eat, bathe, spend family time, read, pray, and perhaps try to write and read e-mail. So you should be proud of me for making this post. I managed to cut out sleep to do it! (Bad Brandy.)

I make this post, though, with a gleam in my eye, for after painstakingly cleaning up the sandy mud mess of five coats, snow pants, boots, hats, and mittens and the muddy entryway no one could pass through once my kids stopped trying to slide down the inch of snow on the dirt hill, I think Jim's pretty convinced we need to construct an entry way outside the trailer to store coats and shoes.

I might get back some of my time yet. Here's to a new year with hope on the horizon. :)

Labels: Building, Introspection, Lifestyle, The Mobile Home, Writing

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Log Home vs Stick Frame

When my husband and I first talked about building, one of the first conversations centered on what kind of house to build. We've long been fans of the log home, particularly post and beam. There's just something about log homes that stirs nostalgia and country dreams, and images of sipping hot cider and nibbling a cinnamon bun while rocking quietly on a porch listening to wildlife. (Hey, we have the wildlife!)

Eventually we had to choose a standard stick frame house in the shape of a rectangle to make things easier for Jim. There certainly are some unique aspects to living in a log home that we would have had to consider that I hadn't realized before watching the Hometime crew erect one, like shrinking and settling and how log home builders accommodate that when constructing. I wish I could explain it, but it was so long ago now that I can't remember what they did, but it's definitely interesting. (If you're considering a log home, About Log Homes has several short articles to help answer some of your basic questions.)

I was surprised to discover that log homes are actually well insulated by the log's thickness. (I still don't like the white stuff between the logs, though.) Overall, even though log homes are in a class of their own, I'm glad we chose our stick frame house.

Labels: Building

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Tepee Toilets! -- Custom Built

From the photo archive. You'll love this one.

WELCOME TO THE BUILDING BROWS,
HOME OF THE TEPEE TOILET!

This is the new home-construction do-it-yourselfer's toilet.
Note the large capacity five gallon bucket with
the Home Depot special toilet seat, complete with lid.
It even comes equipped with custom-made tarp walls
in traditional tepee style for excellent ventilation.

This custom-built toilet lets you enjoy nature
while taking care of business at a fraction of the cost
of traditional indoor toilets.

And no more regular maintenance!

Our special Tepee Toilet sits right on top of the septic tank
so you can directly deposit your specially imported goods.
(Note the two round lids on either side of the TT base.)
No clogging, weekly maintenance or frequent waste removal.

That's right.
There's enough room in this tank for 24/7 use
for months on end for even a large family.
And with it's outdoor setting,
it's perfect for potty training your little ones.

Tepee Toilets, for all your direct deposits.
Be the first one on your block to wow your friends and neighbors
with this exciting new waste management system.
(Not recommended for use in extreme weather.)

Labels: Building, Construction, Do It Yourself, Tools

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Hi Ho. Hi Ho. It's landscaping we go... CONTEST

Don't have money to build? Put in some good old elbow grease instead. That's what we're now doing. We started with the llama pen.

Jim read that it's best to have one acre per llama. Since we now have four instead of one, Jim decided to extend the llama pen to add three acres. His plan serves two purposes.

1. To give the llamas more room.
2. To clean up the property since they'll eat lots of the foliage.

Great! The more they eat, the less we'll have to do. Chow down, llamas!

This picture shows the end of the llama pen and beyond where we'll expand. Keep your eye on that tipped Birch tree and the triangle area with the tree next to it.

This land will become the extended llama grounds. To get your bearings, note the tipped Birch. The tree in the foreground is the one that appeared to be next to the Birch, making the triangle. See Jim's red tractor arm to the right?

CONTEST
Where's Waldo--er Jimbo?

Jimbo is in the triangle's pocket digging holes and placing posts for the fence. Can you find him?

* Post a comment if you think you see Jimbo.
* Include your e-mail address to be considered for the prize.
(Add spaces in your e-mail address to deter web spiders)
* I'll choose a winner from the correct entries.
* The winner and winner's website/blog will be featured on our site in an upcoming post.

Labels: Building, Contest, Do It Yourself, Landscaping

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Dangerous Footsteps & the Seismograph

This is a seismograph on our property. Why is it here?

The quarry behind our house.

They occasionally blast from spring through fall and yesterday was another blast day. In 2005, the last blast of the year shook the trailer so hard, if felt like an earthquake hit. After that, we became concerned about our concrete floor and well cracking. Especially after part of the bank around the house caved in.

Today they brought the seismograph to measure how much ground vibration we get. Here's an up-close picture.

Now I figured that there would be a long spike driven into the ground to test shock waves, so I was surprised to find out differently. It's not that rod on the left that's measuring the waves (I think that measures location/distance--land profiling). It's that round silver thing attached to the chord on the right.

There's no long rod on the bottom, either. I'm not sure if it's the three prongs that measures vibrations or the hole. It kind of reminds me of a baby monitor nurses strap onto the belly when a woman's in labor. Without the prongs, of course. (Youch!)

This dude here reading the tape is the head blaster for the quarry. He's with Green Mountain Explosives. They've got some cool info and pictures on their website about drilling, explosives and equipment. Check them out.

If I have my info right, this other dude here is in charge of the quarry. He says he "sells dirt for a living." They're looking so intently at the tape because the seismograph registered 91 times. 91! The head blaster looked at us and said, "Were you walking around a lot?"

Um, we weren't supposed to walk??? It would've been nice to know that before the blast.

It turns out someone else had set the sensitivity level lower by a couple of points. It might have been picking up footsteps, the haying machine in the field 75 feet away, or the trucks in the pit as they rumbled through. It didn't matter, though. All 91 readings were low and nothing to be concerned about, and blast air waves shaking the trailer won't harm our construction.

Our foundation and well should be safe. That is, if the many footsteps around here don't get them first.

Labels: Building, The House

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Closet Problem, And a Solution?

I went in the house the other day and walked on the first floor among the sawdust, nails, and tools to the only 2nd floor part with framed walls, the master bedroom and bath. It's also the place where we still have a design problem.

My closet against the wall ended up being too close to the window, making the depth of the closet too shallow to really work. And it would look stupid with the closet wall right against the window framing. I hadn't been able to move the windows because in designing, we not only went for functionality, but also for good looks both inside rooms and out. So the master bedroom windows are centered both for the room and for the overall look of the house outside. Well, centered except for the closet problem. I can't remember now how it happened, but I think I may have forgotten to add the closet and tried to after the windows were already in. Or something like that. Ever since I realized the design flaw, though, I've been mulling over ideas for a solution.

As I walked into the master bath, one suddenly hit me. In my mind, I saw a closet where I had previously placed the tub shower--directly across from the walk-in closet we'd made in the bathroom for Jim's clothes.

One of our friends pointed out after we had already designed that WIC that being in the bathroom was a recipe for moldy clothes. Wish I'd thought of that before. After our closet went moldy this past winter here in the trailer, I now see the major problem. But perhaps this closet is placed perfectly after all because it's big enough that we can alter the space. Which is what this vision showed, fixing both problems, for the closets were across from one another, making both an extension of our bedroom while taking Jim's out of the bathroom.

I was thinking about it while going to sleep last night, how it would work. I think I'm going to take some graph paper and fiddle around to get it all to work together. I'm looking forward to it. I love seeing house layouts and designing our house was one of the most fun, and challenging, ventures I've had.

Labels: Building, House Plans, The House

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An Unexpected Expense

Something rarely talked about when discussing construction is what happens to the clothes workers wear. If you ever decide to do your own work, this is something you must take into consideration when looking at your budget. Really.

Check out this poor pair of pants. This is grime from roofing materials. The constant wear puts holes in pants faster than nail polish remover on silk. Well, not quite that fast, but it's certainly quick enough to warrant a work clothes budget, especially if you want to wear clean clothes each time you head out to your project. After all, once you get out of pants like these, would you really want to put them back on for another day's work? Some do it, but... EW.

And when those pants come off, watch out! You'll have to wipe the floor clean if you're a princess-and-the-pea kind of person who can't stand the feel of sand underfoot.

The kind of grime and wear on work pants varies from job to job, of course, but most construction and

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Saturday, July 05, 2008

Building Supply Prices Continue to Increase