24 x 46 1.5 Story in Ohio

[beckhamk]

Counter tops are now in







Also started working on finishing the loft stairs area, will post pics when thats complete.

[beckhamk]

WOW - I am really behind is posting pics....  Once July hit i was on a roll trying to get everything i needed done before the end of october for hunting season so i could stop working for a few months and releax.


We got the generac installed at the end of july, looks like i only got a pic of transfer switch lol.  The generator was nice and help run the AC to keep the place cool during the hot and humid summer.    At this point I was still working on things friday, saturday and a little on sunday - ran the generator for about 8 hours a day.  after 326 hours genny died.  It would try to start and then stop itself.  I wasnt please for a brand new unit that wasnt ever running 24/7.  Basically the stator rotor needed replaced and appeared to be a known issues - go figure.  It broke about two weeks prior to us getting full power to the cabin.  Generac covered it under warranty.     I do want to point out if you get a generator setup without any main power - make sure to pull the batter fuse when you are not there, else the battery will be dead when you come back a week later.  These unit will not recharge the battery while runnning.  They will only recharge when connected to grid power - go figure.



Here is our trench for direct burried electric to the transformer and then to the house.



CO-OP Power - WOW what can i say. I want to inform those of you planning a project and or just starting to look for land.  I currently live in the burbs and have AEP power which is not a co-op.  I see the cost per KW @ .06. Never knew a thing about co-ops until I wanted power at the cabin.  co-op power is expensive!  Our co-op uses the recommended rate out of country living magazine which i believe is around .13 per kw for the first 500kw and then goes down a little after that.  On of our first bills was for 400KW and cost us like $80 - that includes a $18.xx servie fee.  Unreal how expensive co-op power is.   

Our co-op originally planned to install power down our road 2 years prior.  The power had come down above and below the 317 acres that got split up that we are part of.  The original ower wanted the co-op to pay her for the right of way they said no and then the economony tanked.  Co-op basically was going to pay to have the trees cut and poles in place.  Needless to say they wouldnt do that now - all of the property owners had to pay for our own power. Basically cost me about $13,000 in poles, wire and transformers to the cabin and another $3800 for tree cutting (I hired out someone to cut the tree for me instead of the co-op). co-op wanted another $13500 for tree cutting - LOL.      Now we have the power and havent looked back.

In september, I put down a nice laminate flooring from lowes.  We went with what called - hand scraped saddle hickory the planks are 5-6 in wide.  I had tought about real wood and looked at my floor at the house and it has all kinds of dents, scratches etc.  I wanted something durable, so we went with the laminate.  This was fairly easy to install.  I got a 17x26 area in the loft completed in 4 hours. I was doing everything myself.







The wife loved the flooring once it was in.  She was tired of walking on the avantec after a year lol. This has now created a separate project at my mothers house since she visited the cabin while i did the main room and wants me to do one or several of her rooms now.

We also did the loft stairs with the laminate and i purchased stairnoses for the edge.  the stairnose sits on the edge of the tread and then goes back over top of the laminate.  I wasnt sure if i would like that look/feel. i thought it should be smooth across. But once you start walking up and down the stairs, you realize it needs to be over lapping and gives you some traction.

[Redoverfarm]

You are fortuneate that they did cover the repairs. Ii was told that the only way they would honor the warranty was if it was grid tied.  It is only designed as a "standby" and not off grid.  That is why I went with the Eco-gen that they manufacture as it is off grid certified.  Only down side is that it is only 6KW.  The controller as well as the charger suck power so if you are using in an off grid fashion that should be taken into conisideration with your battery bank and starter battery.  A neighbor has a standby 8K I think and he brings a freshly charged battery to his cabin for occassional use.  Pulling the fuse will stop the power drain but you have to reset the controller each time. 

[beckhamk]

After I got the floor in i started spraying all of the wood in the cabin.  My goal was to get everything on the first floor and the main ceiling strayed before then end of october.  I accomplished that and now only have to spray the loft storage doors and interior storage areas in the spring.

My wife though i was nuts for wanting to spray the white pine, she liked it as is. I could have gone down that road. But I really wanted the wood to pop and to have the honey color tone.  Boy oh boy does it look good! 

I will say this, I would have been sure nice to have this wood pre-finished from the factory - the place i got it did not do that.  The one neighbor who also was building his cabin sprayed his T&G at his shop before hanging it in the cabin.  That has a very nice smooth look.  I have a smooth looks most of the time but found it hard to see how much i was spraying on the wood /covering - especially when i was doing the ceiling.

I decided not to paint the wood with a brush, but to spray it on.  I used a HPLV spray gun system. Specifically the - Earlex HV5500 Spray Station $300. http://www.amazon.com/Earlex-HV5500-Spray-Station/dp/B004RGOKR2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1364050766&sr=8-1&keywords=earlex
This worked awsome - the only thing i ended up purchasing additional was several needles used for spraying as the tips kept getting deformed - I later figured out i was inadvertenly causing that.   

After a visit to our second neighbors cabin while they brushed on good old oil based poly i knew right then and there I was going with a water based poly.  I ended up using Endurovar Water-base Polyurethane Varnish in satin - http://www.generalfinishes.com/retail-products/water-base-top-coats-sanding-sealers/enduro-var  this product was probably over kill, but i wanted something that was top notch and could easily be sprayed - this was it.    the wood took the first coat and sucked that up - basically sealing the wood.  Second coat looked good, but i opted for a third coat to get that glass like look on the wood.     After a few days everything tuned honey color and the wife loves it even better - oh yeah it gets rid of the new wood smell.  I didnt mind it, wife hated it.

Here are pics of the some sconces i put up. I saw someones build that put lights around their great room and liked the idea. So when we had the electrician in doing the new build wiring i had him pre-wire for these. The wife never really understood WTF I was thinking - as she told me later on.  Over the winter i bought these and installed them. Needless to say she loves them and they are now the primary lighting for the room instead of the can lights in the ceiling.








Lastly this is sort of my biggest building snafu - pre-wired tv location.   If your planning your build, seriously consider all possible locations. I thought i had.  Originally i had the bed rooms wired and the great room has to two outside corners setup with power and cable.  After after I finished the loft and a year later did i realize how the room was layed out and once we got more furniture that only a handfull of our guests would be able to see the tv on the outside corners.  So I had to relocate the tv to the inside corner near the kitchen.  Now at this point we had not mounted anything to any walls, it was just sitting on the counter top.   But I had already finished the loft storage area.  this meant i had to cut out several T&G pieces to access a power outlet and run it to this corner and then to get cable from the crawl space up to the loft and to this corner.  got that completed    Cut out the old boards and replaced with new ones that are screwed in - in the event i need to get access to that area again.  If you are looking for a solid tv wall mount check out these guys: http://www.av-express.com/  good prices too - under a $130 for up to a 70in tv - best buy wanted something like over $300 for a mount.




Currently, I only have a few small items left to complete.  Just finish spraying the log storage doors and internal areas. Then finish T&G the power utility closet and we are done.  Still need to stain the deck, but thats in the summer.

So far my only one regret is not putting in a full basement.  I only planned for this to be a hunting cabin, weekend summer get away.  so i kept thinking crawlspace - we will only live here 20 year from now etc.   My original thinking also had me getting a full basement with a 8ft garage door to store four wheeler instead of a pole bar. But didnt want that because of easy access to mice etc. So we opted for the crawl.  Now the wife would like to sell the current house and move here LOL.  Wish i had the full basement now.  just something to think about.

[beckhamk]

I hear yeah rover - we were only expecting to use the genny for 2 or 3 weeks when the power was supposed to go in and then we had an issue with easments and crap that took forever. So that got resolve just before the genny died.  I think its all hog wash - there was a huge storm in the area just before this happened and people didnt have power for 2 weeks and the repaid guy said they had been repairing alot of generacs because of that storm.   I just cant see how running 2 weeks straight for 336 hours vs own 8 hours a day for several days really matters.  oh well what can we do.

[smithelectric]

awesome! How much was it for the footer and blocks? Also how much to get it dried in? thanx

[Rob_O]

These unit will not recharge the battery while runnning.  They will only recharge when connected to grid power - go figure.

Customer of mine had the battery charger die in their Generac unit, it was your basic 12V 12W wall wart. I replaced it with a battery maintainer from the auto parts store up the road.

[beckhamk]

awesome! How much was it for the footer and blocks? Also how much to get it dried in? thanx

We paid around $9500 for the foundation and site prep. For foundation.   Dried in we did that ourselves.

[smithelectric]

ok thanx . What about the cost for the outside walls and roof (trusses) dried in? If you dont mind me asking.
just material im doing all the work myself too.
Also where  did you get the plans at?

[beckhamk]

For costs - from sill plates to top place including the center girder build up beam, including all inside framing.  (but excludes the addtional storage framing i did in hte loft) - $12,000.   Trusses - $2556,      amish crew to install trusses, plywood and tar paper roof, build gable ends and over hangs and metal roof $8000 

hope that helps you out.

[midtn9]

New member. Long time lurker.

Your place is awesome. Been looking for the right cabin for my new place on the river. I believe I have finally found it. Could I possibly get a pic of the layout drawing.I hope you can help me as I have a few questions. Would get it from country plan but I see that yours is a plan mod. Thanks

Alan   Midtn9@yahoo.com

[CjAl]

I do love that red roof. Wish i could have it but it tends to turn pink in about 5 yrs. down here

[astidham]

those lights really look good!
love the tv location... we have been trying to find a good tv spot in our cabin.

[beckhamk]

astidham - got the lights at Lowes or HomeDepot dont recall we go to both all of the time lol.  The tv location isnt bad. that room is 24 wide x 22 long.  So if you are on the far corner of the house watching tv you dont feel like your look up at all. The closer you are the more you notice it.  But the way we have the room layed out with furniture, that shouldnt be a problem.

CjAl - I hear you on the roof, I am hoping the roof keeps its color.  Its supposed to not get that issue for a long time, but well see.  Anyone getting a metal roof with a steep pitch should consider getting snow guards if you are going to have gutters. The first winter before we got gutters we witnessed an avalanch of snow fall off the roof that would have easily ripped the gutters off.  So in the spring we got the snow guards nsd gutters put on - no issues.

midtn9 - I can send you my modifed plan and a screen shot if that helps. I wish we had done a full basement and then i could put more crap down there instead of the 1st floor. Then increase the sixe of the batch room a foot or two then have stair to the basement.  The bathroom size is good if you are going to use a corner shower like we did.

[Huge29]

Very nicely done!  I love the covered deck, that had me wondering before the pics showing it covered about the snow/ice avalanche too.  I have seen decks parallel to the ridge being totally knocked down by the snow/ice, they can be very strong and fast. 

[beckhamk]

Very nicely done!  I love the covered deck, that had me wondering before the pics showing it covered about the snow/ice avalanche too.  I have seen decks parallel to the ridge being totally knocked down by the snow/ice, they can be very strong and fast. 

The snow guards are doing their job perfectly! Deck is holding up like a charm also

[beckhamk]

Hi everyone!    its been awhile. things have slowed down at the cabin as we have gotten everything completed for the most part.  I got the loft and storage area sprayed this spring and that was a big releif!   I will get some picture of complete upstairs next time we are out.  If i had it to do over again, i would have sprayed without the floor being done.  Just took more prep time to complete.

We got the deck stained this summer with sikkens cedar, it turned out nice.  I will say we waited a year to stain, I later found out because of the type of premium wood we got we could have stained 2 months after it was installed.  The issue with waiting a year for me was the wood mold that got on everthing that wasnt covered since we are in the middle of a forest -I had to power wash everything that had wood mold on it. It turned out good, but I think the wood even though its treated turned darker than the covered stuff.





I also built this small retaining wall after I did a huge project at my main house.  This was more cosmetic than anything.  It was built using
versa-lok retaining wall bricks.  They are 16" x 12" x 6" and weight in the range of 60-70lbs each.  I plan to cut smaller wedges and glue or cement them in place on the left side where the huge rocks is to finish it off.  You can also see the decative rocks we put down from the drive to the deck its cedard in color.  We saw this stuff at the landscape place around the corner it was expensive stuff $118 per yard.  Its ok - it matches the color of the cabin and the wife loves it. But its very light rock and makes alot of noise when you walk on it. It also collects easily on your boots and gets all over the deck.  I want to replace this with some #8/#9 lime stone.





The biggest project we did this summer was installed a french drain near the back corner of the cabin.  We did have any issues with water at the cabin/foundation. This was more of a we built on a hill and the way the slope is here the swail ends back by that tree then slopes down towards the cabin, rock path and the pole barn. It just seemed really wet down there.  So we rented a skid steer and a mini-excavator to dig a 12" x 12" trench from that corner all the way down into the woods where that foot bridge is.  I got a good deal at menards on pre-sleeved drain tile. I placed drainage rock in the first 70 feet where the main issue was and laid out the drainage tile down into the woods. Then i covered it up with dirt and then the remaining with rocks.  So far this has been working perfectly. I put a few inches of #57 rocks at the top so I could get the mower over it, I was worried about putting dirt back on top of the rocks as i didnt want water coming down the hill - the entire reason we put this in. So we will see how this works for now.






I will get some more pictures posted soon.

[astidham]

looks great!

[finley31]

Looks great!  My wife and I are getting ready to start working on our plans to build on our property here in WV.  If you don't mind my asking, what part of ohio are you located in and what  company did you use to get your trusses from?  We are considering widening the plan as well and probably going with a length similar to yours.

[Redoverfarm]

Looks great!  My wife and I are getting ready to start working on our plans to build on our property here in WV.  If you don't mind my asking, what part of ohio are you located in and what  company did you use to get your trusses from?  We are considering widening the plan as well and probably going with a length similar to yours.

Finley which part of the Mountain State are you building in?

[finley31]

Mason county, how about yourself?

[Redoverfarm]

Mason county, how about yourself?

On the other side of the state. Pocahontas County bordering Virginia.  Parents lived in Mason County for 36 years on Whitten Ridge outside of Glenwood until 3 years ago when I moved them closer.  Sister lived on Route 2 just north of the Robert C.Byrd Locks.  I have lived along the Ohio River on several occassions.  Nice area.

[finley31]

What a small world.  I grew up about a mile and a half south of the locks and dam and still live less than five minutes away.  I went to high school at Hannan right out by whitten ridge.

[Redoverfarm]

What a small world.  I grew up about a mile and a half south of the locks and dam and still live less than five minutes away.  I went to high school at Hannan right out by whitten ridge.

Check your PM messages.

[UperJoe]

What a slick looking build
I asked this once before and still don't know the answer so I'll try again - it one wanted to change the 20' wide to this 24' what all would be the mods required from the stock plans?
I have tried to get what we have to fit in the 20' wide footprint and stretched to 38' long and just cannot get it to work for us. At 24' I think I could even shorten to 34' and be tickled pink with how we can do things inside.
All help is appreciated - should I start a new thread?