Hello everyone, ive been looking on here for over a year and just now felt like I have something to say. I love looking at all your projects and dream of one day building my own. and ive gotta say youll are a very smart and helpful bunch.
Anyway I reside in jacksonville, fl. and have dreamed of moving my family to a more rural mountanous area (I was born and lived in WV for 17 years) we looked at land in NC for along time and just couldnt find what we were looking for in our price range( we saved for over 2yrs), Then started looking in western VA and there it was in hillsville, va. exactly what I was looking for ,more than an acre with a nice view for $18,000 or less , our property is 2.25 acres with a nole and a creek and it perked before but it expired sept 2007. Id like to build a house on it ,but that would take alot of money . so we decided to try and start building a small getaway cabin in the spring 2009. I like the 14x24 and im going to purchase the plans soon. I like that its a basic rectangle and looks like something I could actually do. I may look into widening the foundation to 16' wide, I like the post and beam. anyway enough about me Im going to have my wife help me put pics on.
Darrell
http://www1.snapfish.com/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=242066705/a=10226827_10226827/t_=10226827
w* hi,and welcome to the forum. i to am new and browse this forum many times,got a chance to obtain alot of ideas and have been helped many times.hope the same for you.living in south louisana,had to run away from hurricane gustove lateley,hurricane alley always a threat made me buy 1 1/2 acre property in northern louisana, piney wood country . i plan on building a 20/30 cabin next spring.hope you can succeed on your adventure and i on mine good luck.and post many pictures i am trying to post mine.name darrell also
Plans are better made longer than widened so I would recommend looking at one of the plans that has a 16 wide section in it to modify. The foundation will work out better.
Thanks for the welcome deedonke. Ifeel sorry for you guys, they threaten us in jax, fl then hit you'll. stay safe!
Glenn I was looking at span charts and was thinking if I increased beam size and floor joist size(ie. go from 2x6 to 2x8) ,and widen beams maybe another foot , that it would work. But you would know better than I.
If you're going to be having a loft like most of the small cabins do you would have a better starting point by using wide plans to begin with.
Also -- things start to being all guesswork and pretty soon your workng from a bunch of scratched out changed notes that bear no resemblance to the plan.
Better to go from a proven plan than something that might work. You don't want to be like me do you? hmm
O.K. I agree with you ,after much thinking i'm going to stick with the 14x24. but before I order , afew questions.
1. does the plan give options on 8 ,10, or 12 ft walls. or does that matter? can I do what I want?
2.For the loft floor joist, It looks like some builder run floor joist the entire width, others run a beam the entire width and then run joist lengthwise from end to beam. are both these methods in the plan?( i hope that makes sense)
3. has anyone used a spiral staircase in the 14x24?
Anyway, I think Im ready to start on this, but before I can even get abuilding permit. I need a 911 address and a current well and septic approval. they said I need to bring $560.00 and a drawing of property layout,(location of driveway and house) to get septic approval, and for 911 address I need to mark d/w entrance and mark 4 corners of house. so we're going to stop in hillsville on tuesday,11/25/08, to do these things on the way to WV to have thanksgiving w/ family. once approved ill have to drive all the way back to apply for building permit, about 8 hrs.I cant believe you have to actually step in their office, you cant do anything over the net or by phone.
I cant remember the last time I was this excited about working on something. I have no framing experience,but I had a master electricians liscense in kentucky. I let it laps. and ive been a landscaper for about 10 years, I do the lot grading w/ 247b catepillar front end loader. so im hoping to get my dad and my brothers to help me come spring . Ill keep you posted
I welcome you also devildog but must warn you of the addition to the site after you jump on the house building ship. I just wanted to tell you that we are building a 12x20 cabin (permit not needed for garrett county md at this size) with a 12x10 loft pole barn building and it is looking real nice. We used the post and pier foundation but starting out with 6x6 pressure beams dug into 3ft of ground using a cement ring at the
base. The post were placed 10ft apart to messure 20t on length and 6ft apart for the 12ft width. It does have a 12:12 roof with a 2ft kneewall for the loft. We orginally had 16ft hight beams but the HOA screamed. Seems like they don't want you to stay on property while you are building a house. Didn't find
out about their rules till six years later (rules changed). Had to cut them down to 12ft with the middle beam to support the middle of the tin roof is 20ft. We started out building the post structure and then the roof. Then we put girts every two feet vertically from beam to beam to hold the walls. We decided to notched the 2x6 so that the structure will be very strong. It does have the appearance of a timber frame but we used pressure treated so if we want to have them exposed inside we will have to place a laminated wood piece to cover the chemical of the wood beams. We plan on drywalling the wall to reduce fire hazard since we will have a woodstove.
This may seem confusing but we had to put up a structure and close and secure before the rush of winter.
We just added the walls which are avantech tongue and grove and are planing to use the same on the
flooring. Just added the Tyvek to keep the structure dry and cut holes for windows. The door is in place
and now we want to add the floor joist 2x6 over the already in gravel flooring but placing the joist closer
than the standard width to secure a sound floor. I know this is not the norm way to build but we live
three hours away with no place to stay that is cheap so we wanted to secure outside to stay inside to
finish building. We are planing to put radiant barrier foil in roof, walls and foam panel insulation but are
looking for a good deal. Check out craigslsit for you can get great deals in your area for building materials
as we have. I will be posting pics soon to better explain myself. Hope I haven't confused you. Forget to
tell you that we did make the structure 4ft longer with roof for a small porch. We had a builder help up with
the 20ft post and he post the middle post at the end of the 24ft instead of the 20ft which complicates the
porch concept but we just have to work around it.
Oh deedonke2 in N Louisiana; greeting from one cajun to another. I am from Kenner La. and moved to Maryand with my yankee husband about ten years ago. I really miss my friendly place but really love the
nature and pure beauty of the Deep Creek Md mountains.
If you do some research pole building is a less expensive way to building and a great way to extend the
length of your cabin later if you wish. We are think of building a porch on the side of the building which
should be 20ft long. As long as we don't enclose with a heating or cooling unit and keep it screened it is
not consider in the living space. Just trying to keep under the grid of beaurecratic red tape of government.
Keep them out and let me live.
take it easy. Looking forward to viewing your progress.
thanks for the welcome karnf, Ill be honest and say it is hard ( for me)to visualise some of what your talking about. pictures help. im looking forward to seeing pics of your place. fortunately our property is unrestricted and I think I can do almost anything I want (maybe?)
First two posts reminded me of the Bob Newhart show, " I'm Larry, this is my brother Darrell, and my other brother Darrell". Welcome to the forum, and good luck with your prelims there. The building department and inspectors can either be a help, or a hinderance, so be nice. And yes, some of the things they ask for will be stupid sounding, but they need to be done nevertheless.
From one Mountineer to another w*. Have heard of Hillsville just can't recall the exact location. Somewhere below Roanoke I believe? Not that far from me. I am on the VA line near Warm Springs.
thanks hobbiest. Ive been told that bob nehart thing my whole life, but unfortunately have never seen than episode. Ive heard the building dept. in small towns is nothing like big city,but ill still play by there rules.
and thank you redoverfarm , hillsville is on the east side ofI77 1/3 of the way up from NC. . Its known for its labor day gun show and flee market , they have about 500,000 people roll thru on that weekend.
Welcome to the area. Hillsville is quite a nice little place. We live in NC about 15 miles from Galax 25 from Hillsville. We looked at alot of property over there before we bought in West Virginia. If you need any information about the area maybe I can help.
thanks Mo , I may have questions in the future. what part of WV? and are you building on it?
In Barbour County outside Audra State Park. What area are you from?
I lived in huntington wv till I was17 joined the marines for 5yrs and moved across the bridge to ashland kentucky for 2 yrs, been in florida ever since
My parents live in Huntington, the most unhealthy city in America, what a great claim to fame.
I went through Hillsville today, it was 27 degrees and sunny. There are a couple of small sawmills in the area along with factory log homes. Are you going to be starting soon?
yeah I know, all my friends and co-workers read that and joked with me all that day.
hopefully starting in the spring, going there tuesday to get 911 address and well/septic permit
went to hillsville during thanksgiving week, got the 911 address ( 165 sunnyvale rd) but was afraid to pay the $560 for well and septic permit because our car over heated after about 5 hrs of driving and i took it easy and had to keep pulling over, the last 3 hrs took 7. my mechanic friend in Fl. said by what I was telling him it was ablown head gasket, I think He was right. I put barrs radiator stop leak in, and ripped the guts out of the thermostat and was able to milk it back home. the sad part is it broke down on the way up and backon vacation in june. I hate our car.
I did take some measurements. I also took along look at our creek, it doesnt have much fall its shallow,but it has speed. I want to do solar panels, but would also like to do hydro. Ifound this site http://www.oasismontana.com/AQUAIR.html
we're going back in feb/march for the well/septic permit. my wifes going to let me order plans for christmas
That generator is pretty small. 2.4 kwh per day. We make and use about 12 to 15 kwh per day although we don't too much to try to conserve.
Im still trying to learn and figure out whats what. at least it would be continuous w/solar panels and a bank of batteries. It is expensive though.
When thinking alternative power sources you sometimes need to re-think how you use power. An accurate energy audit is imperative. You may want to switch some things such as a cook stove to gas. Ditto the clothes dryer.
It IS possible to build a tight efficient home and power it solely with PV panels. The battery bank does add to the cost.
Here in NM we have at least one home builder that offers a zero energy option. It's a regular house with energy saving/conserving features. It's $44K extra for a 1300 sq ft house and that does not include batteries. It's grid tied and uses the power company as the battery. Meter goes one way in the day and the other at night as a rule. All electric, no gas at all.
Quote from: MountainDon on December 05, 2008, 10:44:12 PM
When thinking alternative power sources you sometimes need to re-think how you use power. An accurate energy audit is imperative. You may want to switch some things such as a cook stove to gas. Ditto the clothes dryer.
OR... you could cook over a wood fire and hang your clothes out and not have to worry about gas or the dryer period. My mom hangs her laundry out no matter how cold it gets... sometimes it freezes and takes a few days to really get dry, but so what as long as you have a few extra things to wear (I don't know any American who doesn't). Especially shouldn't be an issue if this is going to primarily be a retreat and not a full-time home. I hate having to listen to the dryer going anyway, and will be so glad when we can have a clothes line again.
Quote from: Homegrown Tomatoes on December 06, 2008, 09:53:21 AM
... you could cook over a wood fire...
It would take a lot to make me want to build a fire to cook on most of the here here in NM where our primary home is located. [need a hot sweaty smiley for this]
Ive actually been considering gas fireplace w/blower for heat and gas cooktop for cooking, havent really thought much about washing and drying clothes.........I guess thats pretty important. maybe an over /under combo deal w/ gas for dryer or hang them like HT said. thanks for reminding me to think about things I sometimes take for granted, Im used to opening a dawer and finding folded clean clothes, and thats how they got there
Yes, and milk and eggs come from the grocery store.... :)
Quote from: glenn kangiser on December 06, 2008, 11:11:04 PM
Yes, and milk and eggs come from the grocery store.... :)
No, believe me Glen, they come from cows (goats or sheep, really, you can milk anything with nipples), and chickens (duck eggs are good too, and guinea fowl).
That could land me in jail, Jens. What kind of advice is that? hmm [waiting]
Ok Ok - enough...Glenn, Jens said "can" - not "may". [slap]
Welcome devildog. If I can build the 14 x 24, you can, really. I have 10' walls and am amazed at how much walking around room I have in the lofts. A lot more than I thought, but then I'm only 5'8".
I am putting an exterior door at one end of one loft, and to have a standard width exterior door, I had to shorten it to 6'3", but I don't have a lot of friends who; 1 would be in the loft and; 2 have to duck to get through it.
Anyway, I started with zero knowledge....which is probably still true, but what you don't know, someone on this forum does. Plus there's a couple of pretty good books recommended especially on framing, that are really worth getting.
Now it's getting time for me to find a good book on wiring, plumbing, drywall ad nauseum....
14 x 24 Olympic Peninsula is my project.
Grandma had a wooden rack and pulley system over the wood cook stove for hanging laundry to dry in the winter. I'm planning the same, although a propane dryer is in the plan when I get more solar panels. The clothes line in the summer is a given.
Hope to see you start your project soon. One required tool is a camera so you can share your progress with us.
d* [noidea' [waiting] rofl
AND there is nothing like the smell of clothes dried on a line! (pardon me while I have a flash back to Grandma's house) ;D
Ive taken the winter to try and think some things over to make sure I knew what I wanted to do. Im almost sure now that I want to go with the 16x28 vc(Ive even changed it in my subject). using 12' walls, and using the same plan and attaching a shed roof 16x 20 on the side. Ill try to draw a picture later so its easier to understand what Im talking about.
I finally sent all my info today for the well and septic evaluation($560). I ask them to call me 1-2 days prior so i can drive 7.5hrs to watch (take pics) and make sure theres no problems and drive home again that night. and then immediatly take bids to have the work done in july , while we're there on vacation. I asked the inspector what well and septic costs were and she said septic(3br) was about $3500 and her well about 2yrs ago cost $6500@ 400'. from some of the prices ive seen on your projects it sounds reasonable.
anyway, besides this I eventually need to order plans from john, and before winter attempt to have 10" pier foundation in. Im not in abig hurry this year but if I get the oppurtunity would like to start framing
Sounds like things are coming together.
I got my well/ septic approval last thursday! I drove 7.5 hrs wed. after work, slept in the car at arest stop in Va., woke up and met inspector at 8:30. Left Va. and 7.5 hrs later was back in Fl. Im still tired!
She didnt have to do any soil test, since it had already perked ,but she had to flag it out. And thats the reason I drove all the way up there. Just in case there was a problem. she said the guy who did the numbers before didnt figure everything right. but she moved some things around and made it work. when I get the paperwork from her ill apply for building permit
If I was going to attach aroom(not real sure what size yet) to the 16x28 ,how do you attach the floors? I understand how to attach the shed roof,but do I leave the floor joist cantilevered or do I slide the post out on the house and delete the ones where the room attaches?
I still havent got the plans yet, hopefully this week.they probably explain all this. It comes with a 12x14 room ,I think id like to make it a couple feet longer and make it shed instead of gable. sticking out 12'.
If I knew more about computers Id draw a pic, scan it and put it on here so it could be understood. ill try tomorrow
Ive tried very hard to get some drawings Ive done on here. computers are not my thing. but maybe this time ive got it.
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I cant believe it worked! I couldnt tell you how many times ive tried that w/failures.
the 12x16 on the side of the 16x28 is the shed roof.I honestly did this because I didnt want to frame 2 gable roofs. but the I also like the look and its slightly bigger room
There will also be a deck 10-12' deep going from french door to front entry door.
what do you think?Im taking my drawings along w/my plans next monthto building dept. Ihope its as smooth a process as he(inspector) lead me to believe
We spent aweek in hillsville on vacation, and finally got some things done. The entire septic system changed. It was supposed to be a 3br, but ended up going with a 2br. The reason behind thisis because the area on my property where we want to build is only about 130'x130' (then it drops off hard for about 100' and there's flat land at the bottom)and the drain field would take over most of my area. so after going around and around with the septic installer and the inspector we finally compromised on 2 65' lines.
here are my costs
1. 2br septic -$2600.00
2. land clearing -$800.00
3. well drilling -$2624.00
4. bushogging -$160.00
I wasted money on the bushogging. I didnt expect to clear the whole top, but at $85.00 an hour,and the backhoe was doing such a great job I told him to just keep going.
I think our plans have changed a bit. we're now thinking of going with the 20x30 1.5 story on a crawlspace. now that we're only going with one house we want more room.
The well driller only had to go 140' and hit water. I was so happy that I told him to go to 200'. they said I was getting about 5 gallons a minute. I was very worried about this Id heard horror stories about people in the area going a 1000' and coming up dry. the cost does not include pump or other well parts. I wont do that till later.
here are some pics.
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my little girls first fish
Making good progress I see. A little word of advice regarding your septic. Yeah you know where it is but triangulate measurements from a couple permanent fixtures to the Septic tank lids. You will eventiually have to go there some day and it makes it alot easier to find before it is covered up. I took mine from the corners of the house to the lid. If you haven't got the house yet take it to a couple of trees for now. Then later you can go to that spot and then from the house corners if you decide to remove those particular trees. I even went so far as to take measurments evey 20-30' of the drain going to the septic to find the line easier. Make you a little map of the septic layout and include the measurements and put them with your other house papers.
looking real good, especially the fishing part :) no feeling on earthy like taking a lil one fishing.
A note on costs, from your statement above, that you "wasted money"
2. land clearing -$800.00
4. bushogging -$160.00
worth every penny. I'll be honest - I am stubborn and a bit pig-headish. My land clearing costs have been in sweat and blood, and probably number in the gallons - and the timeline costs in doing so has been almost two years. you very likely made a very good choice there ! Dont look back and dont second guess yourself, your doing fine.
Cant wait till you get further along on your project, looking forward to it.
thanks redover, I did map it out, they also put apiece of 4" drain pipe sticking up at the d-box and a 4" piece of schedule 40 sticking up in the center of the septic box that I could also ue as an RV drain.
I also wanted to mention for those who might want to compare pricing that I paid $8.50 a foot for well drilling. Everyone else in the area was $10. and I didnt know this, but they also charge you for casing(I paid $8.95ft@80') and grouting($150).This was all in the total.
muldoon,
Im terrible at typing and even worse at making sense. I paid a guy to bushhog and as he was finishing he got stuck. the backhoe pulled him out. and then after he left Ihad the backhoe clear the area he just bushhogged. my only excuse is,I really didnt plan on doing all that but when I saw how easy he pushed over trees and ran over brush.Ijust kept clearing more and more.I could've skipped the bushogging.
It sounds like you did really well on those prices, just looking at well and septic alone, I've been told the best I can hope for in my area is $6,000 each (includes casing pump etc.
Wow look at that pretty red dirt....
Look forward to watching your progress. You have a nice start.
went to property this weekend. hand graded alarge area, mainly where the septic system is. put down tall fescue 31 and strawed it. did alot of burning, but as you can see I still have alarge pile left. I also put in and concreted 2 6x6 post where I will aventually put a12' cattle gate. but put 2 4x4 posts to try and keep people out. I also put post in front of my well head to protect it, because its right beside the drive way
Darrell
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I got let go from my job today. Im not really down about it, I kinda knew it was coming for some time,we've been really slow. I actually cant believe my boss held on this long. He was pretty tore up about, so I prayed with him and assured him that the Lord God will take care of me and family, he'll provide for my needs.
I am still going to go forward with our house,but with caution. Im going to spend some time praying before I make a decision on which way to go.Chances are with the economy the way it is,I couldnt get a job right now in a town of 2500 population. I live at my church for free,so its silly to make a move without a finished house. I still havent even got the foundation done yet. They put up the batterboards the day after thanksgiving, and its done nothing but rain,snow, or freeze ever since. when spring gets here I hope to go full blast, or at least till I run out of money.
Im bored and just felt like writing this,and ask if your a believer keep my family in your prayers.
Thank you Darrell
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I'm the type of person who believes that everything happens for a reason.....the Big Guy has something planned for you and your family....just hang in there. It certainly sounds like you have the right attitude!!
I will second that. Tough times don't last, tough people do.
Darrell sorry to hear of your layoff. The whole country is feeling it. I believe that you are probably a little better off in a larger community in regards to picking up something to tie you over. Smaller communities are bad as there are just so many jobs and not much turn a round. Be strong and keep the faith.
thanks guys, for the encouragement. Im going to sign up for unemployment today just in case I cant find a job. I hear it takes like 4 weeks to go into effect. And im going to take at least 3 days to pray and seek Gods will. I dont want to go in a direction im not supposed to. Ive done that before :(
I'll remember you in my prayers! God knows when even a sparrow falls, so He certainly knows the plans He has for you!
Thank you sassy. Thats a great verse, we just discussed it tonight in our bible study. We have alot of people in our congregation that have recently lost jobs and some who've been without for over ayear. The last I heard, or payed attention, the nations unemployment rate was 10%, and the city im in (jacksonville) was 14%. Our country needs prayer.
Darrell
hey devildog, how are things going? we have not heard from you in a little while
pocono_couple, Thanks for having interest in whats going on with us.
Basically, since losing my job, I took a few days to look for direction. I knew my job might be coming to an end, but hoped I could save money to save for 1 more year. We own our property free and clear, we paid cash for the well and septic.But ,havent got started on the foundation yet. No house in hillsville or job. I live on my church property for free as security.We also paid cash for the mobile home we live in. And we have alot of money saved. But not enough to finish the house.
I find myself caught in the middle. So far,after a few days of prayer, my wife and I both feel as if we're supposed to move on.Ive put in about 15 applications/resume at various jobs in the roanoke,wytheville, and hillsville area. Im willing to do just about any type of work,but feel very strongly about staying away from prolonged outside jobs,because im fair skinned and have had many of the pre-cancers frozen off already.Im not going to even try to find a job in Florida.
Ive had friends suggest that we have our mobile home pulled up to our property.I think this would be very costly,and take away from our building fund. The other option is we sale it. Its probably still worth 15,000,and that would ,with what we already have, probably complete the house and we'd have no house payment. But then we'd have to pay rent and waste money while we're finishing the house,and that might take awhile. And I dont have a job up there yet either.
We've also thrown around some other ideas,but until I get a job we're going to hold tight.
I do peak onto the forum hear and there, but it takes me about an hour to fill out job application online. and even longer to find a job Im qualified for. I have enjoyed not working,its peaceful. My wife and daughter love having me home, but Im our only source of income, so I better get back at it.
When spring hits we're going to take the house as far as the money we have will take it.
Thanks again,we're fine.
Darrell
25"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
28"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own Matt. 6:25-34
here is one thought.. don't know if it makes sense in your case or not, but I know that where I used to live in new england, some folks who were building did it in stages.. they started with pouring a foundation and capping it off and living in the basement while they saved to complete the main house.. of course, it helps if it is a walk-out basement - I don't know about the lay of your land. if you already have the well and the septic something like this may work out?
i imagine that some other people here would have other creative ideas..
Good luck, Im not the most faithfull person but Im sure something good will come of this. Good luck and happy cabin building I wish you the best and I hope you end up in a situation doing something you enjoy.
pocono_couple, that is agood idea. I had some neighbor in WV do that about 35yrs ago, and they never did add on. We never planned on doing a basement,even though our property is perfect for it. Our goal was just to build with cash,and still is.And we felt like the basement cost would be too much. Thanks for the idea.
Bobmarlon, Thank you. I would like to have a job I really like.It seems like I just did jobs,not that I didnt enjoy them sometimes. But I dont know what i really would like to do.And Id be happy just making enough to live on.I was spoiled at my last job, of course for a 41yr old Im a very hard worker. I once told my friend I was the highest paid landscaper in the world, I dont know that actually true,but Ill never make 60,000yr again ,probably not even half . and Im fine with that.
About 15 applications so far,and the phones not ringing yet, but it will.
Darrell
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I tried posting this last night, typed a bunch of stuff, hit enter and lost internet service. Hopefully tonnight it will work.
Finally making some progress.Cost for grading driveway,digging footers,2 loads of crusher run,and removal of my big pile of stumps was $1,222.00. We're moving forward till money runs out. I did start my job at the army ammunitions plant, its o.k. . The good news is there going to pay me $3.35 an hour up to 40 more than I expected.And there's suppose to be alot of overtime.
Im going to property tomorrow to see if there done with blocks, and maybe take more pics.
I need to try to catch up on everyones projects,its been along time since ive been on here.
Darrell
Looks like a nice setting for a house. There has to be a typo here "The good news is there going to pay me $3.35 an hour up to 40 more than I expected.And there's suppose to be alot of overtime." Darrell that's not even minimum wage. At that rate your completion time frame will be worse than mine. d*
Redover, sorry about not explaining. starting pay was 11.31,there paying me 3.35 an hour more. $14.66
Darrell
Crawlspace complete! They did a great job.
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Hi; My name's Dave, and I'm a retired marine. We bought land in Cana, so we're very close to you. I used Venable brothers for my well. They had to go 129'. The flow's 9 gpm. It ended up costing me $5,200. I used Gary's backhoe for my drive and septic. He's a former marine, and I felt that he really worked well with us. He's also in Hillsville. Your place is really shaping up well. Have you moved in the area, or are you still in FL? About the well, Gary recommended someone else (after the fact) that was cheaper, and in the area. We closed on our land just before Christmas, and I've been going there as much as possible. We live in Jax, NC, and the 5-6hr drive isn't always the best (I-40), but we'll be moving probably within 3 years. Thanks for your posts, Dave
could you give us an idea of what that crawlspace cost to put in??
Dave C. welcome to the forum. I used gary also and thought he did a great job. He did my septic, footers,and driveway.his prices are very reasonable.
I am living in christianburg area,but I have to find a permanant place to live by june 15th and Im still looking for another job,because this one is not working out.and I need to get my wife and daughter over asap from Tenn.
I dont get on here very much anymore,I just dont have much time. Ill look to see if youve posted anything.I look forward to seeing your progress and maybe sometime we can see each others projects.The price of lumber is about to bring me to a hault though, we'll see.
Semper fi.
cbc58, it cost me exactly $4300. The floor plan/layout that they did for me is on page 2 reply #34. its 880sqft but im also adding a loft.
Darrell
hey guys, great to see that you are making progress. it looks like we are into some great outside building weather. the school year is almost over, and i am anxious to get back to our project. I am looking forward to seeing what you accomplish next!
I'm fairly new to the forum, just checking to see if there has been any progress? I would be interested to see since I'm also from Hillsville.
Welcome firefighter, I'd love to have something to post about but last year has had alot of ups and downs. I've been laid off from one job, then a few months later got fired from another.This left us in a position where living without a house payment was no longer going to happen. I currently work in Blacksburg and live in christiansburg and enjoy my job.
I dont have enough money to move forward and really don't feel like driving an hour to work. so we're currently trying to buy a church in C'burg and convert that into a house. If nobody objects(Its not quite a small house), I'll post the remodeling efforts on that. But we've been trying to finalize that and its been a hassle.
But I/we love Hillsville and the property. Everything there is paid for and the taxes are only $20.32 a yr. so I still plan on finishing it,maybe renting it and then someday retiring there. I have learned that the plans I have are not necessarily the plans God has for me, and Im now content with that.
Im on here all the time, this is my favorite sight. But my computer wont remember my password and Im to lazy to type it in.
Do you have plans to build? theres alot of good info on here and people with knowledge to help and give ideas.
Darrell
It's been a while Darrell since we have heard from you. Have wondered what happened. Thanks for the update.
Ditto, glad to hear that you're still on the green side of the grass :). Our mason lives in C-burg and is commuting over an hour to the job, stopping to feed the bovines at the farm he hopes to move to in Carroll co on the way. Makes for a long day. Wherever I work it seems like it's about 45 minutes, centrally located ;D
I hope to build sometime in the future. I bought 4.412 acres on the north side of Hillsville back in August of 2010. I'm in the process of getting a promotion, per se, at work; and if I get it I will probably end up having to move away for 5 years or so before I can get back to an opening down here. I don't want to start building until I see exactly what my living situation is going to be. So for now clearing my land, daydreaming and drawing up rough plans is as far as I have gotten.