Glenn's Underground Cabin Update

Started by glenn kangiser, January 30, 2005, 10:24:03 PM

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ScottA

Must be a California thing.  ???  :)  ;)

Whitlock

Make Peace With Your Past So It Won't Screw Up The Present


rick91351

Whit I agree!  There are a few things up here in Idaho and Eastern Oregon that we have learned from our past.  One is due to the huge amount of Californian transplants and behavior modeled therein.  (Or make that lack of behavior modeled therein!)   There is the sudden realization we can not blame everything on California.  It was hard but we came to terms, few things the individual must be held reasonable for not just California.   
Proverbs 24:3-5 Through wisdom is an house builded; an by understanding it is established.  4 And by knowledge shall the chambers be filled with all precious and pleasant riches.  5 A wise man is strong; yea, a man of knowledge increaseth strength.

glenn kangiser

Hey, You guys.....  [crz]


Let me set this straight... [ouch]


I was born in McMinnville, Oregon and grew up on Widow Creek road on my grandparents homestead. [scared]

Mike Oehler is from Bonners Ferry, Idaho and spent about 30 years in an underground house, and he is perfectly normal...

It hasn't hurt him any, eh? [waiting]   :)
"Always work from the general to the specific." J. Raabe

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glenn kangiser

Matter of fact, I just got off the phone with my aunt, who was telling me about my granddad.  [crz]

Seems grandpa had a Moonshine still up there in Oregon during prohibition and once while he was away taking care of business, the revenuers caught his brother Con who was just there tending it for him. ::)

They hauled great uncle Con off to jail, and grandpa had to move the still to another cave somewhere up there in the woods and make more moonshine  in order to make enough money to bail his brother out.  

Taking care of your family and neighbors.... that is what America is all about.... [waiting]
"Always work from the general to the specific." J. Raabe

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rick91351

Dang Glen my grandfather was arrested for moonshine!!   ;D  When my dad went to bail him out he told my dad that he thought he would just winter there.  He made it well known to ever one that would listen he sort of liked it and might just start living there.  It was warn and they served him three squares a day; he did not have to feed the cattle nor split and carry fire wood.  (I also think he knew the jailers a little better than..... oh well that's another .... )  It also did not hurt that his best friend was a US Marshal Russ Bryant who was highly respected but Sort of Dirty Harry tough.  They finely just let him out when they decided he was not going to post bail and just live there.  I don't think it ever went to litigation.   
Proverbs 24:3-5 Through wisdom is an house builded; an by understanding it is established.  4 And by knowledge shall the chambers be filled with all precious and pleasant riches.  5 A wise man is strong; yea, a man of knowledge increaseth strength.

glenn kangiser

That's the way I like to see things done, Rick.  :)
"Always work from the general to the specific." J. Raabe

Glenn's Underground Cabin  http://countryplans.com/smf/index.php?topic=151.0

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speedfunk

exciting times glenn.  It was nice seeing the video of your place. I've seen so many pics but the video gives a nice idea of the space.  The roof does look awesome!

Jeff

Sassy

Thanks Jeff!  I had to fight for my rights to have flowers up there   [slap]  The roses are in full bloom now - beautiful!  (the roses were the $1.99 castoffs from Home Depot sold at the local grocery store)  I still have to force Glenn to water them while I'm gone  [waiting]  the ground isn't very deep & dries out really fast. 

The video was fun - pretty dorky - everytime Glenn & I watch it, we laugh - especially when I give him the big hug  ;D  He did put the glass in the door & it is so nice to stand at my sink & be able to look across & see my roses blooming, the valley, mtns & sunsets through there.
http://glennkathystroglodytecabin.blogspot.com/

You will know the truth & the truth will set you free


glenn kangiser

Thanks, Jeff.  :)

I got the glass in but haven't finished trimming it out, so didn't take a pix of it yet. [ouch]

"Always work from the general to the specific." J. Raabe

Glenn's Underground Cabin  http://countryplans.com/smf/index.php?topic=151.0

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speedfunk

Cool :0) 

Yeah sassy...the flowers add a lot.  Usually I'm just about function but they look great. :) 

It's tough seeing yourself on video with out feeling self conscious....

post the pic when you get a chance!
Jeff


Redoverfarm

Glenn I watched the video but I think something went wrong with it.  Everything was fine until Mike knocked your hat off and I got a terrible glare on the screen.  ;)  Nice shot of the house.

glenn kangiser

Mike probably wanted to knock my hat off but that was Sassy that knocked my hat off, John... [ouch]

The glare on the screen.... I don't know what that could have been.... possibly a reflection off of my solar panels.... Sassy calls me her solar powered .... umm ...uh... never-mind..... [waiting]

Hmmm ...Jeff, I'll try to get it trimmed up and a bit more done in that area in the next week or two then take a pix.  It's time I did something in there again any way.

BTW.... Sassy was yelling for me today - I was over by the sawmill fixing the diesel tank hose and since it sounded a little more urgent than normal, I didn't pretend I didn't hear it..... [crz]

Rattlesnake... I grabbed the shovel, went down there, chased her cat away from it while all the time Henrietta chicken was cackling her head off.  Henrietta is a bad chicken who lives by herself because she eats eggs so we just keep her in a crate by the garden as a rather worthless pet.  

Anyway at first hit I kind of smashed its head.  Second took its head off.  About a 3 footer  - 2 inches in dia. with 11 rattles.  Best one we've had in several years.  The ground was hard so I buried it under a few inches of dirt and put about 200 lbs of rocks over it to keep the dogs from getting it. [scared]
"Always work from the general to the specific." J. Raabe

Glenn's Underground Cabin  http://countryplans.com/smf/index.php?topic=151.0

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Ernest T. Bass

You mean you buried a perfectly good meal?

We've had our share of Henriettas... Ours don't usually get treated as well as yours, though. Once they are convicted and found to be unremorseful, it's off to the guillotine...

Our family's homestead adventure blog; sharing the goodness and fun!


glenn kangiser

I know, Andrew.  It's a shame to waste good food like that but.... I just wasn't in a snake butchering mood and was short on time due to having to work out of town... [waiting]

Henrietta is in about the same situation.  [noidea'

It's easier for me to run down to the store and buy some mass produced, anti-biotic filled, hormone injected, e-coli infested chicken carcass than it is boil a tub of water to get her feathers off and eat a home grown chicken. [hungry]

I suppose I should watch how much hormone enhanced meat I eat or I may get a bad case of man-boobs like my old dead uncle Mandeville had..... [scared]

(Note that he was the kind of guy who would appreciate that comment and would give me a giant ration of crap right back).  [ouch]


"Always work from the general to the specific." J. Raabe

Glenn's Underground Cabin  http://countryplans.com/smf/index.php?topic=151.0

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Ernest T. Bass

;D.... Ooookay. Well, at least you are aware. Gotta be careful--you'll let the government-controlled food corporations slowly poison you until you won't be able to fight for your rights.. ;) A Glenn that can't fight is a very unhappy Glenn indeed..

Our family's homestead adventure blog; sharing the goodness and fun!

glenn kangiser

Andrew, your wisdom so greatly exceeds your tender young age........  [waiting]

You must keep yourself free of the evil corporate produced meat so you don't grow up to look like me.... and you are right of course.  You know how much I love fighting.... and winning... mustn't forget the winning.... [crz]


...on another note, we had foreign visitors, families, and friends from UC Davis a week and a half ago.  They said it was like visiting a museum and all wanted to get pix with the old crazy person that dug it.   Here's a shot of about a ton of them on the bridge.  Fortunately I rough calced it out to hold well more than that.



They of course recognized Sassy's decorating and special touches.   I could never make a bunch of old logs, tin and rough sawn boards look that good. [noidea'
"Always work from the general to the specific." J. Raabe

Glenn's Underground Cabin  http://countryplans.com/smf/index.php?topic=151.0

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stadia

 Hi Mr. Kangiser, couple quick questions.Did you use any retaining grid mesh on your excavations? How's your walls holding up to the pressure? Thanks

glenn kangiser

Hi, stadia.

No, no retaining grid-rebar or concrete.   I just used the retaining boards against the backside of the posts as recommended by Mike Oehler in his book and videos.  

www.undergroundhousing.com   for more info.

Now some extra input on this.

I had observed road cuts from about 15 years previous to our build.  There was nearly no sloughing of the natural ground.  Our mineral clay soil beneath the top couple of feet is pretty well self supporting and is considered claystone.  It takes a very long time to hydrate unless it is pulverized by digging with a backhoe or Bobcat.  

I recommend what I call becoming intimate with your soil.  Understand it and you will know what problems you may have.  Observe road cuts - make test digs or look for historically dug excavations around other building sites nearby to see what problems you may encounter.  A heavy backhoe would only dig around 2 inches per scrape here with rock teeth on the bucket.

I also observed Mike's recommendation to fill opposite sides evenly as backfilling progressed to prevent the cabin from being pushed out of plumb.  OK - so I was not hundred percent successful at that but after the first booboo or so I did pretty good.  

Info you don't find in the book - I think it may say not to over-excavate much to keep back pressure to a minimum.  It does not say what size boards to use on the sides as that is a function of load to be resisted.  As a rule of thumb, I have found that strong 1x material will resist back pressure to 4 feet between supports and 2x material will resist back pressure -hand filled only - allow natural settling and refill later for best results.  

It and the video sets show or describe how to notch timbers to resist pressure - posts and girders lock and prevent inward pressure.  I would suggest modified mining square set timbering methods (the beams in our case run overtop of the girders - pinned with rebar pins) for good results at resisting pressures.
"Always work from the general to the specific." J. Raabe

Glenn's Underground Cabin  http://countryplans.com/smf/index.php?topic=151.0

Please put your area in your sig line so we can assist with location specific answers.

stadia

I purchased the book and videos after seeing an article in a magazine about 11 years ago. Soon as i saw the article, I knew it was a very good system,basically square sets covered in settling pond liner,or poly.I'm just now getting around to starting my project.Lot's of spare time since the real estate collapse. I was wondering about the plastic geo mesh alleviating the lateral pressure allowing the use of smaller sideboards.Really enjoyed your thread.Been very informative,Thanks for taking the time to document your progress.


glenn kangiser

The geo-mesh itself I do not see as helping with the load that much as is more of a separation barrier in what I have seen.  

If you had a water retention  problem along the high side of the underground house - somehow getting around your uphill patio or sidewalls -(such as a gopher problem), and had money to spend on it, then a product such as Mira-Drain  http://www.triumphgeo.com/products/miradri.html could help by draining water quickly to your French drain around the interior perimeter  and hastening it's exit from the area.

Without the French drain it would hasten it's travel down to a place where it could percolate up under your walls and into your house.

I enjoy helping others to be successful in their alternative building endeavors, stadia.  Thanks, My pleasure.
"Always work from the general to the specific." J. Raabe

Glenn's Underground Cabin  http://countryplans.com/smf/index.php?topic=151.0

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glenn kangiser

I have been commissioned to build a underground cabin for a friend. We have started cutting beams and posts while we are doing repairs on the Bobcat.  This one will be at an undisclosed location (Learned that from Dick Cheney)  using square or rectangular posts and beams to make best use of available materials.  A good fill in job..... :)
"Always work from the general to the specific." J. Raabe

Glenn's Underground Cabin  http://countryplans.com/smf/index.php?topic=151.0

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Ernest T. Bass

Cool! Would your friend mind if you shared about 32,809,564 pictures with us?

Our family's homestead adventure blog; sharing the goodness and fun!

glenn kangiser

Good question, Andrew, and that is why I made the comment about the project.  I was wondering if there is enough interest in the project for me to document one from the start.

Since I did mine before I joined the forum, I was considering just doing it here on the underground cabin update so the information would all be in one place from starting one to finishing it.  What do you think.. here or separate topic?
"Always work from the general to the specific." J. Raabe

Glenn's Underground Cabin  http://countryplans.com/smf/index.php?topic=151.0

Please put your area in your sig line so we can assist with location specific answers.

speedfunk

Would we be intersted in seeing this?   Are you kidding?  d*  Also for you a great fill in job!!!!

+20 votes for me.  :)  I'd think seperate topic.

I understand it would take time and I know your busy so I'd understand either way  :D

sweet :)