Shipping a pre-fab cabin to Canada

[davestreck]

Hello all. I'm looking for advice regarding my ongoing cabin-building project in Nova Scotia. A little background: I live in Massachusetts, and for the last 3 summers my wife and I have been traveling to our property in NS to lay the groundwork for our small (12x16) cabin. We have built a shed to store tools and supplies, cleared the site and put in the foundation, floor and porch. Next step is to build the post and beam frame at my shop in Mass. I was planning on hauling the completed frame (along with windows, doors, etc) on a flatbed trailer up to NS, then arranging to get it hauled to the site by a local fisherman (the property is an offshore island). Problem is, because of various scheduling conflicts etc, I will only have 2 weeks this year to get as much done as I can. Plus, it looks like 2 of the guys who were planning on coming up to help (and drive the truck hauling the boat) wont be able to make it. So i'm down to 2 guys and one vehicle plus boat. To save time, I'm now considering having the entire "kit" shipped up by a freight company so it will be there when I arrive. Does anyone have any advice about this? I'm hoping someone can recommend a freight company that has experience shipping building materials across the border. I have access to a commercial loading facility at work (forklifts etc) and should be able to arrange for similar facilities at the other end. But I'm not familiar with the ins and outs of international shipping (taxes, duties, etc), and I have no idea what kind of cost I'm looking at.

I'm at square one with this idea. Any and all advice would be welcome. Thanks in advance.

[cbc58]

if you were willing to pay a small wage and cover meals and lodging... you might be able to find someone to help you haul it and build it.  i love nova scotia and used to go to cape breton all the time as a kid.  ahh ya.  did you buy an entire island?

[rick91351]

You might talk to some of those trucking companies up near the boarder.  They might be looking for a back haul and could do all the paper work for you.  You might give these guys a call as well.

Notice is here by given I am not recommending them nor giving them advertisement here.  http://www.expeditors.com/

I have used them when we were trying a small import business.  A friend used them as well when he was importing ATV Trailers from China. 

Same breath watch who you do use because I shipped a rare broken tea pot to Canada for repair.  At the time I used UPS and was latter hit with duties of $90.00 US.  FedEx when I talked to them after the fact said they broker their own shipping to and from Canada.  As well as most International would have cost me a flat rate of a $ or two on such shipments.  As you can imagine it was returned FedEx.   

Glenn and Don wish to make notice I have no dealings nor connections at all with them. (Expeditors, FedEx nor UPS nor the nameless porcelain repair service in Canada, nor Canada for that matter.)       

   


   

[davestreck]

if you were willing to pay a small wage and cover meals and lodging... you might be able to find someone to help you haul it and build it.  i love nova scotia and used to go to cape breton all the time as a kid.  ahh ya.  did you buy an entire island?

We bought the island 4 years ago. People said we were crazy, and I'm beginning to think they were right. Building on an undeveloped, uninhabited island is a challenge. No dock, no roads, no utilities, no regular supply of fresh water. Everything has to come by boat and be hauled to the site on our backs.

I'm planning on hiring some local guys i know up there for help getting the stuff over to the island (i have fit a surprising amount of stuff on my 13' Whaler, but a compete timber frame cabin might be stretching it, unless I was willing to make 50 trips) but without a second crew to drive the flatbed trailer up and back, I think freighting the stuff is my best option. I've been researching LTL shipping companies that serve the Maritimes and have experience with customs, and am leaning toward Conway freight. The biggest pain will be palletizing all the stuff, especially the windows.

For those who are interested, here are some pics of the progress to date:

View from the site, looking directly east. Nice sunrises.


The deck and porch. Foundation is simply precast deck blocks sitting on compacted gravel. Someday I might jack it up and install poured concrete piers on bedrock (which is only a foot or so below grade) but for now its just gonna float.


The cabin will be a one-room 12x16, framed in 6x6 pine with oak knee braces and locust trunnels, a shed roof over the porch and a small sleeping loft over half of the floorplan. No electric, no plumbing. Cedar shingles over t&g spruce sheathing and tar paper. Asphalt shingle roof. Recycled windows and door.

The island is approximately 60 acres, about 1 mile offshore, near Sheet Harbour.

[MountainDon]

The idea of an island of one's own has a certain appeal, even though the task of building is somewhat daunting. 

[davestreck]

The idea of an island of one's own has a certain appeal, even though the task of building is somewhat daunting. 

"Daunting" is definitely the word to describe it. Progress has been quite a bit slower than I had originally hoped, but were chipping away at it.

Here's the link to my previous posts about the project: http://countryplans.com/smf/index.php?topic=2074.0

[cbc58]

have you heard of www.uship.com ?   very cool to own an island.   

[davestreck]

have you heard of www.uship.com ?   very cool to own an island.   

Excellent link. Thanks.

[MountainDon]

Here's the link to my previous posts about the project: http://countryplans.com/smf/index.php?topic=2074.0

Thanks for that. Interesting story. I recall it now that you brought it back to the forefront.


east coast....  in the ocean