Plans Change, and now I'm starting with a 12 X 12

[OlJarhead]

Ahhh yes, if no one travels it then it can be a problem.

[JavaMan]

So, I am attempting to get things lined up for the build project and I need to rent a quad/ATV/4 wheeler or something that is a bit more nimble than my F150 to haul bags of concrete, water barrels, mixer and genset up the hill to the building site.  I thought I had a solution last year, when the rental place down in the town near me showed an ATV/SxS on it's website for rent.

Sadly, today I called them and they stopped renting them because the insurance on them is too high.

Now I'm stuck trying to figure something out.  I may have to rent a tractor with a bucket from them to achieve the same thing ... which in itself wouldn't be terrible, it is just a change in plans that I had not expected.  And I think they may decide that they need to deliver it (which is an additional charge) rather than let me pick it up (which I could easily do with the SxS).

Well, now I need to find a solution to this issue.

[jsahara24]

So, I am attempting to get things lined up for the build project and I need to rent a quad/ATV/4 wheeler or something that is a bit more nimble than my F150 to haul bags of concrete, water barrels, mixer and genset up the hill to the building site.  I thought I had a solution last year, when the rental place down in the town near me showed an ATV/SxS on it's website for rent.

Sadly, today I called them and they stopped renting them because the insurance on them is too high.

Now I'm stuck trying to figure something out.  I may have to rent a tractor with a bucket from them to achieve the same thing ... which in itself wouldn't be terrible, it is just a change in plans that I had not expected.  And I think they may decide that they need to deliver it (which is an additional charge) rather than let me pick it up (which I could easily do with the SxS).

Well, now I need to find a solution to this issue.

Can you rent a jeep wrangler or similar for a day?   

[JavaMan]

I have a 4x4 F150, but it's isn't a nimble as an ATV for getting around the curves in the "driveway" up to the site, nor coming back down.

Of course, I haven't been there yet this year, and I may find that my memory is flawed and it may be just fine.  I remember going up wasn't too bad, it was coming down that I had a a few white knuckles     Who knows, Maybe it is simply because it was the first time?

But now that I think about it, a wrangle is a lot shorter wheelbase than the truck, right?  That might be an answer.  I will have to check it out (both rental and road) when I'm there next.

Thanks for the idea!

[OlJarhead]

Cheaper to buy an old used quad and trailer.  I bought a Yamaha 350 Big Bear for $200 and a couch several years back and still use it.

[JavaMan]

I'd love to find a deal on a quad around that price - that ran.  I have been trying to keep an eye out for them, but they are few and far between from what I can tell.

Got up there this past weekend (Memorial day) and felled a couple trees and then somehow damaged the chain so it would't run in the slot on the bar... got a new chain, just need to put it on.

Other than that I measured, measure, remeasured, and measured yet again for where the corners go on the foundation, and put steel stakes in at those places.  Now all I need to do is setup the forms, set the rebar, haul the concrete up there and mix and pour, mix and pour, mix and pour!  Debating heading up this weekend or not, but probably not.

In other news, I have plans afoot to hook up my trailer and move to the Cle Elum area.  Since the job allows me to work from anyplace there is internet, and I rarely need to go into the office, I figure moving that far over would cut the drive time to less than half and add that much time on site to accomplish that much more every time up there!  I figure it's a good 12-14 hour round trip from here, and would only be about 5 hours RT from Cle Elum ... leaving me with a full extra day on site.  Lots can get done in an extra 7-9 hours!

I think I am going to be one busy guy this summer ... but that's ok!  I'm thinking milling sometime after the 10th of July?

[JavaMan]

Generally speaking things are not going according to plan this summer.I should have had the foundation poured by now and the basement wall stacked... I don't even have the foundation poured yet!

A bunch of stuff is catching up to me at work, and I think my project plan was a bit too ambitious.  Ah well.  I am implementing a plan to move closer to the property (since work allows me to telecommute) I figure that will save me 2.5 hours each way in drive time.... which is extra time to work on the project.

I am not uploading vids to youtube, but I have uploaded them to my own website... so here is a gratuitous video of me cutting down a tree... all fine and dandy until the camera falls to the ground.

ks7h.com/site/web/robot/videos/Treefelling.mp4

Too tired to spend time trying to figure out the linking, sorry

[JavaMan]

Was simply watching Youtube just following where the suggestions took me, and came across these few links about new solar stuff coming down the pipe...



http://ubiquitous.energy/

And

[Adam Roby]

Cool... I love the possibilities.  Just sucks the government is not investing more into this industry.  Obama was just in Montreal a couple weeks ago speaking about many things, including how the new jobs manufacturing these solar panels and such can replace the old jobs in oil that people are afraid of losing.  There's money to be made...  they need to wake up and see that.

[JavaMan]

Ok, it's official.  I've put it on the work calendar for work and everything!

The week after the 4th of July from 7/1 to 7/9 I am planning on being at my property to pour the foundation, and hopefully get the stem wall raised.  It's going to be a logistical nightmare, since I don't have a quad, to get all the materials up to the site from the store, but I do plan on doing as much of it as I can.  Hopefully that will mean all of it.  Of course, the budget will figure into that as well, but even if I get 60% or more of it completed, it will be awesome.

So, if anyone wants to come help, you're welcome! HA! 

[JavaMan]

Well, even the best laid plans ... etc...

I did not get to the property as planned, but I did make a big change in my life.  I have moved closer to the property and am hoping to head up there sometime in the next 3 or 4 days for however long it takes to pour the footers.

Of course this means I will need to buy some high speed data for my phone so I can work from up there.

Anyway, that's the status for right now.

[ChugiakTinkerer]

I'm quite familiar with life's way of taking our plans and flushing them down the toilet.  Good luck with the pour!

[JavaMan]

Well, this weekend, life took another pull at the silver handle on the toilet.

But, not all was lost.  I wandered up the middle of the state, past the dry falls area and on up to the property, only to have the trailer I was towing not allow me up the hill to the building site... I had to back it down most of the way, then I screwed up a bit more, and had to go salvage the situation the next day.  Exhausted, I decided to come home and try again next weekend - and I've made the schedule a bit more realistic, I think.

I was shooting to finish the build to the "dried in" point this year, but I am going to say at this point that it will be next summer before it's dried in.  Ah well.  Forward progress is mainly what I am looking for these days. Forward progress.  The plan is to go back next weekend and simply see how far along I get.

[Adam Roby]

When life gives you lemons...  as they say.

[JavaMan]

Well, in the last week, I've come up with a short term plan, and begun to execute.

First step: get an ATV...   Ok, that's done.   Now I need a trailer for it. Once that's done, I can get back to the property, and pour the footers.  The ATV will allow me to haul the 150+ 80# bags of mix up to the site, along with all the other materials.

I gotta get this project moving again.

[Adam Roby]

What ATV did you finally purchase?
I am also looking for one now.  My Jeep can only get me so far... I have the tractor but I need to get to it with 2 massive batteries, not fun by hand. 

[OlJarhead]

Well, in the last week, I've come up with a short term plan, and begun to execute.

First step: get an ATV...   Ok, that's done.   Now I need a trailer for it. Once that's done, I can get back to the property, and pour the footers.  The ATV will allow me to haul the 150+ 80# bags of mix up to the site, along with all the other materials.

I gotta get this project moving again.

We bought a nice trailer for ours from Ranch and Home for $150 several years back and continue to use it.  Says it can hold 1000lbs but that's pushing it!  Still a very useful addition to an atv

[JavaMan]

I got an older Kawasaki Mojave ... 250cc's but it's a pain to start... It needs some work, but I did get a descent deal on it, so I'm not complaining too much

Mainly I need it to get materials up the hill to the building site.

[jsahara24]

I got an older Kawasaki Mojave ... 250cc's but it's a pain to start... It needs some work, but I did get a descent deal on it, so I'm not complaining too much

Mainly I need it to get materials up the hill to the building site.

Check the valve lash, I had a similar Kawasaki quad that was hard starting and the valves were way out of adjustment. 

Good luck...

[Adam Roby]

Cool...  I keep going between old and small to new and powerful.  I hate being on the fence.  Someone is selling a 1981 Polaris Trailboss 350cc 4x4 with a really nice aluminum trailer for $1000 ($1200 but I'm assuming negotiable).  Really thinking about it... but 1981... that's an old machine.  Trailer's got to be worth $600...  so technically its $400 on a try.   Do you find the actual size is big enough to work on?   

[JavaMan]

The one I got I think will be plenty big for the work I need it to do... if I had seen a deal like that (Polaris and trailer) I'd be all over that - Polaris is a good machine.  And a trailer to pull it is a bonus.  Just be sure it runs reasonably and you'll have a great deal

I'm not sure if it's the valves... it could be, but I'm going after the carb first to see if its' simply just gunked up.  Sometimes when I go out to it in the morning it starts on the second kick - then after running for a bit it quits, and I have to kick it a LOT to get it started again.

I think I may have a fuel issue 

[JavaMan]

Managed to get the quad dependable.  I have discovered that I can see the new drive and the foundation hole on google maps.  So much for privacy.  But that's ok, it also gives me a better idea of where things are on the property.

Since the new drive is so steep that I can only get the truck up but not a trailer with equipment or supplies, and I can see it on google, I can see where a new, less steep, drive might be put in.  My new neighbor since I've moved east of the mountains, has experience running heavy excavation equipment.  He has already volunteered to run some equipment for me in the spring.  To facilitate that I am going to try to get up there next weekend and scout out a new driveway.

Then it will be a winter of waiting.  I am hoping for an early spring.

[JavaMan]

An update of sorts.  I have put together enough cash and prizes to allow me to build the entire place at this point (ok, after this pay period) .... of course, that would be with me milling all the lumber/timbers/logs I want/need with the chainsaw mill.  This is not really a good option.  But, I can do all the milling with a bandsaw mill (either hiring someone or purchasing my own, relatively inexpensive one) and complete this up to the point of having a roof on the place.... I just won't have insulation and steel on the roof at that point.

This is good... Why? Because work sucketh at the moment.  And I would like to find a different position, or start my own stream(s) of income.  Mind you I'm not complaining, but I really would like to improve the situation.  Besides I need to start looking forward to retirement as well (which by my calculations might be as close as 4 year away!  )

So, I have purchased nearly all the tools that I think I will need, and have budgeted for some miscellaneous things that are sure to come up.  And now, I am simply chomping at the bit to get there.  There are days I with I could find some heated concrete blankets just so I can run up there and start the concrete work... but I will try to be patient for the next ... 5 months or so

[OlJarhead]

Run up there and mark trees and/or fell them, delimb, burn the slash and get the logs bucked and stacked.  Winter is the time to do all of that work so in the spring you will be ready to mill

[JavaMan]

Run up there and mark trees and/or fell them, delimb, burn the slash and get the logs bucked and stacked.  Winter is the time to do all of that work so in the spring you will be ready to mill

Yeah, trying to schedule some time up there for things like that.  Work has been absolutely nutty lately.  Going up there would certainly help me de-stress, but unfortunately we've been pulling some very long hours.  Maybe I should go up and simply work from the local starbucks