Posted: 8/7/2026 8:53:34 AM EDT
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Howdy ! I don't remember when I started lurking, but one of my first memories of inspirational threads was Aviator's AK cabin, RIP. Before I started this house, I had lived on this lot for 2 years in a tiny house I also built, hauling in water. I work in construction, jack of all trades, master of none, including taking great photos  Basic details: 900 sqft shop, 900 sqft of home over a crawlspace I did the drafting and permit application, engineered by a neighbor 2 miles down the road Construction loan, subbed out 80% or more of the work Electric heat + a wood stove, tubing in the slab for future shop radiant Hybrid insulation, 2-4" of spray foam + fiberglass batts, Messican cold roof Attached File Attached File Attached File Attached File |
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Looks like a beautiful site! How long have you lived there? What’s your water source? What did you do for septic? Look forward to learning more about your house there!! |
"It behooves every man to remember that the work of the critic is of altogether secondary importance, and that, in the end, progress is accomplished by the man who does things."
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
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@ColtRifle '100 well, going off memory, a 2hp pump. I had to do one chlorine treatment to get rid of a rust bacteria, and I'm happy with the taste now, although I haven't had it tested. In addition to the well, I also subbed out the septic, so I'm blissfully ignorant of the products used. I do know it's a plastic 1,000 gallon tank, not concrete. More $$ up front, but less labor and was installed without additional equipment, just the mini digging the field. I started living on the lot right after I bought it in late 2023 🤠 |
| Always interesting to see how people do things elsewhere! |
"It behooves every man to remember that the work of the critic is of altogether secondary importance, and that, in the end, progress is accomplished by the man who does things."
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
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Originally Posted By taurho: @ColtRifle '100 well, going off memory, a 2hp pump. I had to do one chlorine treatment to get rid of a rust bacteria, and I'm happy with the taste now, although I haven't had it tested. In addition to the well, I also subbed out the septic, so I'm blissfully ignorant of the products used. I do know it's a plastic 1,000 gallon tank, not concrete. More $$ up front, but less labor and was installed without additional equipment, just the mini digging the field. I started living on the lot right after I bought it in late 2023 🤠 I’ve got a friend with a well that has the high rust content issue. I think he said he dumps about a cup of chlorine into the well about once a month. It was turning his toilets and shower rust orange until he did this. I think he also filters it before it comes in the house as well. Could be wrong on that info, but he does have some process that works for him. But I have to laugh at him because he had county water buy he switched over to well water because the county put too much chlorine in their water. I asked him why didn’t he just filter the county water? This guy will spend a dollar to step over a dime. |
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Originally Posted By ScottsGT: I’ve got a friend with a well that has the high rust content issue. I think he said he dumps about a cup of chlorine into the well about once a month. It was turning his toilets and shower rust orange until he did this. I think he also filters it before it comes in the house as well. Could be wrong on that info, but he does have some process that works for him. But I have to laugh at him because he had county water buy he switched over to well water because the county put too much chlorine in their water. I asked him why didn’t he just filter the county water? This guy will spend a dollar to step over a dime. My well has some iron but the issue was iron bacteria. Harmless to humans but eats the iron. Causes some odors and red slime. When we drilled the well I had to shock it with bleach monthly. Once I got ahead of the iron bacteria, I was able to just shock it every 6 months. |
"It behooves every man to remember that the work of the critic is of altogether secondary importance, and that, in the end, progress is accomplished by the man who does things."
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
| Once you get ahead of the iron bacteria, it’s not hard to maintain. Getting ahead of it for me took regular shocking of the well before getting to where I am now. |
"It behooves every man to remember that the work of the critic is of altogether secondary importance, and that, in the end, progress is accomplished by the man who does things."
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
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Originally Posted By taurho: Sam, I tried sending a PM, not sure if it went through. Tl;DR: It's been 5 years of some sacrifices, but I'm not special, so anyone could do it I think this is a very important comment. Lots of people today complain that “life isn’t fair” and “I’ll never get ahead”. But this poster figured out how to make it happen and then sacrificed to get it done. 
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"It behooves every man to remember that the work of the critic is of altogether secondary importance, and that, in the end, progress is accomplished by the man who does things."
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
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Originally Posted By taurho: Sam, I tried sending a PM, not sure if it went through. Tl;DR: It's been 5 years of some sacrifices, but I'm not special, so anyone could do it Got it. Thanks. Once my step-sons are out of the house, my wife and I will probably look at down-sizing, and I want to at least have a part-time place that is as far away from a town or city as I can possibly be. Small, easy to care for, and with a workshop and gym. Was looking at dropping a couple of conexes and building them out. Your place looks awesome. |
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Originally Posted By tucansam: Got it. Thanks. Once my step-sons are out of the house, my wife and I will probably look at down-sizing, and I want to at least have a part-time place that is as far away from a town or city as I can possibly be. Small, easy to care for, and with a workshop and gym. Was looking at dropping a couple of conexes and building them out. Your place looks awesome. Downsizing is smart. Just a thought…..aging comes with increased medical issues. Wherever you choose to live, check out the medical options before you commit. While I don’t think you have to be next door to a top rated hospital, still you probably want to be somewhat close to one. Only you can decide how close you should be. And, look at air ambulance memberships. A flight for emergency care could easily cost $25-100k. If your area offers memberships, they are usually pretty low cost. In my area, they are around $100 per year for a family. Consider it an insurance plan. You will probably never need it but if you do, you’ll be very happy you have it!! I’d rethink the shipping container idea. They are limited in size and building options. Even the neatest ones I have seen would not be my idea of a great place to live in long term. For a hunting cabin….yeah maybe. For even a weekend place, I don’t think so. I know a guy who built a several shipping container house. He was saying how great it would be. He’s living in it now and, while better than living under a bridge, he no longer tells everyone how great it is now that he’s in it. I think you could build a small house/cabin on a slab for the same or less money, it’ll be better insulated, and have better value in the future if you desire to sell one day down the road. |
"It behooves every man to remember that the work of the critic is of altogether secondary importance, and that, in the end, progress is accomplished by the man who does things."
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
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I’ve been a subscriber to Air St. Luke’s for years now, you can even just call and renew/sign up, no need to go online I’m the oldest of 4 boys, I moved 2 brothers out here (just in time to miss Covid+George Floyd hysteria in the Twin Cities) and the other moved west before all of us to CO. Both parents are still in MN, and I lean on them to move anywhere closer, my mom especially, since she never dated again after their divorce. She says she could never move to a place without a Level 1 Trauma center, and I always counter with this: “People who are in hospitals alone receive significantly lower care than people who have people with them advocating for better care.” It seemed like she was considering this, up until 2024 and now she has TDS and thinks everyone in this state is a bigot. It’s sad, but if it’s keeping my mom away, it’s keeping many other bleeding heart liberals away. Maybe I can convince her to move to WA or OR 
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Originally Posted By tucansam: …I want to at least have a part-time place that is as far away from a town or city as I can possibly be. Small, easy to care for, and with a workshop and gym. Was looking at dropping a couple of conexes and building them out. Your place looks awesome. To play devils advocate, Colt, if Sam is trying to make this happen from a distance, and is only there part-time, maybe conexes are enough? I work an hour away from my property and rarely took time off to supervise the work during the day. I always came back at the end of the day because my tiny house was on the same lot, but I probably paid 5-10% more because there wasn’t active supervision. If Sam can only provide supervision on the weekend, or even less, I think conexes are a good compromise. But if you’re gonna wait until you’re retired Sam, then you really should consider something more, plenty of economical kits for larger spaces. |
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Originally Posted By taurho: To play devils advocate, Colt, if Sam is trying to make this happen from a distance, and is only there part-time, maybe conexes are enough? I work an hour away from my property and rarely took time off to supervise the work during the day. I always came back at the end of the day because my tiny house was on the same lot, but I probably paid 5-10% more because there wasn’t active supervision. If Sam can only provide supervision on the weekend, or even less, I think conexes are a good compromise. But if you’re gonna wait until you’re retired Sam, then you really should consider something more, plenty of economical kits for larger spaces. I’m not saying you should never live in one! I managed just fine living for some time overseas in one. But, long term….i think it would get old. I’ve seen some really neat designs…and I still wouldn’t want to live in one full time….if I could avoid it. Still better than living under a bridge! I have a 20ft container I store ATVs in and I can’t imagine living in it full time. Now as a short term/weekend cabin at the lake, it would probably be just fine. I like well insulated spaces. It’s a lot easier to insulate a normal building vs a shipping container. |
"It behooves every man to remember that the work of the critic is of altogether secondary importance, and that, in the end, progress is accomplished by the man who does things."
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
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Originally Posted By taurho: Not a challenge, just curious, what’s your favorite insulation assembly? Also, where is the thread about your time living in a conex overseas! I am a big fan of continuous exterior insulation (rigid foam) wherever possible. I’ve built a couple houses and did not do it on the first one….did use it on the second one. Conventional framing allows heat movement through the studs (called thermal bridging). Each stud reduces the effective R value of the wall assembly. Adding rigid foam insulation reduces the thermal bridging thus increasing the effective R value technically more than the foam R value itself. Energy costs aren’t getting cheaper. My house has utility bills probably 1/3-1/2 lower than most other similar size houses in the area. |
"It behooves every man to remember that the work of the critic is of altogether secondary importance, and that, in the end, progress is accomplished by the man who does things."
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt