Finally Set

We finally got the units set. The crew was there for hours and hours. they had to jack em up, drop the wheels and axels and tie down the units. I got to stay the entire time because I had the rented generator and couldn't leave with out it. It got dark around 4 and we hauled out the camp lanterns. The crew worked their behinds off and were finishing up around 8 under a full moon. I am so grateful for beautiful weather, kind neighbors and just good things in general.

Our next step will be to hook everything together with decks and porches. That will have to wait until spring. Winter is no fun up on the mountain.

Need more power

The John Deere wasn't big enough. We switched to a bulldozer. That did the trick. Everything moved quickly after that.

The dozer was especially helpful with the hill. We couldn't get the big unit down it so our neighbor set it down, used to dozer blade to scrape down the hill and then was able to set in place. The only casualty was the sewer pipe.

Small problem. The first tractor is too small. By some miracle we are able to get in touch with another neighbor who has all kind of heavy equipment. He comes by the see what the problem is....He brings the big John Deere...progress is slow.

Please sir may I have another

The second unit had finally been finished and has arrived from Indiana. It looks fantastic. Another tight fit but the driver knows the ropes now. We just don't have a way to move them. We are lucky that our neighbor has a big tractor and is happy to help out.

Kitchen Unit arrives........

Awesome. We have delivery of our first unit. It was a tight fit, but it made it. Our delivery guy commented that he can't place them with his truck where we need them. Arrgh. I think we will end up pushing them at this point. No bad thoughts. Next unit is due next week.

Electricity is close...

After three years of trying, we are now very close to getting electricity. Our neighbor found a guy to put in the conduit for us and set the pads. Now we just need Alleghany Power to do their part. No laughing please.

This is what $7000 of electrical conduit looks like.

Now we are cooking with gas....

We finally found a great excavator to work with us on the site work for our units! He couldn't have been better. He was very professional and did a great job setting up the pads. We had to have a pad leveled out, because we are on the side of a mountain and nothing is flat. We then had 16 concrete piers installed to all for the units to be placed and tied down. We also had some terraces cut in on the side while he was out there. It is much easier to eat when your food is not rolling off the table. Ha.

We still don't have electricity, or any hope of it soon, but I am taking it one step at a time at this point. Next on the list... Unit delivery.

Contractors in the middle of nowhere

One of the most frustrating things about this project has been the impossibility of finding contractors to work with us. We have had a couple of small projects done and everyone of them has been done wrong. We have looked for a grading contractor for over a year. last month I called 7 contractors and got one call back.

We did meet with the guy and it seems promising but we will have to wait and see if he will actually do the work for us. We are in a bind because we have ordered the units. We just don't have a place to put them!

Site Plan

After much much much playing around, this is our unit layout. We are going to join them with an open porch making a modified Dogtrot. This will provide much cross ventilation and light.

(Idea from the Cabin book!)

The bottom photos are examples of units with full wrap around porches. Nice Huh.

Cabin Inspirations

If you are thinking of building a cabin, this book is a must. The only way to describe it is as Cabin Porn. I was blown away by the stuff...and incredibly inspired.

I think I have dog eared every page in my copy...

Inside the Park Model

We opted to go with this company because they were the only ones to make 14' wide units. The standard is 12' wide. Now 2' may not sound like much, but it makes a big difference in feel.

Inside the trailer

Vintage Aluminum...

While we were trying to figure out what to put in the mountains, we decided to buy and rehab an 1972 AVION aluminium travel trailer for interim use. Way better than Airstream's! (Just teasing 'streamers)

I love it, but the hubby...not so much. In all honesty, the rehab turned out great, but we just need more room. I guess we are just not good campers. We are going to bring it down off the mountain to DC and sell it :-(.

Park Units

Park Units are small pre-fab units typically marketed to retirees in Fla and Ariz. They are not more than 400 SF. I don't know the exact reason why.. I have been told it is for tax purposes.
A few manufacturers are making them out of solid wood logs for the park and cabin market. We are going to start with two of them and trick them out for us......

Finally Underway..

We have some land in WV that we have been trying to build a summer house for 3 years. We finally have a solution and now need to find people to help us get the work done.

After 3 years we have accomplished: Not much. We have a fence and gate section and a shed. Ta Da!

I hope to monitor and track everything thru this blog and see how far we get. We are going with PreFab Park Model Log Cabin Units out if a small company in Indiana. We are customizing them for our needs and will go from there.