Off Grid Cabin Design.

[TeeDee]

Thinking of more of a classic A-Frame style ( maybe with a full height dormer on one side ) built around commonly sourced standard length materials from builders yards.

Needs to be compact but usable but not feeling like living in a box kennel.

Something like this.

 

[Robbi]

any fish in that pond Keith ?

 

[Jared]

There are some nice looking glamping/camping pods, not seen any plans publicly available though.

 

[TeeDee]

There are some nice looking glamping/camping pods, not seen any plans publicly available though.

Thats the kinda thing i'm thinking of.

 

[bearbait]

I remember reading about a family, many years ago, that built their home from two polytunnels, a smaller one inside the larger. They used and packed all sorts of stuff between the two "skins" to insulate the inner tunnel. Don't know about condensation on the inner. And can't remember which country they were in re climate. But this could be a relatively cheap "den". Not light inside, though, due to the insulation but I'm sure prior design could provide for the odd window here and there. Even a stove with flue.

 

[Bishop]

There's a film/documentary about Lance Mackey (four time winner of the Iditarod sled dog race) up in Fairbanks Alaska where he talks about stuffing the walls of the cabin he built for the family with old clothing & bedding scavenged from wherever he could get it.

 

[FerlasDave]

Two out of the four sides to my workshop have been insulated with a load of bubble wrap my wife got from deliveries at her workplace.

 

[Jared]

Ben Law used hay bales for his home. https://ben-law.co.uk/

 

[Madriverrob]

These are manufactured near me in Yorkshire , not sure of sizes and costs but they do look cool....

Account Suspended

 

[demographic]

Ben Law used hay bales for his home. https://ben-law.co.uk/

One thing to consider with strawbale construction is making sure no pests can get into it or you might have basically just made the walls into a big rat home.

I'm not saying it can't be done, just that its worth taking the time to do it right.
Also you always have to keep it dry so up off the ground, large roof overhang so the rain doesn't reach the walls and look after the rainwater gutters.

 

[Woody girl]

If I had the money, I'd love to have a barbecue cabin. It has a central bbq area and 3 pull down beds. They are gorgeous to look at outside being hexagonal, and so cosy inside. I've been in one, and love it. But they are very expensive. Most of them have the option to customise.
I'm so sorry I can't post a link, I just dont know how but a google of barbecue cabin will give you several suppliers. The one I fell in love with is made by a somerset firm in Norton fitzwarren.,I think, if I remember correctly.
They are based on a traditional Scandinavian design, and indeed, I have seen identical looking ones in sweden..only from the outside sadly.
If you can't afford one, and are talented, perhaps you could build your own.

 

[TLM]

Well here they are sometimes called "nut cabins" not because one goes nuts in them but because the cross section is that of a nut ... (called grill cabins too).

Not very difficult to build if one is even a half way builder. Come to think of it there might be plans on the net for the ones the government organization uses.

 

[TeeDee]

Well here they are sometimes called "nut cabins" not because one goes nuts in them but because the cross section is that of a nut ... (called grill cabins too).

Not very difficult to build if one is even a half way builder. Come to think of it there might be plans on the net for the ones the government organization uses.

Can you do a search for Finnish Nut Cabin please? I'm a bit concerned what my computer will come back with and how the authorities will deem it legal/illegal.
:0

 

[TLM]

Can you do a search for Finnish Nut Cabin please? I'm a bit concerned what my computer will come back with and how the authorities will deem it legal/illegal.

Nothing illegal. I looked the page here where I have found them previously but they are updating all the drawings and nothing is up now. I have no idea how long to wait for them to come up again. You can find commercial solutions when you look for "grillikota" and pics.

 

[FerlasDave]

One thing to consider with strawbale construction is making sure no pests can get into it or you might have basically just made the walls into a big rat home.

I'm not saying it can't be done, just that its worth taking the time to do it right.
Also you always have to keep it dry so up off the ground, large roof overhang so the rain doesn't reach the walls and look after the rainwater gutters.

I’d agree with you there. There have been a few attempts around here in sunny north wales that have ended up rotting due to poor weather conditions when building. Maybe in the south of England but anywhere else they might not be worth the hassle.

Shame too as it’s such and environmentally friendly building material.

 

[TLM]

Well, one could use unfired clay bricks too. In Hungary and surroundings there are probably tens of thousands of clay buildings. Made usually from clay mixed with straw, needles, sand, etc. there is a book describing them (Miklós Mednyánsky, Vályoghazák), so far I have found it only in Hungarian. There are a few existing clay houses in Finland, in southern Estonia there are a lot more. An Esthonian booklet also exists, in Estonian only I am afraid, it is from 1930s.

 

[FerlasDave]

That sounds similar to our cob? Clay and straw mixed together usually on a sheet with bare feet!

 

[TLM]

The ones I have seen had "pure" clay used not just any earth. Apparently in Hungary it was always first formed into bricks that were dried in the sun before construction, not just packed or pasted into walls. I lived in one clay house in Hungary for a few weeks and it had the property of keeping inside temp remarkably constant.

 

[TeeDee]

How much to build a Tiny Cabin? - YouTube

 

[slowworm]

He's already been mentioned on this thread but I stumbled across this today and was worth a watch.

Kris Harbour Natural Building - 5 Years Living Off Grid Building A Sustainable Smallholding