I found a few websites about this fellow, Jay Shafer, who lives in an 96 foot square house. I wouldn’t want a house quite that small, but a tiny little shack would be nice for a lot where I’m looking to put up a cottage.
Now, the book Mr. Shafer is hustling claims that he has no prior construction experience, and he managed to put together a working house. I come from a construction family, but having two left hands myself, I doubt my own ability to put together anything that would stand up to, say, a gentle breeze.
Has anyone on here tried one of these plans, or building a comparable house/cottage/four wall edifice themselves? How much in terms of woodworking or other varieties of building skills do you have? How hard was it? Would I, who was pretty so-so with arts and crafts in grade school, fare well trying to put together a house?
We were going to build a house, but a variety of circumstances led us to buy this one instead. Having done a bajillion remodels plus helping my inlaws build 2 of their houses, I know we have the skills. Based on my remodel experience, I think the most important skills are accurate measuring and using a level. I also watch a lot of HGTV, so I’ve learned things here and there.
We’re about to build a 700 sq ft workshop - not the same as a house since it won’t have plumbing or nice trim finishes, but the basics are all there. I expect the hardest part will be the lifting and carrying - we’re not as young as we used to be.
I’ve built three hunting camps; the first is still standing and being used (IE solid and habitable) after 30 years. Number One was actually easiest although it was done entirely with hand tools because it involved no electric or plumbing. The last was toughest because it had both after a fashion but no problem with codes.
FCM - do it Amish style and build as much as possible on the ground and then block and tackle it into place. That saves a lot of strain on older backs like ours.
I’ve seen a more recent interview, and he no longer lives in the tiny house. He got married and they have a child, so they live in a slightly larger house, and have one of his Tumbleweed homes next to it. This video mentioned that it was a propane heater.
That said, I could build a house. My brother had an unfinished basement on one of his houses, and we built an apartment for me. I did the design, the carpentry, the heating and air conditioning and re-wired the whole house, upgrading it from 60 amps to 200.
My brother is a Master Plumber, so he did all of that, upgrading the house to 3/4" piping and putting in a recirculating pump for instant hot water. We have such great pressure that I can wash clothes, my niece (the tenant upstairs) can also wash clothes and can also take a shower without getting scalded.
The hardest work was digging the stairs for the outside entrance and digging a trench around the walls to out in a French Drain system with a battery backed up sump pump system so it’s perfectly dry.
The only parts we subcontracted were the wallboard and plastering, the tile and the counter tops for the kitchen.
The only part of a full house that I have not done are exterior walls and roofing.
My father built a house in Detroit in the early 20’s mostly by himself including digging out the basement. Later in life he built a sailboat. All of this was without power tools of any king.
PS> My father was in high school when he started with the basement.
Today the building requirements are to complex to do it alone. Certainly as a general contractor it’s completely possible as many people do.
I’m very familiar with all aspects of home building. I could build a home to local code without much issue.
Certainly aspects of home building I’d refuse to do however. I won’t do concrete work, I avoid most types of flooring, won’t do finished stairs, and I avoid any substantial amount of dry walling.
I bet I could, and it’s a dream of mine. I built a shed but I framed, sheathed and roofed it like it was a house; it didn’t have plumbing, electricity or insulation but I’ve done a lot of each of those in my own home. I’ve never poured a foundation but I’m pretty sure I could manage it.
Yes. The husband and I have done a lot of renovations and a few additions, and I’m confident we could build a semi-complex house with the skills and tools we have.
No way! I designed mine from modifying a free plan on the internet, it’s 18 x 18 and six foot of that is a gallery downstairs, so living area downstairs is 18 x 12, upstairs with 5ft walls is one big bedroom, 18 x 18. It’s little and large! I got two carpenters to put most of it together, no doubt I could build it, but it would be wonky and I would probably not be living in it yet!.
I could do it, and I daresay anyone could. The thing about modern tools is they remove the need for skill to a large extent. With a chopsaw, for example, anyone can get a nice 90-degree cut. With a handsaw, not so much. And with most of the wood you’d need to build a house, a chopsaw is what you’d use to size it.
The issue isn’t so much skill as it is having time at your disposal, and a cloak of invisibility as far as your local building department is concerned.
I can barely put Legos together, but I live in a Sears house, which means that 80 years ago it was built by some idiot like me who ordered building materials from a catalog. It leaks heat and coolth like you wouldn’t believe, but otherwise it seems to have survived.
A 96 foot square house would be just under 10,000 square feet.
I think you meant to say a 96 square foot house. Unless, of course, the guy built a really large house.
And yes I could. I wouldn’t because since retiring I’ve become adverse to anything that smacks of hard work.
Man, I’m constantly getting my chops busted for spelling and grammar on here! Doesn’t help that I can’t go back and edit my post now if I tried! :rolleyes:
I mean theoretically, yes… it’s just that some of the jobs require a certified professional, and some things are a bit of a chore to do alone; sure, I could do the electrical work, but I’m not legally allowed to, and fitting a window… or a door generally does require more hands than I currently have. Not to mention the foundation work being a real bitch to do solo.
I think anyone could do it… it’s not exactly rocket surgery; you’ve got instructions, and if you mess up, you go buy some more material and try again until you get it right. Oh… if you’re new to tool use, or building stuff in general, stay away from drywall… it’s easy to mess up.
Btw… 96 square feet? But… that’s… 6ish square meters? So… about the size of my sauna? And someone LIVES there?
