The Log house Project begins........

[MotorSeven]

This is a very interesting thread. Although I won't build a house for a few years yet it still makes me want a log home on a hill. I am wondering though, is your tractor on site yet?

Yep, having to BB the driveway after the trucks go up. I used it yesterday to carry a 12' lintel up to the site. I will be hauling water for the block layers today & setting that lintel when they get 9' up on the wall.
Pic's tonight...

Also, another quote from Backwoods solar....27K. I have decided to abandon the solar route and concentrate on building something to generate power off my creek that runs past the house. It's 35' bank to bank, lot's of flow, zero head, subject to flood(8-10'). I just see all that power going by 24/7 and will build something to harness it. What I envision as a prototype is a 55 gal drum with a rod thru the center on bearings. Fins welded to the sides & a generator on one side. The whole thing built on a cradle that can be lifted up out of the creek during flood stages. A "V" shaped weir in the creek would just concentrate the flow into a shute, forcing the water into the fins, spinning the drum on the surface of the rapid.
It won't cost much in time or materials to build it and try, then I go from there based on the results. Commercial hydro units are available and they are cheap($1,500) but require some type of head. I surveyed the creek and found it only drops 2.5' every 600'......very little head.

RD

 

[MotorSeven]

Danno, this pic is for you....!

 

[boxygen]

Motor-Seven,
Do you get frost in that Part of Tenn? Here in Maine, we get deep frost 3-4 feet and even the best blockwork foundation would crack and evenually cave in with backfill against it. Nobody does them that way here anymore. It seems they tried it that way mid century and quickly realized it doesnt last here. Im alway curious to see the regional construction methods. My grandfather lives in Ohio and all the foundations are block out there and it seems they get frost also. When I asked why dont they pour concrete, the response I got was they dont have an endless supply of stone and sand like here in New England and as good access to portland cement, making concrete more expensive. There are batch plants everwhere here, no problem getting concrete. Just curious

 

[Danno1]

Danno, this pic is for you....!

Thanks, that's amazing!

.

 

[MotorSeven]

Box, our freeze line is only a few inches deep. Lot's of block basements and foundations here. If the footers are done right, then they will last. I wll be pouring the 12" blocks so it should be pretty stout.

RD

 

[Johndeere3720]

What about pictures of you working on your tractor? Im sure those would be appreciated by the readers. I myself am a little curious myself on what your tractor set up looks like.

 

[dave1949]

Whew, your mason is making good time! Are you going to cantilever a deck out over the drop off?

$28K sounds awful expensive for a grid-tied system. I haven't priced them out in several years, but seems high to me. A 4KW system is fairly large for a regular house with gas range/oven, dryer, water heater etc. I don't know if you use AC, that would be a big summer drain.

When you have nothing else to do , an electric energy audit is a good place to start if you are still interested.

Dave.

 

[woodlandfarms]

You said you were considering Solar.. I am a green nut, but I also love my wallet. The general consensus with the people I know is that Solar is the future, but the future is not quite yet here. 25 to 30 K is not an abnormal price, and maybe in 5 years with more manufacturing you are going to see a 20 to 30% drop in price. But the general consensus is you will not see the profit back from this system before the system wears out.

You get a bigger bang from your buck by pursuing systems that help in heating and cooling (the large energy user in a home). Insulation, Geothermal, wood (grumble), solar smarts when building the home (Position of windows, use of natural breezes).

You said you are near a stream, any chance of using it instead (we cannot up in WA due to the environmental issues).

 

[EddieWalker]

Seeing the block going up, I'm even more curious how you will seal it up. For the life of me, I don't see how it's possible.

Eddie

 

[dave1949]

You said you were considering Solar.. I am a green nut, but I also love my wallet. The general consensus with the people I know is that Solar is the future, but the future is not quite yet here. 25 to 30 K is not an abnormal price, and maybe in 5 years with more manufacturing you are going to see a 20 to 30% drop in price. But the general consensus is you will not see the profit back from this system before the system wears out.

You get a bigger bang from your buck by pursuing systems that help in heating and cooling (the large energy user in a home). Insulation, Geothermal, wood (grumble), solar smarts when building the home (Position of windows, use of natural breezes).

You said you are near a stream, any chance of using it instead (we cannot up in WA due to the environmental issues).

I agree off-grid solar only makes economic sense where power is not available or only available at a high price. About the time you get close to breaking even, it's time for a new set of batteries. An inverter repair or two can put you even further behind.

Grid-tied can make economic sense if you have reasonable amounts of unobstructed sunlight and your local power company provides net metering.

Most states have tax credits too for either off-grid or grid-tied. Conservation is the key, as you said.
Dave.