Affordable housing - Page 2

Devin have you read the book I suggested? There are others, but this one is available in a on-line PDF format. The book gets into the plumbing, electrical, ventilation and other structure solutions of a ISBU home. There is also a additional CAD design package for a little extra $$$, not trying to "plug" this mans book, just the more info the better the end product.

Oh no I haven't? I'll have to read it. I thought it costed $. I don't wanna spend $ on a book when all info is online free, but I'll check it out. Thanks

I believe it cost me around $10.00 but not sure. Yes get all of the free info you can! Might try H.S., college, and public libraries they might have this already available on their computers. My mom (after retiring twice now), now works as a HS. librarian and they do purchase on line books on a request basis.

Phew .... there's a lot to consider. You might be getting the cart before the horse.

1: The first thing to look for is a lot of land that's suitable for building. That's probably around 20 k.?

2: Next is earthwork. Things like grading & a driveway. Maybe allocate 5. - 10 k. ?

3: Next is running in electricity. That could vary between 3 - 15 k.

4: Next is water. Either city water or a drilled well. 3 - 15 k. ???

5: Next is sewage. Either city sewer or septic. 3 - 20 k ???

6: Next is a cement foundation. A slab for a container might run 5 k ?

I hate to pee in your Cheerios but you're probably looking at a minimum bid of 40 grand before you could even think of placing a container. Anything having to do with construction is pretty expensive these days. It's hard for a guy just starting out.

Your estimates seen a little high. But I still do understand it will cost a lot of money. First off I have worked with people grading and pouring a driveway and I could easily do it for under 3k. 5k for a slab may be true, but I've decided to instead just put 42" footings in each corner and call it good. Also for electric and plumbing Im thinking about buying a rundown house that's junk and run all that from there, and eventually tear it down whence my container is done. If I do get land with a junk house it will be Aroumd 20k I'm sure. I'll definitally need money, but I'm set on doing this and you can do anything you set your mind on

I agree that it can be done. I think it can be done in stages. For example, if you drive a 4x4 truck, you can skip the driveway for a while.

We have a lot of "two-tracks" out here on the farm. A truck can go down them just fine. When you run into some money, then you can go for gravel or asphalt. Buying yourself 4-6 months of time can make a huge difference!

If you can do some of the work yourself, it can save a ton of money. We have a farm tractor and implements, so we can do a lot of maintenance projects ourselves. Renting a tractor and blade, and hauling your own gravel may end up being cheaper than having someone lay the gravel down.

There are tons of ways to do things on a tight budget. Who knows- maybe you can use some scrap to save money. My couches, dinner table, and my desk all came through scrap.

Stay focused and you'll get there. Having some motivation never hurt anyone, anyways!

Originally Posted by DevinThaScrapper

Your estimates seen a little high. But I still do understand it will cost a lot of money. First off I have worked with people grading and pouring a driveway and I could easily do it for under 3k. 5k for a slab may be true, but I've decided to instead just put 42" footings in each corner and call it good. Also for electric and plumbing Im thinking about buying a rundown house that's junk and run all that from there, and eventually tear it down whence my container is done. If I do get land with a junk house it will be Aroumd 20k I'm sure. I'll definitally need money, but I'm set on doing this and you can do anything you set your mind on

Don't get me wrong Devin ... i'm not trying to discourage you. It's just that the costs for doing things run pretty high these days. It's better to go into it with eyes wide open. That way you have better chances of success.

I'm really not sure on the figures because it's been so long since i've had any call to do any new construction. I know i did a beautiful 12 x 16 home with bath,kitchen,living room and roomy sleeping loft for a total project cost of 35 k. back in 2006. It's some of the nicest work i've ever done. The problem is that construction costs have doubled or tripled since then. Hard to keep a handle on it.

Just some suggestions for a container project for whatever they're worth:

1: When you're working with small spaces inches matter. If you can save a few here & there it makes an important difference.

2: You might see if it's feasible to glue 2" styro to the walls and then glue 3/8" sheetrock to that. That would save you 3" on the eight foot dimension and maybe even give you better thermal performance.

3: You can make up for lack of floor space by adding height. If you went with the taller container it would feel more spacious inside.

4: Solar orientation can save you a ton on heating costs. What you want is the long dimension of the container to have a southern exposure. That way you're picking up solar energy throughout the day. A bit of an overhang on that side will block the summer sun because the sun sits higher in the sky that time of year.

5: What you want to do is bring the "outside in" on that southern side. Lots of glass on one wall makes the small space feel roomy.

6: Use sliding glass doors wherever possible. That way the in swing of the door isn't crowding up valuable floor space. A pocket door for the bathroom is another biggie.

7: You might think about solar electric. You could probably get by well enough with some used equipment and old car batteries. It's mostly for lighting and these new LED lights throw a lot of light with very little power consumption. You could have a generator for those times when you need 110 volts or to recharge your storage batteries.

8: You could bypass the need for sewer & plumbing with an outhouse. Maybe rent a port-a-potty ?

9: Maybe go with propane for a kitchen stove & refrigerator ?

10: Add a deck along the long dimension. ( It's one of the most inexpensive ways of adding floor space.)

11: Have you thought about buying an old Winnebago or RV ? They're mostly self contained and sometimes you can pick them up on the cheap if you find the right seller.

~ Just grist for the mill ~

Yes thank you matador, That's my exact thought on it, and its what I tell anyone that doesn't think I can pull it off. All I need is the bare minimum to get started, than I can add the extras later on. A driveway isn't something I need, top of the line appliances aren't something I need, flooring isn't needed immediately, I can get the inside stuff cheap and even from scrap as someone said.

Also no I haven't considered purchasing an rv or anything on wheels, I really don't want it on wheels. I want some land I can build up from, and have a nice shop on.

Also solar panels are something I am going to put some thought into, also rain water collection and filtration. Although I don't need to be "off the grid" why not save that small amount of money each month by not relying on an electric company and water company, although I will also need to consider times when it doesn't rain, winter, and a lot more.

Pocket door idea is also great, I will be doing that on bedroom and bathroom doors for sure. And I'm going to have a large window over the counter and huge french doors to bring in natural light.

The styrofoam is an intresting concept as well, but I was wondering how the R's compare to insulation, so here's what I found: Some of the more expensive syrofoam only gets like 6-9 r value.

Anything can be done. 5 years ago, I drove a 1992 Dakota with a failing transmission, front end issues, and a door that wouldn't open from the inside.

If you told me that 5 years later, I'd own a business, drive an Audi, and be happy going to work, I'd have called you nuts.

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As i said, I knew a couple who lived in a school bus. That is no larger than what you're doing. You may have to get creative with space, but it can be done.

My first office is only 11' long on the longest wall. I was able to cram an entire computer shop in there. I had a lot of shelving, but it worked. By raising your bed up, you could gain storage space underneath. By wall mounting your TV, you could gain space for a table below....

It can definitely be done. Just keep your eyes on the prize, and make sure you have some extra money set aside in case something goes wrong.

Live your dreams, the lights go out only when you stop pursuing your dreams!

here are some pics
https://www.google.com/search?q=cont...w=1280&bih=667

Cool pics wavecrazed. Looks like one is only limited my their imagination with those containers.

Originally Posted by IdahoScrapper

Back when I was living in an apartment and had a shipping container at my parents for tear downs, I wanted to see what I could do to minimize how hot it got in there. I came across this. Before I got around to seeing if it was effective, I bought a house with a garage and sold the container.

That's an awesome product. I've applied it several times. Its pricey but less than conventional insulation.

these pole barn ideas are great

I looked Around on their website, how much would one of those cost to build?