Sunday, February 21, 2016

Post 19 (Feb. 21)-What a Beautiful Shed!


Our house backs up to a bike path, and recently we've overheard many passersby comment on the house.  Most notably, someone recently said, "Wow, what a beautiful shed!" as she rode by on a mountain bike.  We chuckled.  People really must think that we are crazy.  And, they're probably right.

We've had a productive almost two months since I last wrote. Most visually exciting, certainly, is that most of the exterior siding is up! As you can see in the picture above, we also installed the porch lights and trimmed the little window above the door. The exterior siding has transformed the house in the most amazing way--it went from construction project to luxury mountain cabin in a series of weeks.

I'm sure the next thing you're thinking is, "WOW! You guys must be almost done!" Well... The exterior is mostly done, and now we are turning our attention inward.  Before we can do the interior walls we must finish the electrical (wiring's not been done yet) and get the insulation done.  So... we are closer than we've ever been before, but we're not there yet.

That's been my big lesson recently.  For months, I'd been so focused on getting the tiny house done that I became frustrated when things took a longer than I thought they should, and frustrated that this project has gone on for more than a year now.  That frustration seeped into other areas of my life, as lessons we must learn often do.  I'm not sure what shook me out of that frame of mind, but one Sunday, instead of rolling up my sleeves somewhat grumpily, I stepped outside into the February sun, marveled at the house we had built, smiled at Kacey, and thought, "What a phenomenal adventure we've undertaken together." I'm thankful that I've come around :)

Life has a funny way of keeping us in check--humbling us when we're feeling untouchable, supporting us in moments of freefall, or grounding us in moments of unsteadiness.  What a crazy gift it is, to be alive.

Here's the breakdown of what we've been up to:

  • We drilled holes and plumbed the wires for the A/C unit. This was fun! Fun in the, "we hadn't thought we'd be able to do this ourselves, but we did it!" way.  If it weren't for our neighbor and friend with a corded drill, we might be telling a very different story about this! 
  • We installed the toilet vent, ensuring that it is secured for travel, but still serviceable if necessary.
  • We got the siding up on the first level.  We're waiting to do the dormer siding until a few things are fixed with the roof. Barth Roofing did an amazing job, and are being very patient with our request to make a few adjustments.  We appreciate their commitment to out tiny house!
  • In the last blog post, I mentioned that we chose and paid for a solar system...it arrived!  I was surprised to see just how large solar panels are, and how heavy the batteries are!
  • We are nesting the battery bank under the trailer just as we did the water tank.  Kacey designed and built a "battery tray." A genius design that protects and insulates the batteries, seals them and allows for basic servicing.  He really is so inventive.
  • 2/3 Trim around the tiny window :)
  • We have LED lights for the house and LED strip lights that will cascade up the ceiling for ambient light. We purchased the RGBW version, meaning that we can choose which color we have.  Since the ceiling will be white, can you imagine how crazy it will look when the lights are colored?  The whole house will totally transform!
Up next:
  • Slight roof modification
  • Dormer exterior siding
  • Electrical wiring
  • Insulation (spray insulation for the walls to increase structural support, and sheep's wool on the ceiling to allow for venting)
  • Interior walls :)
Alright alright, I know you're only here for the pictures.  Thanks for tuning in!

The HVAC pipes--the white ones.  
Kacey bent the copper pipes to connect them to the A/C fan.  So skilled, he is.
Super excited about the siding!
In order for the siding to fit correctly around the outlet, we had to put some plywood the thickness of the furring strips around the box.   
Such attention to detail. 
Little by little...
The inverter (next to the stool for size comparison) is surprisingly heavy.  This will be installed inside the house in the wall next to the washing machine.
YAY!
This is the battery tray that Kacey designed.
The horizontal pieces of wood separate the batteries from one another.  The center hole allows for access to the batteries.
This is what it looks like when it's underneath the trailer.
Suspended with all thread rods.
The siding on the passenger side of the house. 
The porch lights, the electrical boxes, the siding.
We also installed magnetic doorstops to 1) prevent the doors from slamming into the porch lights and 2) keep the doors from slamming shut if it gets windy.
Welcome to our home!
The driver's side of the house.
We also installed a vent for the bathroom fan.
A close-up of the toilet vent.

The sun is rising on a tiny future!
Before the porch lights are installed.  The square blocks allow the porch lights to sit vertically.  If they'd been installed on the siding, they would have been tilted back because of the angle of the shiplap siding.