What's your dream house?

Barring that, a more aesthetically pleasing version of Marvin's underground house from "Red".

 

@ditch witch. You know there is no bacon on that island? =)

 

Just coz pigs can't fly don't mean they can't swim.

 

Lol instant refrigerator!

 

Concrete monolithic dome homes look nice and are very sturdy.

 

Simple math. House half the size of the garage/workshop and garage/workshop half the size of the barn. Oh yeah, and a Sauna house by the lake.

 

I'm lucky that we do have 3 phase running along the main road and have been giving serious thought to it, but have been told that unless you use a certain amount every month, it's much higher than single phase. Jury's still out on this one.

 

Then again, what do you plan on running with 3 phase?

 

Welder, engine lathe, Vert Mill? A lot of used equipment can be picked up cheap at auctions because they are 3 phase compared to the single phase stuff. Just not sure yet if it'd be worth it in the long run.

 

Only 3 phase I have is a Monarch Lathe. Conversions are around to use single phase on the 3 phase motors. A little loss in efficiency but they work well. I rounded up a single phase motor and converted it when I left the Big City.

Cheap at first but just try and find a new/used motor for that gear if it fails, breaks the bank. Motor Starters cost lots more as well as fuses/breakers etc.

 

Paid in full - lol

 

It depends on how much you have to spend. If you're going to have two or three hundred thousand to spend, I'd build a high-efficiency home that has good solar exposure, R45 insulation, and both wood and oil-based backup heating. You could even explore earthwork construction, where some or most of the home is buried, to take advantage of the thermal inertia of the ground.

The payback on such houses is less than ten years at current oil price levels, less for electric heat. In return, you get a BIL which won't require any fuel for ten months of the year (depending on your latitude).

William Warren

 

Bit of an update.
We are in the new house, and while there are many things that need to be finished, after a lot of work and money we are here
I would like to thank everyone who posted their ideas and suggestions. They were/are a BIG help and we have incorporated several of them into this new place. Thanks again Monkeys you RULE!!

 

Well, @Motomom34 already leaked pics of my new Bar B Q...

 

Did you have a man's restroom put in your new place? I know it's not a priority, just a guy thing.

 

OK, folks I need to chime in again with another 2 cent donation!
I bought this little cement mixer and it makes cob fast! at $10 a yard for red clay-sand and $100 delivery appr. you can get enough dirt and a mixer, to build a cob house for less than a thousand dollars and will never have to dance in the mud. This was the big turn off for me as I watched the Vid's on cob.
For one thing I don't want 20 people coming to help me, it's fine if your a hippy that's want's to dance around the fire with your friends , but I am Not! (no offence to you hippies). All I could think about was There Has To Be A Better Way! There is!
20' x 40' equals 120 linear feet feet times 8' high = 960 square feet of wall surface
divided by 3.5 square feet per load = 275 loads of Cob x 5 minutes per load = 22 hours of mixing + about 3 days of installation but lets just say 10 days for the less ambitious among'st us.(Or old, like me)!
That's not only do-able, but dirt cheap! The most expensive part will be your roof, but that can be done with pallet wood, flooring glue and Pond liner for about $500-$700 for the pond liner, then cover with soil for insulation and plant it to stop erosion.
So for less than $2,000 you have a living space the size of a double wide mobile home!
Just don't forget to incorporate your rocket stove/cooktop and heater into your design as you build, it will be much easier than doing it later.
Oh yeah, I almost forgot, you have to dig down 2' x 2' wide and come above surface by 18" to 2 feet as a foundation, this can be done with concrete rubble or rocks or just form it, and pour it, probably another $3-400.00

 

@Gopherman nice job!..... are you thinking post SHTF or now? Where I live, even in more remote counties, the foundation wont meet building code but maybe where you are it will. Post SHTF it wont matter.

 

Most states you can circumvent that with the "Cabin Clause". Once you hook up City Power or Water, you open the Bureaucratic Can Of Worms! If you go Solar not a prob. if you go composting toilet no prob., but I am going to put a septic system in anyway, It's a crappy job but someone has to do it!

 

I did not know that thanks @Gopherman

and of course you are putting ina double septic tank right?