Modern Prefab House Construction Update And Off-grid Prefab Homes As Rentals

 

First, I hope you are well.

I have an update on one of our modern prefab homes on the West Coast, and a question to answer from a potential client, which prompted me to write this, in the hopes it might help others. 

Prefab House Kit Update: The Dogtrot Mod Modified In the Pacific Northwest: Wolftrot Update!

The client, an engineer, wrote in spring that they had not yet moved in but were doing well.

"The SIP building contractor just managed to complete and weather proof the house shell before he cleared off for Xmas, leaving a few still uncorrected minor issues, such as missed caulking in places around the siding.  

We ended up switching to Hardie Products cement and fiber-based siding as the contractor screwed up ordering the siding and the house weather proofing would have been not possible until probably around now!  

...  

And of course it's unpainted so we'll be doing that ourselves.  We've been quoted prices between $4K and $7K but we're not impressed with how houses get painted around here.  Spray guns don't do an adequate job filling crack or tight gaps and you can't tell afterwards for some time if you got ten microns or a tenth of an inch coverage.  It will cost us less than $500 using the best paint available and we'll be comfortable it's well done.  I might have to rent some trestles as mine are too low but, what the heck.

We pretty much ignored the house until a few weeks ago, taking a break from construction stress that was as you noticed getting us down.  Things picked up when thought we'd finally found an electrician we could work with.  The Utility wanted $14,100 to excavate and install a conduit for the power to come from a pole at the top of our lot down to the meter at the house.  I tried to get solar and off the grid contractors to respond with alternative power sources, i.e. solar, batteries and standby generator but I think they only exist in glossy architectural magazines.  No one was interested here in X, particularly in X.  There was one that looked a possibility, a two-woman business located on the X side of X, but they declined to bid.  

So we've bought a tractor with a front loader and a back hoe.

The used 2015 Kubota tractor came from a rental company in northern California.  It cost $13,500 plus another $600 to get it transported up to us.  It took another $100 for minor parts to fix silly problems the rental company was too lazy to correct, but it took a month to get everything sorted.  But we're ahead as the tractor will resell for what we paid for it and we now have a 'free' tractor to use grading and clearing the lot.  Oh, I also added a 'thumb' to the backhoe stick so I was able to pickup large logs and relocate them out of the way.

So after grading the lot down to the anticipated final 'landscaped' level where the trench for the conduit needed to go, I have now been able to excavate the required 40" deep trench.  It extends from the pole to the house where the meter will be installed, a distance of 210', which I calculate amounts to around 30 tons of material just for the trench, let alone all the grading before hand.  The Utility came and replaced their old, weak pole with a taller, stronger one with the necessary transformer atop it almost as soon as I told them I'd bought the tractor.  Now the electrician, that was was supposed to be available last Friday to complete the process is "unavailable' until April 28th!  Now I may just order the Siemens distribution and meter boxes and install them myself while I'm waiting.  I'm under the impression that an 'licenced' electrician has to sign off on the electrical work before a building inspector can sign off as well but ...  I'm begining to have my doubts about that.  I'm told that here in Oregon a home owner can do any work on a new home or remodel themselves.  They do need to get a building inspector to sign off each critical feature but I'm told they will do that for a 'civilian' constructor.  I'm now researching that heavily.

I've always hated electrical outlets that result in electrical plugs protruding so furniture can't be placed close to walls.  So, for that reason, and to eliminate having to cut holes into the SIP insulation, except where it's required for water intrusion safety (bathrooms, toilets and the laundry) I intend to install recessed, flush mount electrical receptacles in the floor wherever we would otherwise have wall sockets.  The ones I plan to use allow two plugs to be inserted below the flush floor level, leaving just the wire coming out through a small opening.

Lastly, for now, I did manage to get a framer to come and build out the interior walls for us.  I could do that myself but the alignment of walls has a huge effect on the internal appearances if I were to screw something up.  Besides, he helped with the SIP framing and we were very impressed his workmanship then.  He came and installed the front decking last week (I'll be doing the rear decking myself) and got started on the interior before he left Friday.  He's back now and expects to complete the entire interior structures this week.  Pictures of that to follow.

I have to say that despite the stress we're enjoying the results so far.  It's fun to refine the design as we go along, within reason, as we better understand just how we want "our" house to be."

Thank you Wolftrot for your update! I appreciate it very much!!!

Maintaining An Off-Grid Prefab House, Away

No way around it, if you are planning to be off-grid, yet away during the day, during the workweek, if you are thinking about using our prefabs for an off grid house rental business... you will not be able to do so comfortably on "a bare minimum solar system + wood heat."

Good news is that our prefab homes start you on the path to off-grid success: a passive solar design to embrace the winter sun (and keep its direct rays out, in summer), the energy-efficiency of the SIP in the prefab house. 

But when temperatures plummet, that wood stove needs to be fed.

If you can work from home like I, that's easy! 

The stove gets the house toasty, the foundation warms, the SIP hold in the heat. 

But if I leave? 

Albeit slowly, the temperature will drop.

The slab will cool.

It takes effort and time to regain heat, lost.

You will need a much larger solar system, to power thus heat your house.

Like so many off-gridders, you might embrace a (usually propane) gas solution, not a great off grid method if you want to truly be independent.

And: adding smart home devices to monitor and notify you of failures today is a given. 

If you are considering a prefab house (or any home) as an off-grid rental, I would absolutely consider the liabilities of letting renters work with indoor fire. It's not that it's not done. But you should certainly have that as a secondary, minimal reliance heat. What I experienced myself when we rented a cute cottage years ago at the Greenbrier is that we were forbidden to light the fire, but could add to it via a small stack of wood. 

If *I* were to rent our off grid prefab house during winter, at a minimum I would...

• similarly forbid the lighting of the fire, because who knows WHAT they would do ("Hey let's toss gasoline on, that'll start it, quick!")
• provide a sign, conspicuously posted, AND give a personal demonstration of the flue / lifting the lid to access the firebox, "dos and don'ts"... even then, imagine someone mistakenly dropping your firebox lid and it breaking! Eeep! How would you even fix that, locally? If you're gonna mess with wood stoves, you'd better have "oops" plans ready!
• only have smallish to small-medium pieces of wood, stacked, with big lectures of not stuffing the firebox and when it's okay or not ok to add wood ("Please do not add wood if the oven is above 350, as that might jump the firebox exceedingly." I mean, WE know what is safe / how much is safe to add at 350, but they don't, do you want to chance it?).
• schedule a "Good morning we are here to re-light your fire" visit for them each morning.

What are your thoughts? How might you handle this? Would you take it on?

Back To Our Own Prefab House And Life Off-Grid... 

Ahhhhh this… year.
Annually, I make a Christmas calendar for the grandparents, snapshots of family moments over the year. By Thanksgiving I am *panicked* and frantically trying to pull it all together, sifting through thousands of photos to paste together one collage for each month.

Any year, it’s hard.
This year?
Would you?!?

I obviously decided not to do it *this* year.

But Handsome Husband asked how it was going, as he does annually,
and when I broke the news 

right before the holidays
that *maybe* this was the year to simply purchase a gift, 
he flipped.

So
I began
the Christmas calendar.

Know what?
Despite EVERYTHING,
as I went through every month
to my surprise
there were 
smiles.
Enough of them.

In Closing, On Our Own Prefab House from Green Modern Kits Project:

We are nearing 15 years since our own prefab house construction, and with this beautiful snow I'm noticing how beat up and muddy our doors and some areas of the cladding are... hey, we play rough in this family! 

I'm thinking maybe in spring with the kids now older I will repaint doors, do some landscaping, and spiff up the exterior a little. 

To be, always, continued!

Modern Prefab Cabin Project News: Wolftrot Update from Green Cabin Kits!

Our own off grid passive solar prefab house from
Green Cabin Kits's sister site, Green Modern Kits.

Yes, we are extremely overdue on prefab house construction project updates from Green Cabin Kits!

There are a lot, so let's take it over a few prefab house construction posts instead of all at once.

As I have mentioned, I used to post all the time, but have lost my joy of writing.
Not because of work, but because...
we're in the teen years.

Teen 1 and Teen 2 are great,
doing well, flourishing...
but they're teens.

(However, I did get a few pictures of them smiling! Here you go:)

Ok fine he's super cute...

She's cute too...

But they're... teens.
So... I don't feel like writing!

Thankfully, our wonderful clients are interesting, kind, and happy to provide us the words for the next few Green Cabin Kits prefab house posts!

Let's start with the prefab modern home in the Pacific Northwest, then next up will be the Arizona CornerHouse, then the Dogtrot Mod underway in Austin, and then an update on the Lake Tahoe projects, and on.

Without further ado, I present updates on our *modified* Dogtrot Mod in the pacific northwest, Wolftrot, from my favorite English-engineer-moved-to-the-USA-once-lived-in-a-castle-now-wants-a-prefab couple!

For reference, you can see the original prefab modern cabin house Dogtrot Mod, here.

This update is in two parts, one from April, one from June.

The clients were encountering delays because of site-specific issues like grading challenges, and local material challenges. Let's start with the local material challenge: CONCRETE.

On a sloping lot, with a desire for slab -and- a half basement, our clients have run into some concrete vendor and application issues, one of them being that a British company has purchased all the local concrete plants and, upon taking ownership, significantly increased concrete costs.

So they were looking at alternatives.

We are always interested in green building solutions to construction dilemmas.
In our own prefab home, we used fly-ash to offset our concrete's carbon footprint.

Our own prefab house is on slab.

Some green building alternatives to concrete foundations include

• rubble trench foundation
• frost protected shallow foundation
• screw pile foundation

 From SmartCities Dive:
"Screw piles also take a lot less time to install and this makes for a shorter project time. In turn, they also require far fewer people to install than a traditional foundation. Fewer people means less energy required and a lower carbon foot print.
...
The process is also safer than the one used to install a concrete foundation, which means there is less risk for the work force. Of course, the reduced costs of all of the aforementioned is also something that needs to be mentioned.

Concrete foundations do have their place, however screw piles can be used for a vast amount of the foundation work in modern building. They offer a far more eco-friendly alternative to the traditional methods and are also lower in cost and thus have become increasingly popular in the last decade or so."

They are also looking at creative solutions for their grading challenges to make them financially feasible.

The cool green building solution items of note is that, my client states,

"First, I believe I've found a grader that will provide a better lot contour that will reduce the need for importation of additional materials.  Second, I'm getting a quotation from Goliath Piles for screw pilings to be installed for the building foundations.  This can eliminate all or a significant portion of the concrete required in the construction.  At least one builder we're talking with sees this as having huge potential here in the local market where most homes get built on sand that has historically required concrete raft foundations."

These grading challenges also present added costs with lugging construction materials to the job site, including the SIP.

Now as you know I am totally okay with a client not using SIP *if* they are choosing an energy-efficient, reputable, green building, LEED-embraced solution.

BUT you have to understand comparing apples to apples, and oranges to oranges, if you want your organic fruit salad financial numbers to match!

Boy do I appreciate SIP's energy efficiency
in extreme temperatures!

So if you're considering not using SIP, make sure you not just factor in the material cost "to frame" or "to insulate" but to frame *and* insulate, projected cost savings through efficiency, and even then, how do you guarantee that an alternate insulation method was done correctly and at what R value?

That is why we sell our prefab house kit package as not just the design documents, but design documents hand in hand with SIP, so that you *know* your home will be evenly, consistently, and guaranteed at a good R value, with proven structural integrity.

In June, I received more updates from the Wolftrot project!
"We have now had our well drilled and capped at 260 feet deep.  We are seeing just 3.5 gallons a minute from around 60 feet down but got no more the deeper we went.  The well driller said we could go to 300 feet before risking any increase in salinity despite us only being around 60 feet above seal level and around four miles as the crow flies from the Pacific Ocean.  I decided to stop at 260 as that means we'll have 200 feet of water (26 - 60) down the well which equals around 300 gallons plus whatever we keep in our above ground pressure tank.  I'm thinking we'll go for at least 40 gallons in the tank (i.e. an 80 gallon tank) and perhaps more just to reduce the pump cycles and extend the pump life.  It will be a dollar trade off, depending n the cost of a replacement pump vs the incremental cost of a bigger tank.

Our planned home drawings are about final.
We've had them reviewed by the structural engineers and used their feedback to size the roof beams accordingly.  Now our draftsman is detailing the interior so we can get final price quotations for the interior work.  We're hoping to have the gross numbers in hand in a week or two for the foundations, footings, floor, walls and roof structures, with windows and metal roof and siding included.  We can't quite finalize the deal as we're still trying to get a blasted grader to come and prepare the lot ready for the foundations.  I may have to buy a 4x4 tractor, loader, backhoe and grading attachments and just do it myself!

I'm attaching the latest renderings of the house.
Ignore the colors.
Well, not all of them.

The roof is correct as shown in charcoal grey, the siding will be light grey, the rear trim (frames, sashes, fascias, etc we want mid-grey) and the decking will be stained a dark natural wood color.

At the front M. has insisted we only have the one double door to the sunroom (But I've specified we will have the lintel in place to open the wall up at a later date if I can get away with it.  I'm planning to use Dutch doors (double for the basement and sunroom, single for the entry door) so we can have just the upper panels open with removable glass or bug screen panels depending on the seasons.

I've had the RV barn eliminated from the garage structure to shrink the building outline and give us some options for later modifications.  But I've also had the garage drawn so we can build it quickly using SIPs if the price works out okay.  Getting the structure weatherproof quickly will be a serious consideration given the heavy rain historically starts in October.

We visited the metal roof and siding manufacturer last week and saw the various grades and designs.  It was well worth the trip.  We both feel better about the quality of the materials and the finishes.  I've been wanting to add a flash of color on the siding around the front of the guest room structure to 'break up' the amount of grey.  M. balked at using red barn as a shade on vertical steel siding.  I then tried a light yellow which she though better but balked at the vertical siding panels.  At the manufacturer, we saw how they had cleverly covered their large structure with roofing and siding panels in very creative ways and M. liked it!  Now I just have to get her to sit down with me and agree how we're going to create the visual break I want.  We'll get there.

The problem is I want to color the dutch door panels (not the braces) with the same color we use for the contrast on the guest house.  BTW, the trim will all be white in the front of the house.  My idea is that the rear of the structure will be modern NW style contemporary while the front is more rural/craftsman style.  We've even figured out how to create a front porch over the front deck and entryway that M. wanted.

You can expect to see a couple of traditional style rocking chairs on that porch.
I anticipate they will never get used.

That's all for now.  I'll send the pictures soon, after I've added the well drilling shots."

THANK YOU WOLFTROT clients for the updates!
(And don't ever underestimate the power of a good rocking chair! I suspect our sweet clients will find MANY quiet happy moments in them, even as busy as they are!)

I hope you all have a great summer, I promise to post much more over the summer following up on the other prefab house construction project updates.
Meanwhile, here are a few pictures of our summer back-and-for th from the off grid prefab house, to the bay.
: )

And thus, until I post the next prefab construction update (for which I now have MULTIPLE posts so I'd better get writing!), I leave you with... pictures of... teens.

Ok fine THEY are super cute...

They are ALL adorable!
We will get through the cranky teen years!

But we are having fun.

TTFN

(As my English clients say: Taa Taaaaaaaaaa... For Now. : ) )

Ok maybe we'll survive this teen stuff.

Always something to work on...

Now she's working on her Papi.

Lawnmowers working hard... wait.
"Aaaaaaaa! That's my garden!!!"

Anyhoo.

 We'll be back with more prefab house project updates, soon!

 In the meantime, TTFN.

Green Cabin Kits Modern Prefab House Construction Project Updates On Modern Cabins And More!

Sneak peek at a modern prefab house announcement
I can start talking about in the new year!

As usual,  at my own prefab house,
when the temperatures drop
and the cookstove goes out overnight,
off grid with only a tiny firebox
heating the entire prefab house
we still wake comfortably.

At our modern prefab house companies, Green Modern Kits and Green Cabin Kits, we are having a very busy fall and winter. 

Here is a quick update, and I will be going in to each passive solar modern prefab house construction project in much more detail in the coming weeks.

In general, when potential clients ask for SIP fabrication quotes from the factory, I tell them the estimated time for fabrication of the panels is about 4-5 weeks.

Now, even in winter, this year I need to tell them 6-8 weeks, because that's how busy the plants are, east coast or west coast. It's not just the plants; the architects are slammed, the engineers' schedules are full... so if you are planning on purchasing a prefab home, what you need to know is that if you leave things "as is" and don't start customizing anything that would involve an architect or engineer, even so, it will be a few weeks longer than usual.

If you are really reconfiguring the prefab house design, expect much longer than you might think for this time of year, because it seems as if this summer's boom still has not ended and everyone is still going full steam ahead already before your project gets into queue! So my message to interested parties is: PLAN AHEAD. Start interviewing contractors now, not when you actually want the house to be purchased.

Now let's go over our current prefab house projects and a brief synopsis of where they stand:

The Wolftrot

This Dogtrot Mod modern prefab house from Green Cabin Kits has been modified for the Pacific Northwest and the client's lifestyle.

You can follow the Wolftrot prefab construction progress here.

As I mentioned, the clients decided to close in the breezeway between the main and guest units and create a solarium, changed the foundation, roof, and more to accommodate snow load and lifestyle choices.

These European clients have lived allllll over the world and have decided to settle on the west coast.

What makes this client particularly engaging is his quick understanding of the prefab industry, as he has a background in business, engineering, and, with his wife, has lived in architecture as diverse as restoring a hundreds of years old stone home in England, to also having built their own new homes in the States.

They are big fans of SIP, understanding that the consistent quality, energy efficiency and speed in fabrication of the structural insulated panels overcomes the slightly higher upfront price.

This prefab house will be sited discretely on this peaceful property, nestled near surrounding woods and overlooking the lake.

Currently, this project is in engineering.

The Austin Dogtrot Mod

Outside of Austin, this Dogtrot Mod modern prefab house will be a contrast to the Wolftrot in that it will be a standard, push-button prefab house as our architect envisioned. The only divergence from the design is that in order to site the modern prefab house correctly on the lot, the breezeway will be narrowed by four feet in order to remain within the easements of the urban lot, and the roofline raised.

Enjoying Austin with her family.

The client, Amber Gunn, is a savvy entrepreneur in the real estate industry. Here, the Texas native explains how she went from a degree in accounting into her love of real estate!

"While I loved financial analysis and problem solving, I didn't truly love the monotony of accounting.  I was hired as a business development representative for a title company where I mentored and coached realtors.  Early on, I knew that real estate was something I was very passionate about.

I got my real estate license in 2006 and my broker's license in 2008, and I haven't looked back!  I created my own brokerage called Austin Domain Properties in 2008.  As a Dave Ramsey Endorsed Local Provider (REAL ESTATE) and Master Financial Coach, I use my finance expertise to coach my clients in their real estate plans ranging from 1 year to the next 50 years. "

About three years ago, Amber reached out to us for information on a modern prefab house. We scheduled a conference call, and answered some general questions she had. Over time, she kept checking back, and in the fall of 2018 purchased a lot, called, and said, "I'm ready!"
And thus the process began.

Amber and son checking out their
newly-purchased lot.

What a great lot!

Currently this modern prefab house is in the engineering and permitting process, with structural insulated panels due to arrive in two months.

This Austin Texas prefab house project can be followed here.
The project shall be thus called, "La Rancho Pistola."
Amber GUNN you crack me up!!!

There is an R1 Residential modern prefab house on Lake Tahoe project...

Keep an eye on how they flip this floorplan!

A local Tahoe City design firm is adjusting the floorplan in the R1 Residential for the client, and an engineer has been engaged to adjust the roof for snow loads and local code.

The client is a modern design enthusiast, as is the designer.

What makes this prefab project interesting is that the client is flipping the floorplan- the kitchen and dining will be on the SECOND story. They are also building the R1 Residential modern addition.

The 18,000 sf lot is in an extremely restrictive zoning area, with heavy snow.

If you love Lake Tahoe you will love where this prefab is located! But for now, I will stay mum on that. : ) But I *can* reveal... it is on the west shore.

More details on this modern prefab house and project team, in upcoming weeks!

Currently, the quote for this modern prefab house project has been approved, and now moves to engineering, and the client wants to break ground in May.

Remember the R1 Residential Outside of San Francisco?!?
IT HAS BEEN BUILT!!!!

A *modified* R1 Residential
under construction outside San Francisco.

I am hoping to share with you interior and exterior photos very soon!

And finally, we have a Dogtrot Mod in the Northeast update!

The client enjoying the first snow of the year
in her Dogtrot Mod "Little Lab."

This client has been such a joy to work with. If you recall, she built the guest unit of the modern prefab cabin first as a retreat, while still living in her historic farmhouse.

It has finally come time to put her farmhouse on the market, and thus, she wrote that in soon she expects to re-start construction and finish the project.

Of note: she wants to finish with HEMPCRETE.


One thing to note is that a lot of these projects happen only after years of discussion, after many gentle leads turn into, suddenly, a very real project where the client has the loan, the lot is purchased, contractor lined up, and suddenly out of the blue I get that call that another prefab house is a GO.

Each prefab project and person is fascinating and is its own vibrant journey.  I enjoy learning about every client, their lot's unique character, their life.

In OUR own family and off grid life, as I have mentioned, we are enduring enjoying the persnickety smelly moody aura of teens the high school years.

Ok maybe they're not SO bad...
Ah, the teen years.

Like many families, we are doing too much, and I miss the steady confident-yet-quiet security of homeschooling on the farm, where you worked hard on your studies then spent the afternoons free outdoors. But then again, maybe back then I thought I was overwhelmed, too!

Halloween was great, Thanksgiving was great, with friends and family and even sailor friends reuniting, brushing our hair, and gussying up together.

So the teen years are good.

I just miss our quiet days allllllll together, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, I guess.
The teens don't.
They want REAL SCHOOL and lots of KIDS who are not goats.

And thus, we do city -and- country, but there is no place like (a SIP, prefab) home.

And thus ends my musing and modern prefab house construction project update.
As my English clients say... TTFN!
.
.
.
.
.
.
Taa taa
FOR NOW.
: )