Thinking of building a small one room cabin at home then trailering to a site and assembling it there. So it would be walls, truss' etc.
I have the trailer to accomplish this. I am not a builder. But with some research I am pretty sure I could do.

Thinking 12x16' up to maybe something on the large side as 16x24'.

Not to worried about the plumbing or electrical. Most stuff would be propane. Lights, fridge, heating. Probably a tiny woodstove.

I would most likley some sort of post foundation to erect the cabin on.

I would probably do the walls out of 2x6". on 16" centers. Do the truss' out of 2x6 also. I would insulate. Metal roof. 3 windows and a door.
Maybe a 4' extended porch on it.


If you have done this or have building in your background I would love some thoughts.

I have a buddy with a sawmill. So i can get the 2x6 pretty cheaply. I can also get 1x for flooring and siding from him. I would just need sheeting, windows and a door. Plus hardware.
I am thinking I can do for $4k total including the foundation.

Seeking advice. Thanks guys.

No, but it sounds interesting, many of the off grid build videos/tv shows I see them using a shipping container. Always thought it would be a good thing to start with, 10, 20 or 40 x and build off it, porch, etc.

Yes HRK, I don't think I could buy a shipping container for $4-5K and then start converting in to some kind of living structure. What I am proposing would make a lot more financial sense and look like a really nice cabin.

What do you think you are gaining by building the walls then trailering them to the site vs trailering the materials and building the walls onsite?

16 x 24 for 4 grand ? Good luck with that one!

https://www.google.com/url?sa=...3rR3zoV&opi=89978449

I bought a 16 x 32 and it cost me $18K delivered when Covid screwed with material prices. That did not include groundwork nor sheetrocking or insulation, electrical or any plumbing..

It also needed a pilot car escort as it was over 12' wide, which was extra.

quote:

Originally posted by trapper189:
What do you think you are gaining by building the walls then trailering them to the site vs trailering the materials and building the walls onsite?

Access to power tools, table saws, anything in the shop needed to construct the walls and not have to pack it up to drag to the site, store for longer time, ability to work in evenings with lights, power, access to a working bathroom, emergency services, fridge with lots of cold beer....

Didn't realize the containers were that expensive, guess with all the COVID, interest rates, inflation and higher demand they've gone up in price!

quote:

Originally posted by HRK:


Didn't realize the containers were that expensive, guess with all the COVID, interest rates, inflation and higher demand they've gone up in price!

I priced some last summer, 20' was $2500 locally.

quote:

Originally posted by old rugged cross:

If you have done this or have building in your background I would love some thoughts.

Haven't done quite this, but I did do something similar in concept. Years ago, I spent a significant amount of time over 3-4 years volunteering at a Habitat for Humanity site. For one of the projects, due to access and site preparation issues, they decided to pre-build a significant number of walls, etc. Then, when the site was ready, haul them to the site and erect the houses. The troubles were plenty, but they boil down to two things.

First, even though we braced the individual pieces, by the time the monkeys, er, I mean volunteers, got through man-handling the items, they were all out of whack. Thus, they did not fit together properly, partially destroyed, etc.

Second, even when items weren't crooked, no one frames with enough precision to actually have things fit correctly. When you frame as you go, you can fit each piece together, making small adjustments as necessary. While, in theory, one can measure piece from the plans and cut, the actuality is that many pieces are better marked in place and cut to fit. Even though the dimension lumber is milled, it generally comes green and the dimensions change as it dries, and change from piece to piece. This makes precision measuring and cutting pointless.

Based on that experience, they swore to never pre-build portions of houses again.


Hope that helps.

Personally I would build it using steel tubing, square or rectangular. Also I would do two sides and join them once at the building site.

Steel would be much lighter and stronger than wood. Should cost less as well. You would want to "fir out" the wall thickness some, to reduce thermal bridging. Insulate as normal. You could install much of the plumbing and electrical before transportation. A steel framed structure would handle the trailering and installation 10x better than a stick built wood building.

Thanks guys. Some good thoughts. All of the thinkg HRK pointed out. Also limit the amount of time at the site. Show up, build the foundation. Put down decking. Erect the walls. Set truss'. Sheet the roof. Tar paper. Screw the roof down. Figuring that could all be done in about 4 days.

Dr Dan brings up a good point. But on a building this size and a bit better quality control, fewer hands, etc. I do not see that problem being a problem.

How do you think you’re going to haul something 12’ to 16’ wide down the road?

Also why build with 2x6’s 16” o.c. You could easily do it 24” o.c. And be plenty strong (and code legal if that’s important to you).

My wife and I built a pergola for our beach house several years ago. I cut all the pieces at my shop then put everything on my gooseneck trailer and assembled it onsite. This would be the way I would do it.

The are only 6" wide. Height and length are not an issue

I would find a good used RV trailer or a mobile home and put it on the site.

Not interested in spending $10k or more for something like that when I can spend considerably less and have something much nicer and will appreciate in time instead of turning in to a dilapidated relic.

I agree with that. I have not completely thought it through yet.

Thinking 12x20' is my sweet spot. 8' high walls. Thinking 4-10' long walls and 2-12'. I have a 22' trailer. I have 80" between the dual wheel fenders.

I think I can make braces to haul the walls upright. Along with the 11 truss'. Get everything on the trailer and pickup once things are built.

I built an outhouse on my lunch breaks at work, completely disassembled it, drove it 300 miles into the hills and put it back together.

Having framed for a living many moons ago, that sounds like a recipe for frustration.

Manhandling walls onto a trailer and then off of the trailer into place: I'm assuming it's not just you who's building it.

In my view, it would be much easier to build on site with a small generator. It wouldn't take that long for a simple rough frame of those dimensions as long as you had the right timber spec'd out and you planned ahead of time on all of your hardware.

Also, everything that DrDan said.