Building A Log Cabin - Make That Dream Come True

Perhaps the perfect log cabin dream is a simple, single or double room wooden house seated comfortably in a private getaway location far from the madding crowd. It would have great views in both winter and summer, there would be fishing in the nearby lake or stream, there would be trees to hang hammocks under, the wildlife would be around but not intrusive, there would be great sunsets, the log fire would be crackling as you trudged in from the snow.

Above all you would want privacy, peace, time to breath and take stock.

Some people have already achieved this dream. They have found the perfect setting, found the $50,000 to pay for the kit and a further $15,000 or $20,000 to get it built.

Of course, if your backyard is big enough, you could simply build a log cabin in it provided that your local planning laws allow such things (most local planners will approve temporary structures).

However, we must face one or two home truths about log cabins. The first is that they are simple to build. This is true for most designs, in the sense that there are no complicated construction or woodworking techniques required, but building a log cabin still requires much grit, determination and physical strength. Remember that log cabins are made from logs sometimes more than 16 feet long and perhaps 9 inches in diameter – these are seriously heavy pieces of wood. You will be hoisting some logs 8, maybe 10 feet in the air during construction. Simple? Yes, but not easy if you are unprepared.

Secondly, many people think that log cabins do not need proper foundations. Yes, some early log cabins were erected on hard ground. Some of these survive to this day. However, these were only meant to be interim structures until the settlers got around to building a more permanent house, and many did not last very long. Face it, any proper building must have a proper base. These should start below the frostline – if there is one reasonably near the surface – and extend to one or two feet above ground. At one time stone was the traditional material for foundations but now we tend to use concrete or cement blocks. I know this adds to the cost of building a log cabin but it is well worth it in the end.

When it comes to the design of a log cabin, there are literally hundreds to choose from. Maybe you have your own design planned out in your head or, even better, on paper. There are plenty of kits available (see costs, above), but the traditional and arguably the most fun method is to build your own log cabin. It will cost a whole lot less as well. Make sure your plans are really well done, work out the full list of materials for your chosen design, get everything together before starting the assembly, and find a good team of willing labor.

Easily the best and safest way to build a log cabin, and certainly the way for anybody who is not an expert in this area, is to invest in a set of good quality blueprints and step-by-step instructions produced by professional log house designers. These are not that expensive in any case – usually less than $50 will get you all the plans and instructions needed – and usually come with some useful bonuses like woodworking techniques, sources of the best logs and other materials, details about local planning and building regulations, the sort of things that often take up a disproportionate amount of your time when doing your own research.

Remember that log cabin dream, and plan right now to build a log cabin that you and your family can be proud to own and enjoy for years to come.

Lots of luck and have fun!

Better PV Solar Panels From Solar Home Energy Advances

One of the problems with photovoltaic (pv) solar panels is their inefficiency relative to other forms of renewable energy. In a way this is not important because solar energy is free. But solar home energy systems do tend to need a lot of space to produce useful amounts of electric power. Building a do it yourself solar power system is easy, and the material costs are not very much. Nevertheless, smaller systems would be very welcome, and many large energy companies – Mitsubishi, for example – are making big strides in developing both commercial and residential solar energy systems that will improve efficiency significantly, at the same time lowering costs of the pv solar panels.

Costs are likely to be halved every eight years, at the same time achieving efficiency improvements of 25% to 30%.

One development uses a type of magnifying glass to squeeze more solar power on to each pv cell. It is called the fresnel effect, which uses optical lenses to beam sunlight on to the PV material. This has resulted in a reduction in size of as much as one fortieth of a normal cell, and there are even better efficiencies expected.

By using new forms of polycrystalline cells it is now possible for pv solar panels to produce nearly 25% more electricity. It is clear that solar power for homes is going to cost less and work better, and not just in sunny climates. The fact is that pv solar panels depend on available light conditions rather than direct sun. They do work best in hot countries, where daylight levels are good, but they do also work very well in colder climates, for example Canada and the UK.

Don’t be surprised to see some of these developments in a local solar home in the near future.

Turning to the vexed question of investment assistance from state and local authorities, there is now a welcome improvement in many parts of the world to fund diy home energy systems properly. For instance, within the EU, there are now some very strong directives in place to force significant improvements in renewable energy systems, and these are beginning to have a very positive effect. As part of these improvements energy from photovoltaic sources will increase from its present average of about 1% of total energy production to a creditable 12% and, to make this happen, many countries have introduced the so-called feed-in tariff to help fund commercial and domestic renewable energy systems. There are similar financial incentive systems already available in a number of US states.

The system shifts the emphasis from grant-based incentives, which seldom pay very much of the total costs, to a legislated price for each unit of energy fed into the national grid. This is much more attractive for investors, and can only help improve developments and efficiencies in a typical home solar power system still further.

Solar home energy has always been a favorite project for us, and we know that diy solar power is already a viable and simple option to the coming energy crisis. Certainly, current developments will yield more efficient pv cells for diy solar panels in the near future, but every second’s delay in building your own system NOW loses you more money as you continue to pour cash in to the utility company’s pockets.

It really is a good idea to plan to make a home solar panel or two. If you could use some expert guidance and good quality blueprints, we have a kit that we strongly recommend. It does what it says on the box, gives you great value for money, and also gives you peace of mind that you will be making the system properly. You will not be disappointed if you take our advice.

Finding the Best Plans for Building a Chicken Coop

I am finding that many people are passionate about keeping chickens and want to know about building a hen coop. This leads to questions about where to find the best chicken coop plans on the internet. So we have done some research to try and help.

There are many offers of chicken coop plans on the internet, but which of these will result in a good-quality working chicken house? If you know all about chickens and how to design happy and healthy housing for them, are good at preplanning, making your own blueprints from basic plans or diagrams, producing a comprehensive materials list before starting to put your hen house together, as well as being an experienced carpenter, then you will probably manage with any type of chicken coop plans you unearth.

Or you might discover how much time and money you have wasted, and you could actually design and build a hen house that might be dangerous or unhealthy for your birds. Careful, accurate planning and proper blueprints are vital to making a good chicken coop.

Proper planning for making a good hen house will include at least:

• Selecting a suitable location for the chicken coop in your backyard or garden

• Calculating the right size of chicken coop for the number of hens

• Ensuring adequate lighting and ventilation for the birds

• Designing the nesting box and feeder arrangements

• Ensuring adequate safeguards from predators

• Considering any services to the chicken coop such as electricity and water supplies

Most people will need expert advice and guidance to do this planning thoroughly, and will rely on good blueprints rather than sketchy plans and vague layout drawings to build a proper hen house. Unless you use clear and accurate blueprints it is pretty certain that you will not achieve a good functional chicken coop, it might not be strong enough and it might let predators in.

If you take a casual approach to chicken coop plans you will end up wasting both time and money, your enthusiasm will take a dive and – perhaps most importantly – you will not enjoy the experience as much as you should. Also, unhappy or unhealthy hens are poor layers, so you will be denied those lovely free-range eggs you had so eagerly anticipated.

Before starting to make the chicken coop you will need to prepare a comprehensive list of materials needed for the job. This is very important, otherwise you will come up against inevitable problems during the build when you discover you have overlooked some bracket or other and your local hardware shop has already closed! Making a comprehensive materials list is quite difficult to do properly, and we really recommend that you let a chicken coop expert do it on your behalf.

It is so easy to make mistakes without this expert input. Often these mistakes will not become apparent until you have completed the hen house, and by then it could be too late to rectify any problems. It is certainly worth investing a few dollars to get professional advice and tips along the way, and usually these come complete with clear step-by-step instructions and schematic diagrams. In our experience we have found that good plans and instructions actually save the builder money overall because he does the job properly in the first place.

We have found and strongly recommend a man who has many years’ experience with chickens, Bill Keene. He can supply a good collection of chicken coop plans, including all the necessary information, step-by-step instructions, drawings, blueprints, material lists and professional guidance for you to plan and build a hen house that will be exactly the way you wanted it. He will help you avoid all those common errors made by beginners, and also show you how to produce a happy, safe and healthy living area for your birds. Bill Keene is the best source of good plans for making a wonderful chicken coop.

Progress with BuildThingsDirect

I have not been keeping my blog up-to-date as much as I should, because I have been so busy with our website, BuildThingsDirect.

Our reviews of green energy products such as diy solar panels, solar hot tubs, solar heating for swimming pools as well as wind-energy products like diy windmills, have proved to be very popular. I am busy reviewing the latest guides and products in these fields right now. Hope to speak again soon, but please feel free to leave comments or advice if you have the time or inclination.

Backyard Projects

Hi Everyone

I have thought for some time that diy projects are a bit under-represented on the internet. Sure, there are plenty of 'how to make a garden shed'or 'how to make a chicken coop' sort of site, but there doesn't seem to be anywhere that has a comprehensive range of interesting diy projects. So, I aim to do just that.

Of course, to start with, I will cover those 'build a garden shed' projects because they are very popular. I have built one myself, and enjoyed doing it. I want to include decent content on woodworking courses, tools (and where to get them online) and actual experiences of real 'backyard builders'.

For now I will include topics on green energy such as solar and wind power, although I am not sure how popular these will prove to be. Time will tell.

The new website is BuildThingsDirect. Please wish me luck and, if you have any thoughts or contributions to make, these will be really appreciated.

Kieran Gracie