Why I did not build with SIPs.

I got the estimate back for the SIPs yesterday.  I expected it to be in the 3,000 to 5,000 range.  I opened the email and saw $9,200!!!! =O

This morning I called another company, they where nice enough to give me some numbers so I could ball park the cost.  This time it came to about $7,000 with a 6 to 8 week delivery time.  (Edit this second estimated ending up being $9,500)

I did up a spread sheet to estimate how much a stick build would cost.  I included sheathing, framing, insulation, vapor barrier and a large cushion. My estimate is $3500.

I love spreadsheets.

I've been using one to track my expenses so I just added a few numbers for the siding and windows to get my "dry in" price.  With SIPs I would be around $19,000, stick build $15,500.  Add on plumbing, electrical, cabinets and it starts to add up.  Granted I'll have more time to look for bargains which would help.

Done and done

Crossed a couple of long standing items off the list today.  I installed the flashing for the front bay window and welded on the last 4 anchors.  Moving into the home stretch for the floor :-)

The SIPs will not be ready for a couple of weeks and I'm running out of things to do so I've decide that I'm going to head out on the bike for a week.  Vancouver island is the leading candidate.  This is my list of what is left to do:
Seal gaps
Typar on bay window
Secure plumbing
Paint new welds
Insulation
Vapor barrier
Deck sheathing

Delay on account of SIPs

I spoke with the SIPs company last Friday.  I was told the earliest I would be able to get the SIPs is the first week of September.  It took the wind out of my sails.  I didn't order them sooner because I wanted to floor mostly done so I could make sure my model matched what I had built.  Good thing too because the house is 1" shorter then it should be.

I also spoke with a company that provides wool insulation last week and still have not heard back from them.  I guess I'm going with fiberglass.

I spent the last few days mostly relaxing with family but I did finish all the flashing on the bottom of the trailer.  I also wrapped each of the outriggers in typar (like tyvek).

With the outrigger upside down

 And on it's side

The wasps have been really bad and the spray has not done it's job.  I tried to buy a wasp trap today but all the stores where sold out so I bodged together one.  I'll let you know if it works.

Expenses to date $5,761

Flashing, no not that kind!

My roommate, who is being very generous with this time, gave me a hand putting the flashing on the bottom of the floor.  It was messy, hot and tedious.  Even when we got into a rhythm it took about an hour to apply each strip, luckily there where only 4 to do.  We only applied construction adhesive done the side that overlapped the previous piece.  We then screw the flashing at each joist in two places.  The overlap is 6" on a 24" wide flashing.

After take a break I came back and finished dry fitting the sewage plumbing.  I then notched out the joists where the pipe would pass thru and placed everything.  The slope is about 1/4" per foot.  Everything looks like it will work.  I had to cut a hole in the plywood to make room for the shower trap.  I'll be adding about 4" of insulation under it to keep it from freezing in the winter.

Expenses to date $5,571

SIPs

Having remeasured the trailer and tweaking the model I spent the morning exporting views so I could send the designs off to the company that will be making the SIPs for me.  After sending them off I started playing with the window sizes a little.  I'm trying to go with a size that is "stock" so hopefully it will be cheaper.

And on the 7th day

Rest day!  Well mostly.  After the rain ended the tarps had puddles of water where they sagged between the joists.  I pulled them off and found a little bit of water had leaked thru so I let them air dry for the day.  I also remeasured the floor so I can change my Sketch Up drawing to match reality.  I late afternoon rain shower had me scrambling to make a tent structure to cover the trailer.

All squared up

After pulling all the screws my roommate came out and helped me square up the frame.  The strap in the picture is tightened which in turn shortens the long diagonal.  The final result after everything was screwed back down... drum roll please ... 288 1/4" to 288 3/8" or withing 2/16".  Woo hoo, it only took 5 hours to fix.

In the afternoon I shortened the left rear and right front outriggers and moved the anchor holds on the right rear.  The adjustment ended up changing the dimensions by 1/4 to 1/2".

The past few days have all been sunny and 32 to 35C and this evening was no exception.  I glanced at the weather forecast and saw it might rain, I was tired from the long days but I still tarped everything over.  The next morning it rained buckets for about 30 minutes, moral of the story, always check the forecast.

Expenses to date $5,545

Fixing day!

The first thing I did today was go out and buy a 2x6x12' pressure treated board and some shims.  On the way back I swung by my bother's and picked up his table saw.  I shimmed up the 2nd last board to the proper height and marked the 2x6 on both sides.  A quick snap of the chalk line and then I ran it thru the table saw.  Now the floor is pretty close to level!  The left rear outrigger how ever is good at the front but out at the back, another quick run to Home Depot for a 2x8 :-(  This time I had to use the circular saw to make up for the slant on the board.  I don't know what I was thinking when I did the welding on that side.
In the afternoon I measured the diagonals to make sure the whole structure is a square and not a trapezoid.  One diagonal was 288" and the other is 289", a quick check with Google and I came across this:

 Handbook of Construction Tolerances by David Kent (McGraw-Hill) lists hundreds of suggested tolerances for various phases of construction.

According to the Handbook , horizontal building layout (including the foundation) involves both dimensional accuracy and squareness. For measurements less than 10 feet, the tolerance is 1/8 inch; between 10 and 100 feet, it’s 1/4 inch (see illustration, below). For squareness, the tolerance for the dimension of the 5-leg in a 3-4-5 triangle measured with a steel tape is 3/4 inch in 100 feet. Use the same ratio for diagonals of less than 100 feet. For example, when measuring a 50-foot diagonal, the acceptable tolerance would be 3/8 inch (one-half the tolerance for the 100-foot diagonal).

Foundations walls should be level within 1/4 inch in 10 feet, while the entire foundation should be level within 1/2 inch.

The Handbook states that there is no single accepted tolerance for rough framing, although a tolerance of 1/4 inch in 10 feet is frequently used and is acceptable. The second edition of Standards for the Professional Remodeler (NAHB Remodelors Council, available from the NAHB Bookstore at 800/223-2665) requires that walls and floors be plumb and level within 1/4 inch in 32 inches. This seems overly generous when you consider that it would allow an 8-foot wall to be up to 3/4 inch out of plumb.

So on my 24' diagonals I was allowed to be out 3/16 of an inch from each other, I'm at 1".  I'm going to have to pull all the screws and plywood, square it up and re-screw it.  Crap.

Expenses to date $,538

Sewage revisited

Today was a good day!
I started off my going over to my brother's to cut all the threaded rod for the tie downs. Next I took a second look at the plumbing. I guess I was dreaming about plumbing because I quickly came up with a new layout that I think will work much better.  The plumbing now will come out on the proper side too.

In the mid day heat (35C/95F again today with no shade) I tackled the tie downs on the outriggers.  This took me about 3 to 4 hours for just the front outriggers.  I eventually figured out if I drill a pilot hole that it took about 1/4 of the time.  I guess the heat was cooking my brain.

Finally after playing volley ball for a couple of hours I finished off by trimming down the sides of the floor plywood on the rear section.  I had originally made it tight would the frame but this did not allow space for the welds so the joist where not level with the outriggers in this area.  I had to jack up the floor, unscrew the plywood, slide it out and trim about 1/4" off.  Rinse and repeat for the other side and now just the last two are out.

The front joist I'll fix by putting shims under where it sits on the frame, this joist will be supporting the shower and battery banks so I'm being picky.  The rear 2x4 joist sits on the rear bumper and is out by a fill 3/8".  I'm be replacing it with a 2x6 that I will pass thru a table saw to get the right height.  It's more work then cutting a strip of 3/8 OSB but its also the right way to fix it.

Expenses to date $5,503

Plumbing

I broke new ground today, plumbing!  I started on the layout for the sewage lines.  It's kind of like lego but all the pieces are round.  The layout I came up with has the sewage line exiting the house on the passenger side of the trailer.  If you have ever owned an RV you know this is the wrong side but with the shower and kitchen sink on that side this layout probably works the best.
After playing around with the layout I moved back to working on the framing for the front outriggers.  It was slow but I finished both of them before calling it a night.

Expenses to date $5,462

Finnishing the floor framing

Yesterday was my last day as a mechanic! I'm taking August off to make a push to "dry in" the tiny house.  Once I'm in school I don't think I'll have as much time to work on it.

Today I managed to frame out the bay window, finish screwing down all the plywood, call all the pressure treated lumber for the outriggers and some the plywood.  As much as I though everything through, we all make mistakes.  Both rear outriggers are at the wrong height.  I have no clue how I messed up but I did.  One side I can fix by taking about a 1/4" off the rim joists.  The other side I'll have to add plywood to raise it up.
The last couple of hours where threatening rain but it held off until the tarps were back on.

 Expenses to date $5,308

A helping hand

One of my roommates gave me a hand today.  We started on the floor over the right front outrigger.  It was fun working with someone for a change.  Just as we finished up it started to rain, can you tell the difference from a month ago :)