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JRod
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# Posted: 30 Jun 2017 01:08am
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Hi All,
I'm new here and new to the small cabin process and looking for advice.
Myself and a friend are in the process of acquiring a float plane fly-in access lease that we will be building a cabin on. We are just wanting to go with a simple one floor 16x24 cabin with about an 8 ft covered deck on the front.
I was wondering if anyone has any advice on places to look for design plans. We are both reasonable handy, but want to make sure it's done right as it will be very remote and pricey to fix if we have issues. Any advice on what we should put under if for a foundation would be great. We are limited to what we can do as there's no way to access with with equipment and it's pricey to buy and fly in ready mix concrete. The nature of the location is likely to be most sand and/or rock. So any digging with shovels will be difficult. Some shifting with frost may be ok, it we don't want things to move so much that it causes us issues.
Thanks!
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rockies
Member
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# Posted: 30 Jun 2017 06:51pm
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Hmm.
Float plane access.
Very remote.
Pricey to fix.
Limited as to what you can do.
No way to access with equipment.
Pricey to fly in materials.
Sand or rock.
Digging is difficult.
Some shifting with frost.
Don't want things to move so much that it causes issues.
http://multipoint-foundations.com/
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Just
Member
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# Posted: 30 Jun 2017 07:44pm
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some folk are just plain negative. I look at your project with envy of all the positive things about it .The adventure of a lifetime good and bad O to be 50 years younger and going along!!
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JRod
Member
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# Posted: 30 Jun 2017 11:22pm
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Haha, yeah I know it's pretty vague information.
We are just barely getting prelim info on the project so I'm just brainstorming ideas. I'll have a better idea of the base we are building on by this fall. There a reasonable number of cabins like it in the area, so just trying to get an idea of how people have done it before.
You're link looks promising. It does look to be fairly expensive (just a guess) but does look like a good option. Thank you,
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preventec47
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# Posted: 1 Jul 2017 08:13am
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With that kind of remoteness you might be limited by the kinds of
materials available and the method of delivery. I guess you could rent a big tractor trailer truck and fill it with materials from the
lower 48 and then get access to a barge.
I believe I have read from others it is cheaper to acquire lumber
sawing capabilities and then build the cabin with the trees that
surround you.
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Just
Member
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# Posted: 1 Jul 2017 09:34am
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Yes large flat rooks make good footers , a good stand of timber close by is a must ,hopefully some ceder for roof and siding,pine for flooring , supply of clay and sand for chinking. Aluminum roofing could be a good choice for fly in. good luck
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Ken Robbins
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# Posted: 1 Jul 2017 05:57pm
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Hi There,
Quite and adventure you have planned, I helped a friend do a similar project in AK once. He built on adjustable pier blocks due to rocky ground and built conventional stick frame.
Hired an Otter on floats to get the most pounds per $ on the trips and milled only bigger timbers on site. He was afraid the cabin would be sitting in a barren field if he built with local logs and had no way to skid logs in from a distance. Many challenges but great rewards overall.
He eventually found a route in by ATV to the far end of the lake and canoed to the cabin, flights were sketchy and pricey just for a cabin visit if you don't fly yourself.
Some of the plywood product was ripped to 32" and fit in a smaller plane after a mis-calc on quantity but half the fun is going with flow out there.
I started on a 20x30 last month on the Kenai peninsula but not tough enough to abandon the road system, just went out to the end of it.
Not much luck with cabin plans, I just didn't find what I wanted and moved ahead without. Mistakes will be made but we'll get thru it.
Good luck, don't be surprised if you find a tent on a platform is good enough for a few years. You might enjoy yourself too much to build more right away.
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OutdoorFanatic
Member
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# Posted: 1 Jul 2017 09:01pm - Edited by: OutdoorFanatic
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As an aircraft mechanic/pilot for 36 years I'd advise to get rid of the toy plane (ego trip) and start thinking practical.
Get something you can drive out to.
Last guy I know that tried that broke down in the middle of nowhere and it cost him thousands and thousands to get his toy out of some pond.
Thats my advise.
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rockies
Member
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# Posted: 2 Jul 2017 05:32pm - Edited by: rockies
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Think of choosing your foundation like building a flow chart. Write out all the possible foundation types across the top of a page and draw a bubble around each heading.
Full poured concrete basement, concrete block basement, poured concrete crawlspace basement, concrete block crawlspace, poured piers, concrete block piers, etc. Figure out every possible combination of foundation, right on down to laying a couple of big trees on their sides and using them like "skids".
Once you have every possibility listed, take the list of conditions imposed by the site topography and the remote location and compare them to your foundation options.
Very remote? Unlikely to get a concrete truck in there. Full poured basement or crawlspace? Cross these ones out and move on to the next possibility.
No way to access the site with equipment? Then excavating and drilling for footings and postholes are out. Cross them off the list.
Digging with shovels will be difficult? A few more options will now be out.
As you whittle down the list you may indeed end up with large flat rocks supporting green timber (if you can find large flat rocks and you set up your own chain mill to cut up some trees).
This is the process I used to narrow down all the options and come up with my suggestion for the Multi-point foundation. Pricey, yes (especially if you look at it short term. If you want a stable, rock solid foundation for 30 years then it's a good investment). Since you said you want this done right (and you don't want it to move later on) I think it's your best choice.
Nothing really negative about that.
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JRod
Member
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# Posted: 5 Jul 2017 02:00am
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Thanks for all the replies that had constructive feedback. It's much appreciated!
As far as the guy calling it a "stupid idea", I understand where your coming from but keep in mind that what one guy finds stupid the other sees as an adventure. Some see hunting and fishing as stupid when you can go to a store, but others don't see it that way.
I'm no pilot and have to plane. I live in Canada and am splitting this project with 2 friends. Once complete it will have cost us under $10,000 each at the very high end (including materials a flight costs to fly it in). I just want to get it on a solid foundation is all. Once complete we will have our own private fly in fishing camp where no one in the wold fishes and it will only cost us $400 each every time we go. Some may see it as a stupid idea but I see it as a dream come true for a little cash and some elbow grease.
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SE Ohio
Member
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# Posted: 5 Jul 2017 07:02am
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Remember that folks have been building cabins without modern power equipment a lot longer than the modern era. It can be done, just takes more effort and planning which is what you are wiling to do.
Watch the documentary "Alone In The Wilderness", about a guy who did a similar project in Alaska. Also you might read "Dangerous River" which has some detail and pictures about a 1920's trapper cabin build (and lifestyle).
Both of the above used onsite log construction, and each were completed in a summer.
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fitzpatt
Member
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# Posted: 5 Jul 2017 08:36am - Edited by: fitzpatt
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I agree with Ken. Concrete blocks with adjustable deck supports are the way to go. You can dig up the top soil, use local gravel from the beach in each hole and place the blocks on top. Place your PT beams (or local timber drowned in used motor oil) in them and away you go. The supports will allow you to adjust for any heaving over the seasons. I have used this same set up many times and it has worked very well. btw. Love your idea. Good luck and please keep the forum updated on your progress.
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cman47c
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# Posted: 5 Jul 2017 09:07am
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We built this 14 X 24 cabin in 2008 on blocks laid on small indentation in rooted ground with some gravel. Has not moved in 9 years. Not AK, but do get cold winters/snow.
alaska_008.jpg
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Just
Member
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# Posted: 5 Jul 2017 12:21pm
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one concrete block weights 28 lb...
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NorthRick
Member
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# Posted: 6 Jul 2017 01:41am
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Our cabin sits on those concrete pyramid shaped pier blocks with adjustable brackets. I dug down about a foot, far enough to get below the leaf litter and root zone. Put down weed fabric in each hole, 5/8" crushed gravel back up to near grade, hand tamped the gravel, and then plopped the blocks on the gravel. I haven't adjusted the brackets yet and she is still level. Well drained location with 2' overhangs on the roof.
If it were me, that's the way I would go. We've had some wind storms that blew over some sizable spruce trees and the cabin stayed put.
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fiftyfifty
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# Posted: 6 Jul 2017 08:39am
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If it were me (and I realize it's not), I would build 2 smaller cabins rather than one big (16x24 + porch). That way, they can be built on skids rather than have to bother with any permanent foundation or footings. With groups, I like smaller cabins anyway. At first, you will call one cabin the sleeping cabin, and the other the kitchen/living room cabin. But then you will discover that one person snores, and then both cabins will be used for sleeping, and you'll be glad you have 2.
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silverwaterlady
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# Posted: 6 Jul 2017 08:51am - Edited by: silverwaterlady
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Build a trappers hand-scribed log cabin out of existing materials on your land. There is information Online.
I would screen in the porch. It will give you a lot of extra living space.
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