I'm baaack

I last posted on November 2. Oops. Funny how even a part-time job edges out the time I would have spent blogging... How some folks work and build and blog and presumably also grocery shop and walk the dog and bathe is--maybe not beyond me--but certainly impressive.

Luckily, it's only the blogging that I've been really slacking off on. I've been taking pictures of everything I've done, and I have done a few things, so I'll go back and write about them, backdate the posts so the build timeline is represented, and... enjoy!

To make up for the delay, after the jump there's a photo of my "installing polyiso insulation" look...

Ceiling Panels and Intumescent Primer

Goodbye, ceiling insulation! Hello, an almost finished surface?

I want as many nice, clean, flat surfaces in my house as I can manage, so when it came time to choose a material to close in my ceiling, I did not go with the knotty pine tongue and groove boards that so, so, so many tiny housers choose. 

No, I went with plywood. So glamorous, right? Not...

Siding: Almost Done!

From one angle, my exterior almost looks finished! Wow!

I'm still working on two sides of siding and one corner, but this shot of the two complete sides gives you a good idea of how awesome it has turned out. Right?

I just need to finish up the toolshed over the trailer tongue, install and flash the awning over the front door, and put up half a dozen small metal panels over the bathroom window.

More pictures, tips, and techniques after the jump...

Priming the Walls

ATTENTION: BORING BLOG POST AHEAD. Proceed only if you require more details about applying wallpaper primer to OSB than the words "applying wallpaper primer to OSB" communicate.

My plan is to cover my walls in wallpaper liner. Wallpaper liner--AKA wall liner, and several other names--is a thick, plain kind of wallpaper that is used to create a smooth, paintable surface where once there was cinderblock, horrid wood paneling from the 70s, decrepit wallpaper, or some other undesirable surface that would be a pain in the neck to remove (like... an OSB SIP skin). It's a pretty simple DIY task with only one real prep step: priming the surface with wallpaper primer.

First Look: Metal and Cedar Siding

I've been meaning to write about my siding, but since it's a step that urgently needs to get done, I've been prioritizing doing over writing! But since I have some photos, here they are...:

Rake Soffits

 The funny thing about shou sugi ban is, because it's so dark, and my camera is so bad, it can kind of just look like... a void.

So, do you see that (apparent) void where you used to be able to see through to the roof sheathing and outriggers? That's actually a 1x6 tongue and groove shou sugi ban cedar soffit! And let me assure you, it is beautiful.

(Oh, and some siding. More on that in another post!)

Electrical Wiring - Part 1

Disclaimer: Electricity is dangerous, so I am never going to write a blog post about How to Wire a Tiny House as if I'm now an expert or something. There are books about wiring; read those if you really want to know the nitty gritty. All I'll write about are my impressions of the process and my personal experiences with wiring a tiny house made of SIPs.

So, how was it? Well, for at least the first 90% of the process, it was... torturously slow and rife with hand-wringing impasses and ignorance anxiety. One of the first receptacles I wired, I re-wired twice before I was satisfied. I scratched my hands all up, I cussed a lot, I even accidentally stabbed myself in the face with needle-nosed pliers.

This stuff is harder than it looks!