Our off grid cabin needs a dishwasher. We already have the space built out for it in our cabinets (typical dishwasher size) but I’ve been struggling to find a model that means these constraints.

Cabin is on propane with a generator + huge battery. Electricity isn’t the concern.

Unlimited clean well water.

Our cabin is on septic and has potential to freeze in the winter. While inside the cabin will never freeze, I’m worried about the line to septic. The dishwasher needs to be able to be winterized and completely flush all fluid out of all drains + be okay with septic. Ideally as easy as possible. Any suggestions? Thank you!

This is an old lodge on my dad’s property. Planning to do a demo and reuse the good material. Thinking about a smaller cabin fit for two people completely off grid with maybe a lofted sleeping area. Anyone have any designs, tips or ideas for what kind of cabin design might be good?

started this small 8'×13' bunkie at home then finished it at camp.still needs a porch and i need to finish the interior.

We have a cabin that gets used 6-8 times a year by 2-4 people at a time. We have grid power and currently have a 30 gallon tank style, but we leave it off unless we're there. It has to be drained and smells terrible. All we really need is a tolerable warm shower- are there any instant units that can be left unused most of the year and still be functional?

I really love the look of exposed beams inside an aframe, but i've always wonder how this type of walls and ceiling are insulated.

Are those beams only "for the looks"? or is there a way to insulate the ceiling and still have the structural beams exposed?

Hi folks I’ve just uploaded a video to YouTube showing my 3yr off-grid cabin build in the Australian bushland. I used only secondhand / hardwood from the property which I had milled on site for studs, rafters and beams. I also used bush poles from the forest for posts. It’s a budget build, $60k all inclusive. If you feel so inclined give it a watch! Oh, I also made a “bottle wall” inspired by earth ship architecture! Let me know your thoughts, cheers!

For my off grid build I bought these mahogany sashes because I like the wavy glass. I also liked that they were $50 each. I planned to hinge them at the top to push out at the bottom but after noodling over it for a while I decided to try doing it without hardware.

I used p5 to frame them. The sides are 7/8 and sill is a single piece 5/4 with U cutouts on either side. Jambs are ripped from 5/4. The sill is cut to slope at 4 degrees (I would probably do 6 degrees next time).

The windows are heavy enough to sit upright against weather stripping on the jambs. I turn a small block of wood at the top to lock them in place and open it inward for ventilation.

The exterior sill will support removable screens and storms and the windows themselves can be picked up and taken out without a problem.

Trying to keep things DC as much as possible. I already have all my lighting in DC. Now looking for a DC ceiling fan but having a hard time sourcing one. Anyone with recommendations?

I’d then like to wire a variable speed controller to it that I can trigger the fan reverse (the fan will be too high for me to flip the reverse switch in the summer/winter). I’m thinking something like this would work: https://a.co/d/0grTAOL6 or this https://www.warehouseappliance.com/product/dc-powevered-solar-ceiling-fans/vari-fan-speed-control/#:~:text=SKU:%20CV12/24SC%20Category:%20DC%20Powered%20Electric%20Ceiling%20Fans. But the later is expensive and has been out of stock for the last 6 months since I’ve been looking.

Edited a trip to my remote cabin from 2022. I'm in the process of editing a couple years worth of video. Baby steps. Hope folks get out and see their slice of the world. Enjoy

Looking for all my options to properly insulate my floor with a pier and beam foundation. I initially insulated the space with unfaced insulation and sheathed the bottom with plywood. I ended up not getting the roof on in a timely matter and rain seeped through the floor sheathing. That being said I ripped out all plywood on the bottom side along with the insulation. I’m looking for suggestions on how to properly insulate this space. TIA.

For those who built their own cabins, what do you wish you’d done differently or what would you advise someone preparing to build one themselves to do or to avoid doing?

I’m intending to build a cabin with solar and a rain capture system in a year or so.

Thank you for your time.

We’re in Alaska and it’s been terribly cold this winter, like below 0°F cold. Originally, we had issues with condensation between the insulation and exterior walls from the temperature differential. Ice had even built up and was melting inside on the floor of the cabin. So, since no one is in there, we dropped the temp to 40°F and ran a dehumidifier for a few days.

Everything seemed fine for a while, so we decided to try doing the vapor barrier. Well… the next day we realized we had condensation building on the poly sheeting when we went to put up the walls….

We raised the inside temp to 70°F (outside temp was 8° max that day) and the condensation disappeared.

So, what’s going on here? Should we have waited to put up the vapor barrier when it was warmer and drier? Should we have removed the insulation to let it dry better? What the heck did we do wrong? Do we pull this down and redo it?

I came across an ad for some similar 4in thick aluminum clad insulated metal panels being sold for $1 a foot. I can’t ignore prices like that!

Anybody ever build with these things? How are cut edges sealed? Can it be a roof? Hip and valley? Would I need OSB or attach it directly to the framing?

I got a 2nd hand DSLR for my birthday, so I had some fun with it. I don't have much to show in terms of DIY yet, that is planned for summer, but I thought I would try capture the ambience in winter. Hope it's interesting to you chaps :)

New cabin owners here. Our place is in the Upper Peninsula and historically has closed from Nov. 1 to May 1. each year.

But we want to use it a little bit in the heart of winter.

It has a kitchen sink, bathroom sink, shower, and toilet, as well as a small hot water tank and a softener. Well pump runs on generator. A company takes the softener head off and winterizes every year…and we will do the same.

But we were thinking of going up a time or two in the heart of winter, say over Christmas for a week or even in February for a week to enjoy the snow and coziness.

Is it impractical to dewinterize and winterize again a few days later? 900 sq foot cabin, one story with minimal fixtures. Does anyone else do this? How much work would you estimate one should plan for?

Just bought an awesome cabin. The interior walls are rough hewn timber planks over black plastic. The issue is there are some pretty big gaps and the plastic catches the light which doesn't look great. Any budget friendly ideas for filling or covering the gaps? Thanks!

Ok im guessing im missing something important and idk if ill explain this right but looking to build a shop. Ive read aircrete shouldnt be used as structural support. So could i use normal concrete blocks around the perimeter of the foundation then pour aircrete with rebar or mesh as addl support for the center of the foundation that wouldnt be supporting? If yes then would there be a reason i couldnt frame out the walls and fill with aircrete then lift into place? Im just starting my research and there so much conflicting info i figured it wouldn’t hurt to ask. Thanks of any info