Tiny go Lightly

Living sustainably and designing my lifestyle to be meaningful and low impact. My story of building and living in a tiny house, in Gippsland, Victoria

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Uncategorized  /  June 12, 2016

Floored.

by tinygolightly

So, this could be slightly foolish – attempting to write an update after spending all day outside building. My brain is pretty toasted, not to mention my muscles (or, as it turns out, lack thereof). BUT, Grand Designs in on in the background, the Baileys is out and our progress today is definitely worth sharing 🙂

Today was the first day of actual building for my tiny project. It felt a little bit like Christmas morning to be honest. I’ve been counting the sleeps all week! The trailer isn’t in its final position yet and none of the framing for the walls or roof can really go up until it is. Given the lovely damp wintery weather we’ve been having, I’m not exactly sure how long I’ll have to wait before I can get it rolled through the mud to its new home. So in the meantime, we decided to at least get a floor on the trailer.

My trailer didn’t come with any flashing or metal on the bottom so we started with a layer of sisalation as a waterproof layer and as something to lay the insulation on. We tacked it on with duct tape and then sealed all the edges with foil tape. We screwed 70×45 pine batons down over the steel joists of the trailer, laid a stash of Earthwool my bro in law had in his shed and then laid a layer of yellow tongue flooring down on top. Easy, right?

IMG_7889 IMG_7893IMG_7896 IMG_7900 (1)

Well…thanks to Tom, it kinda was! The whole thing progressed smoothly and with no major setbacks. Tom had ordered the supplies and brought them around with him.  He has enough knowledge and experience to make excellent estimates of the materials we needed and although it wasn’t a complicated job today I still would’ve been at a loss for where to start without him.

Also, turns out that this building stuff is hard bloody work. My hands, arms, legs are sore and I did about a quarter of the work that Tom did. Not for lack of trying! But that’s kinda the most frustrating bit. It’s a new kind of challenge, this project. Building things isn’t just a matter of research, understanding what’s needed, or theoretical knowledge. Frustratingly, in some situations, physical strength is just hard to beat. And it’s not the same kind of strength you get from triathlons, from sweating in the gym, and certainly not any kind of strength you get from sitting in an office five days a week. I spent most of the day leaning on an electric drill, trying to get my screws in straight.  I didn’t have any luck getting the screws through the timber into the metal, I just didn’t have the weight or muscle to get them through. After Tom pre-drilled holes through the timber I made much better progress…but I’m still not sure that he couldn’t have done as much without me.

But, I guess that’s not the point. The point is (still, and again), that all you can do is begin where you are. This is where I’m at. It just happens to be right at the start.

IMG_7903 (1)

Well…maybe after today, not exactly the start.

Tags

  • building
  • DIY
  • flooring
  • tiny house
  • trailer

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Trailer’s here!
He ain’t heavy…

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9 comments

  • Miranda Kuz
    June 12, 2016

    Argghhh sarz I’m so proud of you for starting this !!! The start is always the hardest they say, so given that today went very smoothly, I think you’re in for a great run! Looking forward to more updates :))

    Reply
    • sarahsmeth
      June 12, 2016

      Thanks Miz! Fingers crossed you’re right, I’ll look forward to giving you a proper tour soon 😉

      Reply
  • Camille
    June 12, 2016

    Looks great! Congrats! I don’t know what sisalation is but it could be my new favourite word

    Reply
    • sarahsmeth
      June 12, 2016

      Hahaha, I’m with you! Just don’t get mixed up and go round calling it ‘sinsulation’ like I’ve been doing for who knows how long…

      Reply
  • fulllifemadesimple
    June 13, 2016

    So exciting I know how you feel! I just finished my flooring today too and I’m beat! I have a new appreciation for all those construction works out there!

    Reply
    • sarahsmeth
      June 13, 2016

      Ha! I literally walked into my sister’s house at the end of the day and said to my two brothers in law who were there, ‘How do you do this all day every day?!’ Are you doing it on your own?

      Reply
      • fulllifemadesimple
        June 14, 2016

        My 17 yr old son is helping for his SR. Project and my Stepdad, Dan, who has years of building experience. This is a neat family project for sure!

        Reply
  • elaine hill
    June 13, 2016

    Keep up the great work I see a tiny house / home at the end.

    Reply
    • sarahsmeth
      June 13, 2016

      Thanks Elaine, hopefully it’ll be ready for sleepovers at Christmas! x

      Reply

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Would you like a tour of Tiny go Lightly and Ravenscroft farm? Are you interested in learning more about sustainable farming and regenerative agriculture practices? Do you love being outside and have some time on a weekend to help support a local project?

If the answer was yes to any of these questions, please consider coming along to a tree planting day at Ravenscroft farm in Tanjil South. I'll be there and happy to discuss any tiny house questions you have while we plant!

Date: Sunday 8th September, 2019

10:30 am - arrival for coffee and cake, followed by planting

1:00pm ish – Lunch

Post lunch – tour of farm featuring revegetation, tiny house and other activities

Please bring: warm clothes, gloves.

If you're keen to join us, please get in touch for the farm address and further details. Hope to see you there!
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