Greetings from Texas

[ArtW]

Hello folks, long time away from vandweller community, I used to be on the vandweller site, but that went away
I never did convert to 'dwelling, but this is where I'm at now
I lost my apartment in Columbus, Tx, where I was living, not too long after getting divorced
I had no problems with rent, etc, but me and management had a diference of opinion
So, lucky me, I found a patch of dirt in Garwood I am renting to own from a friend at work, and bought a 16' Travel trailer out of the classifieds
This has worked to a degree, but as I'm sure many of you have learned, TTs have built-ins that don't always make sense, especially bunkhouse designs when you're single, and redoing a TT while you're living in it doesn't work
After looking at small TTs I couldn't buy (inadequate credit history, thanks, ex) I decided to Rent to Own a small portable building and make a tiny home of it, then maybe look at getting a van to replace my Ranger and build it into a personalized motor home, in case I ever get 'surprise relocated' again, or travel, or just decide to disconnect and go
Or maybe I'll build a camper out of the ranger, I do have a small camper shell for it
I was reading an article on insulating a van on Bob's site, and commented on the value of the article, and Bob invited me to join up, so here i am
greetings all!

 

[Gunny]

Welcome. I am from Texas also, DFW area. There are a lot of friendly folks on here that can and will offer assistance should you need it.

 

[VanKitten]

Welcome!

It sounds like you have many options for the future and are well on your way.

It would be fun to build a tiny house.

 

[cyndi]

Welcome to the CRVL forums, Art! You're fortunate to have options! We look forward to following your progress whichever way you decide to go. and we'll cheer you on as you move forward.

To help you learn the ins and outs of these forums, this "Tips & Tricks" post lists some helpful information to get you started. We look forward to hearing more from you.

 

[rvpopeye]

Welcome aboard Art !
Ask any questions you might have .
There's always at least one of the tribe that can answer it and usually many many more that one !
Got any pictures of "the ranch"?

 

[ArtW]

thanks everyone! I plan to do the 'house' first and then a 'mobile option' so i have a 'home base, and a 'traveling home'
money is tight so it's a slow start, but I'm getting going on things soon
Cindi I'll look at that 'tips and tricks' right away, and I will also be looking at builds, as I think I'll see some great ideas
any suggestoions along the way would be great
for some weird reason I can't upload pics to photobucket but here's some low quality you tube vids regarding the building

 

[Rugster]

Hey, welcome! I'm doing the exact same thing. I am building a tiny home out of a storage shed/cabin. Currently finishing up the insulation, then walls, then the normal home stuff and then I'm in, hopefully in around two weeks.

 

[ArtW]

Thanks Rugster, what did you do for insulation? I'm still examining options, and I'm not sure which way to go since I hadn't the chance to put housewrap in between the frame and siding
I haven't even wired yet, still considering floorplans
I have 2 I'm considering, one is 'borrowed' from a small RV I liked, the other is a sort of modified 'hotel room'

 

[Txjaybird]

Hello and Welcome...What other big town is Garfield close to?     I'm from Dallas, Irving, Grapevine, Palmer, Groesbeck, Temple my own self.  I'm in Al now....I was just telling someone a few days ago I'd be happy with a small rural piece of land without building codes and lots of shade trees....unless things have changed there may still be small towns and rural areas in Texas that haven't gone code crazy...Groesbeck in Limestone county was one of the areas with minimal restrictions...the last property I bought there had two Texas 4 square houses and the only indoor plumbing was a cold water line to the kitchen...I placed a Silver Stream T.T. there while we worked on the property, it was only 2 blocks off the state hiway and had been abandoned for years...of course as soon as we started working on the houses things started disappearing and one of our dogs was poisoned. There is not a nice way to put this, IMO sometimes life just sucks!   :huh:

Good Luck with all of your builds and of course take  PICTURES      Texas Jbird

 

[ArtW]

Tjaybird Garwood is an unincorporated township about 20 Miles from Columbus, Tx, which is about 100 miles from Houston
We have lots of folks living in Travel Trailers here (myself included for now) and according to everyone I've talked to, no building codes
Most of the site built homes are falling apart, as they are abandoned or owned by folks who cannot keep them up
I have a few trees for shade, and I had my building painted a light tan with a white metal roof to help with the texas heat

 

[cherterr]

HI Y'ALL!! I suddenly don't feel all Alone!!

I'm pretty much doing the same thing, and it's taking forever!

Welcome to the forum and enjoy. (I've been here for quite a while, but have been too busy to post, etc.)

I'm halfway between Austin/Houston, No. of Giddings.

 

[Txjaybird]

Tjaybird Garwood is an unincorporated township about 20 Miles from Columbus, Tx, which is about 100 miles from Houston
We have lots of folks living in Travel Trailers here (myself included for now) and according to everyone I've talked to, no building codes
Most of the site built homes are falling apart, as they are abandoned or owned by folks who cannot keep them up
I have a few trees for shade, and I had my building painted a light tan with a white metal roof to help with the texas heat

I took some summer courses at College Station and I think you are s.w. of there.   Imo good choices on colors for your little house,  that and some shade will help with cooling.    Has it hit 100 there, we've  had some high 80's here.   Nothing wrong with a T.T.  I've had 6 or 7 from 14 to 35 feet long.

It's a shame about the houses.  It's a well kept secret that the United States Dept. of Agriculture has both grants and loans to help people repair and even purchase homes.  There is a grant for senior citizens to help make home repairs for safety and health reasons.....Also a lot of places have weatherization programs that will help in many ways...even for renters if the landlord will kick in some $$$.  I'm telling you this because you may know someone nearby who would qualify and needs the help...Of course you may already know about this stuff, if so I figure no harm & no foul.      Enjoy your builds,  I always like a new challenge 
                                                            Texas Jbird

 

[Rugster]

Wow! Three of us building tiny homes? Cool, either of you have pictures? I have started a build thread here on CheapRv:

https://vanlivingforum.com/Thread-Getting-my-tiny-home-cabin-Thursday

I'm using regular insulation, as it fits well and works I still need to finish the lofts but will do that this weekend. I'll take some more pictures of the build.

I'm trying to figure out the layout, too but there is plenty of room for everything I need to put in. The two lofts for the kids bedrooms make the cabin very roomy.

I can't wait to get into the cabin and move forward.....been a long painful couple of years.

 

[ArtW]

Thanks TJaybird, I didn't know about that, maybe some of the folks here could qualify, for grants anyway, I have a feeling a lot of them have no visible means of support, I'll pass that along
welcome rugster, I will definitely check out your build, I've only ever done framing (general laborer) so could use all the knowledge and tips I can get

 

[ArtW]

Oh and Rugster, my setup for internet is to use my cell data for internet access for my PC (usb tether) and for some reason Photobucket won't let me upload pictures, so I use YouTube vids instead, since I can upload them at work via wifi

 

[Rugster]

Youtube videos? Got any links? Would like to see what you're doing. One way or the other, the insulation will be finished this weekend and may even get the wall coverings started.

 

[ArtW]

Post #6 page 1 of this thread
Plus

I really haven't done much yet, still planning plus lack o funds