I'm Emmett. (My Introduction Post)

Hi folks, I'm Emmett and, obviously, I'm new here.  

Who am I?  Lord of glory, that would take a long weekend of front porch chats to start scratching.  The short version is this:  I'm single, late 50's, and I love people.  That's a good thing.   But, somewhere along the way, while I was doing what was right for everyone else, I lost myself and who I am.  That's not good.  I woke up one morning with questions racing through my mind:  "Who am I?  What have I done for myself and my future?  Do I even have any goals, plans, or dreams for myself?"    The answer to every question was, "Nothing."  Well, I'm not one for letting problems continue so I set out to make some serious changes in my life - namely putting myself first for the first time in my life.  

Long story short, the goal is to relocate to the foothills of Appalachia (for many reasons), buy a property, build a little house that suits me to live in for the rest of my life, get a dog, start a garden, and maybe some chickens when I get settled.  Not really homesteading, but 'Homestead Lite.'  I've got my eye on a property right now that I like.  It's perfectly located on the outskirts of a small town, on the grid.  But, I'd like to build the house I want, which is to also be fully functional and efficient OFF grid, too.  That's what I'm really hoping for some advice on; how to plan that and what I might need.  I'm still getting to know this site and how to navigate it, so I'm not sure where to start that thread yet.

Well, that's basically me in a biscuit.  I've made a heap of changes in my life and I couldn't be happier to get on with the business of living.  I have plans I'm looking forward to for the first time in literal decades.  That's crazier than a betsy bug to me!

Welcome to permies, Emmett. It sounds like you have an interesting and fulfilling set of goals. I have no doubt that you'll get plenty of ideas from this community and we in turn will get lots from you.

Welcome!

Hi Emmett,

It’s great to have you here!

Phil Stevens wrote:Welcome to permies, Emmett. It sounds like you have an interesting and fulfilling set of goals. I have no doubt that you'll get plenty of ideas from this community and we in turn will get lots from you.

Thanks, Phil.  Much appreciated!

And thanks to Timothy and John, too!

Emmett, welcome to the forum!

That is a great list of goals.

Be sure to come back often and ask lots of questions!

Anne Miller wrote:Emmett, welcome to the forum!

That is a great list of goals.

Be sure to come back often and ask lots of questions!

Thank you, Anne!  I'm not used to hearing that.  I haven't had the best luck with forums, to be honest.  I read the rules, introduce myself, participate, and then, whenever I'd ask a question, someone always responded with, "That's already been discussed.  You need to read the board first."  Then they would proceed to link to a seven year old thread without considering new innovations, ideas, hacks, technologies, or anything like that since.  (Or the fact that expecting someone to read the entire history of a forum is ridiculous.)  And while I do read a forum before joining and starting to ask questions, my luck with Karens and armchair police hasn't been the best.  It's a confounding thing to me.  So, I thank you!

This forum is well moderated, but "be nice" is the main rule, so I think you may find it's a pleasant place to be!

If you haven't already, consider starting a new post asking your specific questions on the off-grid issue. Chances are someone else here has either already done it or researched how to do it.

Thank you, Jane.  I do get that impression here already.  It's right friendly and welcoming, but I'm struggling a bit to learn how to navigate the forums.  I reckon I'm just used to the traditional format forums tend to use.  But I'll get it.  I may be very traditional and simple but I also know that if you don't keep up with changes, you'll get left behind and dependent on the younger folks to do everything for you.  (I know because I've helped the elderly my entire life to keep them in their own homes and out of nursing homes as long as possible.)

Welcome Emmett.
I was going to start with suggesting that you plan in accessible features and make it so you can age in place for as long as possible, but if you have done so much elder care than you're probably already up on that aspect.
For design suggestions, I have found many of the tiny home plans have great ideas. You don't have to go that small but the design concepts can be very good and often involve stacking functions.
One idea I love is to go for a full wetroom with bathrooms, easier to clean and they make it possible for roll-in, when needed.

Another thing I also suggest is to consider used and commercial equipment when doing things like your kitchen. Used commercial is even better! A new commercial, double basin steel sink, with the heavy duty faucet and sprayer is often less than many "stylish" sinks and it will make all the prep and processing so much easier.

We have found a ton of amazing deals for our place, ( we moved in late 2023) through local house clearing auctions. Deals, better quality, reusing things and the money stays in your community so they are a total win.

Good luck with your new adventure!

Dian Green wrote:Welcome Emmett.
I was going to start with suggesting that you plan in accessible features and make it so you can age in place for as long as possible, but if you have done so much elder care than you're probably already up on that aspect.
For design suggestions, I have found many of the tiny home plans have great ideas. You don't have to go that small but the design concepts can be very good and often involve stacking functions.
One idea I love is to go for a full wetroom with bathrooms, easier to clean and they make it possible for roll-in, when needed.

Another thing I also suggest is to consider used and commercial equipment when doing things like your kitchen. Used commercial is even better! A new commercial, double basin steel sink, with the heavy duty faucet and sprayer is often less than many "stylish" sinks and it will make all the prep and processing so much easier.

We have found a ton of amazing deals for our place, ( we moved in late 2023) through local house clearing auctions. Deals, better quality, reusing things and the money stays in your community so they are a total win.

Good luck with your new adventure!

Thank you, Dian.  I'm sorry I missed your reply.  I'm still trying to figure out how to keep up with the forums I post in and threads I create.  

You make good points.  I don't want to turn my house into a nursing home or anything, but at least have the basic "just in case" features that would be too difficult to modify later.  I'm all about wide doorways anyway to easily move furniture in and out, for example.  

Actually, I love tiny homes.  A tiny house would be absolutely perfect for me because I enjoy smaller room and don't get claustrophobic.  Smaller homes make fatter wallets, material possessions fewer, relationships stronger, conversations easier, laughter louder, cleaning time shorter, and more time for living.  The only thing that rules it out for me is that I want a big dog (pitbull or great dane) and a couple of cats (would like to adopt a bonded pair).  They need room to run around and places to call their own.  And, for how much I like to stock up so I can be the homebody I am, I'd need a separate space the size of a tiny house to achieve it!

Your idea about using commercial equipment aligns with my plans, too.  I've never heard any other person talk about this, so now I don't think I'm crazy!  I want a washer and dryer that will easily accommodate large items, like a king sized comforter, pillows, dog beds, etc.,  And I'm all about a big, stainless steel kitchen sink!  I don't do stylish, trendy, or pristine showpieces.  In fact, my favorite countertops I've ever seen were cabinet grade, white oak plywood that was stained and polyeurethaned.  I don't like marble or granite or even butcher block.  I like a good, solid woodgrain countertop.  I want my kitchen to look like a million recipes have already been made in it.  And I want folks to be comfortable to be themselves and put their feet up without worrying about messing something up.  

Since I have no family, but love the lived in look of a comfortable home with history, I have a plan for how I can achieve that and give the house instant history and charm, instead of a characterless, fresh out of the packet, sterile look.  This is the part that excites me to start!  With the exception of my living room furniture and mattress, I plan to travel around to flea markets, antique shops, thrift stores, estate sales, and fill it with that kind of furniture and decor.  That's going to be a lot of fun for me!  It's instant, lived in comfort and history, but not junky, of course.

Here are a few pictures that show the styles I like.  It's a bit like English Victorian Cottage meets The Waltons farmhouse, meets cabin.  I like architectural nooks and crannies, vintage wallpaper, chair rails, real hardwood floors, some stained glass, and for every room to be its own (with pocket doors) with the exception of a kitchen diner combination.  There would also be some modern touches, like the Perfect Back Porch picture, as well as a bit of unexpected whimsy.  But the outside?  And the garden?  Oh, do I have plans and ideas, as well as features for the dog, cats and even the chickens!  Lastly, I'm considering some kind of small, indoor pool and conservatory combination that can be enjoyed year round.

Someone asked me how big my house is going to be.  I said, "As big as it needs to be, but as small as I can make it."

I want two bedrooms and, ideally, one bathroom.  But, I'm still weighing whether or not to make both bedrooms with their own bathrooms.  The problem there is cleaning the second bathroom and possibly then needing a half bath for company.  One bathroom eliminates all that.  

I know I'm going on and on, but I can't help it.  I really can't.  I've never had a home.  I've moved over 50 times in my life and have never felt at home in any of the places I've lived because I never belonged anywhere.  This house will be my forever home and I really want to make it with the right balance of comfort and convenience, mixed with some extra personal touches.  That's why the location and the property itself are so much more important than the house.  Houses can be remodeled or built.  But the land?  The views?  The location?  Those can't.  I found the land and where I want to be.  So, now, comes designing the house.
 

It's right to enjoy the excitement of taking such a huge step, Emmett. So glad you found the right property. As you say, that's the most important thing.

Emmett Ray wrote:That's why the location and the property itself are so much more important than the house.  Houses can be remodeled or built.  But the land?  The views?  The location?  Those can't.  I found the land and where I want to be.  So, now, comes designing the house.
 

Emmett, I couldn't agree more.  I've been told by people wiser than I am, you'll build three houses before you get it right.  That's the great thing about tiny houses.  When you find out you should have done something different, you can add on, or build a new one and use that one for something else, or, if you build it mobile, sell it.  Out buildings can make up for lots of things you would like to change about the house.  Not enough room?  Out building.  Acquired more tools?  Out building.  Chickens?  Out building.  The land is different.  That needs to be what you want the first time ideally.  

Don't worry about navigating the site.  If you spend a bit of time here, it will all make sense.  There are lots of categories in the forum, so if you have a question about something, just start a topic in the appropriate forum.  If you can't figure out which forum, put it in the one that you think is close, and someone can help you move it if there is a better one.  You'll likely not find another forum as friendly as this one, and I've never seen anyone say "That question has been covered, look for it yourself" or the like.  In fact, if it has been covered, people will answer you, and put links to the other places people have talked about the same thing, or similar in case you want to read it.  Also, if you find a threaad that's old, you can always add to that and it will bring it back to the top.  I've been on forums where people hate that too, but it's done pretty often here, and no one objects.

Jane Mulberry wrote:It's right to enjoy the excitement of taking such a huge step, Emmett. So glad you found the right property. As you say, that's the most important thing.

Thank you, Jane.  This is the very first time I've even been able to talk about it, and my ideas, and show the pictures I've collected.  That's been the hardest part for me is not having any friends locally to bounce ideas off of and get opinions from.  I'm sure the house must sound huge from all I've shared, but I really do want it as small as possible!  I'm not one to have big gatherings, so making it comfy and personable for a group of two to four is just right.

Trace Oswald wrote: Emmett, I couldn't agree more.  I've been told by people wiser than I am, you'll build three houses before you get it right.  Out buildings can make up for lots of things you would like to change about the house.  Not enough room?  Out building.  Acquired more tools?  Out building.  Chickens?  Out building.  The land is different.  That needs to be what you want the first time ideally.

You just made my day, Trace!  Outbuildings are exactly what I have planned.  As soon as I realized I'd need a few of them (garden shed, greenhouse, chicken coop, pump house, tools and garden shed, etc.,) I started thinking about how I wanted it all to look.  I like the idea of designing and arranging them to look like a small country village with paths between them, little gardens by some, or even arranging them to look like a village lane.  (See pictures.)  I'm sure I'll greatly scale down everything I'm showing, but this dreaming part?  It's what's kept me going.

Don't worry about navigating the site.  If you spend a bit of time here, it will all make sense.  There are lots of categories in the forum, so if you have a question about something, just start a topic in the appropriate forum.  If you can't figure out which forum, put it in the one that you think is close, and someone can help you move it if there is a better one.  You'll likely not find another forum as friendly as this one, and I've never seen anyone say "That question has been covered, look for it yourself" or the like.  In fact, if it has been covered, people will answer you, and put links to the other places people have talked about the same thing, or similar in case you want to read it.  Also, if you find a threaad that's old, you can always add to that and it will bring it back to the top.  I've been on forums where people hate that too, but it's done pretty often here, and no one objects.

Thanks, Trace.  Folks here have been nothing but kind and helpful.  That's why I've posted and shared as much as I have.  I don't do social media because it's too angry and argumentative for me.  If I want that, I can walk down my city streets.  All I wanted was to find one place... just one... online that I could chat with and be part of.  It took awhile, but I finally found it.  😊

Hi Emmett,

I'll also be building a house near the foothills of the appalachia (Kentucky in my case). I'd be curious to hear what design features and materials you end up using as you go along through construction, maybe we can trade some ideas.

I'm thinking of using rammed earth currently, but haven't made any final decisions. Wood and rock seem like cool options as well. Wide doors also seem like a smart move as you mentioned.

I'll try to start making some designs in the next 6 months for layout, maybe i'll share these here somewhere on this site for critique. If you design any plans I'd be interested in seeing them as well, maybe I can steal some of your ideas

Klaus.

Hi Emmett.

What a beautiful journey you are on! Take your time. Feel the land. It will speak to you. That’s the greatest piece of advice I’ve ever gotten and my best guide in any project. I completely agree with outbuildings. I built a real small ‘cabin’ that will one day be a shed/barn with no water inside to eliminate water damage. I built a second outbuilding just for water. This was also in a very cold region and I planned far ahead for winters when I would not be at the property for extended amounts of time.

Consider features that will reduce the potential for mold, keep in mind the materials you use and maximize your insulation and storage space. My favorite thing in tiny spaces is built in features. Double walls that can be used as storage/shelving (although I have to account for far too many books!)

And- planning for the potential is always good. I have been through some strange injuries that cause me to think about ‘can I reach that overhead’ ‘can I bend over to pull that plug out of the wall’ ‘what if that light bulb goes out and I can’t  get on a ladder’  ‘how much will I have to move out of the way to get to that one thing I need’. All of the camp cabin outlets are at 36-42”. All light fixtures low. Things we generally take for granted that really matter, not just in aging, but life. I’ve had these considerations from the age of 27 and am so grateful to see little things in a little bit of a different light.

I love the concepts you are throwing out. That outdoor kitchen is gorgeous! It looks like you are creating a true home with a very loving and welcoming feel to it.

What are you thinking about for heating?

So exciting! Enjoy every moment of planning and creating. There’s a world of possibility. You’ll know what’s right for you!