Gathering Materials, Leveling the Foundation

Think the forklift driver will scratch my WRX? Better load by hand...

 So far people seem to be pretty interested when they find out what's going on. Talking with an employee for a while, I was able to get a killer deal on my windows. The catch? They had to be delivered to the Wichita store.

8 windows in a sports car. Thanks to some out-of-the-box thinking from Josh. That kid should get a raise!

Because of the deal, I left my car in Wichita after I moved to Colorado. When the windows came in, I went back to pick them up. I knew it would be a tight fit!

8 hour drive completed, no window damage.

One full trunk.

Can you picture this installed in the back wall?!

Unloading and Leveling the Trailer.

The pad here is pretty sloped, about 9 inches lower on the right axle. Built up a ramp out of treated 2x10s that should handle the load. I had the trailer safety tied from both sides with hand winches to make sure it didn't go anywhere during this process.

14 windows in the back, a 4'x8' stack, and then the 2x stack. Time to convert these piles into a micro mansion!

Each corner has welded on a 5000lb 2' extendable scissor jack. 

Leveled, tarped, and ready for the upcoming snowstorm.

37 Years of Stuff in a Garage, Clean in 45 Seconds

Ever notice how the longer you live in one place, the more it fills up with stuff? This is my workshop space, or soon to be. Obviously needs some TLC. It hasn't been fully cleaned out in 37 years. (Thanks Pam for the VW parking spot!)

Drag around in the picture to swivel 360 degrees. Thanks Photosphere app.

Views: "Before" (Tiny house workshop space) by Tim Seymour


Time lapse of the cleaning.

Standing in the same spot as the first Photosphere, organized workshop now!

Views: "After" (Tiny House Workshop Space) by Tim Seymour

Trailer Pick Up

Freshly hooked up to the brand new trailer. Check out the completed Tumbleweeds in the background.

Wasting no time, picked up the first order of supplies on the way home.

Fully loaded.

Put my new used truck to the test. 3000ft elevation gain with this load, no problems.

Setting the trailer on the build site.

Moving to Colorado

 

Everything I own is in this picture! Lots of downsizing and more to go.

The trip from KS to CO started out with 40mph headwinds and snow through Salina. Not the best for gas mileage! But as you can see it cleared up nicely.

Great practice run pulling this smaller 6'x12' trailer before the house. Got many small items taken care of including the brake controller, learned about proper tongue weight, and overall got the feel of how the truck handles with a load.

Doozer's first time leaving KS.

Goodbye KS, Hello Colorado!

Views: Red Rocks by Tim Seymour

No doubts about leaving KS, but this view would have squashed them anyway!

Emptying the "Giant" House

Welcome and thanks for visiting. 

Here you'll find some info on my latest project, building my own tiny house. 

Model Today

"Giant" 950 Sq Ft House

To start out, here are some pics of the house I just sold and moved out of. I lived there for 5 years, and poured tons of money, time, and energy into it. A good learning experience I suppose. Now it is empty. I spent months downsizing and getting rid of "stuff." That actually was happening before I even knew that tiny houses existed.

I found myself going through everything I owned and thinking, "do I really need this anymore?" "When is the last time I used this?" "wow I really spent money on all this stuff that I never use?"...  Reducing the stuff in my home felt great! Soon my house really looked empty. I was only using about a third of the space.

Empty Living Room

Empty Kitchen

Empty Bedroom

My first reaction to Tiny Houses: "wow those people are crazy!" 

Empty (Remodeled) Bathroom

But... I've already been getting rid of "stuff." How far could I take that? Would the feeling of freedom keep flowing in if I continued to minimize to that extreme? No mortgage payment, extremely small utility bills, not continuing to buy stuff to fill the space that I wasn't even using, living in a structure that was completely built by my own hands... What an interesting experiment! Why not try?

So that was it. I started planning. I reduced so much that everything I own fits in half of a 10'x10' storage unit. 80% of that can go also, after I have the time to sort through it again.

Now I've sold my house, quit my job, and bought some of the materials. Next week I'm moving to Colorado to build full time for a few months.

I have no idea what this blog might turn into, but I'll do my best to keep everyone posted on the planning, progress, and stumbling blocks that are bound to happen along the way.