Thanks to Ernie of Erie, Pa., Trout Camp's "Thinker's Box" is now the proud recipient of 150 square feet of solid oak flooring. I truly appreciate the generosity of CListers and friends that have answered my "want ads". The donated materials have been a G_dsend! I THANK YOU!
I picked up the flooring this past Wednesday and lugged it back to my home to prepare it for re-use. In the course of only a couple days, I was able to detach the underlayment (dual 3/8" plywood) and salvage almost all the floor boards intact. From the pile of boards, I used a cutoff wheel to remove the rather sparse staple legs and stacked them neatly. It is amazing how little room the individual boards take compared to when they are assembled into a sheet. With only 50% left to complete, we're just about ready to put the tongue and groove underlayment down up at camp. I've accumulated quite a bit of materials waiting for the ultimate day of installation including a 36" wood door, screen door, three small windows, a camper sink and faucet, a small camper tub, wood galore and now the flooring.
Here's the run down on the plans at this point:
My neighbor Carol brought up a good point when I relayed the plans for construction. Initially, I had thought about laying the hardwood down and then stud framing on top of that. She voiced concern with the flooring ends following the perimeter of the structure and their exposure to the elements/moisture. I explained that the walls would cover this area and most of the joist floor framing. This question served another purpose, though, as I did some recalculating and re-figured the quantity of oak flooring that we actually needed.
We're framing with 2X4" studs. The stud wall's bottom plate reduction (a 2X4's width), due to the thickness of the material around the outer edge, would subtract [3.5" X 147 (twice) + 3.5" X 192" (twice) =] 16.48 square feet of flooring. Less if you consider the 1/4" gap that should be allowed between the oak floor edges and the interior walls. We'll call it a total reduction of 17.5 square feet of flooring material.
Here's why that is important. I originally thought I'd arrive home with 400 square of gymnasium flooring from Erie, but after loading...it was obvious that I had less than half of that amount. So, the total subfloor area equals 196 sq. ft., subtract the 17.5 sq. ft. because of the walls and we have an area of 178.5 sq. ft. that needs to be covered. If we then include any interior walls, shelving or the underneath of a countertop, etc...it looks like (if all goes well) that 150 square feet of oak flooring should work out just about perfect. In the event it doesn't, I have about 60-80 square of bamboo flooring left from the installation of our front room's floor that I can use inconspicuously where needed.
Thanks Carol for inadvertently forcing me to rethink and formulate a better plan to maximize the use of what I've got on hand!
Lastly, there seems to be some questions regarding how we intend on incorporating the latrine into our structure. After all, the "Thinker's Box" got its name from the fact that some of our most brilliant ideas come to us while answering the call of Nature. And, in the course of relaxing at camp, it became obvious that the ladies needed an inspiration throne. Floatman and I needed a place to store tools and other camp necessities as well. So, we're killing two birds with one here.
Let me back up a bit and shed some insight into the design premise behind this Trout Camp addition. First off, according to the county office, it is permissible to erect a storage structure up to 1000 square feet as long as it isn't to be occupied as a livable dwelling. Yes, you've read that correctly! We can build a garage or barn up to 1000 square without having to pull a permit. That is almost unbelievable, but I re-checked and that number is accurate! Due to county legislation, the times of erecting a primitive cabin on a budget are all but written off. If a structure is to be erected for occupation (one day / month or 30) then permits must be pulled for the construction and one is forced to incorporate septic, well water and electric. If you're not aware, these three are EXPENSIVE and only further the cause for the gov't / commercial enterprises to charge you for utilities / taxes that are totally unnecessary for a weekend camping lodge. The original thought behind the legislation had reason. Older primitive cabins dot (litter) the landscape down to our turn off and up the hill to our private drive into camp. The many pit latrine / outhouses have contaminated the aquifer that feeds the spring coming into camp. So besides feeding the machine your money, the ecological goal was to limit the mountain stream's contamination source. Unfortunately these laws grandfathered preexisting established camps and came too late. The damage is done and likely will never be undone.
We wish to be as ecologically friendly during those limited days we can steal away and seek refuge in her bosom (I'm talking about camp here, keep it clean!) The benefits of humanure are well documented and the process ecologically sound and friendly. Our plans incorporate a DIY model very similiar to this commercial available unit. By the time the human matter hits the soil, it is as nutrient rich and decomposed as any cow/horse manure you can purchase from a farm. During the process of collection, if the proper steps are taken in handling and preparation, waste is completely transparent to both nose and eyes. See embedded video for all the information:
I picked up the flooring this past Wednesday and lugged it back to my home to prepare it for re-use. In the course of only a couple days, I was able to detach the underlayment (dual 3/8" plywood) and salvage almost all the floor boards intact. From the pile of boards, I used a cutoff wheel to remove the rather sparse staple legs and stacked them neatly. It is amazing how little room the individual boards take compared to when they are assembled into a sheet. With only 50% left to complete, we're just about ready to put the tongue and groove underlayment down up at camp. I've accumulated quite a bit of materials waiting for the ultimate day of installation including a 36" wood door, screen door, three small windows, a camper sink and faucet, a small camper tub, wood galore and now the flooring.
- Install the carriage bolts (long overdue!)
- Install 23/32" tongue and groove underlayment.
- Complete structure stud framing including the roof.
- Install the exterior wall sheeting.
- Install the wood flooring.
- Install the 36" wood door and screen door.
- Order up the roll door and install. Janus 650 Steel Roll Door
- Exterior trim work & Interior dressing up as needed.
My neighbor Carol brought up a good point when I relayed the plans for construction. Initially, I had thought about laying the hardwood down and then stud framing on top of that. She voiced concern with the flooring ends following the perimeter of the structure and their exposure to the elements/moisture. I explained that the walls would cover this area and most of the joist floor framing. This question served another purpose, though, as I did some recalculating and re-figured the quantity of oak flooring that we actually needed.
Total shed underlayment covered floor [ 12'3" X 16" = ] 196 square feet.
We're framing with 2X4" studs. The stud wall's bottom plate reduction (a 2X4's width), due to the thickness of the material around the outer edge, would subtract [3.5" X 147 (twice) + 3.5" X 192" (twice) =] 16.48 square feet of flooring. Less if you consider the 1/4" gap that should be allowed between the oak floor edges and the interior walls. We'll call it a total reduction of 17.5 square feet of flooring material.
Here's why that is important. I originally thought I'd arrive home with 400 square of gymnasium flooring from Erie, but after loading...it was obvious that I had less than half of that amount. So, the total subfloor area equals 196 sq. ft., subtract the 17.5 sq. ft. because of the walls and we have an area of 178.5 sq. ft. that needs to be covered. If we then include any interior walls, shelving or the underneath of a countertop, etc...it looks like (if all goes well) that 150 square feet of oak flooring should work out just about perfect. In the event it doesn't, I have about 60-80 square of bamboo flooring left from the installation of our front room's floor that I can use inconspicuously where needed.
Thanks Carol for inadvertently forcing me to rethink and formulate a better plan to maximize the use of what I've got on hand!
Lastly, there seems to be some questions regarding how we intend on incorporating the latrine into our structure. After all, the "Thinker's Box" got its name from the fact that some of our most brilliant ideas come to us while answering the call of Nature. And, in the course of relaxing at camp, it became obvious that the ladies needed an inspiration throne. Floatman and I needed a place to store tools and other camp necessities as well. So, we're killing two birds with one here.Let me back up a bit and shed some insight into the design premise behind this Trout Camp addition. First off, according to the county office, it is permissible to erect a storage structure up to 1000 square feet as long as it isn't to be occupied as a livable dwelling. Yes, you've read that correctly! We can build a garage or barn up to 1000 square without having to pull a permit. That is almost unbelievable, but I re-checked and that number is accurate! Due to county legislation, the times of erecting a primitive cabin on a budget are all but written off. If a structure is to be erected for occupation (one day / month or 30) then permits must be pulled for the construction and one is forced to incorporate septic, well water and electric. If you're not aware, these three are EXPENSIVE and only further the cause for the gov't / commercial enterprises to charge you for utilities / taxes that are totally unnecessary for a weekend camping lodge. The original thought behind the legislation had reason. Older primitive cabins dot (litter) the landscape down to our turn off and up the hill to our private drive into camp. The many pit latrine / outhouses have contaminated the aquifer that feeds the spring coming into camp. So besides feeding the machine your money, the ecological goal was to limit the mountain stream's contamination source. Unfortunately these laws grandfathered preexisting established camps and came too late. The damage is done and likely will never be undone.
We wish to be as ecologically friendly during those limited days we can steal away and seek refuge in her bosom (I'm talking about camp here, keep it clean!) The benefits of humanure are well documented and the process ecologically sound and friendly. Our plans incorporate a DIY model very similiar to this commercial available unit. By the time the human matter hits the soil, it is as nutrient rich and decomposed as any cow/horse manure you can purchase from a farm. During the process of collection, if the proper steps are taken in handling and preparation, waste is completely transparent to both nose and eyes. See embedded video for all the information:
That's all for now. Next week I'll post a short video of the carriage bolts and underlayment installed. We've invited some guests up to camp for the labor day weekend and having the underlayment floor on the joists of the "Thinker's Box" will give the kids somewhere to camp that is off the ground and dry.
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