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Alex_in_AZ
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# Posted: 5 Feb 2012 11:35 - Edited by: Alex_in_AZ
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Howdie, I'm a new guy here and am building in northern AZ. My location is at about 5750ft and has a mild winter climate, a bad snow storm for us is about 1ft and it usually melts pretty much by the late afternoon. Due to local planing regs I'm limiting myself to a 14 x 28 ft cabin and my wife wants it to look as much like a mod glass box as possible so we can enjoy views like this
It's a very remote location and access is along an unmaintained dirt road that switchbacks 500ft up in about 1/4 mile. This severely limits what I can get up there, a 20ft trailer being about the maximum. So whatever I do it has to be done on site and fairly simple.
Taking these constraints into account I hit upon the idea of erecting a metal carport like the one below and then enclosing part of it with curtain walls.
URL
effectively the 2 structures will be independent, but tied together. The soil is very rocky, and could well be bedrock in some areas, so I'll be attaching to it where I can and pouring columns where I can't do so.
Has anyone ever done this before or have any informed oppions they'd like to add?
thanks, Alex
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Mr. Troll
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# Posted: 6 Feb 2012 23:21
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Sounds interesting ,what about a floor ,need to keep critters out right? tell me more how youd build the walls and windows.. ,would you insulate against the heat ,make use of solar etc. Im in wisconsin so the dessert thing is foreign to me but those veiws are sweet.
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Martian
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# Posted: 7 Feb 2012 08:58 - Edited by: Martian
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Alex, Do you have the skills to frame in wood? If so, you can do this cheaper using wood framing. I would have fairly large overhangs to cut down on solar gain in the summer. To get your wife her views and provide ventilation, frame in a bunch of patio doors or buy replacement glass panels and frame them in. I paid about $350 for a 6' vinyl patio door. A structure 14X28 would take 12 of them if you went all the way around. Put the kitchen and bath along the center of the structure and you'd have a view in every direction. Use curtains to close off your bedroom if you need/want privacy.
Tom
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wakeslayer
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# Posted: 7 Feb 2012 09:29
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I like Martian's idea a lot. I think you would enjoy the structure a lot more.
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Alex_in_AZ
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# Posted: 7 Feb 2012 12:10
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Quoting: Martian Alex, Do you have the skills to frame in wood? If so, you can do this cheaper using wood framing. I would have fairly large overhangs to cut down on solar gain in the summer.
I probably do have the skills, I built a 10 x 12 gambrell roofed barn, a 10 x 16 elevated roofed platform and a stone slip formed outdoor kitchen so far at the site. I think a lot of the cost will be in the metal roofing panels which I'll have to buy whatever I do. I was leaning towards all metal because it's a lot more dimensionally stable than lumber and I'm one of those picky mechanical engineer types. as it is I'll have 2ft overhang on 3 sides and 6ft for the main view side.
Quoting: Mr. Troll Sounds interesting ,what about a floor ,need to keep critters out right? tell me more how youd build the walls and windows.. ,would you insulate against the heat ,make use of solar etc. Im in wisconsin so the dessert thing is foreign to me but those veiws are sweet.
I've got to get a quote on having a pad poured before I decide. The local contractor who made my road for me indicated he could get to the site and pour me one, or I can do a suspended wood floor on piers. If I go with a poured slab then the walls will only need to hold themselves up. The place is high desert, so it only gets to about 95f during the summer and cools down to mid 60s at night, so I'll not need to get too extreme with insulation. The place is 5 miles from the nearest electricity and right now I have a couple of PV panels and a storage bank with inverter just for basic lighting and music.
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hakalugi
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# Posted: 1 Dec 2012 17:48
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Hi Alex,
Yours is the only hit the search tool finds of "slipform" / "slip form" on this site.
since you've done the kitchen using this method, you've done more than i have (whch is read 3 different books on the method).
No interest in doing your walls that way? Too much effort/too slow?
with your temp swings between night and day, the 14" high mass wall thing could work to your advantage...
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