Author Topic: Help finding DIY house kit/plans  (Read 1251 times)

tjthebest

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Help finding DIY house kit/plans
« on: June 27, 2020, 10:28:38 PM »
Hey all,

I need help finding a website i lost track of.

A couple years ago a came across a site that had house plans that you could build yourself. The stated that you could basically build it on the weekends or through the summer with out very high construction skills. basically the materials and framing lent itself to very high tolerances for exact cuts/angles due to the siding and interior wall materials used.

i for the life of me cannot find what website it was. Does anyone know what i a talking about?

thanks, TJ

cooking

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Re: Help finding DIY house kit/plans
« Reply #1 on: June 29, 2020, 04:06:04 PM »
Sounds like first day cottage to me

icebox92

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Re: Help finding DIY house kit/plans
« Reply #2 on: June 30, 2020, 02:40:28 PM »
Sounds like first day cottage to me

 @cooking I never heard of these before and just went down the rabbit hole.  Pretty cool!

cooking

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Re: Help finding DIY house kit/plans
« Reply #3 on: June 30, 2020, 07:53:42 PM »
Yeah, agreed.  I have been wanting to build one for YEARS (seriously, buildable lots where I live are ridiculously expensive).  Every few years I call the owner, David Howard, to ask a few questions and make sure he's still in business (he's got to be well into his 70's by my reckoning).  He always forgets that I'm the same one who's been calling him for 20 or so yrs., and patiently answers my questions.  Always an interesting conversation with a creative architect.

tjthebest

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Re: Help finding DIY house kit/plans
« Reply #4 on: June 30, 2020, 09:04:03 PM »
Sounds like first day cottage to me

nailed it. this is what i was looking for! knew i came to the right place.

thanks!

cooking

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Re: Help finding DIY house kit/plans
« Reply #5 on: June 30, 2020, 10:51:59 PM »
@tjthebest--Please if you do end up building one, make sure to keep posting here w/lots of pictures.  Seems like a lot of people get understandably busy with their projects and then forget to reward us with the reveals.  Don't leave us with the cliffhanger!

Dicey

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Re: Help finding DIY house kit/plans
« Reply #6 on: July 10, 2020, 12:13:45 AM »
Oh, wow! I am totally hooked. This is going to be fun.

cooking

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Re: Help finding DIY house kit/plans
« Reply #7 on: July 10, 2020, 07:50:35 PM »
@Dicey -- same request to you as to @tjthebest.  If you do build, please keep us informed and post lots and lots of photos!

Dicey

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Re: Help finding DIY house kit/plans
« Reply #8 on: July 11, 2020, 12:06:51 AM »
@Dicey -- same request to you as to @tjthebest.  If you do build, please keep us informed and post lots and lots of photos!
Sure! For us, the hard part will be finding a lot. We're pretty built out here. The few that come up tend to be very dear.

Fishindude

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Re: Help finding DIY house kit/plans
« Reply #9 on: July 11, 2020, 06:39:12 AM »
Years ago, Sears used to sell complete house packages with plans; everything required from the foundation up; framing, insulation, decking, siding, roofing, windows, doors, wiring, plumbing, etc., delivered to your site.
A lot of them got built.

Closest thing I am aware of like this today are the log cabin kits.
I suspect the modular / pre-manufactured home business has taken up most of this market?

cooking

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Re: Help finding DIY house kit/plans
« Reply #10 on: July 11, 2020, 01:24:27 PM »
First Day Cottages are kind of a different look, though. I'm not real informed about construction, so I could be wrong about the following, but this is my understanding of their construction.  The structure is a kind of modified post and beam, but made of built-up dimensional lumber.  David Howard, the architect/owner, invented the process.  The sheathing wood is then applied to the exterior, leaving it exposed to the interior walls.  The wiring is done from the exterior.  No sheetrock is necessary.  It's also a process that leaves fewer spaces for air leaks, so it's touted as wasting much less fuel for heating.  The interior look is almost rustic, but some people choose to sheetrock in some spaces for a more formal look.  Much different from any modular I've ever seen.

Since I detest trends and fads, especially those coming from HGTV stars who think they invented something because they use an idea ad nauseum, I cringe to say the following.  But here it is.  The look is pretty much like shiplap walls, although I'm not certain whether the actual joints in the sheathing are shiplap.  What I do know is First Day Cottage has been doing it since long before a certain overexposed HGTV star has.

AMandM

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Re: Help finding DIY house kit/plans
« Reply #11 on: July 12, 2020, 06:37:40 PM »
Years ago, Sears used to sell complete house packages with plans; everything required from the foundation up; framing, insulation, decking, siding, roofing, windows, doors, wiring, plumbing, etc., delivered to your site.
A lot of them got built.
There are quite a few of these in my city.
I wonder whether you could duplicate this nowadays. If you could get a detailed shipping list and plans for one of these houses, would it be a (relatively) cheap way to do a new build now? Or would you have to make so many changes, to satisfy current codes or because products are no longer available, that it would amount to a custom build?