[RUSTYME]

Cheers lam , looking forward to post day .
 I won't be going just yet, but if you don't hear from me , then you know i have dropped off (hopefully not off my twig though ! ) .  I may be able to get a laptop , and find an open wi fi to connect once i am down on the land full time . But i will see about that then , making the house frame  comes before that though . The frame will be about 30 feet by 12 feet ish , and there will be an upstairs . Living room and kitchen down stairs , 2 bedrooms and bathroom up stairs . Wattle and daub infil panels , straw thatch roof . 95% of materials are from the land , just glass and metal for hinges etc from elsewhere . I have the metal and glass and the lead for the leaded windows , nearly enough timber for the frame , and  the wattle i will cut when needed . The mud for the daub i will dig as and when needed also . Lots of work !

[mmu]

I can understand  both sides of this,as I was brought up with no mod cons, only cold running water, which was from a private supply, until I was about 15.  We had no electricity, and heated the house with wood we collected and the odd bit of nutty slack to keep the fire in over night.  No vac, phone or t.v etc.  Being at school was tough as I was bullied for being different, but it did teach me the real value of things so that when I got them I really appreciated them.  Also helped when we move up to Scotland and life spiraled out of control and we had to live rough in a very basic cottage where two of us had to sleep on the floor for 2 years.  At least we had water and leccy and could have a bath!  Then we had to live in a caravan on the side of a hill 800 feet up for 7 years.  Intermittent water and leccy, because water was from a 300 year old well and either froze or dried up and leccy went off every time the wind blew, which was most of the time.  It was cold, damp, clothes went mouldy and we were not happy.  Eventually we got the house built and are now reasonably comfortable, except we are still on the same well as a new one will cost £10,000. We have, however, made some modifications so it doesn't go off quite so much, but it keeps us on our toes and we do appreciate it and don't waste a drop.  I prefer living in a house, especially when the gales blow as I used to be genuinely terrified of the caravan blowing away with us inside it, and had to put a brave face on it as we had two children and my elderly Dad to look after.  Yes, my Dad insisted on coming with us at the grand age of 80! and he grew all the veggies which at times were just about all we had.  Life is better now, but I'm still very independent, have slight anarchical leanings, and keep a firm hold on reality, not technology.  I'm really glad I can milk, make cheese, butcher a small animal and prepare poultry and game etc.  We still grow as much veg as possible, and try to be self sufficient, without being too weird, although I think the folk down in the village suspect that I'm a witch!  If only! I use technology because I think it's the future for the time being and can be very useful. Hopefully, when the bubble does burst and technology goes poof, I will still be able to feed my family and animals, although, knowing my luck someone with a weapon will sneak up on us and take the lot.  What I would like to see is real freedom for all to do as they wish provided it doesn't hurt anyone else, and I think it's time to kick the money changers out of the temple.

[Cavendish]

WOW WOW WOW, thats all I can say, I would love to do things such as you do, I am living a very conventional life at the moment, new house Big mortgage, me and the mrs are looking to start a family soon so no running off to the wild to go green for me yet!, although I try to grow and produce as much as I can with my spare time. 

I would be really interested in seeing some pics of your house once you have it built, I have seen other wattle and daub houses and they look brilliant, superbly insulated and look like they are out of a fairy tale.

Where about are you living?... I presume it is somewhere fairly remote?.

I wish you every luck in your endeavour!. we'll all have to join you when the world goes pop!.

[Roxy]

Russ, you new house sounds as though it will be great!!  Things like that really interest me.  Do you need such a thing as planning permission for it - or building regs?!!  Perhaps you could organise a Smallholders working party one weekend, to come and help you.  Sure there would be lots of offers of help, from interested people.  You would have the house up in no time!!

As to your laptop .....living in a caravan, we have limited resources, but last Christmas, I discovered mobile broadband - I just stick the dongle in the side of my laptop, and here I am.  My one little bit of luxury, so  I can come on here

[lachlanandmarcus]

mobile dongles = very good! BTW Rusty the seeds have been posted today!

[RUSTYME]

 Having stepped of the merry go round , money is almost non existant , even the £5 a month that it costs me to connect via  orange monkey , is not guaranteed  . There comes a point when i have to take a bigger step off , otherwise it becomes a matter of £5 for this , £5 for that and the you are back on , needing £200 a week just to get by , so big steps it is .
 You need planning for everything , f***em .
 The frame will go up a bit at a time , as i square it up and make the joints etc , and i am able to move really big logs with winch,hoist.jack and tripod , plus the scaffold tower . Also there is only  4x4 access to the 350 yard track , and nowhere to park  on the road .   
Plus the legal proceedings that would ensue if someone got a splinter , i can do without lol . Good thinking though !
 
   

[RUSTYME]

 mmu , roxy , life without all the mod cons is hard sometimes , but as you both know , not impossible , just different . 
I don't have water in the caravan either , and the spring was frozen for about 6 weeks last winter. I carried water back from the land each day .
 It is funny really , but everyday life is basically the same for me even if i have all mod cons , apart from the walking !
 Living as i do , would only be hard , if i didn't want to do it . 90% of the time i love what i do , and the way i do it . The other 10% i may hate at times , but i have worked 8 till 6 in factories and will never go back to that way of life .
   

[RUSTYME]

Clearing a way through one of my sheds here today ,here is the farm i live on at the moment , trying to sort out my old pole lathe , and my collection of old hand crank sewing machines , some of which go back to  the 1820's . Making them easier to get at when i can shift them all down the land .
 The pole lathe i made years ago and i need it now to make parts for my spinning wheel .
 Getting all bits ready to make yarn , cloth and clothes next year . Also sorting plans etc for 17th century furniture , chairs , tables , chests , beds .
I have old stuff that i can use , but i want all the furniture to be in keeping  with the style of the house . No fitted kitchen units , just oak welsh dresser type cupboards and a butler sink .
 Got to sort out the parts needed for my old cobblers sewing machine , so i can make my own shoes and boots again .
I can get fresh cow hides now and then , so can tan one now and then and use the leather for footwear and clothing as well as any horse gear i need . 

[Plantoid]

Cheers lam , looking forward to post day .
 I won't be going just yet, but if you don't hear from me , then you know i have dropped off (hopefully not off my twig though ! ) .  I may be able to get a laptop , and find an open wi fi to connect once i am down on the land full time . But i will see about that then , making the house frame  comes before that though . The frame will be about 30 feet by 12 feet ish , and there will be an upstairs . Living room and kitchen down stairs , 2 bedrooms and bathroom up stairs . Wattle and daub infil panels , straw thatch roof . 95% of materials are from the land , just glass and metal for hinges etc from elsewhere . I have the metal and glass and the lead for the leaded windows , nearly enough timber for the frame , and  the wattle i will cut when needed . The mud for the daub i will dig as and when needed also . Lots of work !

 that wattle..
ever thought of  .....can you use split willow or hazel rather than whole rods ..that way you only need half the wood for the wattle ... if you soak it in water for three days after splitting it you will be able to almost tie knots in it with out it breaking out / rupturing.

[RUSTYME]

Yes thats right , i will mainly be using whole rods , but any that are too thick can be split .
Although the horses ate all my willow , i will be planting another 1500 soon , so qty won't be a problem .  I only have 2 baskets left now , so need  to get that side sorted .
 I will need enough hazel staves and willow rods to do 75 ish 3'x3' panels ,  and about 5 or 6 tons of clay , plus about 2 to 3 tons of straw for the thatch.  At least the house won't blow away in the wind !

[RUSTYME]

 Been cuttng wood the last few days . Just the branches of a really big maple . A few car loads for my nephews wood burner . 
 Still got lots of digging to do , but it has been so wet here that have been unable to do any work .
 I have to try to make a temporary water wheel , to power a saw bench and a small leccy genny .
  I was going to make a w/w out of old angle iron bed frames , but then the price of scrap went through the roof and i couldn't afford them . So will have to make it out of wood . The bugger is , i need the saw bench to convert trees into timber . Will have to set the s/b up to run off the deisel engine , then get the engine down the land !
 Life off grid eh ?