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German House Rebuild

1M views 3K replies 160 participants last post by  BigJim 
#1 · (Edited)
I have began taking down the chimineys. One is very old and has come down pretty easy, no cement in the mortar. It was packed full of soot and crud that was at least 2ft deep inside. It collected water like a sponge and transfered it to the inside walls. The 2nd is much newer with cement in the mortar, much harder to get down. I think the big jack hammer from above is the way to finish it off. Here are a couple of pics of the easy, old chiminey. When I start over it will be just a shell. My friends think I'm crazy!
 

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#2,170 ·
The carport before was a temporary thing. I took it down this Spring. I hope for a permanent one by this winter. I left the beam bolted to the side of the house and I will extend it full width of the house. I still have big plans for this year. Thanks for following. dorf dude...
 
#2,172 ·
The digger guy was here at 7:40 this morning. He finished leveling the ground and brought the first load of gravel. His truck is a Unimog. Fantastic machine:thumbup:. It can do anything with the right attachments. Here are a couple pics for now, more to come. dorf dude...
 

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#2,189 · (Edited)
Thanks for following! I had a tent raising party. Thanks for all the help guys! We had a great time and got this thing up. I provided Brat's and beer. Many of the helpers were new to the dorf dude's house. They were quite amazed. Mia also made lots of new best friends! She also has the biggest dog house in the world. Here are a few pic's. Campbell even managed to a pic of me and Dave. The next step will be fine gravel and then OSB flooring. dorf dude...
 

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#2,200 ·
The tent floor is going in. I pulled a 6 ft level across the gravel to take the final grade out. I laid heavy plastic and started laying the 22mm OSB. There are a couple small high spots but overall its not too bad. I can live with it. The OSB is glued on all seams. I made it exactly half way. Here are a couple pics. dorf dude
 

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#2,204 · (Edited)
I finally picked up enough OSB to finish the floor. I have started drawing the final grade level. I'm working it in a grid pattern. This area I really want to make sure is dead on. I will be rolling a Cherry Picker for pulling motors here. Here is a quick pick of leveling. dorf dude...
 

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#2,215 ·
I've gotten the form and rebar in for the little retaining wall on the other side of the "Shent", Shop-Tent. I'm short on cement and today was another holiday, no chance to buy some. Tomorrow is the mix and pour:thumbup:. Depends on the weather too. A couple pic's, dorf dude...
 

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#2,283 ·
Mat has helped me the last 3 day's. We have made 7 huge loads. It's getting pretty packed in here. I have a couple more loads and then the Mustang. Once I get it sorted out the space should be ok. Organization will be very important. I suck at that! Here is a pick of the stuff thrown in today.
 

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#2,288 ·
The Mustang has landed! It is finally Home. Perfect day to move it, not raining and snow is in the near future. Winter is ready to set in. I have a few more things to move but 99% of it is done. Almost there. dorf dude...
 

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#2,290 ·
I understand about the weight off your back. I'm almost finished moving out of the rented shop. Just the last garbage stuff to clear. I don't plan on working much in the shop during this winter. I'm going to shift to inside the house where it's nice and warm. I finally can work at my own pace and not under pressure. I think I will slow down a little bit. Thanks for following, dorf dude...
 
#2,309 · (Edited)
I have not updated lately but still getting lots of hits. I put a bar in the Pool room. I had wood left over from the staircase stringers and made good use of it. I wall mounted a 24" monitor that is hooked up to a laptop. We use it for the jukebox and watching online videos ect... It is really a nice area to sit and hang out. I picked up a few more bar stools at a good price. Next I will build a simple rack to put the stereo equipment in. Nothing fancy. I will have a turntable and even an 8 track. Now if I could find a good reel to reel. Here is a pic of the bar area so far. Instead of spending lots of time and money finishing the counter top I bought a plastic table cloth that looks like wood. It was wide enough that I cut it down the middle and actually got 2, so the cost of 1 was only 7 bucks! Great deal. dorf dude...
 

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#2,312 ·
Wow i love the work you have done on your home. I cant honestly say i would have done the same in your shoes, i just might have taken a wrecking ball to it and rebuilt. Id love your opinion on what i have done though, its not that far along yet but i would like your expert opinion! The link is in my signature if you would be kind enough to stop by! Good job!
 
#2,313 ·
I've been keeping an eye on your progress. I'll chime in if I see something. I could not knock the house down. If I did then I would have had to set the new structure way back off the side walk. I would have lost a lot of my yard. That is the case with many structures here. Thanks for following. Big progress next week in the spare bedroom. dorf dude...
 
#2,373 ·
Almost done with the tiles. I ran out of light and energy. I made an access panel for the drain. I used 2 hard drive magnets and a couple washers to hold it in place. For holding the tiles up in the cube I used a slat just slightly longer than the height, worked great. For cutting the tiles I made up a jig. I just moved the screws as each piece was cut. Beats the heck out of trying to hold them with your foot as you cut. Matt's brother showed up and got the shop/tent hooked up to the main power:thumbup:. No more extension cord running across the yard. Here are a few pic's. dorf dude...
 

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#2,387 ·
Just wanted to post to let you know that I finished reading through your thread and I am extremely impressed. I loved seeing all your progress and solutions as each stage came along. I would love to have a house like that here in the states for sure. I am looking forward to further progress indeed. And if you are curious Id say it took me a bout a week of periodic reading to get through the whole thread.
 
#2,397 · (Edited)
The panels are 1m60 x .80m. Here is a link to their site.

http://solar-pac.de/epages/solar-pac.sf/de_DE/?ObjectPath=/Shops/solar-pac/Categories

Your right about the cost being low. I've been waiting and looking for something like this in this price range. Now I'm exploring wind power. Nothing huge but something to take advantage of our windy weather here. Around the 500 - 1000 watt range. I spoke with the neighbor and they have no problem. Now I have to talk to the city about height restrictions. I'm not looking at a big pay off. I just want a lower electric bill. Prices keep going up. Maybe in the future I will go off grid but for now this system helps. Thanks for following, dorf dude...
 
#2,402 · (Edited)
I went over to my Buddy's place today to get my brakes fixed and summer tire's mounted. A neighbor showed up and my friend said to me "Tell him what you just bought" Referring to my PV solar panels. I tried to explain and then just pulled up the web site. solar-pac.de He was going off, "No way" You can't just plug a solar array into a common outlet. There must be safety features. If the grid goes down and you are still making power then I could shock the sh!t out of the whole village and I would be legally liable if some one was to get hurt.!! I'm thinking Huh??:no: I would have a better chance of winning the Lottery. I'll take my chances. If power went out then we would be having a storm, no sun light. My peak output is 735 watts at this time, divide that between all the houses in the village. Man the mentality :whistling2:. At times I really have to wonder why Germany is the leader of Europe. It turns out my friend set me up. The neighbor is an Electrical Engineer ect... They don't do well with new ideas. Things must be done in the proper way and pay for all the inspections. Keep the machine alive. Not here with me!! Those of you that have followed this thread know that. I'm putting in more panels:thumbup:. Just plugged into a common outlet. Pushing my meter back one day at a time. The goal is to reach 0 usage. I can not make more than I use. I have no contract for selling back excess. Things get complicated then. They buy back at less than they sell anyway. No real advantage for all the extra work. I know people with huge systems that took out 20 year loans with the bank. On paper it will work out in 15-20 years. I'm over 50 so I will pay as I can afford it with cash. No loan. Thanks for letting me rant, dorf dude...
 
#2,421 ·
It will be interesting to see if the power company contacts you or comes out to change your meter, thinking yours is malfunctioning.

I say that because when we moved into this house we had a few electricity-hogging appliances and replaced all of them within a short period of time, cutting our electric bill down drastically. One day a guy from the power company knocked on the door to let me know that there would be an interruption of power for a few minutes or so, while he replaced the meter.

I told him that the meter was brand new as of October, which was probably about 6 months prior. He (lied) told me that they were replacing all of the meters up and down the street. I asked all of my neighbors and not one of theirs had been replaced. They didn't charge me for it, so it didn't matter to me. Had they simply asked, I would have told them why my usage dropped.

The same thing happened the year I weatherproofed the house so well that our gas bill (on the budget, year-round) dropped from about $131 to around $60 per month, give or take a few dollars. Anyway, the gas company came out and let me know they were replacing the meter. It took me a little while to realize why they did it. :)
 
#2,422 ·
There is a movement against these "Plug and Play" solar systems. They are trying to say that they are dangerous and you must have an Electrician designed and installed system. That keeps the money in their pockets. I have mine hooked up safely. It is only 3 wires. I'll keep my money in my pocket Thank You! Plus I did not have to take out a 2nd mortgage to finance the system. Another win for me. Thanks for following, dorf dude...
 
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