We had to start to think of what we needed for our build now that the demolition is coming to an end. One of the things we were concerned about was that the ground we are currently parked on is not level. It’s going to be important to be on level ground during our build process. Don’s parents graciously offered to build a level concrete pad in their garden. This helps us out plus it gives us a permanent parking spot to use so we can come back and visit often.
Don got to use a Bobcat Mini Excavator to dig a big hole. The young boy in him definitely had a fun time doing this! Then his Dad leveled the ground out with an attachment on his 1970 Ford 800 Tractor. The dirt in this area is very clay like, so after a lot of scraping and leveling, we used a rototiller and some manual labor to break through some of the hard clay.
The next day we came back and added a wooden frame, measured to make sure we had squared everything off correctly, and then pushed some of the dirt back to support the frame walls of our form. This took a lot of time, sweat and manual labor. And then the rains came! We ended up with a big muddy swimming pool. So we had to wait for it to dry out before pouring concrete.
I really hate going shopping, but with all the rainy weather it seemed like a good idea. We frequently visit different Habitat for Humanity Restores to see if we can find anything we might be able to use in our build. Wherever possible, we are hoping to find materials to reuse or scraps leftover from big projects. The Restore can be great for tiny house projects as very often someone who had a big project is left with materials that they donate to the Restore. They might not be enough for a regular sized house, but when you are living tiny these leftover scraps can be just perfect!
Up Next
We head back to Los Angeles!
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Home improvement stores and donation centers selling new and gently used furniture, appliances, home goods, building materials and more. We were able to find upholstery fabrics for just $10 a roll.
