A better perspective. I have almost 200 bales total.
The cabin will consume about 100 of them.
Clearing the new site.
The first site was too wet for post and beam.
Now I wish I had just done load bearing bale walls alone so that soil moisture content would not be an issue a few feet down.
Getting the holes aligned properly, (which didn't happen!)
Attempting to get the posts squared up.
I learned a lot on this one and still it is quite out of square.
Part of the problem was lumber cut too long and serious rocks from six inches deep and deeper.
Getting the beams up. Hoisting 12' long 6"x6" beams by myself was quite a chore.
Putting up my first truss. Rafters are 12'. Joists are 16'.
Looks like this will make for a nice loft or strorage area.
I precut all the truss pieces and then assembled them (screws and glue) on the beams.
They were quite easy to work with once they were assembled.
With the plywood gussets they are quite robust in terms of handling.
This is not true for pre-engineered and factory assembled trusses.
Getting the roof started!
The first bale in place.
The first course of bales in.
The door jam set in place.
Pounding rebar into the bales to connect the courses together.
A fresh dusting of snow.
A view to the west from the hill east of the cabin.
A bale width window frame made of two frames of 2x6 lumber and plywood.
A window roughed into the frame.
Two windows roughed in on the third course.
Custom wired bales filling in between the ceiling joists at the top of the wall.
A view of the south side windows and the loft.
The view out one of the west side windows.
A view of the east side and the ladder extension.
A view out the loft with fresh snow and a pile of dumpster dived deer hides.
Looking through the door from the inside.
My dumpster dived door mounted and leveled.
The west side with the windows roughed in.
The wood stove and temporary floor.
Trying to stay warm in the corner by the wood stove.
My solar panels out in the meadow. They are wired into the cabin now.
