How about buying a wood?

[pine cone]

good morning

as some one else said its the constant damp /wet that is just as much a problem than the cold, wind is another factor, i learnt early on, dont get wet if you can help,it

the wind, that particular year there was a prolonged easterly for two weeks at storm force at times, it was relentless with the constant fear that a tree would blow over on top of me, which in a forced growth sika forest is a real possibility, they did come down all around me but not on the hut,or tent.

you learn the no1 priority is dry fuel give as much space as you can inside to this, with cut and split stuff ready outside.

it was in one of them 8 man tents to begin with so no wood burner at that point, the thing is the hut was not finished, to keep warm i used a modern paraffin heater , it really is surprising that a little heater like this will keep you warm even in a tent, a double mattress at one end , with a grannys arm chair opposite the zip door,the biggest problem is condensation and believe me it floods down the tent walls, the carpets laid under the mattress soon get wet this is were a plastic sheet comes in handy. i had normal clothes some of course were for living and working in the country side, its pointless in my view to have water proofs , because in this situation you have know were to dry them, or hang them , there a pain to get off in the middle of a storm,night, the rule is dont go outside if its raining , prepare before hand, i had no super duper survivalist clothes to begin with, but my years of exploring underground came into play here to keep warm, thin layers keep you warm long sleeved tea shirt with a normal tee shirt, and long johns , they make all the difference under your top clothes,and above all else a frame of mind, you have to be strong, doubts have to be turned on there head into a positive. its also amazing when you have a personal disaster who your real friends are, to say you could count them on one hand is a over statement,

il continue later on the pros and cons of building and living in a hut,

[Hamradioop]

I would avoid woodlands for sale personally with all the covenants they try to impose.

[pine cone]

I would avoid woodlands for sale personally with all the covenants they try to impose.

agreed, down the valley from me they had 4 or 5 lots for sale, that took ages to sell, ive never met the owners , one has put a caravan on site, one has a prefabricated shed, another has gone the shipping metal box route, none have made these shelters secret or hidden, ie can be seen from the road,

[pine cone]

i just typed out a long post on part 2 on living in a hut in the woods i posted and found i had been logged out , logged in and lost the whole post

[Plymtom]

If you are on a computer try pressing the back button repeatedly before you give up, I have had the same trouble before and it has remembered.

And do keep it coming, having woodland is a dream for many of us whether prepping or not it's a lovely little get away, hearing about someone who has lived the dream is nice .

[pine cone]

ok im going to have to break this up into parts if i keep getting logged out,

the hut ended up being 13ftx13ft with a door and window , timber frame tin sheets , ply floor on top of a substantial frame, carpet, slab of slate for the wood burner, two old pine tables , double mattress, lots of shelves,hooks, cupboard, tilleys for lights , primus for cooking, wood burner supplements cooking and heating water, one small kettle for tea/coffee one large for washing water,, thats the basic hut and contents,

tools to build were basic but i did use a gene at the time, small angle grinder, drill, hammer, handsaw, marking tools, thats about it, two chainsaws,which are a must,

no inner skin out of money and time! if its not windy its very comfortable even in frost and snow, add the wind factor and your hugging the wood burner, water is the biggest chore, forget 25litre containers just two heavy , use 15 litre there much more cariable and can be set on the table without to much fuss,

it could be a lot more improved with a inner skin and over hang porch , which is still on the cards to do,

il do another episode when i know this has landed,

[preparedsurrey]

Cool enjoying reading your experience Pine Cone,

[pine cone]

morning

what i haven't covered is how i got the materials to the build, the entrance to the woods is a locked gate, with about 30 yards of a narrow hard core track, so fine for parking a few vehicles, beyond that is bog, up and down hill, which is passable with a quad only, so all the materials had to be man handled to the build, eg all sheet materials, i did two sheets a day and a few quad trips with timber ect, determination is what drove me to get the sheet material there, the thought of a solid roof over my head, that was the hard part,

building the hut was a pleasure, you really do need a lot of materials to build a 13ftx13ft hut, i dont work to a plan only the plan in my head, the maximum size is determined by the longest lengths of timber,all the time building a mental picture as you build on physically what you already have created,

the floor of the hut is some 18" of the ground so blocks were used as a step with 4" blocks laid as a path up to the steps , this helps to keep mud out of the hut and your not going out straight into mud, the chimney is two bends from the burner out through the side of the hut and then a upright stainless steel double wall flue pipe that clears the roof of the hut, this is all easily set up and detached, with a plate that can be fitted over the flue hole and bolted on the inside when your not there, it all works really well, the gases produced via the woodburner with the heat eventually rot out galvanized flue bends so im using stainless steel ones at the moment,

to the side of the hut is a low shelter were the gene lives its not used now ,the logistics of keeping it running dont work out, fuel is heavy to move around and expensive, it can be used and id rather have it than not have it, its a back up for whatever, again it could be improved upon with swapping it for a diesel one ,the hut is cramped with all the kit in there , but is a sustainable living space for months at a time ,water is on site ,along with fuel,which is not going to run out, there is a food supply already there, ie tins ,pasta ect and could be very easily added too if need be, the other fuel i use is paraffin , which again could be added to very easily if need be, there is also the possibility of solar power, if i give it some thought and there are clearings were the sun comes through,

wild life here at this particular spot is mainly birds i was amazed at the variety, very little in the way of game, ive seen the odd fox on his morning walk past the hut, i found a dead mole the other day, and have found a dead stoat type creature a while back, amphibians are every were, mice are every were, no rats, it is a pleasure to watch all the wild life when you take 5, i would not hunt unless it was a absolute necessity although im well armed in a legal sense,

as was touched on by another member in this thread, the cold and damp can play areal part in destroying your well being, if you ever find yourself in this situation you need to think ahead, from having a supply of dry fuel, to having a source of reading material and a radio, you will find yourself getting into routines because you have too, the morning trip to get water, getting the lights going while you can still see to do this, wood in , wood drying, is the saw in hydroscopic damage to chainsaws is a very real reality in this environment , washing .cooking take organisation in a confined area ,

such is life in a hut in the woods,

please ask if you have any questions

[sethorly]

Really interesting pine cone, thanks. During winter how long did the hut retain heat (say, above 0 deg C) after the stove had gone out? What layers did you have to sleep in (eg. was a 3 season sleeping bag and some thermals enough)?

[pine cone]

Really interesting pine cone, thanks. During winter how long did the hut retain heat (say, above 0 deg C) after the stove had gone out? What layers did you have to sleep in (eg. was a 3 season sleeping bag and some thermals enough)?

hello seth

ok when you shut the draft down on the WB the heat will slowly go, if you keep it on a slow burn there will still be some heat, but noticeably cooler, if its windy the faster the heat loss, the trick is to keep a couple of logs burning for a few hours when you hit the sack, so if you do get up you can open the WB up and instant heat, by the morning its cold, maybe above the outside temperature but not by alot, occasionally you might still have hot ashes so a couple of sticks added and it will be roaring, i found the gas bottle WB i got to be very good very sensitive draft control, and will happily tick over for 3/4 hrs without adding more logs,

no sleeping bag for me i used a quilt , i may or may not have a light fleece on when i crash out, i may or may not wear the long johns, i never woke up because i was cold, i was never cold in bed, if its cold when i get up and it normally is in the winter, i have a long shirt fleece i put on which is great, get the WB going and alls good, the paraffin heater that was in the tent can be lit if need be, but that was rare,

the mattress is on pallets with a wool blanket between the two,

you soon adapt to this type of living , your more in tune with whats going on out side, and is not much difference to how i grew up, there was no CH for us in the early 60s . or now for me come to think of it, i have CH but is powered by a WB