Changin' My Mind (another in the "You Know You're Taking Too Long" series)

You know you're taking too long to build your house... when the multiple years slipping by give you endless opportunities to re-think and alter plans.

Thankfully, even all these years later, I am still very happy with the floor plan I designed for the JayBee. When I designed the house, there were very few tiny-house designs to find. Now... just about every design possible has been done. I think my design holds up. It still feels like the most functional design for me. (Wouldn't it be horrible if I was trying to finish a house I now thought was fatally flawed?!)

This winter, though, I surprised myself by doing a complete about face with my energy plan for the JayBee. Many years ago, I wrote this post about my plan to use propane appliances for cooking, heat, and hot water--primarily because those things would still function just fine when the electric power went out, which it does with some regularity where I live. Last summer, I decided I needed to let go of my plan to bring my beloved range/heater into the JayBee. At 40,000 BTUs, it would have heat-blasted me right out of the house. (The skepticism of several propane installers sunk in at last, I guess.) I still was thinking, though, that I would use a propane range (just smaller) and a propane water heater. I planned to add a propane wall heater with a nice little fireplace-like window.

A few weekends ago, I changed my mind. After years of staying on the same steady track, everything just shifted. I decided I will not use any propane appliances in the JayBee. These things all finally coalesced in my mind:

• I didn't want propane appliances that use electronic ignition since that would render most of them useless when the power went out. But why would I want open pilot lights in my tiny house compromising the air quality?
• Every winter, getting routine propane deliveries is a challenge. While I generally don't have a problem getting my car up and down my icy driveway, the propane delivery trucks have a huge problem with all that ice. Did I really want to spend my future winters worrying about the timing of propane deliveries?
• Even though I have pre-purchased all kinds of fixtures and appliances for the JayBee and have been building with them in mind, I have not been able to commit to any of the propane appliances I have researched endlessly. Hmm... maybe there are good reasons for all that hesitance?
• The only propane wall heater I like is one that does not have a thermostat so really shouldn't be left running if I'm not home. Not reliable heat for the winter.
• The one system I have never started in the JayBee is the propane system. No pipes yet installed. No holes drilled. Why not simplify and save all those additional punctures to the building's envelope?
• The salesperson for the electric-radiant heat system I'm planning for under the floors of the JayBee pointed out that their system uses so little energy, it works well with solar panels.
• I had always planned to add solar panels at a future date. Maybe the future is here?

New plan: Everything in the JayBee that requires energy will be electric. Electric-radiant heat under the floors, supplemented with one or two electric wall heaters. Electric induction cooktop (cooks faster than anything else, and won't add heat to the space). Electric convection oven. Electric on-demand water heater. Simple. No fossil fuels. No open pilot lights.

I don't know that I can afford the solar panels this year, but the plan is to install ground-mounted panels on the south-facing hillside behind the JayBee. When I was at the Maine Flower Show a few days ago, I talked with a solar installer who told me that their grid-connected systems are usually installed with a battery backup system that automatically kicks on when the grid-supplied electric power goes out. Perfect.

Small Winter Projects

Even though I didn't work out in the JayBee during the worst of the cold and ice this winter, I tried to keep the project moving forward by thinking through plans (like totally changing my mind about energy and appliances--for a future post), designing some storage cupboards, sewing curtains, and creating a few small things. The project below turned my old house into a wood shop. Sawdust everywhere--what a mess! Can you guess what it is? The answer is at the bottom of this post.

I also made a number of functional, decorative boxes...

and put them to use in drawers that will be used in the JayBee. Everything in its place!

I also made some extra boxes that I haven't put to use yet.

And that wooden rack? It sits on top of my pot rack (that will be installed in the JayBee) so I can store stock pots on top.

Beginnings of Spring

One recent day, while pursuing a shot of the horse and sulky training on my road, I turned around and caught this view of the JayBee. So cute!

It's been a number of years since there's been someone training for harness racing on my road. 

They turn around at the foot of my driveway on each loop.

Crazy cardinal is still doin' his thing.

 

I imagine the eagles will be building nests soon.

For the record: Three sightings of foxes and one barred owl in my yard--though not caught on camera. First owl I've ever seen in my yard! Apparently barred owls are flourishing in Maine this year. (See story.)

Incredible early moon rise--before the ice went out.

Looks like an ordinary empty box, right?

Surprise! Even elderly cats love boxes.

Due to worries about potential flooding, the Coast Guard broke up the river ice before last Friday's heavy rain. Open moving water!