Here is my Trailer

[whtbaron]

lol....nah, they are waiting for you to suggest converting it to a dump trailer to run down the interstate with!

[Equilibrium]

The minute I read the word TRAILER and saw it was you who started this thread I thought.... oh noooooo..... the lynch mob will start forming and she won't even know what hit her.
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"Not to be self centered but, are they all pointing at me?" Uh huh.... yes.... I'm pretty sure you were missile locked in quite a few sights but.... thankfully chivalry isn't dead here at WW. This guy wasn't so lucky, http://weldingweb.com/vbb/showthread.php...hard-can-it-be.
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You mentioned this, "I just don't think this thing should leave the valley and I don't want to spend the time moving this house onto another trailer when I don't even want it." Instead of just giving it away to your blacksmithing friend's parents..... what about gutting it and adding a ramp, some chicken nest boxes, and several tiers of 2x4s for roosts then listing it on Craigslist as a deluxe mobile hen house? The "tiny house" movement rolled in and rolled out pretty fast.... most people.... even really young people like you.... want at least some elbow room and these playhouse sized "tiny homes" pretty much have us peeing and pooping within 4' of where we cook, eat, and sleep. Good news is some urban homesteader would LOVE it and you could probably make back at least some of the $$$ you had to spend constructing it. I'm told mobile hen houses are all the rage these days by those who are eco-conscious.
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A few years ago several girlfriends and I drove out to Polyface Farm in Virginia, http://www.polyfacefarms.com/. It's Joel Salatin's allegedlysustainablewhatever. The concept is that a mobile coop is moved to fresh pasture every week or so and chickens are allowed to graze so their eggs can be sold as free range at a higher price. Anywhoooo... he has chicken tractors and mobile/portable hen houses similar to what you've got and once they're on a property.... they never go on the road again so you wouldn't need to worry much about it giving up the ghost in traffic. It's just a thought to help recoup money you spent on materials that could be put to better use elsewhere.
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Here are some images of mobile hen houses.... they come in all shapes and sizes and some are quite elaborate, www.rahalfarm.com/_images/gallery/eggs1.jpg, http://www.zweberfarms.com/wp-conten...620_085042.jpg, http://www.chooks.co.nz/Content/Imag...k trctor_1.jpg, http://informal.izaut-rustica.com/gr...s/mobile02.jpg. http://www.bacimosaic.files.wordpres...1/hank-029.jpg
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Here's a website that provides pricing that might give you an idea of what it could be sold for.... if you decide to go that route, http://www.shedsunlimited.net/hen-ho...-and-runs.html

[Cabbagehats]

The minute I read the word TRAILER and saw it was you who started this thread I thought.... oh noooooo..... the lynch mob will start forming and she won't even know what hit her.

Oh no, I knew what I was getting into. I lurked for a while before joining and lurked some more before getting up the nerve to post.
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"Not to be self centered but, are they all pointing at me?" Uh huh.... yes.... I'm pretty sure you were missile locked in quite a few sights but.... thankfully chivalry isn't dead here at WW. This guy wasn't so lucky, http://weldingweb.com/vbb/showthread.php...hard-can-it-be.

The problem with that guy is he posted a thread with minimal information and disappeared after two posts. He is either lurking or going to town on a car trailer.
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You mentioned this, "I just don't think this thing should leave the valley and I don't want to spend the time moving this house onto another trailer when I don't even want it." Instead of just giving it away to your blacksmithing friend's parents..... what about gutting it and adding a ramp, some chicken nest boxes, and several tiers of 2x4s for roosts then listing it on Craigslist as a deluxe mobile hen house? The "tiny house" movement rolled in and rolled out pretty fast.... most people.... even really young people like you.... want at least some elbow room and these playhouse sized "tiny homes" pretty much have us peeing and pooping within 4' of where we cook, eat, and sleep.

Yep my design didn't have a bathroom and the shower was going to be on the outside. I was planning on an outhouse but since I don't want to live out where this is any more ( my elder friends family doesn't get along) that limits where I can park this thing.

Good news is some urban homesteader would LOVE it and you could probably make back at least some of the $$$ you had to spend constructing it. I'm told mobile hen houses are all the rage these days by those who are eco-conscious.

I'd rather not turn it into a chicken coop after all the work I put into it. I cut and milled all the lumber myself, split the shakes for the gables, and I made all of the windows except for two freebies, going to make my own door, interior paneling and if the oak I salvaged is any good that will be the floor. I don't have a lot of money in it just time. I think it would be a lovely guest house. At this point since I want to move on it was a really good lesson in carpentry and I'd like to see it through, I just don't to take it with me when it's done.

A few years ago several girlfriends and I drove out to Polyface Farm in Virginia, http://www.polyfacefarms.com/. It's Joel Salatin's allegedlysustainablewhatever. The concept is that a mobile coop is moved to fresh pasture every week or so and chickens are allowed to graze so their eggs can be sold as free range at a higher price. Anywhoooo... he has chicken tractors and mobile/portable hen houses similar to what you've got and once they're on a property.... they never go on the road again so you wouldn't need to worry much about it giving up the ghost in traffic. It's just a thought to help recoup money you spent on materials that could be put to better use elsewhere.

That dude's nuts! And awesome, I really like what he's doing and we have some people here in my area emulating his work. But I don't have a problem with the building it's the trailer it sits on and it would have to get out of the valley to get into some homesteader's hands which sounds dubious with the current setup. Nobody is farming out here just rich folks and hillbillies. I am an honorary hillbilly, me livin' in town an all.

[Equilibrium]

I did like you…. I lurked for a while here and at a few other welding sites just looking at photos and reading beginner threads before picking WW as the site I’d go with. I honestly never ran into any “trailer” threads until I’d been here for several months. I’ve come to the conclusion one really can’t fix stupid yet I still feel horrible when someone new unwittingly walks head first into a hornet’s nest and takes it personally. It’s really his loss for reading replies to his thread in his Monday morning e-mail then not having enough balls to log back on for help…. most members are good as gold. I sure hope he doesn’t hurt himself if he is like you say he is…. “going to town on a car trailer”.
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My 1st good lesson in carpentry was helping build my chicken coop and believe me…. it’s on skids for a reason…. it’s going with me when we move since it’s my labor of love!!! Your little labor of love house would definitely make an awesome guest house so maybe finish it off and give it to your parents instead of giving it to a friend’s parents even though most of the materials were free? That way all your blood, sweat, and tears could stay in the “family”. Something to consider…. you know it’s well built with multiple uses and the trailer could always be repaired or scrapped for pocket cash.
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Salatin is very personable but.... is anything but nuts. He’s a savvy businessman who found his niche catering to the rich who want to be “green” and isn’t afraid of taking risks experimenting if there’s a chance at making even more $$$. He’s extremely goal oriented with both short and long term business plans. Polyface Farm is a big time cash cow. Did you know he takes in “interns”>>>? Brilliant!!! Free tour guides and manual labor for his agricultural operations!!! He’s the reason I knew mobile hen houses were appealing to the eco-conscious with $$$ to burn.
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Back to your tiny house….. you know you want to see it through to completion, you know you don’t want to move it onto another trailer, you know you don’t want to live out where it’s currently parked and…. you know you don’t want to take it with you when you’re done soooooo…. what options do you feel are left to you?
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Didn’t know you were into blacksmithing. How cool is that!!! You gotta check out this thread when you have time, http://weldingweb.com/vbb/showthread.php...ng-and-forging Happy reading!!!!

[Cabbagehats]

Been a few minutes, but for my amusement I thought I'd post a final update to this cute disaster of a trailer.

A year after posting this thread I sold it to the neighbors down the road, and continued working on it at their property. The move began at 2 pm in November with the '64 Case skip loader and frequent stops to trim offending branches from the road. In total, a 1/2 mile of dirt road in the boondocks of Sonoma County. By the time we reached our destination it was thoroughly dark and we needed to park it in a narrow slot with multiple obstacles. Accomplished this feat without much fuss and on subsequent visits I wired the structure, insulated the roof, finished installing windows, and milled some yellow pine for the interior at the old location. The wife of the couple to whom I sold this trailer used it as a writing studio for her upcoming book and enjoyed it thoroughly. Fast forward to August of 2020 and after our amazing lightning storm the tiny house burned down along with the rest of the property in the Walbridge fire.

So that's the end of that. Never shall it grace the highways of our nation, striking fear into the hearts of commuting weldors. I didn't grab a picture of it but imagine a swaybacked trailer frame with springs as flat as a pancake. Here's the sawmill at the neighbors, it's in a bit of a state.

[ronsii]

Wow!!! thanks for the update

EQ will be saddened to hear of your trailer's demise, as will be others as we knew you had a lot of work into it.

[Cabbagehats]

Thanks, ronsii

I made a lot of mistakes on that project, and also learned a lot as a result. The current owners got some use and enjoyment out of it so I am content. And no one was injured so that's great too.