The Septic Issue
We were super confident about our septic setup going into this inspection. HAHA. It's our first mistake. Okay, so it wasn't a huge fail, just a fail light. We needed to have the clean out within 5 feet of the house. It needed to be a double sweep so it could clean in either direction. All in all, not a big deal so we just cut in the proper clean out the next day. That will be inspected along with our electrical likely next week.
What's Next After the Septic is Done?
Next up, Mike and I are working on the electrical. We have hung the meter/breaker box combo on the pole, and we just need to cut and hang the conduit and snake head/cobra head thing at the top before we call for the inspection. After that we'll need to trench in the conduit for the house, and run that to where that copper wire is in the pier. Our power will come into that corner of the house. After that we just need to run our water and propane lines, and we'll be done with trenching as far as I know. The septic is done though, and that's all that matters to me!
How much did this part of the Project Cost?
50 feet of Schedule 40 PVC pipe for the Poop Tube was $102.20.
Fittings for PVC pipe $19.23
Sweep and Other Misc fittings for the Fix $31.87
PVC Cement $6.59
PVC Primer $4.59
Total Cost for the run from the Septic Line to the house $164.48 or $3.46/foot.
I took very, very rough measurements at the beginning of the process, so we'd know about how much pipe/conduit we'd need for each service line. The septic was measured at roughly 47.5 feet total. Mike purchased 50' of schedule 40 PVC, and we salvaged some of the septic line that Mike and Bob found in the driveway while doing the excavation, and we used that salvaged pipe for the upright portion and 45˚ bends down to the line in the trench. So total cost per foot comes out to.
My Hope
I hope that someone out there will get something out of my blog posts and tracking the costs associated with building your own house. We got extremely lucky on a couple of fronts on our journey, but I really feel like once anyone gets themselves onto their path, those opportunities have a way of showing up when you're needing them the most. Truly, it's never apparent until much later.
There isn't a whole lot in the way of employment out where we live, so we have gotten by on a variety of part time jobs and handyman/mechanic type jobs. We make just above the poverty line, so you really don't need a massive income to decide that you're sick of humanity and want to go off and live in the woods. We are doing it. Yes, we've had to ask for help on several occasions. I've been able to pay back at least one parent while still maintaining this very slow momentum.
My hope is that someone out there realizes that there's no time like the present, and takes the steps to follow their own dreams.
Conclusion
We are up against a few obstacles, and because of those obstacles it is going to take awhile to build the house. Yes, we have absolutely had a few fortunate turn of events that helped us, but It wasn't something we had counted on.
We don't have any revenue at this point from YouTube or Sponsorships or anything like that. It's just the two of us doing this with the occasional friend or family member dropping by to assist. I thank those of you who have done that. It means a great deal to me.
My point is that you can do anything if you truly set your mind to the task. Even if it's one spoonful of dirt at a time.
Ways to Support Our Journey If You Wish
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To learn about the costs associated so far with building your own home, read this post here.
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