I’ve spent the last four days at The Cabin. We started this project early 2012, and will be getting the final permits signed off very soon. As the cabin progressed I have learned many lessons:
What works:
1. A 12VDC RV (Shurflo Revolution 4008) water pump to pressurize the plumbing in a house.
2. Rinnai v65 works when run off an inverter and the rv pump. Amazing!
3. Led lighting (it’s just cool)
4. Porches: we spend more time on the porch outside than inside.
5. PEX: lightly insulated pex tubing does really well in cold and freezing weather.
6. You can backfeed a breaker panel with an inverter for temporary power (be safe!)
7. Clear OSI Quad is really handy for lots of things: from weatherizing to filling gaps
8. Amazon Prime delivers more places that you expect. Paying $4 for next day delivery in order to skip a trip into town is a good tactical decision.
What does not work:
1. Standard RV deep cycle batteries do not last.
2. Brass PEX ball valves and pressure gauges will not survive freezing unless you blow the water out with air.
3. I’ve found that several brands of digital dimmers will not work when powered from a generator.
4. We had coverage dropped by the provider of a certain major brand of cell phones. The lesson is don’t lock yourself into a contract if you are very rural.
5. Don’t keep your paint at a vacation home. I had several one gallon containers freeze solid. Once a can is frozen solid through, it separates and becomes a permenent solid.
6. I’m not sold on the Miller Acropure brand of paint. Early indications is that it does not have very good durability.
Extra wishes:
1. Spend extra money on insulation. If you let your cabin freeze over the winter you need extra insulation.
2. Install a backup heater. Mr buddy is nice, but awkward. I wish we had installed a 30 btu permanent propane heater.