REMINDER: The reasons we built VARDOFORTWO

Aloha,

The past few days have been the kind of days that reinforce the reasons we built our oasis of a safe place VardoForTwo using the methods and materials we did. The beautiful wooded glen of a place that is the Ledge blossoms with things that cause me grief. Many of them I didn't recognize as 'issues' or forgot their inciting potential. We learn from the experience and I am reminded once again of the MANY reasons for a place like this:

1. It is a restoring space where I can shut out the toxic (chemicals and manufactured ingestants) and toxin (the volatile world of things like pollens, grasses and the natural process of trees off-gassing) triggers that over-burden my dear self.
2. I can sleep restfully for as long as I need, and make no excuses for my in-the-cave-for-nowness. (the process of healing takes time ... it will not be rushed ... I remember the Hawaiian word "hoomanawanui"--easy, take it slow and easy!
   
3. My priorities distill (clean air, safe space, time to mindfully reassemble)
4. My appreciation for my mate, husband and friend rises to the top. Thank you Pete. (There is no substitute for a partner who continues to support my changing level of wellness. I am blessed and experience "All you need is Love ... The Beattles were right!)

Sending wishes for a day that is gentle and loving to your dear self,
Mokihana

MCS and Chemical Injury Tip: Create the RESILIENT HOUSEHOLD

Living on The Ledge I have the luxury of feeling blissfully safe and blessed with wellness. It's incredible when the air is clean, the frogs in full voice and the symptoms of multiple chemical sensitivities a memory or someone else's science fiction. Building and living in our VARDOFORTWO gives me that luxury ... the safety of an oasis room where my body is able to restore itself from toxics and toxins while I rest and sleep. In a reassembled world, that luxury would be a birthright for all beings from bug to blissful old folk like me. That world will need more time and plenty of re-education. Today I had a chance (thanks to the strength of the internet here in the woods) to visit one of my most reliable earth "SOURCERIES" Susie Collins' The Canary Report. I found an article about the challenges and reality of construction and home repair for folks with chemical sensitivity or the chemically injured. The article will make sense to those who are chemically injured and have undertaken construction or home repair. It might be a stretch for those who don't get it or just don't go there.

Here is the bit of the article that most sang to me:

Households that accommodate the needs of the chemically injured need to keep operating, just like HROs, when there’s an unexpected chemical exposure. The householders have ongoing needs for sleep, food, water and medication. Much like in combat, the household of a chemically injured person may suffer severe losses due to unexpected chemical exposures: lost time, lost money, lost health, lost property. But like HROs, resilient households take the time to build capabilities for resiliency, communicate thoroughly and in a timely fashion and track and correct even minor failures. This is especially true during times of relative calm. The time taken to hone skills and correct minor problems may seem like plodding to some, but it makes a critical difference when the unexpected strikes.

Copyright © April 2009 by Michael and Judy Stouffer.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-NoDerivativeWorks 3.0 United States License.

Building VARDOFORTWO required time (two years of planning, searching, testing, building and re-testing) and a good portion of the money we had. Pete and I have had to learn to become a 'resilient household of two" who take the time and energy to respectfully communicate THOROUGHLY and patiently. What sounds reasonable to one of us might not make it to the other, especially when one or both of us has been exposed to something toxic. The point made in this article by Michael and Judy Stouffer who blog at TAU TOPICS is that time to fine tune these skills becomes the ace in the deck ... or the joker you need when one more detail throws you for a loop. We have been helped by a keenly aware and sensitive counselor, to build this resilience in our relationship. Now that we are living with two other adults who are learning how to live with accomodating chemical injury these resiliency skills will be tested and we'll need to pay attention to the honing practice.

I'm truly appreciative for sources like this one that comes up when I am in one of those blissfully calm time. Perhaps this will help you too or be a place you'll remember to visit when you need it. Thanks Susie for the connection.

The life outside

The long view of life outside, VARDOFORTWO is simply a dab in the reality of just how much surface we 'claim.'

Two of three raised beds are pau. Pete used reclaimedwood from The Ledge, mostly 2x4s and 2x6s left over from the original building of Pellet and Turtle's home.

That's a small screen we use to shake out the stones and debris from the soil we'll use for planting.

Mid May and the soil's still pretty cold for planting. Maybe in the next couple weeks or so we'll put some organic seed or starts into the raised beds.

Never take for granted the utility of the clothes line. Thanks to Pete's ingenuity and the support of Tutu the grand lady fir, we have a large clothes line. Clean and clear from chemicals and toxic smelling detergents, and getting clothes safe to wear are major challenges and a many stepped process for folks like me living with MCS.

Cottons and wool are the only choices that keep my sensitivities calm. My long-time passion for thrift shopping is tempered now ... though not eliminated. My trips inside those shops must be well-thought out: I must be covered with hat, and clothing that can be removed before I get in the car again (my hair and outerwear will absorb the perfumes and smells from the shop); A mask is a must (though sometimes I don't need it, I carry it); A 'clean' heavy plastic bag will encase all my 'finds' and the bag either bundeed to the roof or safely in the rear of Scout.

Where does the clothes line come in? A typical thrift shop sweater (that's one of the wool sweater in the photo above) or flannel sheet requires at least 6-12 HOT,HOT WATER washings in baking soda and milk (to absorb and neutralize the formaldydhyde. Then, the clothes line or dryer ... Seem like a lot? Um, hmm. Baking Soda and fragrance free detergents two great solution to de-stinking the Earth!

Kitchen Camp on The Ledge. Tucked into the shrubs from a couple steps from the front porch is our kitchen. Two coolers = refrigeration cooled with blocks of ice we buy once or twice a week from the QFC in town.

A single electric burner heats a kettle for the venerable dozen cups of tea (hurray!) The old toast oven loyally serves up fresh barley bread, roasted sweet potatoes and other concoctions.

That table is another reclaimed from a life in the dump table, a former art table Turtle no longer wanted ... Pete the tinker does it over and over again.

In the far right-hand corner is our latest design from The Ledge creation. A by-the-side-of-the- road porcelain and cast iron double sink has become our kitchen sink on The Ledge. We wash vegetables, dishes and our hands there, and the water collects in a bucket we take to the compost. We found recycled tiles at Habitat for Humanity in Seattle (the yellow and green checker-board design = the hand-made tiles). We paid 20 cents a piece for them. More reclaimed wood was used to build the table. We had to Denny Foil and thumb tack part of the wood because though it is OLD cedar, the cedar is still very aromatic and I react ill to the smell. Denny Foil is our friend.

The camp tarp is the same tarp Pete used throughout the winter in White Center when the VardoForTwo needed to be protected from snow, rain and hail. Metal conduit (like we used inside for the wall and window coverings) is the tinker toy construction that holds up our kitchen walls and roof.

The romance of a wanderer's life was definitely part of the fantasy involved in dreaming up something that would transform the insanity of diaspora from a chemically threatening world. While we lived through the roughest of road life ... sleeping in Scout parked in driveways and parking lots, fleeing one more pesticide spray poisoning ... the romance of a mobile life fed us.

We have made the dream of a safe and mobile haven come true. The wee bedroom on two wheels houses our bed, keeps us snug from rain and wind, and provide respite when the world overwhelms.

The reality of these two old wanderers includes continuing being constantly resourceful and conscious of the ways we put the life outside together now. Reassembling a life that soothes our souls is not a romantic dream any more ... it is the grandest of dreams Mother dreams for more and more of us.

BUILDING THE VARDO: Laua'e for the door

It has been a beautiful sunny Sunday. Pete's out at the Green Festival at Seattle Center, I've been to the West Seattle Farmer's Market to get my last (at least for now) slabs of frozen salmon from our favorite fishermen, chatted with some of the wonderful farmers and vendors who have made living in the city such fun, and then had time to get in a few hours of stenciling before the sunny front yard turned shady and cool.

Here's the result so far...three small ferns and a momma...it was fun to be milk painting in the sunshine! The days are getting much longer, the birds are so happy to find a new scatter of millet on the sidewalk and I'm glad Jots is asleep and not rousting them from their feast.

One week till hitch-up ...

BUILDING THE VARDO: Making rope, hanging the door, sitting inside

I'm sewing thick cord rope piping for the corners of the front and back wall. There it is winding out of the basket.

Our long time favorite sun, moon and stars blanket that I have had for more than fifteen years is now our throw rug. The green edge in the picture is a foldable slantboard I've had for many years, it will be our couch ...it's old foam, and we'll see how I respond to it as a vardo couch.
The front door is in. The window glass, glass pineapple door knob, latch, trim and stenciling still need to be done ... but what a nice thing to see the door and be able to walk through it.

It's a nasty sort of damp day. And yet, we have been INSIDE together in a tile wiped and vacuumed VARDOFORTWO. You know the sensation of drinking hot tea with honey on a cold day ... well being together in there was pretty close to that delicious first sip of hot tea.


Closer, ever closer.

BUILDING THE VARDO: "We have power!"

This is a happy man, with a smile the size of which I haven't seen for while! "We have power," Pete announced at the Kitchenette door just minutes ago. Pete spent part of the past two days wiring VARDOFORTWO, and now "The umbilical cord is working!" The extension cord on the outside attaches to the 'mother ship' earthbound house with electricity.
Inside the cord for the fairy lights and tools work from one of two electrical outlets that will serve us inside VARDOFORTWO. It's progress. Yippee!! Thank you, thank you.

BUILDING THE VARDO: "Piecing the tank"

The image at the top ... "Piecing the tank" is a thousand steps into the landscape of imagining a way to wall the vardo with as few reaction triggers as possible. Pete has been measuring, cutting, trimming, setting and fitting for a couple weeks. He is cutting each stainless steel sheet with tin snips. If you look closely, the pieces in the upper corner are loose ... he'll be screwing those panels in as I write this.

IMAGINING More

These yellow cotton curtains will come with us into VARDOFORTWO ... it helps me to see the piecing of the tank with these curtains ... Once Pete is pau with the piecing, we paint the ceiling, wash the stainless of the oil lubricant they put on the steel sheets (using the dish soap we use ... PLANET Uncolored & Unscented is the brand and varieyt), and then I'll be trimming and stitching up the yellow cotton curtains to fit the four windows. Old colored flannel sheets, a treasured quilt and favorite fabrics we have used 'safely' for months/years will become wall coverings and fabric panels.



IMAGINATION is the landscape of tomorrow's yet to be.
Our life as builders of a multiple chemical sensible
wee home on a trailer is all about
being open to imagine something yet to be.

BUILDING THE VARDO: More of the Lasagne-style Tiled Floor

These are the top two layers of lasagne-style tile flooring. 4 and 1/2 sheets of HARDIBACKER Board (1/2 inch cement board) screwed in over the Denny Foil gave Pete something solid over which to lay the mud. We decided to use Portland cement and fine gray sand mixed with water only. Pete screened the sand to pick out the bigger pieces ... that way he did not have to use silica sand (which can be a problem for some MCS folks). There is no latex added to either the mud or grout. The 13 inch high fired, glazed tiles are laid with 1/4 inch grout. The grout is also Portland cement and gray sand mixed with water.

The terra cotta tiles are laid, grouted and in the process of curing. We'll let the cement slow cure ... maybe two weeks. At this point we aren't going to seal the grout. Many comments and ideas from MCS safe building forums gave me a wide range of possibilities and experiences. We're going with the original comments from Ecology House in California that say in essence: the ungrouted tile does require a little more work ... it gets sandy from time to time. We'll begin with that ... maybe it will make me feel more like I'm walking the shores of sand beaches like any Hawaiian wahine would love to be doing.

Any experiences with or without sealant over grout? Love to hear from you.


Thanks, Pete the floor is beautiful.

BUILDING THE VARDO: Lasagne style flooring

BUILDING THE VARDO: Lasagne style flooring

Building a home by hand takes time, lots of time. I read a description from Jim Toplin's website about building a customized wagon (vardo) and there was a WARNING to it. Saying in essence that building such a wagon took Toplin, a master wood craftsman 2,000 hours to construct. We didn't get the message in time ... oh wait, we did know it would take time and energy and did it ANYWAY. We had motivation. Back in November, 2008 Susie Collins from The Canary Report posted this story "Tiny home is safe alternative for woman with MCS." Another 1000 hours later, and we are still at it.

Today Pete's inside working on the tile floor. The pictures above are the story beneath those tiles, the many hours of work to layer materials like lasagne to create a safer than plywood subfloor. There is a plethora of information available if a person has the time and brain-power to sort through everything. I researched everything from Debra Lynne Dadd's MCS Building Forum and, emailed our MCS safe builder friend, Leslie Lawrence, went to other blogs and in the end came up with a decision laced generously with prayer.

VARDOFORTWO Lasagne style Floor Recipe:
(from bottom to top in the pictures above)

1. Galvanized metal sheets to protect the vardo from road wear and moisture while stationary.

2. Additional oak cross pieces screwed in horizontally (left to right) to hold denim insulation. Yes, we finally decided to go with the denim. Each cross piece was also notched and routed to hold the metal bars that would go over the denim.

3. Denny Foil, foil vapor barrier was layered over the denim to seal any dust or smell from the denim as it off-gasses.

4. Lengths of steel cut especially to fit over the oak cross pieces were screwed fast. These were Pete's choice as a plywood substitute. Even though some sources said exterior plywood might be okay to use for our MCS-safe home, we decided not to use it. Laying the steel in this tight pattern was Pete's idea to create a web of strength.

5. More Denny Foil covers all the wood, steel and insulation.

These 5 lasagne layering steps prepared Pete to get closer to the tiling ... See that in the next post.


These are a few of the reasons I appreciate Pete, everyday. Mokihana

BUILDING THE VARDO: It's still winter

We woke to a reminder that it's still winter. And, from many places on the Earth, a complete Lunar Eclipse will be visible in the night sky as well. So, here we are in Seattle, being with All the Is taking a few more steps to getting the inside of VARDFORTWO finished and liveable.

Here's what we've been doing:

The walls

• I've ordered a second bunch of organic cotton samples, this time from Near the Sea a great web-store in New Mexico.
  
• Pete is out and about buying a single sheet of stainless steel

Our combined thinking (not over-thinking, thank you) and intuition about the walls goes something like this:

1. Insulate (using staples)with the denim batting we already have. Using the materials we have already purchased makes a lot of sense, and blesses the use of our resources we do have without spending what we don't have. Does that make sense? With prayers to the angels and guardians we attract wise direction ... a magnificent solution!!
   
2. Cover the denim with Denny Foil (use staples and if I sense the need, cover the staple holes with tiny strips of Denny tape) to seal out any smell ~
   
3. Install (using screws) panels of stainless steel as walls. The need for more paint or the possibility that the oak and paint smells could lead to reactions is avoided. Stainless is very easy to clean.
4. Here's where the draping of organic cotton panels could be the beautiful and warming touch over our stainless steel walls. The swatches from Near the Sea cost only 50 cents a piece and they mail through US Post, which is very responsible.

This post is as much a visual affirmation of belief that a magnificent solution is in the making. This journey is about transforming and BE-coming two dears living in our beloved VARDOFORTWO.
This post written while it is still winter is like my weekly Dream Coming True posts in that when I commit to writing the real process of thinking-intuition and action the 'dream' gathers collective love!!!

The sun is brilliant as I finish.

Cheers, have some fun today.

BUILDING THE VARDO: Dipping into the reservoir

Pete and I are re-thinking things. The weather has slowed hands-on work. As our friend Leslie Lawrence says about the work on their tiny homes in progress in Bend, Oregon there are things that just have to be done a bit later. For us three pieces need re-thinking:

1. The copper roof that didn't get done turns out to be the best thing that could have happened. After Nick's shop burned Pete has been talking and working with other metal workers and roofers. According to them the design we were working with would have buckled and warped with heat and contraction. A different approach needs to be taken. Pete's working with new roofers now.

2. The inside walls. As beautiful as wood is, the potential for a sensitive reaction to the oak/milk paint/finish separately or in combination are high. Our first priority inside the VARDOFORTWO is as clear and safe a haven as possible. We're starting to explore stainless steel walls. Airstreamish inners for VARDOFORTWO?

3. Insulation. We may go back to using the denim batting covered with Denny Foil, especially if we go with stainless walls.

4. The floor. Instead of oak flooring we're thinking tile. For the same reason as I've written in #2 for the walls ... tile would give a clean and clear surface if we wisely choose the subflooring, grout and adhesive.

We'll see where this thinking takes us. Wish us well.

Mokihana and Pete

Building the Vardo: Updates on insulation/door/reality of cold and MCS COMMUNITY Building

"Baby, it's cold outside." So this Hawaiian is mostly inside with toes curled in woolen socks and legs covered in wool long johns.


Pete's been outside cutting pieces for the brackets or molding over the steel plates holding the roof ribs together for VARDFORTWO. The temperature's dropped below 30 degrees so some work just has to wait until things aren't freezing ... like until we're not freezing. Paint won't work at this temperature, so we wait on that.


There is progress to document, and a growing community of MCS safe builders is part of that progress and process. So here it is:

The ceiling is painted with the first coat of milk-paint. The smell of oak seems to be neutralizing. After the temperature warms up, I'll do a sniff test.

• The inside trim for the windows is taking much more GARDEN SEED than Pete anticipated. Some pigment doesn't cover as well as others, and even though GARDEN SEED is supposed to be a darker pigment that covers better this is probably the fourth coat and still counting.



• Ceiling trim pieces are cut and ready to be painted and nailed.


• We've taken inventory on the remaining milk paint, and are preparing for a final order of HOMESTEAD HOUSE Milk paint for the inside walls, door and ceiling.
• Slim's working on the door. Pete checked with our door-maker to ask about the glue he's using the put the door together. It's a water-based glue that dries hard...I'm crossing my fingers and turning that one other to the goddess.
  
  

LATEST UPDATE ON INSULATION ... this decision has been a biggie. We posted at least twice before the difficulties we have had finding safe insulation. Leslie who has a terrrific blog THE OKO BOX Blog did a great post about 4 Types of safer insulation. I read her post, thanked her for the great research and commented on her discoveries and then I talked with another Leslie last night. Leslie Lawrence is building an MCS safe movable home in Bend, Oregon. Our conversation was community building and support in real-life. We talked about issues beyond the building of our tiny homes, and yet every thing connects to living in a safe home. A link on Leslie's Website stirred me to re-look at wool as an insulator. Here's a summary of what I've learned about insulation through the process of building a community of MCS support on-line:

1. From Leslie at The Oko Box, I learned that Fiberglass Insulation COULD be manufactured without chemicals. But, my intuitive sense about fiberglass is that it wouldn't 'work' for me because of the fine spun glass ... makes me itch to think of it. Through the 'COMMENTS' section of Leslie's post we explored FELTING WOOL as an option, like my ancestors the MONGOLIANS do to cover their yurts. I left feeling "okay, maybe I'd be crazy enough to try it, too."


2. From Leslie Lawrence I learned that eco-wool batting from The Shepard's Dream MIGHT work, except it would be pricey even though VARDOFORTWO is approx 80 square feet.

• Wool Felting is available through this Northern California resource, and I might order a bed size length of felt to use on our bed or as a rug (the felts are very versatile, and in general I am good with wool).


• MOTHS love wool. So Leslie L. cautioned me about the moths' love of wool, and said I'd have to wash the batting or felt with borax to make it distasteful to the winged ones.


• Leslie L. has found a wool-blended insulation originating in New Zealand and sold in Bend that is probably going to work for her. She is mailing a sample of it to me wrapped in aluminum foil so it doesn't collect any 'stuff' during transport.

BUILDING MCS COMMUNITY

I know it seems like such a long read. A good story takes time ... Last, and with such joy, we received a wonderful comment from Francesca in Italy this morning telling us that VARDOFORTWO is inspiring her as she builds her safe space in an old stable in the Italian hills.

FANTASTICO, Francesca!

LATEST POLL and Newest Connections

The results of our latest Poll are in and we see that Multiple Chemical Sensitivities is no stranger to our visitors.


11 votes were cast in our week-long poll

9 people live with MCS

2 people know people who live with MCS

2 people are aware of MCS



We have connected with two MCS innovators who are building tiny houses on a trailer. Leslie Lawrence is having beautiful tiny homes (two of them)built in Bend, Oregon. Her safe homes are a fantastic example of innovation born from adversity. Leslie's 'main house' is huge in comparison to VARDOFORTWO with wonderful features that will coccon her life and her priorities beautifully. We have begun comparing notes and as our findings grow I'll share them here. Leslie has a website that's worth checking out. The second MCS trailer builder is Tom Riddle of Ontario. We discovered Tom when we noticed we had a new 'FOLLOWER' on our HomePage. Tom has a blog called MCS Trailer Build.

The need for safe homes is among the most important, if not the most important factor for sustaining health and well-being. This is true for any and all beings. For those of us who live with multiple chemical sensitivites and environmental illness a safe home is like the tide ... it comes and then it goes. Within the society and culture of industrialization "housing" has become a dirty word. (No offense to good old non-polluted, organically rich earth) Buildings are made with materials that are toxic, playing nasty tricks on us while being put together and off-gas sickening smell long after they're built. Each time one of us Canaries is able to get beyond the stink of 'nasty tricks' and is fueled/inspired/motivated to build a different future in homes (not housing) like Leslie's, Tom's, and VARDOFORTWO, we create new blueprints ... maybe we'll call them something different, like lifeprints. Canaries served miners as they dug the bowels of Mother Earth, but they died in service. Just why were they/are they digg'n around in the Mother, anyway! We Canaries suffer fates like our feathered family, and yet there is a stirring in the wind tht could make such a positive difference. The chirping and the elbow grease an mcs canary musters is the sort of innovative craziness it'll take to be safe at home. "Safe at home on the Planet," now that has a great ring to it.

Keep spreading the word about innovators, hope-givers and builders of lifeprints. We have it in us to live like seeds reaching for the sun with our roots in organic dirt ... all we need is a good soaking to remove our enzyme inhibitors. (see my comment and reply to ANONYMOUS IN YESTERDAY'S POST "Some things change ...)

What do you think?

Building the Vardo: Dealing with dampness

Ah, the sun's out and the sky I see from the kitchenette is baby blue. It's been a long stretch of rain and sogginess. We thought (the best laid plans...) we would be further along, avoiding the challenges of working with the change of season and winter weather conditions. Auwe, alas, today we are assessing how to procede with the dampness. We've posted our progress and building steps to get VARDOFORTWO to her current state, and for this point forward the posts will all be 'BUILDING the Vardo" in real-time fashion.

A quick summary. Here's where we are on building:

1. All four sides are framed in white oak and reinforced with metal wind sheer.
2. The base of the Vardo is sealed with sheet metal.
3. The two wheel wells are flashed and sealed.
4. TuTuff moisture barrier surrounds the four walls.
5. 3 of the 4 walls (all but the front) are complete: sided with white oak tongue and groove, caulked, milk-painted and beeswax sealed.
6. The 4 windows are installed, caulked, painted(on the outside) and trimmed. The brass latches inside are fixed.
7. The base of the vardo is insulated with foam board (but it will be removed before we lay the floor) and replaced with ???probably the denim.
8. The ceiling boards/base roof --also white tongue and groove--are in.
9. The cross beams of the ceiling (the ribbing above) have been reinforced with custom fitted plates. A step Pete found necessary after VARDOFORTWO sat for a few weeks.
10. (see photo above)
11. Roof insulation, moisture barrier of Denny Foil and TuTuff encase denim insulation.
12. A skin of birch plywood is attached, caulked and waxed over the insulation.
13. The decorative corner wall trim is in place, painted and waxed.
14. Electrical boxes are in place on the front outside wall, and inside walls.
    

Here are the challenges and questions we face now:

1. The front door is not ready yet, so the dampness fills the inside.

(see the photo above)

Pete's got a heater inside today warming things up. Dehumidifier??

2. Mold. Pete found mold starting to grow on the exposed edge of the birch plywood in the roof.

I researched and found a couple products that sounded like acceptable and mcs-safe options.

We went with an enzyme-based mold solution called Spori CLEAN. The website offered information and a FQA section that didn't set off any red lights for me. (no ingredients that are on the toxic lists). Pete spoke at length with the creator of Spori CLEAN, and found him kind, understanding and aware of multiple chemical sensitivities. He said he sells a lot of his product to people in Washington and Hawaii (where mold is an ever-present reality).

Pete used Spori CLEAN to clean the shower stall. The product is very concentrated and when diluted still has a very lemony smell that I don't particularly like. I stayed away when it was 'working' to eat up the mold, and Pete washed it off with a baking soda and water wipe.

It does the job, and after a week there is no mold and no residual smell.

Pete went after the mold on the roof, followed the directions on the bottle. To make sure the wood was dry he bought a hair-dryer and dried the wood off, then caulked the edges and sealed with beeswax.

I hear the saw cutting siding for the front wall, and notice puffy clouds have moved in. Time to say 'a hui hou.'

Have any experiences with mold and solutions that work for you?

Building the Vardo: Roof Layering/Preparing for the Copper Roof

Building VARDOFORTWO is a project that challenges Pete's history as a builder. What used to work, isn't right for an MCS safe home. My needs for safety and the lack of information and materials would spin a lesser woman off the edge (okay, it does this woman on many days).

The choices we made for the insulation and layering are examples of making the best choices possible and then turning to the Old Gods to do for us what we can't do for ourselves.

The photo below shows Pete trimming the TuTuff vapor barrier. What you can't see is the thin skin of birch plywood that covers the insulation layer. If there was another choice we would have used it. We used solid white oak to stay clear of plywood throughout the construction. What was needed up on the roof was solid flexibility.

That birch layer is flexible and will give the copper roof a solid foundation upon which to rest.

These two photos move through the 'next layer' of roofing and insulating the VARDOFORTWO.

The second photo from the top: INSULATION. We chose to use recycled denim batting. The denim is dusty to work with. Pete ended up using a respirator to install it. Although it is far less damaging to work with than fiberglass batting it is denim and denim is processed using chemicals and pesticides are used to grow cotton that is not organic. I have been treated and cleared for the denim insulation by my NAET practitioner. The insulation rests on a layer of DENNY FOIL to keep the denim particles contained, and another layer of TUTUFF covers it.
WHEWWWWW!!!
It is one of those choices that came with lots of back and forth movement --we chose foam insulation very early on in the building, but found that was too toxic for us. The off-gassing potential was always there, but we thought we had no better option. When I did the "put a piece of it into a glass jar, close it off for a day, and carefully take a sniff the result was undeniable: NOT THIS!"
I searched again, and found an eco-friendly and safe for me option in WOOL BATTING. This is a great option. Wool is an incredible insulator, tolerable by many of the MCS tribe and if your source can reasonably ship it too you it would be worth exploring. The shipping experience for us turned very negative and costly in more ways than money, and we let the wool option go.

Building the Vardo: Roof Preparation; Wall/Framing Details

ROOF PREPARATION:

The picture above shows the roof completely sided with the white oak tongue and groove.

The siding will be the ceiling in the house. The outside of the siding(the side you see from above) will be milk-painted and waxed to seal it from the weather. In later building steps

a 'next layer' of weatherizing will take place, to include insulation and a top-skin to receive the copper roof.

Pre-painting to neutralize.

The decision to use white oak came with knowing we would need to neutralize the tannins (the natural resinous smell) of the wood. Both sides of the siding need to be milk painted to do this neutralizing. (See post "Learn by doing")

Building VARDOFORTWO as an MCS safe home involves attention to detail and conscious choices every step along the way. The cost of a simplified and safe home means it takes more time and a willingness on both our sides to be respectful as we learn what works, and what doesn't. We are building a sustainable lifestyle in a teeny home to be. In so many ways this is contrary to the old American Dream. VARDOFORTWO is probably smaller than a lot of walk-in closets. We aren't building big, we are dreaming big and dreaming innovation.

Take our poll (see it on the left side-bar). Metal Flashing Detail: each of the vardo walls and the two wheel wells are trimmed and fitted with metal to keep the vardo sealed from weather and outside environmental smells. The flashing also secures the framing to the trailer.

Wall/Framing Details: The wind shear bracing is complete on all three walls --back, and two side walls. The four windows have been framed.
The back wall siding is up, and the first of two coats of milk paint is in the works.
At the left edge you can see the TuTuff moisture barrier that enfolds the entire frame. The underside of the siding I'm painting is already 'pre-painted' to neutralize the tannins.

Building the Vardo: Wiring for electricity, anchoring details, "builder guys", roof prep

Electrical outlets: We are wired for electricity; the outside box pictured below will allow us to 'hook-up' as an RV and/or attached to a main house when we share space and electricity with family and friends.

As a special MCS note, there will be two outlet inside the VARDOFORTWO. They are purposely wired as far away from the sleeping space at the opposite wall. We will use an infrared electric heater and an Austin Healthmate Jr air purifier. Lights will be minimal and magical. Tiny fairy lights (yup, white Christmas lights) will rim the ceiling and one or two small lamps ought to give as enough gentle light otherwise.

The picture above shows the anchoring details used to
bolt the cross members in the roof; also the string and tie approach to checking angles and cinching uprights as Pete put the roof together.
The builder guys: Pete and Max (our window maker) with JOTS who must be in heaven there in his arms.
The roof framing is pau. If you look closely you'll see the hurricane clips that secure the roof to the upright framing. The first glimpse of our front porch starts to show up.
There she is all framed up.

And, the Old Gods have added their blessings to the building of VARDOFORTWO.

See the Ki (ti leaves) at the corner? Each of the four trailer corners wears a group of three ti leaves. Good luck and acknowledgment: we are part of it all. Mahalo

About BUILDING THE VARDO The First Days

Please stay with me as I learn to navigate and use the tools of Blog Land. I know there's a way to create a slide show of our progress...but, I'm not there yet. For today, the 6 pictures in the previous post are the first days of building.

FROM LEFT TO RIGHT (top row)

1. The trailer arrives. It's an IRON EAGLE single axle 12 foot trailer with a break-away braking system, made in Oregon. Pete chose it because after a year of looking because it has a load capacity that will give us approximately 3,500 lbs of actual vardo weight; and a single axle will allow us more maneuverability when we need to git!

2. Foundational Studs: All solid white oak, fastened mainly with screws. White oak is very hard, so nails break or don't penetrate. At this point of our building we used a low-voc clear sealant to protect the oak. Pete eventually began getting head aches from using the finish, so in the weeks to come we both decided 'green was not enough'. We would later find HomesteadHouse milk paint and use it to seal the framing.

Second Row

3. Another view of the foundational studs. This time you can see if you look closely, that Pete has put in foam insulation in between the studs. THIS INSULATION WILL BE REMOVED BEFORE WE FINISH THE FINAL FLOORING. This do and undo process is a reality of building for my MCS needs. We do the best we can, and then when we find that we have made a mistake (FORTUNATELY) we stop, re-think and find another solution that is better. In this case I found that when I 'sniff tested' that foam insulation, after being muscled tested weeks prior, the foam just about knocked me off my feet.

4. THE SHEET METAL UNDER-BELLY should have been pictured earlier, before the studs were in place. Oh well, we've learning ... The sheet metal under-belly is screwed to the frame of the trailer and silicone caulked to keep road gooze from coming into the vardo. The insulation that we will put in (to replace the foam) will rest on top of it.

Third Row

5. A VISIT to Jay Shafer's Tumbleweed Tiny House in the middle of our first days of building the Vardo. Jay was on a road trip along the W. Coast gathering momentum for the Tiny House Revolution. We saw him at Habitat for Humanity in Seattle.

6. PAPER WINDOW Templates. Everything we did in the construction of VardoForTwo began in our imagination, and then went to paper templates. This picture is what happens when you use brown craftspaper and DennyFoil to make a concept more real.

Little by little we will add more BUILDING THE VARDO photos and descriptions, and then ... a slide show will happen.