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Storage container build

132K views 590 replies 71 participants last post by  fordtrucksforever 
#1 ·
It has taken ten years after committing and finally doing. I have wanted to do a container build for a very long time. Eventually I get around to things that are seriously planned. Just not always in a timely manner. Anyway is this the correct place to post on the build? Is there enough interest from everyone? I am assuming I need to get a few more posts before being able to ad pics. I joined some years ago and never really had anything worth adding. Just a long time lurker. But I am getting a lot going together on the container. Hopefully will get it close to livable in not too many months. Anyway let me know. I dont have a fancy smart phone or high end laptop, tablet or whatever they are called these days. Nothing wireless but a simple flip phone. But I can at least do a little surfing when needing some information. Let me know what you think.
 
#300 ·
After this nice week of great weather had passed, I finally got a chance to work on the cabin. Unfortunately there was more rain in the forecast and would be severe. So bad I didnt risk getting stuck there in the mud. With 6 days of clear sky and bright sunshine, it still wasnt enough to dry out a few bad spots with poor drainage. Need to do something about that soon. Otherwise will only get worse.

This trip I wanted to stay focused of the front of cabin. Trying to get some corrugated steel panels put on above overhang that will cover a deck whenever it actually gets built.

My goal is covering up the exposed insulation on front of cabin. So Friday I stayed at it until way after dark. Then today the same thing until materials were depleted. Worked out well enough since the rain had already started falling.



Only two more panels and will have this upper part mostly finished. As done on the lower windows, they were sealed and taped. Also some flashing for the final layer of roof. Upper fill panels, and J-channel, then cut each piece of corrugated steel to fit around each window.

Didnt put much effort in pics or covering details, just tried to get as much done before the storms came rolling in.



Completely ran out of screws to secure all of the small sheet metal pieces. Also ran out of the sheet metal pieces needed to finish the front. Just gotta make some more this week and be ready to head out again when weather permits.

Even tho the work time was short, decent progress was made. It should not be too much longer before connecting to electrical grid. I dont want to spend that much money until actually being out there a lot more time and then need to rely on it. To get the power, I will set a 16 ft service pole in the ground and mount meter base with disconnect switch. Next run wire to weatherhead at top of pole, so electric company can connect there. Then trench about 200 feet and bury the 4/0 wire from new service pole to main panel in cabin. It was last year I was planning the same thing, but didnt get as far as hoping for.
 
#301 ·
This type of cabin build may not appeal to everyone that has visited this thread. After years of seeing, hearing, reading, and watching others go way overboard on their attempts of a DIY project, most of them had the same results. They failed miserably. The dream of their ideal build was so far over the top, it was doomed before even starting.

Some just didnt realize the amount of serious work it takes to build something like a house from the ground up. Even some with a solid foundation, like an existing structure, to build from, failed. The commitment was too much, time required, cost of materials, and not enough foresight to see what was involved at each step of the build. If you get too frustrated and then loose interest, it is very unlikely you will ever get motivated enough again to finish up where you left off.

I was very concerned when finally getting started with things I didnt forsee that might cause major setbacks. Some serious enough to cause this project to fail. My budget for this build doest really exist. I have been acquiring materials for several years even before any real idea of how this cabin would be built. Even choosing a storage container to use as a foundation to build from, was a last minute decision compared to the time I had been considering this project.

When so many of the same materials demo'ed from job sites kept showing up, I started putting things together in my head on what could be constructed from everything. Even after getting the storage container set down in place, I had not really worked out very much of how the rest of this cabin would be built. Fortunately it all just started falling into place as materials were collected and hauled to the build site.

The first thing I decided was to keep it simple as possible. Not necessarily from the choice of materials used, but be able to actually construct it without continually running in to problems that might require compromise and a work around to continue. One band-aid covering another spells disaster. Another major hurdle was doing all of the work by myself. Thats a tough one to work around. Start with basic living quarters first. Frills and unnecessary additions after the initial construction is finished. At least after the majority of the structural part is done.

Right now I dont need to spend time on hidden compartments, secret passages, emergency exits. blah blah blah. All those types of things would just prolong the construction of this cabin. There are much more important things to deal with. How the septic system is going to be done, the electrical, plumbing, and hvac. Even the landscape will have to be addressed soon enough. Cool as it would be to have a secret bat entrance with the drop down barricade,(which is something I have already worked out) is completely counter productive to getting this cabin built.

So if any of you are contemplating a build of your own and plan to do majority of the work, keep all of these thoughts in mind. It is so easy to get sidetracked from the main goal of basic living sustainability. Everything else will just be icing on the proverbial cake. But without a basic solid structure, none of the accessories will have any use or function at all.

Off the soap box. Enough lecturing for now. I am fortunate to know someone that just purchased another home. He is downsizing as his kids are growing up. To keep his wife unit happy, the house is going to be completely remodeled to her liking. Thats where I come in. He wants help on a few things, to offset some costs for this remodel. I will help remove a lot of the unwanted stuff.(like things that can be useful in my cabin) Also some simple framing, drywall, wiring and maybe plumbing.

The existing interior is in great shape, but to some people may be slightly dated. My personal taste doesnt care for what happens to be on the cover of Better Homes and Gardens. This year, last year, or last decade. I just want something simple and comfortable. So all of the interior is getting ripped out. If I am careful removing everything, most of it can be slightly adjusted to fit my needs perfectly. There is so much more than I can possibly use, so should not have compromises or out of pocket to make any of this fit.




These take up a whole wall. They are completely built in. Dont know exactly where to use them yet, but definitely try to make work somewhere.



Kitchen is three times more than I need or have the space for. It will make easy enough to install cabinets exactly where I want them.



Built in appliances look to have been rarely ever used. There is also a radiant stove top and ventahood. All matching brands just waiting to get pulled out.

I already have a much older complete kitchen larger than this one with all stainless appliances stored away. Its going to take some hard tough decisions figuring out which cabinets and appliances to use now. All of these cabinets and appliances are really more than I was wanting. Again back to basic and simple. But the amount of outright cost savings is well worth going with these instead of the more plain jane I would have built. Looks like another work day tomorrow. Hopefully the rain will hold off.
 

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#303 ·
I recently saw a couple pictures of what looked to be a 20' container used for a secure weekend type cabin.

Inside the doors the builder constructed an exterior wall with exterior door and a window. Then refinished the inside for cabin, camper type living.

Thinking ahead, the cabin container and another for deck furniture and other storage would make a quick, easy, relatively inexpensive retreat.

The thing I liked is when the container doors were closed it was very secure. A big concern here in bear country.
 
#304 ·
This cabin made from 3 20 footers is not a bad way if someone just wants a simple getaway when weather is mild. tincancabin

The owner does cover some of the problems encountered with using a container. It sure could be a neat little place on some lake or out in the boonies. My whole reason for choosing a container is just to have an existing structure to build from. And have secure and adequate storage during construction.
 
#305 ·
Ended up getting delayed one day before more work done on cabin. Instead I was killing some time at a shop. Decided to take the dog for her nightly walk. Around the corner is a cabinet shop. Occasionally they throw away some materials that I can make use of. Today I was not disappointed.



Sitting in a larger dumpster were a few boxes of these tiles. There are clay, ceramic, whatever you call them. Measure 12" square and about 1/4" thick. I can assume leftovers from a job that was completed. These dont get expensive unless you have a lot of square footage needing coverage. But thats not the point. I also have another stack of this type tile in a slightly different color that was removed from a houseboat. They came up easily and good as new. All of the tiles can be layed down in a random pattern and should look decent.

I now have enough of the tiles to put down on the actual storage container floor. Total size is only 160 square ft. But a lot of the floor will be covered with cabinets. The opening of container will eventually be finished out as the entry door. At the deep end will be a full kitchen. I am considering using these tiles on the floor here. Should work out well and make for easy clean up.



After I get those cabinets installed, a counter top will be next on the list to tackle. These are some large pieces of quartz and granite I have been collecting. There is a granite counter top business across the street from shop. They throw away all of the scrap that is too small to make use of. So I decided to try something. My plans are to cut these pieces and fit together. Simple as that. Doesnt matter the color or pattern. Just saw cut and then epoxy together. Sounds easy to do this way. Doncha think? How hard can it be. There is a granite place on every corner these days. Guess I will find out...

I have a very heavy solid steel 2 inch thick table that is Blanchard ground perfectly flat. This table will work great to lay down the granite pieces, epoxy and clamp together. Then flip over and sand the surface to a smooth satin finish. I dont want the counter top to be bright and shiny like most you see. Another idea is to cap the edges of counter top with a red oak or hickory then varnish to match or contrast with cabinets.

This might seem like a lot of work, but I am really enjoying everything in the process of building a cabin this way. The objective has been mostly focused on using materials that are thrown away, discarded, obsolete, repurposed, or even just uniquely applied. If the granite pieces dont pan out, I will keep looking for something else that could work instead. The fewer things needed to be purchased outright and new, the more enjoyable the challenge becomes. Call me cheap.
 
#306 ·
I was late leaving today. But worked ok since drive to cabin followed the storm as it blew thru and just cleared up before arriving there. Could not get truck to cabin without being buried in quicksand. So chose to walk down carrying the tools and materials. My trusty loyal blue healer was right at my feet following, cautiously keeping a keen eye out for anything that she didnt think belong there.

My only goal today was finishing the front of cabin. It just needed a few more panels cut and installed. The last visit I ran out of some of the fill panels and flashing that had to go up first. Was easy enough to fab some more from surplus sheet metal at the shop. For the next few hours I just focused on getting the front covered. Finally done and one more thing to check off the list. Since I dont own any skills in home decor, and lousy on picking out paint, my choice of trim color may not be very appealing. Maybe I get lucky this time. No sources for surplus paint that would fit my needs here. Will probably make an outright purchase for a fresh new gallon from the big box store. I hate to guess what decent paint costs these days.




Apologies for falling short on detailed pics and specifics about what has been done. I spent roughly the same amount of time working this afternoon as driving out there and then back tonight. My shortsightedness left me without more materials to finish the west side wall. I have about 4 ft more to cover and all corrugated panels will be up except for the container doors. It may take a few heavy storms to wash those corrugated panels enough so they will match. Or I could scrub them down with vinegar. Hmmm, too much effort. Think I will just let mother nature do her thing.

For the next few days I get to demo that kitchen and other cabinets from house mentioned in earlier post. The interior of cabin is almost ready to start installing these, so this is working out great. Cost out of pocket this trip was $9.50. I ran out of screws and had to grab another box on the way here.
 

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#307 ·
Had a most productive afternoon. Spent the time demoing those cabinets that will be repurposed in my cabin. Along with the cabinets, the kitchen appliances were removed. What I had originally thought was these appliances had been replaced in recent years, well I was slightly off my guess. These were actually replaced right before the house was put on the market.

These appliances are not only brand new, as in never been even turned on, but also come with a full manufacturers warranty. I have all of the cards to fill out and mail in along with owners manuals and installation instructions. This is way more than I could have hoped for.



GE radian cooktop. It has 4 burners and currently sells for $750.00



And to top off that radiant stove top is this range hood from Whirlpool. It retails for $275.00.



GE Convection Microwave. It also has the surround to be installed as a built in above the wall oven. This sells for $620.00



This is a GE Convection built in wall oven. It sells for $2295.00

I could never replace these if they were new and in an existing kitchen. Not until they were completely worn out and not repairable. My buddy that is giving these to me said these will be earned for the work he wants help with. Guessing for the thousands of dollars offset him not having to pay for contractors is fair enough trade. For me the work is simple and easy enough. Though I would never do this type of work for a living. Then it would just suck! Having the time makes this type of work more enjoyable. Especially at my own pace. For other people, not so much.

Always being motivated to learn how to do this type of work is paying off in a big way right now. I have never owned anything in a kitchen that was new before. Always just repaired what was found on the side of a road somewhere. Most stuff was easy to make working. Wouldnt even take much to clean up and look new again.

Not like this case here, but I never understood why so many people just throw good stuff away just because its a few years old. Also dont know why they also prefer to be in debt by purchasing items new and on credit instead of properly repairing and not have to deal with debt and bills to pay every month.

Well in a few more days all of the cabinets will be removed and I can start laying them out to fit in my kitchen space. A little ahead of schedule on getting the kitchen built, but think I can work around that kind of problem easy enough.
 

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#309 ·
These cabinets I am removing are definitely a flashback to the 80's. After looking them over, it wont take too much to remove a little of that slightly dated look. I just need to cut back on the excessive use of paneling and replace with more exposed drywall.






I sure dont need half of these cabinets to fill up my tiny little space. But with this many, I will likely eliminate that massive steel electrical control box that was going to be my pantry, electrical room and hidden gun safe. There are enough cabinets to fill in all of the wall space and I can still do the same with these. Just wont look so utilitarian/industrial anymore.




There is way too much paneling here for my liking. Especially for the little amount of space I am working with. The only place this may get used is back wall where the stairs will be. Select which of these cabinets gets fitted in the cabin, so doesnt get too cluttered. May be able to use some of the leftovers upstairs as built in dressers and more storage.




These banisters just happen to be long enough and at correct angle to work in my place. All of the crown molding is going away too. Even if I dont leave the wood finish, it will still work better than what I was going to do before.

Since I dont have any particular preference to how the insides of my place should look, being partially stuck in the 80's isnt going to bother me. By toning down the excessive amount of wood finish just a little bit, may neutralize that flashback. I like simple and comfortable. With a little bit of creativity, maybe will work out and not be stuck a few decades back in time.

What I thought might also work out is the original bathroom. It is flawless and built in the very early 50's. It is all pink tile and actually looks fairly interesting. The pink cast iron tub must weigh a ton. Tho I have never been a fan of anything pink, that bathroom is starting to grow on me. A very comfortable and vintage feel. Or maybe my feminine side is showing too much?
 

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#310 ·
Well guess its time for a little update. I had a blast demoing all of those cabinets from the donor house. OK not really, it was a lot of work. Still have a few more things to tear out and then build a 24 ft beam to replace a load bearing wall. But thats not really part of building my humble rusty little cabin in the woods.

As of today I am now self taught on how to build kitchen cabinets. You could say just about any type of cabinet, since there really isnt that much difference in construction.

There was a big down side removing these old cabinets. They were all built in, not stand alone cubicals like are made nowadays. The original set of cabinets were pine, fur, or something in the soft wood type. Since then there has been upgrades, additions, and face lifts.

After nearly destroying most of the kitchen cabinets, decided just to make use of what scraps I could and build the cabinet bases to fit my cabin. There are so many doors, in all different sizes, I can easily use to work for my needs. So plans have been adjusted to try and reuse as much of the wood I can. May be a little time consuming, but dont expect any real out of pocket expense to get them built this way.



This is a small pile of what I tore out in kitchen. Its the first of at least ten more truck loads to go. There is a garage full waiting to get moved. A lot of the original was so ingrained into the structure of house, had to be removed piece by piece. Really just torn out. Whatever it took to rip down. The newer addition was not so bad but still was built in. My original hopes was to pull complete cabinets loose from walls. Didnt quite turn out that way.



There are way too many drawers for the area I have to fill. Should be able to use most of the small drawers tho. Not much space for these bigger ones. I am getting an education of hanging these drawers. Some of the old slides and hardware is just cheesy. Should have plenty of the better stuff to hang everything.



There are piles of this stuff. Most wont be used again. Since there is ten times what I need, doesnt make a lot of difference.



Taking inventory of all the sizes of doors and existing pieces of larger wood, then cut down to fit the size in cabin.



The sofit had been converted over to cabinets sometime in the life of this old house. This gives me a ton of cabinet doors that will fit in other places.



The first box I have started constructing is for a built in oven and microwave. Very similar to the original one removed. Unfortunately one side of the old box was particle board and covered in 1/4" paneling. What looks good as a finished product doesnt look very well built after several remodels.

This side of cabinet will be covered up completely. The lower cabinets and countertop up the first 36 inches then a stainless steel sheet to surround the built in stove top. Above the ventahood is a set of upper cabinets. On this side here had white tile in the middle. It was difficult to remove and left a rough surface in wood grain. So the stainless steel panel will cover it over perfectly.



Right below built in oven is this lower drawer. It is the first one I have ever installed. So far things are starting to work out. I was able to narrow up this box about 1 1/2" leaving a new clean edge to work with. It eliminates some unnecessary dead space that is nothing but wasted. Since the kitchen area is fairly small, will take advantage of everything that can be scaled down.



Here is the side of cabinet that will likely be fully exposed. I had to replace the old piece here. It was a mismatch of different wood and particle board covered in that thin paneling. The oak plywood piece was rescued from a demo. It still has a very thin laminate on the inside. The other side of this cabinet box was cut about a foot shorter to fit my kitchen space. Some of the existing horizontal shelf supports can be cut down a little and reused. I moved the oven about three inches higher so a pair of smaller cabinet doors will fit above microwave.



Most of the original cabinets have this thin paneling over the old surface. Looks good enough until you realize how its built. Then not so nice. Hope to fix all of this.



I bought this miter saw over 5 years ago. Long term plans are finally paying off. Until today it had never been taken out of the box. Picked up when on sale really cheap back then, so I couldnt resist. It only took a couple of hours to get this set up to make square cuts. That sucked. The laser isnt too bad either. Now I can trust making cuts more than 12 inches deep to be square and actually fit.

My thoughts on these cabinets are to leave the doors with a wood finish. They are in great shape and look good enough for me. But the cabinet bases can go either way. With some work they can be refinished to match doors. But I am really considering painting just the cabinet bases. Possibly some shade of creme or off white. I need to make the small kitchen space look more open.

With all of the cabinets bases a light color will contrast nicely with the wood finish of doors and help lighten up the room. Will also be a whole lot easier and much less time consuming to go this route. I can hide a ton of imperfections this way and save on materials. Hopefully it will look close to what I have envisioned.

That is where I stand right now. Should have this big box finished in another day or two and ready to fit the oven and microwave. Maybe go ahead and paint the box to get an idea of how it will turn out.

If you have any decent ideas, dont hesitate to post. I need all of the input as possible. My green thumb in decor does not exist. So winging this blindly.
 

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#311 ·
During some more demo, the attic fan got retired. It is in good condition, and still original paint. A lot of these have rusted over, lost a blade or motor long deceased. Even tho this one got cut out of the box for removal, it still might have a possible use.



This attic fan used a flat belt to drive the blade. What I was thinking about doing is use this upstairs as a ceiling fan. I only have exposed roof showing. There is plenty of room up to the roof pitch for this to fit. Install with the tubing extended all the way to one wall. Then mount the drive motor remotely there. Use a very long belt that will reach to center of cabin. Cross between industrial and steam punk. Slow the speed down to be safe and quieter than was originally.

Isnt that some ugly linoleum flooring? It was covered with something new almost as ugly. Even when new is a cheap cover up. Glad this style is no longer the next new fad.



This gives you an idea of what I am thinking about. May or may not work out. Just thinking about how to repurpose some things. Hate to see it tossed out.
 

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#312 ·
Being new to cabinet making sure makes one wonder...At first it was a little overwhelming looking over all of the demo'ed wood that had been cabinets a few days prior. Where do I start? What should I use and what is going to be discarded? It took a little bit of getting used to wood working tools, but finally built the first cabinet from the scraps. Spent an evening looking at drawings on the web. Didnt look too complicated as to how cabinets are built. I spent another couple late nights going over everything and remeasuring before cutting and assembling this box. Everything is cut down from the donor kitchen parts. I had to replace several large panels, since they were originally add-ons and spliced with particle board and other mismatched pieces.

You can see some bare wood places. These were covered up with trim or behind something somewhere else in the kitchen. I cut these pieces to size for this box. Its time to sand down this now new cabinet and stain to match the existing doors.



I just installed microwave to see if the fit was good. Had a little trimming to make a mounting bracket work, but no issues. That shiny new oven will fill in the big hole below. This box was built laying on its side sitting atop a large perfectly flat 2 inch thick steel slab table. At least I had a point of reference to measure from. Makes it a little easier for things to end up square.

If you notice the storage on top is two small doors that are different sizess. I didnt have a pair that would fit, so mismatched with other pairs to get the length needed. Some people might think everything has to be symmetric or it doesnt flow. This stuff doesnt bother me at all.

It wasnt so much the actual construction of this cabinet that gave me concerns. The problem was after cutting the wood, then gluing and nailing together, if it would sit flat square and actually measure the size its supposed to be. I tried to cut everything down to a minimum size for the openings. Keeping everything square takes a little bit of finesse. But the end product turned out way nicer that I was expecting.

Whats even better after I got this first box built, realized now there are options on the finish. My original thoughts were to paint all of the bases and keep doors in the original wood stain. This would make it easy to cover up the old finish, mistakes and different types of wood used. Now I see that all of the cabinets can be stained to match doors and look the same as originally built. What I will likely do now is still paint sides on the cabinet ends. May only be two or three of them. This will still work out to lighten up the small kitchen, but leave all of the wood finish exposed on front.

Total out of pocket for this cabinet build is $8.09. Nothing but a box of screws to assemble the 2x4's used as cabinet base.
 

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#313 ·
I have an hour to wait for the glue to dry. So why not more updates? This next box I built will go above the ventahood. There will be some more storage cabinet room in the box itself. Originally that new range hood was vented up and out the roof. This time I am going straight back and thru the outer wall. This also makes cabinet useful instead being full of the vent ducting.

By cutting a hole thru the steel container wall, then the three inch thick insulation, it can vent out behind the old rusty corrugated steel outer panel. No big hole visible from the outside.



This box wont be seen, except for the front oak trim and doors. So whatever plywood, or planks that can be cut down will work here. Inside of the cabinet will be a fresh coat of white paint.



Using this old Craftsman table saw that had been disowned some years ago, I ripped some 1 3/4 wide strips to frame around the box.



The bottom of box will have that stainless steel range hood screwed on to cover over. Here is the oak trim around box that shows when cabinet is installed. It will get stained to match the doors.

Next the doors get hung and this box becomes a cabinet and ready to stain. Then mount on wall right next to the box for oven and microwave.

UPDATE: Well its been about two hours. Glue is dry enough to make some more headway.



The doors are installed and look square enough. Test driving the range hood to make sure everything works right. So far so good. Time to get started on the first lower cabinet box that will house the range and some storage drawers. Need to find out what color of stain will match the doors. Then start working on finishing these cabinets ready for installation.

It is very rewarding to actually build someing by yourself. It is especially fulfilling to take throw away materials and make something that will last for another lifetime and looks good as realistically possible.

I should have removed those incriminating finger prints on front of the range hood. Someone that really wanted to, could possibly lift them from this pic, identify me and my whereabouts. Then this whole covert off grid location could be compromised...
 

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#314 ·
Just happened to be driving by a granite place when they were tossing out scraps. Not just the small broken chunks I am used to finding, These are large square and rectangular pieces. A lot of the same type, but several different patterns. There is more than enough granite to make all of my counter tops. Wasnt planning on getting this involved in the kitchen yet. But since the donor demo'ed cabinets showed up, counter tops would be the next thing to locate.



My old beater ranger go an overload. Fortunately I just had to cross the street to unload.



These are large rectangular clean cut pieces. None are big enough for a single slab counter top. But that was never my intentions.



My plans are to cut these and piece fit them together. Glue with epoxy. Then finish cut to size for the kitchen requirements. That heavy 2 inch thick steel table I use for just about everything is ground absolutely flat. The granite/marble/quarts pieces are put finished side down and clamped together. The lines are visible between all those different pieces, but the top is perfectly smooth. Guess the kitchen will be getting a lot of attention for a while, since all of the materials are now here and ready to get put to use.
 

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#315 ·
Building this barn on a budget is really fun and keeping me motivated. Every time some work gets done, it is easier to envision the finished cabin.

I spent too much time yesterday picking up materials and still more materials with the unexpected truck load of granite remnants. Sure cant complain about getting a late start out to the budget barn build. Late afternoon arrival, but lower than normal temps made up for everything. I just focused on cleaning out the storage container proper. Mostly just clutter and things that wouldnt be needed anymore to get work done.



This is only the second time I have seen the container this empty. Still hard to imagine there will be a kitchen just yet.



These little drywall screws worked out fairly well. I wasnt sure what it would take to drill thru the container walls. There is a major difference in hardness of some panels here. They are welded 44" wide sections. Some panels produced about a 50% mortality rate on screws. If the drill point didnt immediately take a bite, it wanst going to. I also realized you could not try to drill in the same spot either. Just kill another screw.

First I thought the screws are just junk. Super mass production doesnt guarantee a perfect drill point on every one of these screws. But also noticed some sections had no issues at all. Not a single screw had trouble drilling thru. Surprisingly only one screw broke when I tried to drill at a welded joint.



Now it is starting to look more like a room instead of a container. Well if blind in one eye and cant see out of the other.



These corners are recessed a few inches. Originally I was going to drywall over, but now deciding to use these pockets to run all electrical and hide plumbing on other corner.

Every work day on the cabin/barn is one day closer to living here.

Todays out of pocket expense is for 8 sheets of drywall, and one each box of nails and screws. Total is $102.27.
 

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#316 ·
Just spent the last two evenings trying to build another of the many kitchen cabinets. With each one, time decreases a little more. Maybe when the last one is finished, I might get decent at making these. Or not.



This sure isnt what I would expect a cabinet to look like. Actually doesnt look too bad for scrap wood. Fortunately these sides and back are not seen when cabinets are all set and assembled. This oak veneer plywood is a donor from some shipping crate. Does not look like much here, but works just like anything else that a cabinet would be normally be made from.



Here is the back side. Temporarily braced while glue dries. You can see how this whole cabinet is made from used lumber. Again this will never be seen after cabinets are installed. You will notice there is nothing but real wood. None of the MDO, MDF, particle board, or melamine that is what most cabinets sub components are made from these days. Some of the most expensive cabinets you can buy is full of that stuff. Even veneered particle board that looks like real solid wood. Well until it gets wet or cut.



The front here is what you see after the cabinets are installed. This one still has two small top drawers that have to be framed around and hung. Next the box front gets sanded down and stained, then clear coat finish.

Out of pocket expense for this cabinet....are you ready for it? $0.00. Zip, nada. Even tho I have plenty of my time to build this, it is my free time. Free to do as I please. Another option during the evenings...sitting on my butt and turning up a few cold ones surfing the net. Hmmn? Not having to work for someone else and then pay a fortune to have them built. Almost have to take out a bank loan paying for kitchen cabinets these days.
 

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#317 ·
Was thinking just updating the previous post, but you might not be reading this thread right now. Then miss out on how fantastic this cabinet actually turned out.

OK maybe not the greatest job ever, but has to be up there somewhere. Repurposing demo'ed materials and then cutting down to size and building new cabinets is a very rewarding part of this budget barn build.

From the previous post I had built the cabinet and installed two lower drawers. On top the two smaller ones sit side by side needed to be hung. Also add the surround to finish it off.



Dont know what you think, but I am so stoked about how these are coming together. Starting to work out in my head how the upper cabinets are going to be built. They should go fairly quickly. Simpler to build, at least in my head they seem to be.

After looking at the above pic, I am now leaning toward a lighter stain on the cabinet bases. Similar to what you see now but with a urethane finish. The two tone gives nice contrast and should help break up the abundance of wood grain in such a small kitchen.

If you have any comments, suggestions or advice, please dont hesitate to reply. As always and again, thanks for your interest in following this thread.
 

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#319 ·
Late nite every nite until all of these cabinets are built. Tonite I started working on one of the corner cabinets. It comes out 3 ft from corner on both walls. I will need two of these. One will have a corner style sink. This should keep the counter space more usable for the limited amount available.



First thing is to build the base. Even these 2x4's were throw away scraps. But long enough to use here. Its worth to me the extra time to clamp everything in place before gluing and screwing/nailing. If the base is perfect, just makes more likely the rest of cabinet will be square and fit. There are many different ways to assemble the pieces. You can use a dado joint and glue, pocket screws, mortise and tenon, or just basic old school with glue and hammer each nail by hand.

After actually attempting to make a few cabinets now I realized something. It aint that hard. Well its a pain to cut exactly to size and get a perfect fit every time. But you dont really need a set of blueprints. Just a sketch with what length each section needs to be. Everything is fairly standard. This base is the same as straight bases, just add the right angle to make the turn.

If you know the exact width and length of room where the cabinets will go, then all of the other dimensions are industry standard and straight forward. Most of the face front on cabinet are the same widths. You can adjust more or less to fudge any differences. Especially if using existing/premade doors or the like.



There is a ton of pine planks like these from donor cabinets. No way was I going to buy particle board or melamine with this much material that can be salvaged.

You can see the old painted boards. Yes I had to pull nails. Yes the planks had to be squared and then cut to fit. Yes I did have to scrape and sand down a lot of the old painted surfaces. But it didnt cost me a dime as someone once said.



This could be a big ouch if not paying attention. Most planks were like this one. But only a few minutes to remove the old rusted nails. Make sure you are current on shots before attempting something like this especially without adult supervision.



This base wont be seen and the planks will have a fresh coat of paint. Just like if they were made from new lumber. Or you may prefer the fake wood grain cardboard a lot of cabinets use for the shelving. I dont.

Every time a board, side, shelf, support, or just about anything getting attached, will be clamped down secure and square. If this cabinet doesnt sit flat when on the floor, then the floor isnt flat. Makes for easy shimming to match each cabinet section to another one.

While the glue was drying, I thought it would be a good time to post some more here. Maybe able to get some extra pics and details this way. Makes sense to be cutting the next pieces and have ready for the next step. But where is the fun in that?

Continuing on,
Been a couple of hours already. Went ahead and cut the end panels. These panels are not exposed when installed. If one was visible I would make it differently than the way these are mounted. It would go down to the floor instead of sitting on top of the 2x4 base. There would also be a notch on bottom front corner for a toe kick.



Just attached these end panels. You will not see either side of this cabinet after installation. For an exposed end a decent piece of cabinet grade oak plywood would be used instead of the scraps like above.



Supports are temporarily used while the glue dries overnite. They will keep the sides square to the world until the other pieces are attached. I am tired and time to go to sleep anyway.



This very precision machinists angle plate keeps the sides square while the temporary supports were nailed on. There are always other ways to do any of what is described here. I just used what was available.

If doing woodworking as a serious hobby or for a living, then would make sense to invest in a bunch of wood working clamps, table saw, and other specific tools that make life easier. These cabinets are getting built old school style. Every nail is beat in with a hammer. Glued and clamped so the cabinet will be very strong and rigid.
 

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#320 ·
This afternoon was just a short work out. The corner cabinet box is closer to being finished. That donor oak veneer plywood I had was very warped and twisted from sitting outside a few weeks in the weather before being rescued. (Thats code for thrown in the dumpster)



I did a 45 on back of cabinet box. It is complete dead space and hard to reach that far back. You see all of the reused 1/4" paneling that was demo'ed from house is now used on back three sides. In this case it is structural and ties the sides together. The double cross bracing really made this box rigid. Should put some cleats in to hold the two shelves before I get much farther with this box.



The front here will not have a divider in the center like most corner cabinets. Instead there will be a single door made from two cut at 45 degrees to make a 90. The now made new single door will open up for a large easy access here.



This is similar to what I am going for on the corner opening. One door from two pieces at a 90 degree angle to fit.

I may do the same as above to the drawer that fits above this new single door. For now there will just be a fake drawer face put on so it will match.

Next work session the front face will be cut and attached. Wth new modified door and fake drawer face. Then this box will finally become a real cabinet.
 

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#321 ·
What you're calling a barn is starting to look like a rugged built master crafted mini mansion. With all the archetitecture design, welding, carpentry, masonry and electrician work are; a master of all trades.... and there's the plumbing. I have no doubt you have it all figured out or will. Your plan, your schedule, and your budget. A thumbs up and best wishes. Please keep sharing.
 
#322 ·
What you're calling a barn is starting to look like a rugged built master crafted mini mansion. With all the architecture design, welding, carpentry, masonry and electrician work are; a master of all trades.... and there's the plumbing. I have no doubt you have it all figured out or will. Your plan, your schedule, and your budget. A thumbs up and best wishes. Please keep sharing.
Wow! Thanks for the compliments and encouragement. Extremely motivating and inspiring. I had to include the quote just so it gets posted again.

BTW thats Jack of all trades, master of none...But plumbing is a non issue. Just labor intensive. Very minor in the overall scheme of things.
 
#323 ·
After watching paint dry, err glue, I finally finished the first corner cabinet. Extremely happy with the results. If building cabinets for a living, I would find a different profession. For me personally, I dont have a problem with small imperfections. You redo it or live with it and just move on. It would be difficult to not redo until I was happy, if for a customer. Not that the minor issues would ever be noticed, but they would be known by me.

After getting this corner box built, it needed the oak face. Then had to figure out what to do for a door, using existing donor pieces.



Using demo'ed scraps has its downsides. I had to clean up a lot of these planks to make them usable. Also so they will take paint. The insides will go back white. I chose to go with one single height shelf instead of staggering them like in previous post.



You can see how simple the cabinets actually are. This front is all that will be seen on most of them. So the front gets the finish materials. Here you can see the two stiles(vertical pieces on cabinet ends) and the first rail(horizontal strip) that is partially stained from donor cabinet.



The face is done. Now ready for sanding, stain, then final clear coat finish.



This is what I was hoping would work out. It took most of the time getting saw to cut a true 45 degrees so both doors would fit together. Next thing I had to do was add that thin strip to get wide enough so the opening was covered. When it is stained to match no one would know the door wasnt made this way originally.



I was so glad all the effort I put into making this door actually worked as had planned(lots of hope). Everything fits flat and square.




You can see where the hinges used to be when only a single flat door. With the corner door like this, gives more access to inside of cabinet. Otherwise with a divider and two narrow doors, limits how useful and convenient the storage area would be.

Time for the next cabinet to get built.
 

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#324 ·
This next cabinet box was a simple 2 ft square that fills in between the range top and corner cabinet. It went fairly quickly. So last nights efforts ended with a nice addition to the kitchen project.



Most of the face was donor pieces removed from old cabinets and cut down to size. So you can see a lot of the existing finish shows. If I decide to go with a lighter stain for cabinet to contrast against the darker doors, will have to figure out how to remove the old stain in several places on the cabinets.

This finishes one wall for the lower cabinets. Now I can take these with the new appliances down to cabin and get them ready to install.
 

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