UPDATE'S, Where are you in life, and your move to Maine (Bangor: transporting, fence)

[island mermaid]

Originally Posted by mrs1885

Hey Forest, I was thinking the same thing! I've always wanted an outdoor shower. The beach house my in laws rented for us on the shore in NJ a few years back had one. The intended idea was you could rinse all the beach sand off before going in the house. To heck with that!! All of my body wash and shampoo / conditioner, etc wound up out there. I loved that thing!

This is at my brothers house on IAH, he has two young boys that are constantly playing in tide pools, having seaweed fights or walking thru a swamp. It works out great for them.

Originally Posted by Maineah

I like the outhouse. What magazines or catalogs does it have in it?

Sears, of course and the Farmers Almanac.

Originally Posted by Elcarim

I'll bet the neighbors like that shower too! I've always wanted an outdoor shower, but I'd have all 4 sides of mine covered at least from the shoulders to the knees. And up there, it would have to have some very warm water attached!

Neighbors? Hmmmm...... nope, not a one. It actually does have a shower curtain made out of a recycled sail. (go figure)

[boonelsewhere]

Just got a called from the contractor in Ellsworth yesterday, he said the posts are up and hope to get post & Beam structure up by this week if the weather permitted.

Our small Post & Beam house is build on concrete slab will have styrofoam under slab, walls and under the roof.

Will have natural light coming from sky lights and windows.

Where?.

This is back an forward so many time, on Graham Lake in Waltham or on 1A in Ellsworth.

My heart want to build on the lake, we have the home site clear the septic design is in place. BUT

to bring the electric in from the front of the property to home site will cost about $ 40-50k base on Bangor Hydro Electric.

Solar is so expensive, even with willing to cut back on electric usage.
We used to use average 4000 kw per month in Miami, here in VA i managed to cut it back to about 1000 kw per month.
In Maine i plan to cut it down to about 600 kw per month, 20 kw per day. that will be very difficult to do.
to generate and store the electric for that usage, the minimium system i will need is 5 kwh system , that about $50k.
< the number on solar system is my understand from reading may not be correct>

well some day i will have a house on the lake.

We build on Ellsworth, drive way is about 100 feet from 1A and they said 1A is keep snow clear in the winter.

? basement or no basement.
from this Maine forum, i want basement. BUT

The house is build on top of Ledge, to build a basement there would be very expensive, i would love to have stone basement, if some one can give me a fixed price and with out have to come back with concrete to level the floor or plump the wall. It would be a nice Vegie/wine cellar.

? how to heat Maine house

This is the most difficult decision for us, from i gather from Maine forum, the heating oil could cost from $4000-8000 per season. That is a lot money, our electric bill in Fl for AC, hot water, pool pump and all other electric stuff is at the low end of the heating oil.
In VA here we cut back a lot, drop down to about 1/4 - 1/3 of that number for heating and cooling and all other elec stuff.

This is what i have plan for Maine house;

Wall fan heater in the bed rooms, the installer said it should maintain 58-60 F,
and it will NOT run none stop.

wood stove for the living area, and duct less heat pump for the lazy day.
The manufactory claim it will work when outside temp is 0* F. It also serve at the aircond., wife insist that.

I thanks, MW on motivate me to split wood faster, it used to take me 20 mins to split a log, in an hour i may get about 12 peices.
one day i read her post she went out for an hour or two got a cord of fire wood.

[mrs1885]

The more we think of it, the more I'm wondering if we'll ever get up there. The tortoises can't handle cold at all. They need lots of sunlight. So year round just isn't a possibility. I'd thought of having a sunroom put on the house and they could live in there when it's cool. But Panzer is still pretty young and small (about 75 pounds) and he's already tearing up the walls in the sitting room. And I've got a good 3 or 4 months before he can go back outdoors now. I don't see how I'll be able to confine him when he hits 200 pounds......

Looking at a big piece of land in KY. Most likely we'll have a place there for most of the year and find something very small in Maine for vacations, maybe a month or 6 weeks of the warmest part of the summer. Still have to decide if we bring the torts up there with us or find someone that can care for them while we're gone.

How depressing......

[Maineah]

Originally Posted by mrs1885

The more we think of it, the more I'm wondering if we'll ever get up there. The tortoises can't handle cold at all. They need lots of sunlight. So year round just isn't a possibility. I'd thought of having a sunroom put on the house and they could live in there when it's cool. But Panzer is still pretty young and small (about 75 pounds) and he's already tearing up the walls in the sitting room. And I've got a good 3 or 4 months before he can go back outdoors now. I don't see how I'll be able to confine him when he hits 200 pounds......

Looking at a big piece of land in KY. Most likely we'll have a place there for most of the year and find something very small in Maine for vacations, maybe a month or 6 weeks of the warmest part of the summer. Still have to decide if we bring the torts up there with us or find someone that can care for them while we're gone.

How depressing......

Make a big cauldron of turtle soup and your worries are over! Just kidding of course. You're right tortoises probably wouldn't like it here unless you live in The Desert Of Maine!!

[mrs1885]

Originally Posted by Maineah

Make a big cauldron of turtle soup and your worries are over! Just kidding of course. You're right tortoises probably wouldn't like it here unless you live in The Desert Of Maine!!

Yep. They're from Africa, so they're really not all too happy with where we are now. I don't think they'll be happy unless we move to the equator. A ticked off 75 pound tortoise is nothing to mess with ! !

[CoastalMaine]

Originally Posted by mrs1885

Yep. They're from Africa, so they're really not all too happy with where we are now. I don't think they'll be happy unless we move to the equator. A ticked off 75 pound tortoise is nothing to mess with ! !

Why do you have them? Why don't you donate them to a zoo? I've never heard of anyone having such humongous turtles in their home!!!! lol I'm awed mrs1885!! Truly!!!

[chaosX5]

Originally Posted by mrs1885

Yep. They're from Africa, so they're really not all too happy with where we are now. I don't think they'll be happy unless we move to the equator. A ticked off 75 pound tortoise is nothing to mess with ! !

My Aunt lives in Nevada and has a tortoise outside in the backyard. It seems very happy there............

I am sorry you have to make such a difficult decision.

[CoastalMaine]

Originally Posted by chaosX5

My Aunt lives in Nevada and has a tortoise outside in the backyard. It seems very happy there............

I am sorry you have to make such a difficult decision.

This tortoise thing is amazing to me. I guess because I've never had one as a pet, perhaps? How aware are they as far as being a pet? Are they completely oblivious to you other than getting food, or do they react sort of in a trainable way? I don't know what I mean... I guess sort of like, coming to you when you put food out or lifting their head up so you can pet it? Stuff like that. Fascinating!!! I've never had one and never known anyone who had them. When I was a kid, I knew other kids who had those little baby ones in fish tanks. My parents wouldn't let us ever have them as they said they spread germs. ??? As I became a parent, I read about the little ones have salmonella and little kids playing with them and not washing their hands would contaiminate them and make them sick w/ salmonella poisoning. Very interesting topic!

[Submariner]

Originally Posted by boonskyler

Just got a called from the contractor in Ellsworth yesterday, he said the posts are up and hope to get post & Beam structure up by this week if the weather permitted....

That is very encouraging.

[Maineah]

Originally Posted by CoastalMaine

This tortoise thing is amazing to me. I guess because I've never had one as a pet, perhaps? How aware are they as far as being a pet? Are they completely oblivious to you other than getting food, or do they react sort of in a trainable way? I don't know what I mean... I guess sort of like, coming to you when you put food out or lifting their head up so you can pet it? Stuff like that. Fascinating!!! I've never had one and never known anyone who had them. When I was a kid, I knew other kids who had those little baby ones in fish tanks. My parents wouldn't let us ever have them as they said they spread germs. ??? As I became a parent, I read about the little ones have salmonella and little kids playing with them and not washing their hands would contaiminate them and make them sick w/ salmonella poisoning. Very interesting topic!

I have heard you can train them to play the piano! Their shells make interesting bathroom sinks too!