Building Our Farm...Pics

[ryanbr]

Hello, I am a long time forum reader, however this is my first post. I am 26 years old and a systems administrator at a bank in our small town. I have recently moved from Calgary, AB back to the farm I grew up on in Manitoba. Last summer my Dad passed away leaving me to take care of 4 quarter sections (640 acres) of farm land. Currently the land is seeded to hay and rented out to a few local farmers with large cattle operations.

Me and my fiancee started building a new house on my families old homestead. Here is a picture of it as of today (jan 30, 08):


In the yard there is a 48x48 Butler machine shed, a 20x35 tall garage which we are converting to a barn and hay storage, 6 steel bins for grain storage (approx 15000 bushels), and a few other smaller wooden buildings on skids. Here is a picture of the machine shed with a 1850 Cockshutt in front.:


Just this fall I purchased a 1982 White 2-105 tractor and FEL, blade and bale fork. Unfortunately I don't have any pictures of it at this time. But here is a picture of a very similar 2-105:

My Dad also left a '62 Cockshutt 770. It is a nice little tractor, about 45hp. It also has a 3PH and a full hydraulic system. I am currently looking for a small loader to fit it. We've got a few implements around the farm yard but nothing fancy. We also recently acquired a 1993 New Idea 486 baler. I will try and get some pictures of both the tractors on the weekend.

Anyway I will try and keep this thread updated with the house build and the work I plan to do around the farm. A few things I plan to do this year include cut and bale 160 acres with the 'new' tractor and baler, build corral system for 5 head of cattle and our 2 horses, finish the water system for livestock, complete the barn, and seed the grass around house/river area... oh and get married.

I am sure I will have tons of questions for everyone here, so thanks in advance!

 

[ryanbr]

The house build...

Just a few pics of the house build thus far:

this is a picture of our back yard, looks really rough right now as the trackhoe was clearing/burying trees. eventually this will be all grass. its hard to tell from the pic but the river boarders both the left side (where i am standing) and the far end. almost creates a peninsula of sorts..

This pictures is looking at the front of the house, across the river and into the mountains. The garage will be attached in front of the house on the left side, unfortunately there the footings or hole dug for the garage yet... its suppose to snow either today or tomorrow..

Back of house before final wall and rafters. The walkout windows are sheeted over as my windows are about a month away.

Same view now.

 

[Tororider]

Sorry to hear about your father. Look forward to seeing your progress. Good luck with wedding prep. Sounds like you have a full plate for the upcoming year

 

[EddieWalker]

Welcome to TBN!!!

Looks like you have an amazing place there. I have family from BC to Sask and then on the East Coast, but I've never been to Manitoba. It sure looks like nice countryside with those rolling hills!!!!

How about some details on the house? Size? Are you building with 2x6's on your exterior walls?

I'm looking forward to more posts and following along with your progress. Since I know absolutely nothing about farming and haying, it will be fun to learn what I can from you.

Congrats on the engagement. My wife and I eloped two years ago after getting overwhelmed and highly annoyed with everyone else trying to take over our wedding plans. Everyone that I know who's done the same things thinks it's the best way to do it. Most people that I've met who had a big wedding tend to regret the money they spent on it and would do it differently if they could. Just a thought.

Eddie

 

[ryanbr]

Welcome to TBN!!!

Looks like you have an amazing place there. I have family from BC to Sask and then on the East Coast, but I've never been to Manitoba. It sure looks like nice countryside with those rolling hills!!!!

How about some details on the house? Size? Are you building with 2x6's on your exterior walls?

I'm looking forward to more posts and following along with your progress. Since I know absolutely nothing about farming and haying, it will be fun to learn what I can from you.

Congrats on the engagement. My wife and I eloped two years ago after getting overwhelmed and highly annoyed with everyone else trying to take over our wedding plans. Everyone that I know who's done the same things thinks it's the best way to do it. Most people that I've met who had a big wedding tend to regret the money they spent on it and would do it differently if they could. Just a thought.

Eddie

Thanks! I would love to elope, unfortunately my better half wants the typical 'fairy tale' wedding. The amount of money going into this wedding, we could have a built a bigger house . Oh well... not much I can do but nod and say 'yes dear'

Anyway the house is a 1660sqft 4 bedroom, 3 bath bungalow with walkout basement, the walls are a 2x6 construction with a 2" layer of Styrofoam on the outside for extra insulation (due to MB winters). Vaulted ceiling in kitchen, dining room, and great room. We are doing geothermal heating system for the entire house this is composed of a 'water to air' heating system and a water to water infloor heat for the garage, basement, and entry. The geotherm air system also has electric assist. For extra heat we are installing a small wood burning zero clearance fireplace in the great room. I do not expect it will need to be used too much for heat but more so just for the beauty of a wood burning fireplace.

If anyone wants anymore specific info let me know I will try and answer as much as I can.

Also anyone have any advice on putting a 100amp subpanel in the attached garage? I am contemplating it but I have a full 100amp service in my unheated machine shed and cant see a reason why I would want to weld or anything in the garage... I just would run a few lines from the main house panel to the garage maybe even a 220 line for a tablesaw or other tools. To run the 100amp subpanel to the garage it will cost about another 600bux right now. Once the house is built the cost to implement the subpanel would be substantially higher. Just wondering if anyone can see a future need for that much power in a small garage, other then the fact it would be nice to work in a heated shop.

 

[ToadHill]

Now would be the time to run the wire even if you waited to put in the panel. Run a few wall plugs to your main box, you want them on a different circut anyway. Wire for the 100 amp subpanel and just wait to hook it up until you need it.

 

[ryanbr]

Here is a few shots from this summer. We spent the whole summer cleaning up the yard, prepping for the house, refinishing the barn and getting water to the horses from a old well. Which reminds me, do you guys think the horses will have a issue with vinyl siding? I am concerned with them licking the siding on the barn and getting sick (its fairly toxic?). I have tin about 5 ft up but after that its all vinyl siding. On to the pics.

Grain bins/grazing pasture.

Machine Shop/Cockshutt 770/Cockshutt 1850 w FEL

Drive way up to where the house now sits.

Other side of shed, old CAT D-6 with cable blade. Runs great! Did a lot of work this year!

 

[Farmerford]

What a great story! I am sure the place is full of pleasant memories for you, just like my family farm is for me.

My wife and I also cancelled a fancy wedding when our mothers took over and turned it into a three ring circus. I am not sure my mother has ever forgiven me, and it has been over 40 years.

Keep us posted.

Chuck Ford

PS: Is the Cockshutt an original design, or a rebadged model of another brand? I know the old ones (30's and 40's) were unique designs, but I did not realize they kept making them into the 1960's.

 

[ryanbr]

.....Is the Cockshutt an original design, or a rebadged model of another brand? I know the old ones (30's and 40's) were unique designs, but I did not realize they kept making them into the 1960's.

After some research I found out its 58...

I believe that 770 is a original design, however I am not sure what was going on between Cockshutt and Oliver at the time this was made. Someone told me when they switched to Oliver they had a bunch of Cockshutt branded parts left so they shipped them to a factory in Canada and made that tractor up here until they ran out of parts? I have seen a lot of Oliver 770's from around that same time, but hardly any Cockshutt. My grandfather bought this tractor brand new and farmed several hundred acres with it and a Massey 30. I love this tractor, it is the only piece of equipment that we didnt sell when my dad had to quit farming back in 99.I want to put a loader on it but it does not have power steering. I would retrofit it with power steering but I want to keep it in factory condition, thoughts?

 

[brandoro]

Now would be the time to run the wire even if you waited to put in the panel. Run a few wall plugs to your main box, you want them on a different circut anyway. Wire for the 100 amp subpanel and just wait to hook it up until you need it.

I'm with Toad Hill, even if you don't think you will need it if the wire is there then the panel can be easily added later. I had a garage with a few circuits run from the house panel, not handy when a breaker would trip and I would have to pull my boots off and tramp through the house to reset. If you bring the circuits from the house to a junction box near where you would put the panel then you can swing them to the new panel when/if it gets installed.

 

[EddieWalker]

I don't see any need for a sub panel in an attached garage. It's part of the house and all it really needs is enough outlets for what you will use in there. I'd go 20 amp for those outlets and probably a dedicated line for the garage door opener.

Where is your main panel? I always try to put the main panel in the garage when I build a home if possible.

Eddie

 

[brandoro]

Putting the main panel in the garage is certainly a good idea if you aren't past that stage already. Having the main panel or a sub panel in the garage keeps your options open.
Making the garage circuits 20 amp is not a good idea unless you take it all the way. Should the worst happen and there is a fire, having 20 amp breakers in your panel tied to #14AWG (15 amp) wire and having 15 amp configuration outlets will catch your insurance adjusters eye. To have a proper 20 amp outlet you need to run #12 AWG wire and have 20 amp configuration outlets. That means everything you will want to plug in there will either have to be changed to a 20 amp cord end (not useful anywhere else) or else you will need to make "cheaters" so you can plug things into your 20 amp outlets without having to change cord ends.
Your electrician will not likely instal a 20 amp breaker with a #14 wire, it could cost him a fine and possibly his license. You could change the breakers later but need to be aware that there is some risk involved.

 

[UpstateNYMarine]

Brother,

Having just planned a wedding and built a house in the same year I applaud your efforts. Its a ton, I mean a ton, of work but it is do-able. Best of luck with both your home and your wedding plans. My condolences concerning your father. I lost my dad about a year before our wedding and it was by far the hardest thing I have ever gone through. It made the year I spent in Iraq look like a cake walk.

Best of luck in all you set out to do...

 

[cjcocn]

rhofford

Welcome to TBN!

Sorry to hear about your father.

The place looks good so far and I am looking forward to reading/seeing your updates.

Who is putting in your geothermal system? I was looking at it a few years ago and the nearest to The Pas that I could find were two brothers out of Birch River. We ended up buying instead of building so I did not pursue it.

Take care and good luck with the build.

 

[ryanbr]

rhofford

Welcome to TBN!

Sorry to hear about your father.

The place looks good so far and I am looking forward to reading/seeing your updates.

Who is putting in your geothermal system? I was looking at it a few years ago and the nearest to The Pas that I could find were two brothers out of Birch River. We ended up buying instead of building so I did not pursue it.

Take care and good luck with the build.

Thanks, here is some info on the geotherm.

The company is called DNS Geothermal, they are from my area. West of Bowsman (southwest of Birch River). Really great guys. I am sure they have done work in your area as well.

I expect the geo system to pay for itself within 5 years on heating costs alone. One of the other main reasons why we went with the geo system was because of the free AC in the summer.

 

[ryanbr]

Brother,

Having just planned a wedding and built a house in the same year I applaud your efforts. Its a ton, I mean a ton, of work but it is do-able. Best of luck with both your home and your wedding plans. My condolences concerning your father. I lost my dad about a year before our wedding and it was by far the hardest thing I have ever gone through. It made the year I spent in Iraq look like a cake walk.

Best of luck in all you set out to do...

Thanks! I am beginning to wonder what I have got myself into.. the deal me and the fiancee made was she was suppose to take care of the wedding and tell me when to show up and I would take care of the house and tell her when we were moving

Putting the main panel in the garage is certainly a good idea if you aren't past that stage already. Having the main panel or a sub panel in the garage keeps your options open.
Making the garage circuits 20 amp is not a good idea unless you take it all the way. Should the worst happen and there is a fire, having 20 amp breakers in your panel tied to #14AWG (15 amp) wire and having 15 amp configuration outlets will catch your insurance adjusters eye. To have a proper 20 amp outlet you need to run #12 AWG wire and have 20 amp configuration outlets. That means everything you will want to plug in there will either have to be changed to a 20 amp cord end (not useful anywhere else) or else you will need to make "cheaters" so you can plug things into your 20 amp outlets without having to change cord ends.
Your electrician will not likely instal a 20 amp breaker with a #14 wire, it could cost him a fine and possibly his license. You could change the breakers later but need to be aware that there is some risk involved.

I can't put the main panel in the garage due to the fact the underground line coming from the meter (about 450ft away) is already in and cut to length. I have decided to put the 100amp subpanel in the garage as the main panel is located on the total opposite end of the house. We are running 6/3 wire to the panel, my electrician tells me this is sufficient.

 

[brandoro]

3 conductor #6 will be good for 60 amps (65 amps actually but no breakers that size). 100 amps will be the panel rating. I have 60 amps in my shop with a welder and good sized air compressor and have had no issues. If that is your only heated workspace for now you will find yourself dragging lots of things in there rather than working outside in the snow and wind.
I live at Christopher Lake, SK. Laying on my back in the snow trying to fix things is something I try hard to avoid.

 

[ryanbr]

Lots done last week, more pics of the house:

Front Entry, heated concrete slab/stairs replaces the snow and death ramp


Kitchen/Dining


Lots of framed rooms... laundry, bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and various closets.


'Great Room' ledgestone fireplace between the 2 picture windows.


Exterior pics, the entire house and garage is being wrapped in 2" of styrofoam under the siding and stone.



Anyway things are moving along. I started ripping down the old corral and cattle system, I am trying to save as many as the 2x10's and railroad ties as possible to cut down on overall cost. Its so **** cold the past few days.

 

[cjcocn]

Why do you need railway ties, and isn't there a pile somewhere near you that you can take from? There are two piles near me containing thousands of ties, one of which is in a fenced yard that I have a key for.

 

[thunderworks]

Thanks, here is some info on the geotherm.

The company is called DNS Geothermal, they are from my area. West of Bowsman (southwest of Birch River). Really great guys. I am sure they have done work in your area as well.

I expect the geo system to pay for itself within 5 years on heating costs alone. One of the other main reasons why we went with the geo system was because of the free AC in the summer.

My wife and I built a house in 2005 using a geothermal energy source (trenched, not well). Your comment about free AC caught my eye. Kansas is brutal hot in the summer, and while the geothermal energy source is efficient, it's hardly free AC. Our summer electric bills are big. I think you'll be disappointed if you think the geothermal is a summer freebe . . . of course in Montana, may be AC is not a big deal.