The Log house Project begins........

[GGB]

M7, your home is looking fantastic! The kitchen area is remarkable-the combination of the woods and copper works very well. That has to be a great feeling when you slow down enough to enjoy it. But I'm not suprised to see how well it turned out, given your other great work.

Sorry to hear about the problem with the flood plain map. Makes you wonder how they can't easily fix their own mistake. It might be worth a call to your Federal Senators and Representative to see if they can offer any assistance. Sometimes their staffs know the right people to call to get faster action on issues like this, and it won't cost much to make a few calls.

Good luck, and just remember "Don't let the bustards get you down!".

GGB

 

[Obed]

Sorry to hear about the problem with the flood plain map. Makes you wonder how they can't easily fix their own mistake. It might be worth a call to your Federal Senators and Representative to see if they can offer any assistance. Sometimes their staffs know the right people to call to get faster action on issues like this, and it won't cost much to make a few calls. GGB

Yes, that is a good idea. I have known people to contact their US Senator or Rep to get help for such things and get a quick result. Your scenario is one of those things in which the politicians love to get involved because it wouldn't take much work on their part to turn this around and build some good will with a constituent and everyone he knows.

Sample Letter:
Dear Congressman,
I am a retired civil servant with x years of service to my community. I have almost finished building our modest house using my own hands. I have good credit and qualified for a mortgage. Unfortunately FEMA has stopped the loan because they erroneously think our house is in a flood zone. Our house is on the side of a mountain. We are now in a bind. Can you help please?
Your constituent,
Rick

Best Wishes,
Obed

 

[Ranger Rick]

Yes, that is a good idea. I have known people to contact their US Senator or Rep to get help for such things and get a quick result. Your scenario is one of those things in which the politicians love to get involved because it wouldn't take much work on their part to turn this around and build some good will with a constituent and everyone he knows.

Sample Letter:
Dear Congressman,
I am a retired civil servant with x years of service to my community. I have almost finished building our modest house using my own hands. I have good credit and qualified for a mortgage. Unfortunately FEMA has stopped the loan because they erroneously think our house is in a flood zone. Our house is on the side of a mountain. We are now in a bind. Can you help please?
Your constituent,
Rick

Best Wishes,
Obed

Send a letter to both Senators and your local congressman. I did, one of the three will put somebody on the case and get some reply from FEMA. Good luck

 

[woodlandfarms]

FEMA has done this to a number of my friends as well. It was a Bush Era change that prevented maps from being updated for FEMA use (other services do use more current maps). Its a terrible situation, and for a lot of people that few thousand dollars for a survey is out of the question expense. Of course you should contact your reps but it is an election year so good luck with that. Also, I am pretty sure you can't sue the federal government, at least at small claims level.

 

[pineridge03]

You don't need a survey of the property just a completed elevation certificate. Our local surveyor will do one for about $200, well worth the cost in comparison to paying flood insurance. They just need to prove the height of your basement floor is above the "base flood elevation."

 

[MotorSeven]

You don't need a survey of the property just a completed elevation certificate. Our local surveyor will do one for about $200, well worth the cost in comparison to paying flood insurance. They just need to prove the height of your basement floor is above the "base flood elevation."

Correct. I have not seen the surveyor's bill....closing is @ 1500 hrs today!

Y'all have a good idea on contacting the Congressman's & Senators. I will follow this up.

 

[MotorSeven]

Apparently the War Dept negotiated a convincing argument for all of the $ we asked for on the loan. When we went into sign, the original requested amount was on the papers:thumbsup: Don't get me wrong, there is no lagniappe here, it all goes to bills, but at least now they are ALL paid off.

Still "moving in" so there are boxes & contained being filled/emptied/filled.......man we have a lot of crap. Some crap I have not seen since 2003...vintage crap. Some vintage crap went right back in the container to later go to the local vintage crap auction. Once we get rid of this crap, it makes room for more "new" crap........{sigh}

On the bright side I bought a Northern Tool 20 ton Dual Action PTO wood splitter and put it together this evening. I need 2 hydraulic hoses for it & will pick 'em up in town tomorrow. Then I need to get cutting and splitting before winter catches me firewoodless.

 

[bindian]

Apparently the War Dept negotiated a convincing argument for all of the $ we asked for on the loan. When we went into sign, the original requested amount was on the papers:thumbsup: Don't get me wrong, there is no lagniappe here, it all goes to bills, but at least now they are ALL paid off.

Still "moving in" so there are boxes & contained being filled/emptied/filled.......man we have a lot of crap. Some crap I have not seen since 2003...vintage crap. Some vintage crap went right back in the container to later go to the local vintage crap auction. Once we get rid of this crap, it makes room for more "new" crap........{sigh}

On the bright side I bought a Northern Tool 20 ton Dual Action PTO wood splitter and put it together this evening. I need 2 hydraulic hoses for it & will pick 'em up in town tomorrow. Then I need to get cutting and splitting before winter catches me firewoodless.

War Dept? :laughing::laughing::laughing: Does she know you are calling her that on here? Just what does a dual action splitter do?:confused2: Funny thing..............my Mom called them log slicers.
hugs, Brandi

 

[MotorSeven]

War Dept? :laughing::laughing::laughing: Does she know you are calling her that on here? Just what does a dual action splitter do?:confused2: Funny thing..............my Mom called them log slicers.
hugs, Brandi

Instead of having a flat edge push the log onto a sharp wedge, this splitter has flat "stops" at both ends. A double sided wedge kinda like a double bit axe moves back and forth between the stops. Put a round on it, engage the hydraulics, wedge moves into the round splitting it. Then, before retracting, place another round behind the wedge then split while retracting. This should cut the splitting time in half over a regular splitter. My tractor has a 16.8 gal pump, so I should be in the 6-8 second range to split in either direction.

Since it is a 3 point attachment, and I have a lever back at the rear of the tractor, I can lower it to the ground and roll on any huge rounds onto it instead of picking them up. Since I am heating with wood, I am going to be cutting and splitting a lot of cords every year. Hopefully this will make things quicker and easier.

This is the one I bought:
Powerhorse Horizontal Dual Split 3-Pt. Log Splitter — 20-Ton, 4in. x 24in. Cylinder | Log Splitters| Northern Tool + Equipment

She has been the War Dept for some time now....I guess she is used to it

 

[Dr Dave]

Let us know how this splitter works, I have been wanting one for some time.

Dave