Building a hut for the first time.

I bought one of those new meltable fuel gas stove last summer beats wood and propane hands down no soot, smoke, humidity or propane tanks. It uses a little battery power which is not been a problem because my vehicles all have one. For portable I either bring my small trolling battery or run some 14/2 wire to my SUV or ATV battery. It was a little pricey but the fuel is dirt cheap and I finally got rid of my PIA propane tanks. it has an oven attachment i'm looking to buy when my wife is done robbing the bank account for Christmas presents.

This, If I had he money id use real plywood and use lighter materials, just cant do it on our budget. We have a sled trailer and a small skidoo for pulling it out. Have dropped the frame to 2x2s from the original 2x3s due to suggestions and saving weight. As for the hitch, was planning on putting a hole thru both runners (Doubled up 2x10s) and running rope threw it, probably doubled up to provide strength. I'm going to use me truck jack to jack it up when blocking it. Your saying about using your own wood and making it cheaper, but I live in the city, sadly, and I don't think my parents would be happy if I took a chain saw to there maple tree lol.

Two more suggestions I'd like to make, screws are stronger than nails.To save time and money it's OK to use nails for nailing the wall studs to the top and bottom plate but when it comes time to fasten the walls and roof together, go the extra mile and use screws. Lakes are a wide open expanse that see a lot of wind, I've seen a good number of shacks done in by the wind over the years.

Secondly, make the shack only as high as it really needs to be. Some people pride themselves with the fact that they have 8' walls, but do they really need this height? Probably not.
A shorter wall will save some weight and also catch less wind.

Do not simply use rope as your hitch. It l cause you all sorts of greif. You want something ridgid so that your hut isnt flying all over the place or smashing into the back of your machine when you stop.

If it were me I may use nails and screws. Screws will hold the pieces together better than nail but the nail has a higher sheer strength i.e. twisting. I might even use an adhesive or add some bolts to hold walls to floors and roof to the walls if I was that concerned about wind load. An article from Popular Mechanics with some additional information.

http://www.popularmechanics.com/home/tools...ne-is-stronger/

I sent you a pm. You should send me your number. I can likely help you out with some materials to lighten your hut up. You can also have a look at mine for some ideas

Just want to again thank everyone for there advice. I went to the ReStore today and found them selling 2x3s for 2$ a piece, while they are kinda beat up we found all the straight ones we need. Also a piece of plywood for 6$. Due to these savings, and adding slightly to our budget, we are going with your advice and making the outside 100% plywood, and not OSB. While the floor inside will still be OSB due to use not having the money to upgrade those two thicker pieces, I think the hut will come along nicely. We have also ditched the wood stove and are borrowing a propane heater for the season from a buddy. Again, thanks for all the great advice, I didn't even think of things such as anchoring it, how bad OSB would be, runners, etc. Cant thank the members of the board enough with being patient and giving me some solid advice (Including some floor plans, thanks!)

if there is more than an inch of snow there is no need to anchor your hut

I will probably do it just for piece of mind too... unless theres a reason not to?

You realize there are a couple dozen of us waiting to see the finished product!

This has been like reading the newspaper for me every morning in the office when I first login. I keep expecting to see the finished product......

I hope everything goes as planned...!!

You realize there are a couple dozen of us waiting to see the finished product!

This has been like reading the newspaper for me every morning in the office when I first login. I keep expecting to see the finished product......

I hope everything goes as planned...!!

Lol! Will definitely start sometime late next week or weekend, or worst comes to worst, the New Years. Will post pics when done

dont procrastinate!lol

I wouldn't be too worried about the extra work anchoring the hut, especially if you aren't going to be up too often. the amount of snow we have, and the size you are building it isn't going to move. It will freeze in but I really wouldn't worry about it. We blocked our hut only 2-3 times a season,, just took 10-15 min of chipping before blocking... but it makes a good anchor!

Look forward to seeing the finished product.

So, after many hours of work we have got it to a point where there is not much left to do! We need to put the maple leaf in the middle of the flag on the roof, insulate the door, put in one half bench, and a few bits and pieces of insulation. Will get more clear photos once its 100% done! Thanks again for the advice guys, many of you guys helped with ideas, while some even donated a lot of materials for us to build it! I am extremely happy with the end result, its not to bad for something built by a bunch of amateurs (Okay I cant lie lol, the framing we where helped on by a buddy who does house framing ) The insulation inside looks like a rainbow, but is a lot better then the 0 insulation we planned on! Thanks again to the board members who donated so much of not only there materials but there time giving me ideas and plans.












Almost done:

Great job by you and boys Kier. I am sure you'll many hours of fun and fishing out of the hut.