Build a Home for $10,000 in 10 Days!

Image Gallery The shell of this modified timber-frame house was built in 10 days. CHRIS McCLELLAN

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For half a century, William Castle has been building bridges, cabins and shanties of all shapes and sizes. His favorite projects are right in his own yard. Woodland areas such as that of his native Belmont, N.Y., often have an abundance of “junk” timber that has little commercial value because of its small diameter, twisted grain or other imperfections. The modified timber-framing method Castle has developed lets him quickly and easily turn this low-cost, local resource into beautiful houses, such as his daughter’s cabin (see the Image Gallery). The shell of the 1,000-square-foot house was built over an existing foundation by a crew of three to four adults and two children in less than 10 days — for less than $10,000!

If You Build It …

Thirty years ago “Pollywogg Hollër,” as Bill and Barb Castle call their 30 acres surrounded by forest, began as a project to bring the family together. Bill had his own bridge building company, a seven-day-a-week work ethic and almost no connection to his growing children.

At Barb’s insistence, Bill began taking time off, and over the course of three summers, they and their three teenage children built a 20-foot-by-30-foot log cabin in their back woods. They dug the well and foundation by hand, dragged logs out of the woods with an old tractor, peeled the logs with a drawknife and placed them with the help of a homemade crane.

Other than mortar, hardware and roofing, all the materials in that cabin came from the land. Over time it became their home. Now, it’s a rustic bed and breakfast “eco-retreat” that they run with their son Mikael — complete with solar power, a sauna, bathhouse, picnic pavilion, wine bar and wood-fired pizza oven. There’s even a stage for weddings and concerts. Most importantly, that cabin brought their family together.

As we walk through the enchanted village Castle has built, he points out the different local woods and the uses he puts them to: There are footbridges of larch (aka tamarack), which he calls “the poor man’s cedar.” Fence posts are rot-resistant black locust. Hemlock is used for sheathing; red oak, for floors; and fir, for log cabin walls.

Castle has used cedar for roof shakes in the past, but sustainably harvested cedar is getting harder to find at any price. These days Castle prefers to build low maintenance metal roofs or “living roofs” with a rubber membrane covered with moss and wildflowers.

A Simpler Timber-framing Technique

Castle’s building technique has evolved to allow him to do more with less. Hand building a log cabin over three summers is a great way to spend quality time with your children, but the process uses more time and material than timber framing a similar space. Also, while Castle prefers to work with round timber, the natural curves and variations in tree formation that give round pole construction its beauty also make it difficult and time consuming, with complex cutting and matching. So using low-cost material only partially makes up for the extra effort.

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