The Incredible 25,000-Gallon House

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Meanwhile, I nursed nagging doubts about the vessel's ability to hold water . . . and suffered a growing conviction that what I really had on my hands was a bona fide redwood white elephant. Little wonder, then, that our spirits took a lift when we decided to take action . . . and attempt to build a house out of that horrible heap!

THE TRANSFORMATION

Our initial—and perhaps our wisest—move was to hire Ambrose Pollack, a young carpenter (and, it turned out, an artist), to help us design the home. Without his insights, our efforts would likely have produced a gloomy little shed.

The first really big task was to recondition the redwood itself. I cleaned and smoothed every board, using an electric planer powered by a small gasoline generator. Kaye then treated each plank with termite repellent and water seal . . . and applied a final coat of Danish oil to the tobe-interior-facing sides. Presto! Years of use and abuse, as well as the ravages of wet rot and dry rot, were erased. The lumber I hauled on up to our building site sure looked better than the moldering mass I'd labored with during the trip from Oahu!

We next laid a post and piling foundation, and assembled the tank on top of it. Interestingly, the dynamics of our structure eliminated any need for conventional bracing. The inward pressure exerted by the hoops that secure the boards in a circle is offset by a resisting force created by the slats' sharply beveled edges, resulting in a sturdy stand-up enclosure!

Of course, clambering over the 14-foot walls was not the easiest way to get into and out of the under-construction dwelling . . . so—with my trusty chain saw—I cut out our planned doorways. And soon after that . . . near-disaster struck.

I was alone, working—perched on a ladder—at the top of the tank when I fell, shattering my heel bone. I crawled 350 feet to our camper, applied ice, and hobbled down the hill for help. Luckily, I encountered one of the maybe two cars to use our road during the course of any given day, and got medical attention. But I was flat on my back for six weeks.

Nevertheless, I made use of the time (and the season's Christmas cards) to build a scale model of our project. And when I returned to work (on crutches), I had a prototype that brought our ideas to life and guided us during the remainder of the construction period.

Before we knew it, we were standing back admiring a solid, comfortable, attractive, and unique residence that we'd built ourselves . . . from a run-down old water tank! Hello home, farewell camper!

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