Cabin Designs: Build the Best Cabin for Your Lifestyle

Image Gallery “Compact Cabins” presents 62 interpretations of the cabin getaway dream, with something to please every taste. Best of all, the small-footprint designs are affordable and energy-efficient without skimping on comfort and style. COVER: STOREY PUBLISHING

The following is an excerpt from Compact Cabins by Gerald Rowan (Storey Publishing, 2010). You’ll be inspired to create the cabin of your dreams with Rowan’s exciting collection of 62 creative cabin floor plans that feature innovative storage, clever use of outdoor space, mix-and-match modular elements, and off-the-grid energy options — all in less than 1,000 square feet. This excerpt is from Chapter 2, “Design: Architecture, Logistics, Environment.” 

The materials you choose play the determining role in your cabin’s cost, quality and style. Here is where building small has great advantage: Limiting the overall size of your cabin allows you to dedicate your money to building with quality materials that will serve you well over time.

I use local materials whenever possible, both because it’s the ecological thing to do (saving transportation fuel and stimulating the local economy), and because it makes sense aesthetically. Rough-sawn barnwood siding makes sense in northern forests; adobe makes sense in the American Southwest. Chefs talk about the advantages of preparing dishes using local ingredients and pairing them with local wines. The same can be said about building.

The use of recycled or remanufactured material may make a lot of sense if you live in an area where older housing or industrial structures are being either torn down or replaced with new housing. You may even be lucky enough to find a local business that specializes in used windows, doors, moldings, trim, lumber, brick and so on.

Using premanufactured components — such as whole-house modules, panels or roof trusses — may make sense if you want to build quickly or don’t intend to do much of the construction work yourself.

No single construction method is best. The design of the cabin, the complexity of that design and the accessibility of the building site are all important factors in choosing a construction method. Take time to sit down and cost out the building of your cabin in a number of ways. Consult builders or an architect, or do a lot of homework yourself.

Stick-Built

The term stick-built refers to buildings constructed on-site from dimensional lumber. This term usually differentiates buildings constructed one piece at a time from buildings constructed with panels or modules. There is ongoing debate in the construction industry as to which method is best for constructing houses. Perhaps the best perspective is that no one method is better than the other. I’ve found that the best method often differs from project to project, depending on site, schedule and budget.