After two months of work on the new house my wife could wait no longer. We decided to move into the second story of the new house and continue work on the downstairs. While a small or medium size house in most peoples opinion it feels every bit a mansion to us. In order to distinguish the new place from the old we call the new house the farm or farm house and the old property the sawmill.

For three years we lived in a very small one bedroom trailer, our half of the duplex on 20 acres. Our new home is more than four times the size of that trailer. It has plenty of space for our family, with a sizable kitchen and a root cellar. While not a real mansion by any means, the new farm house will make a great home.

While my original goal was to have some small fields of row cropland, and a large garden with the assorted critters like chickens and a few cattle, my perspective has changed and plans have expanded with the addition of the new farm. I will grow my herd of Dexter cattle until the holding capacity of the farm is met. I currently get most of my hay from share cutting, so there is enough property for what I consider I sizable herd of Dexter cattle as I don’t depend on my property to provide hay, only grazing ground.

At the same time I am building the Dexter herd I will be experimenting with my form of row cropping with the eventual goal being to bring my own organic chicken feed to market. As I have invested in antique machinery, the only thing missing is time. It will take me several years to build up to that point, but the ball is already rolling. The 20 acre sawmill will provide several small fields of row crop land while I work out the kinks.

On a side note the new house opens up some potential ways to live better and save money. The house was built in about 1880 according to the seller and others I have talked with. The house is currently sided with vinyl siding and from the outside it’s age doesn’t show. It is obvious the plumbing was added at a later date, and the bathroom was cut out of a huge kitchen. The house has a medium size root cellar, the opening to which used to be on the outside, but has since had a room built around it.

The root cellar was something I have wanted for a long time. One completed shelf in the root cellar held all my canned goods. There is enough room for four more shelves the same size. It is the perfect environment for my canned goods, and lets me expand my storage of home grown goods.

The house has been retrofitted with central heat and air. Although the propane tank is empty, and the AC isn’t working. It’s okay, as I don’t plan on using either. I had bought a central wood furnace last year to install in the duplex, it has been moved into the mud room in the farm house. I will be working on installing it this fall.

AC isn’t necessary in a well designed home. While it does get warm in the house by proper planning I have kept the indoor temperature well under the outdoor temperature. I have had a good test through the heat wave we have had. With temperatures from 98 to 100 the house never went over 90. Not bad considering some key components like curtains and completely functioning windows are absent. When everything is fixed it should be livable through some pretty hot Missouri weather.

The strategy for keeping the farm house cool is pretty simple. While the air is cooler during the night the downstairs windows of the farm house are opened letting in cool outside air. The hot air is sucked up the staircase and out the second story windows with the help of some fans. When morning comes the staircase door is shut when the outside temperature passes the inside temp. The windows are closed in the downstairs and ceiling fans provide air movement. There are some vents in the ceiling downstairs to allow hot air to escape to the second story, and fans are left going in the second story moving the air through. The second story is pretty much abandoned until the evening when it cools down, and we return upstairs to sleep.

Living without AC in a trailer is rough. I have done it, but the poor design with no second story or attic to buffer the sun makes for a hot tin shed. Trailers have there place, but living without AC can be challenging in one. I forgot how much of a difference a well designed old house can be in warm weather.