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When his parents sold the family vacation cabin so they could buy their dream home, this man decided to buy some Canadian prairie land and build a 96 square foot cabin that could fit his family of four and keep them warm in the subarctic temperatures of Treaty 6 Territory. They live off-grid on the 141 acre property for about 125 days a year.
He didn’t have a lot of time to get the cabin built before winter set in, but in 12 days spread out over about 3 months, he and a couple friends managed to build this fully-functional little cabin for just about $3,000 (USD) in 2016. Since then they’ve added solar panels, a propane heater, and other little touches which brought the cost up to about $4,300. Still incredibly impressive for such a little space!
By keeping the cabin under 100 square feet, he’s able to keep the land labelled as agricultural, which saves on property taxes. He made an awesome video about his build, and a second video outlining his costs, which are great resources for anyone interested in doing something similar!
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This $3K Off-Grid Cabin Sleeps Four!
He outlines his considerations for the build.
He starts with a solid foundation!
Starting to look like a cabin now.
Plywood siding going up.
Time to insulate! Very important in Canadian winters.
Images via Hay Woods and Wetlands/YouTube
Now to install the Cubic Mini Wood Burning Stove! 
Images via Hay Woods and Wetlands/YouTube
Good thing since the storms are coming!
The place is finally liveable!
Now they just need to add those finishing touches.
Here’s the price breakdown in Canadian dollars.
VIDEO: Building an Off Grid Tiny Cabin in 12 Days
VIDEO: How much to build a Tiny Cabin?
Highlights:
- 100 square feet
- Loft sleeping for two
- Pull out couch bed for two
- Cubic Mini Wood Stove
- Propane heater
- Solar panels
- Took 12 days to build
- Built in Canada
- Small water closet
- Kitchenette
Learn More:
Related Stories:
- 109 Sq. Ft. Off Grid Tiny House
- DIY Off-Grid Eco Cabin Getaway in Texas
- Smitten Off-Grid Cabin at The Appleton Retreat
Our big thanks to Hay Woods and Wetlands for sharing! ?
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Natalie C. McKee
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Goes to show how easy, cheap building your own is. There is no reason anyone can’t have a low cost home. Though for 4 people, a little bigger if the kiddies get older. 1 thing I did for more space is build another one right next to the first though in this case, inline and let roof, sides overlap, maybe screwed or taped.
Yes the biggest hurdle I think is having the tools — I know when we renovated our home we relied heavily on my parent’s expansive tool collection. Otherwise things would have taken far longer, or we would have spent a lot on tools!
Thank you for sharing. I always dream of building my own tiny house, my home.
I hope that dream comes true someday!
Thanks for sharing our tiny cabin build. We’re still enjoying our acres of prairie parklands and have now upgraded to a 26′ Traditional Mongolian Yurt in addition to our Cabin. Thanks again for sharing!
Oh I would love to see it! I love yurts!
Cool! Thanks for breaking it down and making it seem possible for anyone!
I just watched your video and want to know how very much I enjoyed the video compilation outshined only by the cabin creation. A tiny home is in my dreams at 75 a lifetime RN, great grandmother. Thanks for sharing!!
Those prices were before the many U.S. Disasters. Canada may be lower rates than USA. 2021 lumber and metal prices at least 2 to 3 times higher than end of 2019.
Yes this was definitely prior to the pandemic and all associated with it. Although I will say I just bought some 2x4s from Home Depot this week and they were back to pre-pandemic prices! Down from $5.50/board to $3.28/board in just a month. And two months ago they were $9/board.