Jeff McIntyre and his family live off-grid on 400 acres near a small lake, splitting their living space between a converted camper cabin and a treehouse studio. The camper, purchased for $600, was gutted and lined with pine, featuring a queen bed and bunk beds for the children. A protective roof structure with metal roofing covers the camper to allow snow to slide off rather than accumulating on top.
The treehouse serves as both Jeff’s art studio and the family’s main living area. The structure runs entirely on two batteries and one solar panel, with a wood-burning stove for heat. Board and batten siding covers the exterior, while the interior features unfinished walls and shutters instead of glass windows.
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Camper Cabin with Protective Roof Structure
Images © Exploring Alternatives
Pine-Lined Camper Interior
Images © Exploring Alternatives
Treehouse Studio with Board and Batten Exterior
Images © Exploring Alternatives
Images © Exploring Alternatives
Treehouse Interior and Art Studio
Images © Exploring Alternatives
Images © Exploring Alternatives
Living Space with Wood Stove
Images © Exploring Alternatives
Family Living Areas
Images © Exploring Alternatives
Images © Exploring Alternatives
Images © Exploring Alternatives
Video Tour: Off-Grid Family Homestead
Design Details
- Owner: Jeff McIntyre (artist)
- Property: 400 acres near a small lake
- Structures: Camper cabin + treehouse studio
- Camper Cost: $600
- Camper Interior: Pine-lined walls
- Camper Sleeping: Queen bed + bunk beds for kids
- Camper Roof: Metal roofing structure for snow shedding
- Treehouse Use: Art studio + family living area
- Treehouse Exterior: Board and batten siding
- Treehouse Interior: Unfinished walls
- Windows: Shutters only (no glass)
- Power: 2 batteries + 1 solar panel
- Heat: Wood-burning stove
- Furnishings: Table and chairs
Lessons from This Build
- Cheap Campers Make Affordable Sleeping Quarters: A $600 used camper, gutted and lined with pine, provides weatherproof sleeping space for a family without the cost of new construction
- Protective Roofs Extend Camper Life: Building a separate roof structure over the camper prevents snow accumulation and protects the original roof from weather damage
- Minimal Solar Can Power Basic Needs: Two batteries and one solar panel provide enough electricity for a simple off-grid lifestyle when consumption is kept low
- Shutters Replace Glass in Mild Seasons: Using shutters instead of glass windows works in seasonal climates and eliminates the cost and fragility of window installation
- Split Structures Serve Different Functions: Separating sleeping quarters (camper) from living/work space (treehouse) allows each structure to be optimized for its purpose
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Alex
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love your whole place perfect way to bring up kids i am from nothern minnesota and have been to canada a few times on fishing trips i love it you all have the best off grid setup and so very nicely done
@Elizabeth Murphy… gee, that’s a pretty arrogant comment. Firstly, you don’t know their situation. Secondly, if it works for them then it obviously is how to bring up children… and Thirdly, many people all over the world bring up their children in what YOU would call even more primitive conditions. Had a look at what your forefathers (and mothers) brought up “their” children, of which YOU are a descendant?
Absolutely agree with you…..our ancestors lived in hovels to begin with and they did just fine I bet.
Wow—the level of hatred towards these parents from the poster is–shocking! Not her kids; not her decision! As long as the kids are not being harmed or living in an unsafe place–which this does not appear to be—then they are fine. Not sure if they are doing this full time or not but it looks very cheerful and I would have LOVED to live there when I was a kid; wish I had a place like this now!
I am noticing the level of vitriol directed at the woman who believes these parents are making poor choices and she had the guts to state her opinion. There are many factors to be considered when raising children. Many responsibilities…. physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual…. We do not have enough information to properly evaluate this families situation, and even with more information, we may not have a right to judge them or their decisions. We only see their housing. I find their housing ugly and non-functional, a subsistence style of habitation that I have not chosen for myself. and I would not have inflicted it upon my children. Obviously they are doing as they choose.
I find it hard to believe that some people are so judgemental; esp since we don’t even know if this is a full time or weekend place! I also have to wonder—do they forget that ALL of our not that distant ancestors lived a much more primitive life—due to lack of options? Just a hundred years or so indoor plumbing was not common even in larger cities; outhouses and communal water pumps were the norm; people esp kids often slept several to a bed or the kids slept in the barn or in a loft or on pallets on the floor. There were issues with some of this I agree—esp in a crowded place—but by and large people were fine—after all this WAS a step up from caves!
My first house had an outhouse and a dug spring with the best water; I can’t say that I miss the outhouse but when we had water issues and had to re-place the actual well pump it came in real handy! And THAT was a step up from when the house was built in the 1700’s and water had to be hauled from the lake across the road. We also heated with wood—talk about WORK! The house I grew up in had at one point to have the water hauled up a steep slope from a gorge; these people were hardy sorts and not afraid of work.
If the power goes out in my current house I would have to go fetch the generator; hook it up; pump enough water to flush and fill containers; run the heater for awhile; hope that nothing in the fridge or large freezer spoils—I don’t have the option of going to the spring and tossing in a bucket—or using the outhouse! Altho we are working on being able to heat with wood here if we needed to. When it’s minus 21* and the electric goes out–you NEED a backup!
My kids hauled water and wood and slept on the floor on extremely cold nights in front of the stove—and they all survived just fine. Beats trying to keep cave lions out I guess.
I just had my 9 year old grand daughter look at the pics and the video–first off she LOVED the place; second it is clear that they do NOT live there 365 but rather they go in on snow shoes or X-Country skis etc—-seems like the ideal place to me. Seems like paradise for kids.
be nice were have a world war to worry about
I grew up living in a hiking tent with a tarp in front and I thought it was great way to spend several months in the summer. Looks quite comfortable! Now that I’m in my seventies, I appreciate a bathroom nearby but outside of that, it’s not a hardship. Why people think it’s so bad, I don’t understand. Mind you, washing each day when the water was frozen wasn’t much fun. Don’t knock it until you try it
When I moved into my small house in the French boondocks with my 6-year-old daughter, the only toilet was an outhouse and the only heat was a wood-burning cooking stove. Many people criticized me for bringing a child into that kind of environment. I thought (and still think) that it was an improvement over our life in an apartment in the city, where we had all the modern conveniences but I had to work so much to keep up with our rent that I barely saw my daughter, and most of her friends spent most of their time in front of a TV or computer screen. This trailer/treehouse combo looks like a paradise for children.
Looks like paradise for adults too! I showed my 9 year old grand daughter the pics and video and she LOVED the place–one thing she was very excited abut was the built in bunk beds! She just moved into a new room and left her loft bed to her little brother and I think she misses it. Where they are looks much like where we live and we all should appreciate these people preserving that land—the lakes around us are by and large over populated and noisy and the water—well—there are no loons on those lakes! We have loons–but not in the over built areas. We also have moose; large numbers of deer; bears—
Your little corner of France sounds beautiful!
Comet, I still live in my small house in the French boondocks and I’m still glad I moved out here. You made an important point that these people with the trailer + treehouse are living lightly on the land, the way we should all try to do. Sounds like you live in a beautiful place, too!
Hi I live in Australia , where are the french boondocks you mention? I think where they live looks awesome ,, Linda,
I don’t think it’s anybody’s business how these chose to bring up their children. Looks like heaven to me.
Once, I was a child.
Did a lot of camping.
Lived in a shed with a bunk bed.
Worked in the woods.
Mended fences.
Chopped, split and hauled wood.
Roofed, floated, taped painted.
Went to college.
Became a Soldier, officer, helicopter pilot.
Did logistics and process improvement.
Saved tax-payers several hundred million.
Like simple, tidy, tiny, enough.
Understand I don’t understand a lot.
Get a little freaked out by hatred.
Love what this family is trying.
Is this site is about war & child raising?
Can somebody buy me a ticket to this destination? I’ll play caretaker.
Just kidding.
What a wonderful RETREAT. It was smart building the roof over the TT they scored for 6 bills. To me, this is paradise. Water, dock, boat, picnic spot, treehouse, a place to lay down out of the elements, woodstove, & a pretty slice of heaven all around.
There was a period years back when my family lived on 160 acres with thousands of acres around it & a river flowing through it. Kids could fish, hunt, trap, & just romp around being kids. All I had to worry about was gators & snakes. No corners to hang on. The kids still have great memories years later & I bet their kids will too.
What do they do as far as a bathroom goes??
I really love this! I mean I love the idea of doing something like this for my family. Naturally I would want to create some type of rustic chic environment in the living space and bedroom while being very minimalist.
Someday their kids will bring their kids and then their kids will bring their kids…. so hopefully it will never be just a wonderful memory