The Artful Cabin is a modular kit house construction system designed to produce affordable homes from a minimum one room cabin up to 2,500 square feet or larger.  Every house is built from the same modular panels assembled in a variety of ways to result in unique homes.  Each one can be delivered as a kit for a customer or contractor to assemble.  This method provides an economical way to produce custom homes designed for people with limited construction skills to successfully assemble in a short time while saving thousands of dollars.

This summary introduces the modules used to build a 16' x 20' mini house, which constitutes the basic building block of the system, and shows how the basic block can be used to produce a wide variety of sizes and configurations of home.
 

The basic 16 x 20 Mini House

What makes the Artful Cabin unique among manufactured modular kit homes is three things:         *    Different combinations of assembling basic building blocks;         *    Designed for assembly by people with limited skills and tools, and;         *    The variety of aesthetic features available. The Artful Cabin is built with the same materials used in the high end housing market and designed to incorporate structural and aesthetic features not found in modular or panelized homes commonly found on the market.  The cabins are easy to assemble because they use standardized modular sections built in a production facility and delivered to the customer site.  Each module fits together to form a fully integrated structure that meets the highest construction standards.  The finished product is structurally superior to many cabins built totally on site because of the material quality and each module fits togeher with a double post.  This double post system is consistent throughout the entire structure makiing it easy for someone with little construction experience to build a high quality house that will last a lifetime and more.  Different combinations of the one basic building block are put together in a variety of ways resulting in each house being truly unique.  An Artful Cabin does not look or feel like a manufactured home.

The standard mini house is the basic building block of the Artful Cabin series.  Various different configurations can be built from the same structural modules such as the following examples.
 

 
Stacking Building Blocks

People looking for a place to live and carry on a home based business can place a mini house on top of a "pole barn" type log post and beam structure to create an upstairs living space over a large shop.  This would provide wood workers, mechanics, and anyone with a home based business a large working area and modest home.  This example shows a cut-away view of a downstairs shop approximately 45' x 45'.  The version on the right doubles the living space by adding another basic building block in a "T" extension while still retaining the large shop space.  Alternatively, the entire structure can be used as living quarters.  The entire structure is built from the same modules as the standard mini house.
 

 
 
 
The basic cabin modules can be "stacked" to create a wide variety of standard houses.  Here a standard 16 x 20 "lower block" module is set on a pier and bean foundation followed by another cabin module stacked on top of the first, then several more modules set at different angles to build a 1,500 square foot house.  This is a full sized, code compliant, well constructed home that can be built from kits by an inexperienced builder by simply following step by step instructions.
 

The Lodge Configuration
 
An entire lodge can be built using the same modules to build both individual guest houses and a main lodge facility.  The following concept sketches show preliminary visions of a layout for an eco-tourist lodge and institute for sustainable development.
 
 

The layout of the Institute includes a central facility serving as work shop, classrooms, and restaurant, surrounded by a small number of guest cabins.	The "Grand Lodge" is the central structure for the institute housing workshops on the ground floor, Restaurant and classroom on the second, and an office on the top.
Each guest cabin is constructed using standard building blocks manufactured in the Institute's own production facility.	The modularized system allows stacking building blocks to create the Grand Lodge.  The system is designed for expansion, so the main lodge can be built as a modest structure and expanded in phases.
The Grand Lodge and each guest cabin are all built using the same modules saving time, labor, and material costs while providing unified architectural theme to the institute and high quality construction.	The modular system allows for easy expansion over time if it becomes desired to do so.

 

Basic Building Blocks of the Artful Cabin.

General view of basic shell, for 16x20 cabin,
10 foot walls to allow increased head space in loft.                                     Cut away view shoing 7'x8' bathroom layout and half loft.

Construction Modules

The entire cabin is composed of standardized modules such as the following:

Floor section                                                                                                 Basic 8'x8'  wall panel

            8'x10'  window panel                   4'x10' door panel              2' x 10' small window panel

 Roof panels

Left end roof segment                                                Center roof segment           Right end roof segment
view showing framing detail of lookout rafters

Left and right porch roof modules                                                                                                               Garage roof assembly made of 3 modules

10 x 16 Loft floor                                                                    2' lower loft support wall extension    Bathroom door wall module

Roof end wall panel.  Left view is a construction sketch with dimentions,  right is the panel with plywood, window shape can be altered

Each of the above modules are built at our facilities and delivered to your location in the form shown in these drawings.  Each module is labled for easy identificaiton and to follow the step by step instructions in this manual.  All modules come fully fastened with insulation and preinstalled electrical boxes covered with visqueen moisture barrier.  All studs are pre drilled for romex installation by your electrician.  The individual modules are set in place and fastened to the floor first, then to each other using lag bolts or proper sized framing nails.
 

Building the Artful Cabin

The first step in building your cabin is to lay out and construct the foundation.  Consult your local building codes where necessary to obtain local information necessary for what permits and inspections you may need to go through.   If you are not an experienced builder, we advise hiring a contractor to build your foundation.  We include drawings in this manual showing a variety of foundation types and the dimensions necessary to set our kits on.  These drawings are adequate for any experienced builder to work from.  Your choice of a foundation type is up to you and should be based on your soil, local requirements, skills, budget, and personal consideration.

We are using a basic pier foundaiton with longitudinal beams for this example.  Other foundation types will be used in the same manner.  The fasteners you use may vary depending on your foundation type.
 

A basic pier foundation using three longitudinal beams set on concrete piers.
The garage roof is supported by three logs set on the same piers.

To build the cabin, we first start out with a floor panel.  I have not created foundation files yet, but once that is done we can start with a foundation choice and place the floor module on it to start.

Then we start placing the wall panels on the floor section

With all of the 10' wall panels on the outside, we then place the 8' wall and door panels inside to section off the bathroom, then the loft floor on top, then the roof end panels.

After the end panels are on, we place the ridge beam to postion the roof panels, then set the roof panels and the shell is done.

With the shell finished, the garage roof is attached to its support posts and the roof edge.    Next a porch floor is set on the foundation stringers.
 
  

The porch support pillars and beam are then installed...                                        then the porch roof is set on its support.

Finally, the steps to the porch are added on to the specially provided concrete porch step piers.  The cabin shell is now completed and ready for installation of doors and windows and exterior siding, which can proceed while your electrician completes the interior wiring and your plumber installs the water system.  All interior wiring and plumbing must be finished before interior siding can be installed.

The Module Fabrication System

Kits for the Artful Cabin system are designed to be built on the ground in a fabrication facility. There are 99 different individual parts created in a Solid Modeling CAD program and approximately 30 assemblies and sub assemblies that make up the basic modular fabrication system.  These files provide 3-D working dimentions of each part for any configuration that can be built.  Individual parts can be mass produced, stacked, and labeled before ever being assembled into modules.  This allows the right quantiy of modules to be built on jigs for accuracy and speed as cabin kits are ordered.  By using a "just in time" approach to kit fabrication, much like the "lean production" system that revolutionized the Japanese automotive industry, Artful Cabin production can minimize real estate requirements and eliminate waste while producing a superior product.

Window wall upper plywood cut panel                                                                   Rafter

Individual Part files

This is a pictorial example of some of the individual part plans used in creating the various modules.  Customers have no need to be concerned with these inividual parts since they are only used in the production facility to create the modules which are delivered to assemble finished houses.

Conclusion

This summary provides an overview of the Artful Cabin concept.  There is an entire system of approach to setting up a business, hundreds of CAD files, a business plan outline, and a collection of options that I have compiled to make the concept a reality.  This body of information is of course not going to be made availaable to anyone on the internet as it is the essential value of the work already completed.  Anyone with the engineering skills can take what you see here and redesign a similar system.  All that would take is a good CAD program, imagination and skill, and a year or two of work.  If you want to take this idea and start over for yourself, you are welcome to it.  By the time you have created for yourself what I have already done, you will have earned it.  What you do NOT see in this summary is what makes the whole thing possible.  That is proprietary information which I will show to those serious about purchase, partnership, or joint venture.  If you would like to see the artistic variations I can integrate into this concept, see northidahoartist.com for photos of my work.

If you want to start building ... one cabin or a hundred, and you like what you see, please contact me with your interest using the form here.

Contact;