Massage therapist with no construction background builds a tiny house out of salvaged...

[massage]

Many people are daunted by the prospect of building a new house using a contractor, much less doing it themselves, especially with no construction background.

And how about doing it mostly solo?

That’s exactly what a local massage therapist and self-described “gypsy and vagabond” has done on Johns Island.

Johnny Reaves not only built a tiny house by himself but did it using either free, reclaimed materials or deeply discounted surplus supplies. And while he didn’t want to say how much it ultimately cost him, he did describe it as “costing less than a new car.”

The 35-year-old constructed the 512-square foot house, which includes a sleeping loft area, without going into debt and has become somewhat of local legend to a growing number of people interested in building tiny houses in the Lowcountry.

“This for me has been very challenging. But to have that sweat and to know this house intimately, that I put a nail through my finger on that board, that’s pretty awesome,” says Reaves, adding that most people could do it if they have the will because of the information available online.

“Videos, websites, YouTube, books. It (the know-how) is so available out there today. Before, you had to find your great-grandfather or a craftsman, but now it’s doable. And I’m here as a testament to that.”

The seed


Reaves hopes to inspire others, locally and beyond. And he already is, as evidenced by a recent Tiny House Enthusiast Meetup gathering at his house, when nearly a dozen showed and stayed and talked about plans, regulations and other challenges.

But Reaves’ inspiration came from traveling, particularly in northwestern North America.

“For two years, I lived in an old Toyota truck with a camper on back of it and traveled the country for a total cost of $10,000. The happiest families that I met and stayed with were the ones that built their own house, who played music, planted gardens, who sang and danced and who had animals,” says Reaves.

At the time, Reaves says the tiny house movement was catching on from Northern California to British Columbia and that he sees it arriving here now.

First, the land


Reaves’ three-year journey to building his own house was an evolutionary process.

It started with Reaves observing a half-acre lot, with a partially burned house, on Walter Drive in need of some TLC.

“This property sat here for years with this decapitated building that just creaked and rocked. But I saw the way the sun hit the land. It had great trees. I could save all this and thought I could build something that was livable but without the big mortgage,” says Reaves.

One benefit of the lot was that it had access to electricity and water and an existing septic tank: all start-up costs that he would not have to bear.

Reaves bought the land three years ago and initially sought to convert a shipping container into a structure on the existing foundation. After he faced an estimated $10,000 just for engineering and plan approval, he sought another tiny house option.

‘Skoolie’ stepping stone


Before he started hatching plans for the house, Reaves decided to buy a school bus and renovate it into living quarters, which is part of the tiny house movement. School bus conversions even have a nickname: skoolies.

“I didn’t want to go live with a random person or do the whole renting thing because it’s expensive. I wanted to do a bus conversion,” says Reaves, who bought a 1972 school bus from a man who used it to travel with friends to races.

While the bus had a sink in it, most of the seats remained. Reaves ripped out the seats and put in a single bed, stove and an outdoor shower as part of a two-month effort to make it livable.

“One of my dreams was to fix up a skoolie. I did that and said to myself, ‘Now let’s build something really cool,’ ” says Reaves, who lived on the bus for two years while building his future house.

Collecting supplies


Reaves took basic mountain cabin plans and took a different approach to orienting the house on the lot.

Unlike many houses that face the street, Reaves oriented his house to the sun, on an east-west axis, so that his loft bedroom window at the back of the house faced the rising sun and the porch in front of his house faced the setting sun.

While that orientation makes it conducive to adding solar panel on the south-facing roof, Reaves now is questioning the need for it because his electrical bills are about $40.

His next order of business was collecting supplies, starting with his first big score: a large arched door and sliding glass windows that were rejected by a couple living on Kiawah Island. A friend took them to a local Habitat for Humanity store and Reaves bought the items, which he estimated originally cost $8,000, for $400.

“I’m always at Habitat,” he laughs, adding, “Our society throws things away. And people who have deep pockets, they throw even more away.”

Reaves started going to lumber yards and home supply stores looking for damaged, returned and clearance goods and asking for deals. In one, he estimates he got about $16,000 worth of beams, plywood and other materials for less than $2,000.

“People (consumers) want things perfect. In one case, they (the lumber yard) couldn’t sell a column because it had a chip in it. The same problems goes for our fruit and vegetables. Heaven forbid if there’s a blemish on an apple. As far as that beam, I liked the chip in it.”

Limiting factor


One would think one of the obstacles of building a house by yourself is building a house by yourself, but not for Reaves.

It was his vehicle.

“For me, I had a little Toyota Tacoma and the challenge for me was this. I’m very good at finding things: on Craig’s List, at thrift stores, builders, yard sales, thrift stores, warehouses. But I had a four-cyclinder Toyota and I’d be rocking that thing. The front wheels would almost be off the ground. And I knew if my truck breaks down, I couldn’t get any materials.

Reaves admits permitting and construction by Charleston County was daunting, especially in the beginning when staffers doubted his ability and knowledge of regulations.

“As the project went on, they realized I knew what I was talking about,” says Reaves.

In one situation, however, an inspector twice failed him due to a section in the electrical code that had recently changed but was not updated in the books yet. That hindered his ability to continue working for a few weeks until the office realized the problem.

But in early November, with the house finished, Reaves received his certificate of occupancy.

Love comes calling


During the process, while Reaves was still living in the bus and starting the house, something else was blossoming in his life.

During that process, his personal life evolved as well.

A massage therapy client, Stacy Jessen, became a good friend, then a girlfriend.

The 31-year-old pet kennel owner jokes, “He’s got a bus. He’s building a tiny. This guy. Here I am!” And she commenced to putting her decorative touches on the bus.

With the couple now living in Reaves’ house, he is renting the bus on Air BNB for $74 a night. Reaves and Jessen also are hatching plans to build a tiny house for her down the street.

And beyond that, they are looking at properties in West Asheville, N.C., to build a tiny house in the mountains.

Has life caught up to the vagabond?

“This will enable me to explore even more,” insists Reaves. “The vagabond now has a home. I’ll still travel, but I have a base. To be able to come home and open these glass doors and have a great partner and a furry friend (a puppy, Raisin), that’s great. But I’m always searching. I’m always trying to find, meet and create.

“This house has been a great accomplishment and goal for me. It’s not complete. I’ll still be adding on. Now it’s on to the next path and it’s with my partner.”

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[myla24]

What a house, thats my dream house right there. Damn your very lucky.