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This Little House
  • Roxanne Dunn
  • Roxanne Dunn

This Little House

A complete renovation of an original tiny house. Read more
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  • Trip start
    September 19, 2023
    Roxanne DunnThis Little HouseTraveler
    1The deck was awkward and didn't have a lot of useable space. It was torn out and the wood recycled.The shed was removed providing more room to get to the electrical box on the side of the house.The bathroom floor was soft and the toilet was about to fall through. The fixtures were donated.The kitchen was outdated and cabinets were falling apart inside. Range was unusable.The ceilings were low and the room felt very small. Roxanne wanted to loft the ceiling.Brice was the only person that agreed the ceiling could be lofted. Here he is drawing and thinking.

    A Place to Call Home

    May 18, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 64 °F

    Roxanne purchases an original tiny house 2 blocks away from Pioneer Park. This will be a fun renovation project and, once completed, a great way to stay close to family and have a comfortable home base when traveling and adventuring.

    The entire outside will change from old fashioned to a modern look. The interior will be completely gutted and opened up. The foundation will be jacked and supported. All new plumbing, electrical, insulation, drywall and fixtures will be added. The garage will get some updates too and will provide a multi-use space. Brice, Roxanne's son, agrees to take on the project. He has done his own two story, much bigger, house's remodel from the ground up. When he did his it also needed foundation work and he stripped it down to the bare structure and did every aspect of the remodel himself. His turned out beautifully, so Roxanne knew he was up for the challenge.    Read more

  • Roxanne DunnThis Little HouseTraveler
    The new line is installed.
    Old pipe removed.

    A New Sewer Line

    August 18, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 86 °F

    The sewer line was attached to the neighbors. The City of Billings recommends separating to avoid issues. The little house gets its own sewer line and a required clean out feature.

  • Roxanne DunnThis Little HouseTraveler
    All the old plumbing and wiring.

    Demo Part #1

    October 18, 2023 in the United States ⋅ 🌙 66 °F

    To ready for the renovation, first out with the old. The walls and old carpeting are pulled up. Old wiring and plumbing is removed. Appliances and kitchen is removed.

  • Roxanne DunnThis Little HouseTraveler
    It's snowing inside.Dusty, dirty work.Too bad the wood floors were in such bad shape from having concrete poured onto them.

    Demo Part #2

    November 18, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 43 °F

    The first demo revealed a concrete pour was used inside the house to level the floor. We removed all of that concrete. We may need to jack the house in some places in order to level up the floors. If this doesn't work we'll use a modern method of floor leveling that doesn't require as much weight as concrete. We also took down the ceiling to allow for vaulting in some areas to give the small space an airy and open feel. There were two layers of ceiling. One from 1980's and the other was original. The insulation in the attic was cotton. It was a messy job, but we are getting closer to an empty shell to begin with a new floor plan.Read more

  • Roxanne DunnThis Little HouseTraveler

    Planning and Prep

    November 20, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 52 °F

    Brice did a bit more clean up and then we planned and measured for beam support both temporary and permanent to allow the ceilings to be lofted throughout the house. We measured window and door space for updated and enlarged windows and doors for the whole house. . The gas decorative stove will be used in the garage and a decorative gas fireplace will be installed in the living room/greatroom.Read more

  • Roxanne DunnThis Little HouseTraveler
    This used to be the location of the bedroom with a backdoor in it. It was awkward and strange.Looking toward where the bathroom and bedroom used to be. Both were moved to the opposite side.This will be the new location of the bedroom. Photo taken from where the closet will be.The front door will be replaced with one of a similar width.This will be where the new bedroom will be. Little window will b taken out.The gas stove will be move to the garage in favor of a gas fireplace in the living room.This looking at where the future living room. The door on the left will be replaced by patio doors.This is looking at one half of the kitchen. The door, goes out to the patio and the garage.This old inadequate insulation will be replaced with spray in foam on ceiling and walls.

    Opening Up the Ceiling Space

    November 22, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 52 °F

    With the header support beam in place and standing on two solid upright support beams the ceiling cross boards are ready to be removed. About 90% as open as it will eventually be. Just a few cuts left that will require a longer Sawsall blade to accomplish.Read more

  • Roxanne DunnThis Little HouseTraveler
    Brice using sawmill to take out the sections of ceiling that open up into the attic.
    Section of an old roof that was left during an addition.Brice explains how the beams support the open space.A good look at the support beams that Brice installed.

    Opening up the ceilings more

    November 24, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 23 °F

    There are parts of the old roof that aren’t giving any support. When the addition was added the carpenter didn’t take out any old parts. These parts were adding unnecessary weight and blocking ceiling openness. Once chopped out there are some beautiful spaces revealed above.Read more

  • Roxanne DunnThis Little HouseTraveler

    The Crawl Space - Underbelly

    February 10, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 41 °F

    This is the rough and unglamorous part of a remodel. The dirt crawl space and the shoring and leveling of an old crooked house isn’t where the ooos and aaahs are at, but it a vital part for going forward. Leveled floors and walls make everything else go in easier. We’ve also had weeks we’ve been unable to make progress because it’s just to cold to work, even inside. With the insulation removed it’s nothing more than a breezy shell. Brice bundles up and does his best to make progress.Read more

  • Roxanne DunnThis Little HouseTraveler
    She's looking a little rough around the edges, but the front door and patio door make it more homey.
    Patio doors on the side of the house.Front doorPatio doorsGarage window replaced to match the house.Bedroom windowFront doorA huge blue diamond I found in the mall on the floor. I'll can upgrade my renovation now. lol

    Doors off / Doors on

    March 18, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 66 °F

    Brice gets the Lowe’s front door and patio door installed. Windows arrived finally. Brice got those installed. Some new siding should hide all her blemishes.

  • Roxanne DunnThis Little HouseTraveler

    Wrapping the crawlspace

    April 2, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 68 °F

    This heavy plastic sheeting with reinforced nylon webbing inside the plastic makes a strong vapor, dust and moisture barrier and less dusty area to complete the rest of the plumbing, electrical and natural gas installation.

    The vapor barrier helps control moisture levels in the crawl space, preventing dampness from affecting your home's foundation and structure. Mold Prevention: By limiting moisture, a vapor barrier reduces the likelihood of mold growth. It also allows the crawl space to be more pleasant to get into should the need for plumbing repairs arise. It can make the space better storage for unused seasonal items.    Read more

  • Roxanne DunnThis Little HouseTraveler
    1
    111Not Brice, but his Doppleganger. This actually happens to everyone when installing a patio.1Sample of broken concrete for inspiration.

    One woman's trash is another one's patio

    April 29, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 68 °F

    One day the neighbor was getting a new driveway poured. The old driveway was put in front of the little house on the street. Brice being the resourceful and out of the box thinker that he is talked with the contractor and get him to do some dirt work in exchange for leaving the concrete chunks behind. His plan is to create a patio and walkway with it.Read more

  • Roxanne DunnThis Little HouseTraveler

    Exterior Siding

    August 22, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 68 °F

    The siding is board and baton style. It will require a vertical installation. Brice started taking off boards to get ready for new surface. The new siding comes pre- painted in a dark grey. So excited to see how it looks once installed.Read more

  • Roxanne DunnThis Little HouseTraveler

    Flooring the house

    December 3, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 45 °F

    The vinyl tile plank flooring. This is the type that is rubbery and comes in tiles that are 4” x 3ft. It was are installed throughout the whole house. It has a wood look and has grays and browns. Brice did a beautiful job. He has covered the floor with thick brown paper and has started on the drywall.Read more

  • Roxanne DunnThis Little HouseTraveler
    1
    There's an App for that. Here's the revised, revised, revised edition of my house design.Here's what the temp was last week. Luckily the little house is being heated by the gas fireplace.

    Taping the Drywall, installing bathtub

    January 31, 2025 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 36 °F

    The long and tedious process of taping the drywall seams and preparing for floating the mud surface and texture onto the drywall.

  • Roxanne DunnThis Little HouseTraveler
    Snow and temps below 0F. Glad the work is all inside now.

    Wood Ceiling Accents

    January 31, 2025 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 37 °F

    The fir wood treatment doesn't cover 100% of the ceiling and serves as an accent to the drywall..

    I'll say it again - I love the vaulted ceilings. It was such a big IF to do them, but the risk really paid off. Thank you Brice for being on board to give it a try. What could have happened? Worse case scenario the outer walls caved in before we got supports in place. I am sure it kept Brice awake at night. He cautiously put cables and turnbuckles holding it sucked in while putting in beams. The house wouldn't be nearly as interesting if the ceilings hadn't been vaulted. It takes it from plain and ordinary to something interesting.Read more

  • Roxanne DunnThis Little HouseTraveler
    Brice gets a scaffold that he wishes he had from the beginning. Loft ceilings have been a challengeBedroomBrice had some big challenges with angles, nooks and crannies.We plan to paint the beams in the midnight grey that is on the exterior of the house.Custom shower rod will ad architectural interest to the bath.

    Drywall Taping and Mudding

    February 23, 2025 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 39 °F

    These progress photos don't really show how much work went into putting drywall, tape and mud in all the tight spaces and all the unusual angles. Brice had to have cussed this ceiling often when he had to mud over his head. I just love the look that he has accomplished by sticking with it and toughing it out. The space feels so big even though it is a small footprint.Read more

  • Roxanne DunnThis Little HouseTraveler

    Painting

    March 13, 2025 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 59 °F

    We picked grey trim, off white walls, dark beams (the same color as exterior siding) and doors of the same. Many days and many coats later, we are ready to move on to installing electrical outlets and lighting.Read more

  • Roxanne DunnThis Little HouseTraveler
    The tile has arrive. Had to send back 4 boxes due to breakage. I like the sage/sea foam color.

    Some Assembly Required

    March 20, 2025 in the United States ⋅ 🌬 50 °F

    Today we put together the bathroom vanity, got some fittings for the fireplace to make room for the mantle, got the on demand hot water heater attached to the wall. The dark colored interior doors look nice with the beams.Read more

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