7 ms·

Dealing with septic tanks - rotting uneven floors , shitty no pun intended plumbing and electrics - broadband from the copper era. No thanks - much prefer my m

Dealing with septic tanks - rotting uneven floors , shitty no pun intended plumbing and electrics - broadband from the copper era. No thanks - much prefer my modern sterile IKEA isocube.

cottager2 5y ago
Having just bought a cottage, here are some things that have changed recently. 1. P2P wireless means you can cheaply get a 50/10 internet connection in remote areas. This is plenty for most users. Also starlink is apparently pretty good. 2. Just pay someone to pump your septic. You don’t have to pay city taxes covering sewers so you probably come out ahead. 3. Plumbing and electrical is usually exposed, making it very easy to work on. For plumbing, shark bites and pex are way easier than soldering copper. One thing that does suck about owning a cottage is needing to worry about mice…
- tantalor 5y ago
  > worry about mice Get a cat or two.
  - tibbydudeza 5y ago
    Got that covered - got 6 of them but probably only two of them are active mousers.
    - nicwolff 5y ago
      I live in a cottage in the woods and my cat brings live shrews into the house to play with. Cats!
      - tibbydudeza 5y ago
        Fortunately we only had one cat who did that and she is now a pensioner and prefers less strenuous activities like sun bathing and sleeping. Trapping a mouse at 1am in the bedroom is not so endearing.
- silicon2401 5y ago
  What's a good resource to learn about septic? I'm interested in moving somewhere more rural at some point in the future but have no idea how septic works. I admit a slight squeamishness at the thought of our waste accumulating in a tank, but the part that I'm more concerned about is not knowing what the risks or processes involved are.
  - giantg2 5y ago
    https://www.epa.gov/septic/how-your-septic-system-works https://www.epa.gov/septic/how-your-septic-system-works
  - tharkun__ 5y ago
    Is this somehow different in the rural US? I'm in Canada and while part of a large metro area I am far enough out to have a septic tank. I never so much as spent a second of thought on it. We just get the tank cleaned out every two years. The city even has a by law requiring that and you have to send in the invoice to prove you had it done.
    - silicon2401 5y ago
      I've never lived in a place that uses septic, so to me septic is something that feels quite rural, even if it's common in places that are more suburban than rural.
    - Danieru 5y ago
      My theory is most people do not realize just how much of their "water" bill is actually sewage costs. Pumping clean water is nothing compared to sewage. Yet most cities present the water bill as a split cost between water and sewage. We are on septic despite being 100meters from the border of tokyo. Our costs for quatery inspections, and a yearly pumping are about 220 dollars. In exchange our water bill is about 40dollars every two months, so twenty a month. This is half what we paid in Tokyo while using much less water. Now compare to many water bills in the states where many towns have over built sewage systems and you often year families spending a hundred or more a month. I strongly suspect cities hide the cost of sewage behind the water supply charge. They run the departments as one and assume all supplied water is drained.
Cthulhu_ 5y ago
Same, if I were to move I'd go for something modern. That said, it's an idealized lifestyle, everyone's guilty of some of that - "I'd love to live in a van" but where do you shit? "I'd love to become a digital nomad and live in a cheap 5-star resort" but where do you keep your stuff? What about family and friends? "I'd love to retire to a cabin in the woods" but what about all the amenities you're used to, like electricity, heat, food, water, and internet? I mean don't get me wrong, I can see the appeal in 'cottagecore', but at the same time I'm being realistic about things.
- orwin 5y ago
  I live in a van 2 month/year, sometime with a friend, sometime alone. Pretty usefull to really visit/hike across France, Spain, Italy (Balkans are next i guess). Public toilet, camping toilet, or behind a tree, to answer your question.
- dageshi 5y ago
  With DN'ing most just get rid of the majority of their stuff before they go. That one really isn't that difficult.
  - lastofthemojito 5y ago
    It's not difficult for a subset of the population who lack certain ties (or prefer not to keep close ties). Digital Nomading is obviously much harder if you've got kids to put in school, or elderly parents to check in on, or a partner who wants to keep their non-remote job, etc. When I was in my 20s and put everything in storage and traveled for a while it was great. Now my wife and kid (and the grandparents who want to see the kid), etc would make such a move a lot tougher in a lot of ways.
- BoxOfRain 5y ago
  I'm planning to move onto a sailing yacht next year. The answer for things like digital nomadism, van life, and that sort very much boils down to "own less stuff". For me if it can't fit in my 40' of boat it's either getting sold or put into storage.
- 5y ago
Veen 5y ago
Yes, I learned my lesson after moving into a 400-year-old thatched cottage because I thought it was quaint. The roof and windows leaked. It had limited central heating and was largely heated by a multi-fuel burner. That meant spending an absurd amount of money on wood, which I had to schlep around and split while the weather was appalling and then spend far too long lighting a fire and keeping it going all day, only for the heat to escape out of the ill-fitting single-glazed windows which couldn't be replaced because it was a Grade II listed building. The lovely ceiling beams and all the doors were slightly too low, so I was constantly banging my head on them. All in all, not a great experience, although it looked very cosy in Instagram photos. On top of which, this "cottagecore" trend is one reason none of the locals in my area can afford to buy a house. The house prices have skyrocked since Londoners decided living in the middle of nowhere was cool.
- lastofthemojito 5y ago
  I live in one of the few newer homes in an old mill town and it's great. I get to stroll the narrow streets, and admire the quaint architecture all around. The locally quarried stone used for the walls of the oldest buildings (which obviously made things difficult for accommodating additions containing bathrooms and kitchens). The charmingly narrow and irregular front doors on some houses, making it an impossible dream to move a typical new couch or appliance in. The turnbuckles used to stabilize some houses after all these years, and those cables being one more thing to hit your head on. Then I get home from a walk and enjoy the central air conditioning, tall ceilings, modern windows and level floors of my home. I know some of my neighbors in the older houses really enjoy them. They research the history of the houses and are enthusiastic about maintaining them and keeping things mostly original. The house basically becomes a hobby. Just about everybody likes looking at quaint old houses, so you have to find out if that's you or if you'd actually enjoy living in one too. I know I just like looking at them.
- closeparen 5y ago
  Dealing with historic preservation would seem to defeat the purpose of living in a rural area.
- bserge 5y ago
kaybe 5y ago
The one advantage of uneven walls and non-90° corners is that my DIY fixes to everything fits in nicely and even looks good when done with care. Everything is easier to fix.
- tibbydudeza 5y ago
  I call it artisanal DIY repairs.
Ancapistani 5y ago
It’s amusing how different people’s wants and desires are. I live in a very small town from the POV of what I perceive as the majority of HN - <15k people, and it’s the largest town in an hour’s drive in any direction. My home is in a neighborhood on the edge of town that was annexed only a few years ago, and as a result even though my property has city sewer access, I still have a septic tank. I dread the day that I’m unable to legally keep it operational and have to tie in to city sewer. It’s just one more monthly bill I’ll have to pay. The zoning here is such that a homeowner can do any repair work they please on their own without having to get a permit or licensed contractor. I have gigabit fiber and solid, level floors though. :) I could easily increase my income by $75-100k if I were willing to move to LA or SF. I’m not even tempted by it.
- giantg2 5y ago
  "The zoning here is such that a homeowner can do any repair work they please on their own without having to get a permit or licensed contractor." Wow, that's pretty strict for a "small town". Most places allow you to make repairs without a permit or contractor as long as you're not making changes. For example, I needed a permit to put in an interlock and receptacle for a generator. If something breaks the receptacle, I can replace it with the same model/type/size without a permit. If I replaced it with a different type/size then I would need a permit. On a side note, the inspections are mostly a joke and just a way for the municipality to make money (permit costs more than the materials in many of my cases). The inspector had no idea about electrical stuff and didn't ask any questions about wire gauge/run, receptacle sizing, receptacle height, or how the breaker box was balanced. You know, the stuff that's important to do right to avoid fires, etc.
  - throwaway0a5e 5y ago
    It's not about the law, it's about what's enforced. Where I live you theoretically need to permit the typical stuff but the official unofficial policy is that they don't expect anyone who isn't a professional to pull permits.
    - 5y ago
LAC-Tech 5y ago
As of writing, I live on a farm an hours drive from the nearest grocery store. It's still a first world country, but people have a lot less disposable income than the states. The floor boards do suck, and the electricity gets cut more often. But I get 58.6Mbps down, 21.4Mbps up. Ground to ground satellite.
- qq4 5y ago
  Mind mentioning your satellite isp?
  - LAC-Tech 5y ago
    It's limited to one region in one small country, but sure. https://primo.nz/ https://primo.nz/
- asdff 5y ago
  If its first world and not the united states, the people there probably have a lot more disposable income to be fair. 40% of Americans can't come up with $400 in an emergency without taking on debt to do so.
sjwalter 5y ago
I live in a town in rural Montana that has fiber to the home. Population is 800.
- verve_rat 5y ago
  Same as my town in NZ. Approx 600 people in town, my place is surrounded by farms on three sides, gigabit fiber. Plus, I can actually afford a house here, unlike the city I moved from. Fleeing the city has never been this good.
asdff 5y ago
I've lived in cities all my life and had pretty similar experiences to be honest. I thought it was from opting to live in older buildings with 'character,' so one lease i went with the isocube and that was hell. My one neighbor played drum and bass music all day and it went right through the walls like paper. The other neighbor would sit there for hours every day on the balcony calling everyone they know and airing out the latest drama of the day on speakerphone. You could hear everything from the hall right through the front door, every door slam, every step, every dog bark, every time the elevator went ding. I even tried sealing the doorjam at one point with new weather strip when I was particularly desperate but it was no use. I thought maybe this was a lemon apartment so I asked all my friends in similar new construction looking places, and it was the same story with the thin walls and doors and borderline evil property management companies. Ended up lucking out with a new place where I don't have anyone above me, no shared heavily trafficked hallway outside my door, and the neighbors are churchmice. Don't think I'm gonna be stepping back into the unknown for a while.

Dealing with septic tanks - rotting uneven floors , shitty no pun intended plumbing and electrics - broadband from the copper era. No thanks - much prefer my modern sterile IKEA isocube.

cottager2 5y ago

Having just bought a cottage, here are some things that have changed recently. 1. P2P wireless means you can cheaply get a 50/10 internet connection in remote areas. This is plenty for most users. Also starlink is apparently pretty good. 2. Just pay someone to pump your septic. You don’t have to pay city taxes covering sewers so you probably come out ahead. 3. Plumbing and electrical is usually exposed, making it very easy to work on. For plumbing, shark bites and pex are way easier than soldering copper. One thing that does suck about owning a cottage is needing to worry about mice…

tantalor 5y ago
> worry about mice Get a cat or two.
- tibbydudeza 5y ago
  Got that covered - got 6 of them but probably only two of them are active mousers.
  - nicwolff 5y ago
    I live in a cottage in the woods and my cat brings live shrews into the house to play with. Cats!
    - tibbydudeza 5y ago
      Fortunately we only had one cat who did that and she is now a pensioner and prefers less strenuous activities like sun bathing and sleeping. Trapping a mouse at 1am in the bedroom is not so endearing.
silicon2401 5y ago
What's a good resource to learn about septic? I'm interested in moving somewhere more rural at some point in the future but have no idea how septic works. I admit a slight squeamishness at the thought of our waste accumulating in a tank, but the part that I'm more concerned about is not knowing what the risks or processes involved are.
- giantg2 5y ago
  https://www.epa.gov/septic/how-your-septic-system-works https://www.epa.gov/septic/how-your-septic-system-works
- tharkun__ 5y ago
  Is this somehow different in the rural US? I'm in Canada and while part of a large metro area I am far enough out to have a septic tank. I never so much as spent a second of thought on it. We just get the tank cleaned out every two years. The city even has a by law requiring that and you have to send in the invoice to prove you had it done.
  - silicon2401 5y ago
    I've never lived in a place that uses septic, so to me septic is something that feels quite rural, even if it's common in places that are more suburban than rural.
  - Danieru 5y ago
    My theory is most people do not realize just how much of their "water" bill is actually sewage costs. Pumping clean water is nothing compared to sewage. Yet most cities present the water bill as a split cost between water and sewage. We are on septic despite being 100meters from the border of tokyo. Our costs for quatery inspections, and a yearly pumping are about 220 dollars. In exchange our water bill is about 40dollars every two months, so twenty a month. This is half what we paid in Tokyo while using much less water. Now compare to many water bills in the states where many towns have over built sewage systems and you often year families spending a hundred or more a month. I strongly suspect cities hide the cost of sewage behind the water supply charge. They run the departments as one and assume all supplied water is drained.

Cthulhu_ 5y ago

Same, if I were to move I'd go for something modern. That said, it's an idealized lifestyle, everyone's guilty of some of that - "I'd love to live in a van" but where do you shit? "I'd love to become a digital nomad and live in a cheap 5-star resort" but where do you keep your stuff? What about family and friends? "I'd love to retire to a cabin in the woods" but what about all the amenities you're used to, like electricity, heat, food, water, and internet? I mean don't get me wrong, I can see the appeal in 'cottagecore', but at the same time I'm being realistic about things.

orwin 5y ago
I live in a van 2 month/year, sometime with a friend, sometime alone. Pretty usefull to really visit/hike across France, Spain, Italy (Balkans are next i guess). Public toilet, camping toilet, or behind a tree, to answer your question.
dageshi 5y ago
With DN'ing most just get rid of the majority of their stuff before they go. That one really isn't that difficult.
- lastofthemojito 5y ago
  It's not difficult for a subset of the population who lack certain ties (or prefer not to keep close ties). Digital Nomading is obviously much harder if you've got kids to put in school, or elderly parents to check in on, or a partner who wants to keep their non-remote job, etc. When I was in my 20s and put everything in storage and traveled for a while it was great. Now my wife and kid (and the grandparents who want to see the kid), etc would make such a move a lot tougher in a lot of ways.
BoxOfRain 5y ago
I'm planning to move onto a sailing yacht next year. The answer for things like digital nomadism, van life, and that sort very much boils down to "own less stuff". For me if it can't fit in my 40' of boat it's either getting sold or put into storage.
5y ago

Veen 5y ago

Yes, I learned my lesson after moving into a 400-year-old thatched cottage because I thought it was quaint. The roof and windows leaked. It had limited central heating and was largely heated by a multi-fuel burner. That meant spending an absurd amount of money on wood, which I had to schlep around and split while the weather was appalling and then spend far too long lighting a fire and keeping it going all day, only for the heat to escape out of the ill-fitting single-glazed windows which couldn't be replaced because it was a Grade II listed building. The lovely ceiling beams and all the doors were slightly too low, so I was constantly banging my head on them. All in all, not a great experience, although it looked very cosy in Instagram photos. On top of which, this "cottagecore" trend is one reason none of the locals in my area can afford to buy a house. The house prices have skyrocked since Londoners decided living in the middle of nowhere was cool.

lastofthemojito 5y ago
I live in one of the few newer homes in an old mill town and it's great. I get to stroll the narrow streets, and admire the quaint architecture all around. The locally quarried stone used for the walls of the oldest buildings (which obviously made things difficult for accommodating additions containing bathrooms and kitchens). The charmingly narrow and irregular front doors on some houses, making it an impossible dream to move a typical new couch or appliance in. The turnbuckles used to stabilize some houses after all these years, and those cables being one more thing to hit your head on. Then I get home from a walk and enjoy the central air conditioning, tall ceilings, modern windows and level floors of my home. I know some of my neighbors in the older houses really enjoy them. They research the history of the houses and are enthusiastic about maintaining them and keeping things mostly original. The house basically becomes a hobby. Just about everybody likes looking at quaint old houses, so you have to find out if that's you or if you'd actually enjoy living in one too. I know I just like looking at them.
closeparen 5y ago
Dealing with historic preservation would seem to defeat the purpose of living in a rural area.
bserge 5y ago

kaybe 5y ago

The one advantage of uneven walls and non-90° corners is that my DIY fixes to everything fits in nicely and even looks good when done with care. Everything is easier to fix.

tibbydudeza 5y ago
I call it artisanal DIY repairs.

Ancapistani 5y ago

It’s amusing how different people’s wants and desires are. I live in a very small town from the POV of what I perceive as the majority of HN - <15k people, and it’s the largest town in an hour’s drive in any direction. My home is in a neighborhood on the edge of town that was annexed only a few years ago, and as a result even though my property has city sewer access, I still have a septic tank. I dread the day that I’m unable to legally keep it operational and have to tie in to city sewer. It’s just one more monthly bill I’ll have to pay. The zoning here is such that a homeowner can do any repair work they please on their own without having to get a permit or licensed contractor. I have gigabit fiber and solid, level floors though. :) I could easily increase my income by $75-100k if I were willing to move to LA or SF. I’m not even tempted by it.

giantg2 5y ago
"The zoning here is such that a homeowner can do any repair work they please on their own without having to get a permit or licensed contractor." Wow, that's pretty strict for a "small town". Most places allow you to make repairs without a permit or contractor as long as you're not making changes. For example, I needed a permit to put in an interlock and receptacle for a generator. If something breaks the receptacle, I can replace it with the same model/type/size without a permit. If I replaced it with a different type/size then I would need a permit. On a side note, the inspections are mostly a joke and just a way for the municipality to make money (permit costs more than the materials in many of my cases). The inspector had no idea about electrical stuff and didn't ask any questions about wire gauge/run, receptacle sizing, receptacle height, or how the breaker box was balanced. You know, the stuff that's important to do right to avoid fires, etc.
- throwaway0a5e 5y ago
  It's not about the law, it's about what's enforced. Where I live you theoretically need to permit the typical stuff but the official unofficial policy is that they don't expect anyone who isn't a professional to pull permits.
  - 5y ago

LAC-Tech 5y ago

As of writing, I live on a farm an hours drive from the nearest grocery store. It's still a first world country, but people have a lot less disposable income than the states. The floor boards do suck, and the electricity gets cut more often. But I get 58.6Mbps down, 21.4Mbps up. Ground to ground satellite.

qq4 5y ago
Mind mentioning your satellite isp?
- LAC-Tech 5y ago
  It's limited to one region in one small country, but sure. https://primo.nz/ https://primo.nz/
asdff 5y ago
If its first world and not the united states, the people there probably have a lot more disposable income to be fair. 40% of Americans can't come up with $400 in an emergency without taking on debt to do so.

sjwalter 5y ago

I live in a town in rural Montana that has fiber to the home. Population is 800.

verve_rat 5y ago
Same as my town in NZ. Approx 600 people in town, my place is surrounded by farms on three sides, gigabit fiber. Plus, I can actually afford a house here, unlike the city I moved from. Fleeing the city has never been this good.

asdff 5y ago

I've lived in cities all my life and had pretty similar experiences to be honest. I thought it was from opting to live in older buildings with 'character,' so one lease i went with the isocube and that was hell. My one neighbor played drum and bass music all day and it went right through the walls like paper. The other neighbor would sit there for hours every day on the balcony calling everyone they know and airing out the latest drama of the day on speakerphone. You could hear everything from the hall right through the front door, every door slam, every step, every dog bark, every time the elevator went ding. I even tried sealing the doorjam at one point with new weather strip when I was particularly desperate but it was no use. I thought maybe this was a lemon apartment so I asked all my friends in similar new construction looking places, and it was the same story with the thin walls and doors and borderline evil property management companies. Ended up lucking out with a new place where I don't have anyone above me, no shared heavily trafficked hallway outside my door, and the neighbors are churchmice. Don't think I'm gonna be stepping back into the unknown for a while.