Nissen Hut

[lorrayne]

Hi we might have the opportnity of recycling a Nissen Hut, and our thoughts are to convert it to a living space, so we are looking for ideas, hope to include the usual green parts - compost loo, solar power, grey water recycling. Have hunted on the interent for anything similar, but not having much luck.

[southeast-isher]

Please be very very careful if it has parts made from asbestos.

[marshlander]

I understand these are similar to quonset huts in the US if anyone over the pond has any experience.

OH says they're basically a steel semicircle and he spent many winters freezing in them while in the RAF. So insulation is most important I should think!

Here's an old photo of a conversion - hope you keep us up to date on yours, good luck!

[Memphis Slim]

These are pretty common in the US as workshops and storage sheds, but I have never seen a house with my own eyes. Here is a nicely done house but it doesn't look like it follows too many green building practices.

Yes, insulation is a must - I would recommend a spray foam insulation for the exterior walls and then adding a layer of stucco to finish. The spray foam would seal in any nasty asbestos on the interior. Then frame up the interior walls (I guess you would want one for at least the WC ).

Everything else would probably be pretty normal green building practices. Orient a long side to face south with plenty of windows. You could add an extension like the people did in that article if you needed more space or wanted more windows. I would recommend a little vestibule around the door to form a little airlock. Solar water and power could go on the roof. Depending on the type of composting toilet and grey water system you choose it may pay to build it a few feet above ground level to allow for the natural flow of things. If you are looking for ideas, it would be worth your while to spend a few hours with BuildItSolar. It looks like it will be an exciting project. Good luck.

-memphis slim

[contadino]

Ah man! I was trying to explain what a Nissan hut was to an Argentinean mate only last night. He wants to build a vaulted strawbale house, but the big challenge is weatherproofing it. An article we found recommended using a nissan hut as the roof.

In the end we came across this which is what he was after. A nebraska (self-supporting) vaulted strawbale house.

http://www.skillful-means.com/pages/det ... ault04.jpg

Regarding the specific topics, maybe it's worth you starting separate threads with details of the property. Things like greywater reuse are pretty broad topics in themselves, so if you outline what you want to do, and the challenges, we can take on each one individually.

[southeast-isher]

http://www.skillful-means.com/pages/det ... ault04.jpg

Wow, i'm very impressed.

[marshlander]

Interesting that like an old church, it has flying buttresses to transfer the horizontal force of the vaulted ceiling.

[sortanormalish]

These are actually pretty comon as houses. In fact we have a near neighbor who lives in one, he also believes postage stamps have government spy cameras in them. So...I won't be asking him for how-to advice for you.

But, we have also investigated the same project and consulted a friend who modified and lives in one. He is not the crazy man.

You can use spray foam insulation OR you can use fiberglass bats and straps Or you can partially cover the walls and use blow-in insulation, but I'm told that is a much more difficult process and because you have to rent the blower can get so expensive (time consuming) that you lose all the savings on the blow-in insulation.

Also, he told me to cover the walls with quarter inch paneling of some sort (theirs looked like gypsum board) because it will bend to the curve of the outer wall. Builder's adhesive is best for attaching the paneling to the outer curve. The interior walls you are supposed to fit as well as you can using angled cuts and cut the wall board to match the curve, otherwise it is no different than building any other wall. OR you can add a ceiling and interior walls along the edges to square everything off at the height you want but you will lose a lot of floor space.

The friend assures me that with the exception of the wall construction and covering the rest is just like any other house.

We use a composting toilet, I suggest you download a free copy of the Humanure Handbook. I think it insane to spend thousands on something that can be attractive (I tiled mine) and inexpensive if you are willing to invest about 5 minutes a day. No one has ever stood beside our compost bin and noticed it was more than leaves, until we told them. They don't find the toilet smelly and disgusting either.

I think it is a great idea to recycle the huts into housing and wish more people did rather than seeing their parts at the metal recycling centers. But if you develop a fear of postage stamps let us all know so we can warn others in the future