Preparation

• 1). Decide on your building site. An ideal site is perfectly level, but sloping ground will also support a cabin built on pillars.
  
  
• 2). Dig post holes where the corners of your cabin will be. Dig two more holes in the center of the two longer sides of your cabin. Make the holes at least 3 feet deep.
  
  
• 3). Insert pillars in the holes. Depending on the slope of your building site, use long wooden posts or build low stone pillars with concrete. Ensure that all six pillars are perfectly level and that they are buried at least 3 feet in the ground. Reinforce the holes with concrete.
  
  
• 4). Build the floor frame with 2-inch-by-4-inch pressure-treated spruce boards. Nail joist hangers at either 16- or 24-inch intervals and then nail spruce boards to the joist hangers. Cover the joists with pressure-treated plywood and nail the entire frame to the pillars if you are using wood posts.
  
  
• 5). Build wall frames identical to the floor frame. Nail wall studs at 16- or 24-inch intervals that align with the floor joists. Insert spruce boards where window frames will be in the walls.
  
  
• 6). Build a ceiling frame just like the floor frame. Attach joist hangers at intervals equal to the wall studs and floor joists. Nail plywood to the ceiling joists to accommodate roof shingles.
  
  

Construction

• 1). Erect each wall frame over the floor frame, ensuring that the walls are perfectly straight before nailing into place. Nail each of the wall frames together.
  
  
• 2). Attach felt paper to the ceiling frame and then nail shingles to the felt paper with roofing nails. Nail the ceiling frame to the wall frames and raise one side of the ceiling with eight-inch sections of spruce to allow rain to drain off.
  
  
• 3). Cover the exterior with weatherproof fabric, sealing the edges with tape. Ensure that all spaces are covered, including the space between the wall frames and the raised end of the ceiling.
  
  
• 4). Nail window frames into their jambs in the wall frames and screw door hinges into the door jamb. Attach the door to its hinges so that it opens outward, conserving space in the cabin.
  
  
• 5). Nail vinyl siding to the spruce studs in the wall frames with galvanized nails that will not rust. Install interior wall panels over the wall studs inside the cabin. Cover plywood floorboards with linoleum tile.