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Currently Playing: Felling Our First Tree And Making A Deck Out Of It | Off Grid Island Ep.4

In this video, we fell our first tree and started the process of building our deck! This was my first time felling a tree and it went well. I had watched a lot of videos and made sure to get safety equipment before trying to fell the trees. Once the trees were felled, I had to clean up the tree and debark them. After the logs were debarked, I leveled the stumps I used for the foundation. Then I used the thickest log and cut it to length, placing it on a concrete slab to finish the foundation. I used a hand lever to help lift up the logs up onto the foundation. I notched the logs and secured them to the foundation using a 16cm lag bolt. Once both sides were up on the foundation, I put up a beam in the front and back of the frame to make it stable. I'm really happy with how this trip went, i was able to turn a couple of trees into something. It's not done yet, but I feel like at this point, you can see what's coming next! Next trip we need to put more logs on the frame so we have 60cm gaps between each beam, making it ready to put the decking on. We will also need to get decking and figure out a way of getting it to the island. More about us, the island and the process: The island is completely secluded, has no electricity or plumbing and currently has nothing on it but trees. We want to turn this island into a fully functioning summer cottage with a log cabin, sauna and other amenities. Most of the work is gonna be done in the summer months as the lake freezes in the winter and the weather conditions are tough. There's a lot of work to be done as the island is over 2.5 acres (1 hectare) and we have no experience in off-grid living, carpentry or building. So any tips or advice are greatly appreciated, as we are planning on doing everything ourselves and transforming the island into our own little paradise. We’ll document every step of the way, starting from smaller builds to finally - an off-grid log cabin. Our plan for this year is to put up a platform for a glamping tent, build a floating dock and start cutting down trees to begin the process of building our log cabin. The island is located in Finland and we bought it in 2024. We are currently both students and we plan to transform the island alongside our studies. So, subscribe and join us on this adventure. It won’t be fast, it won’t be easy, but it will be fun and challenging. We don’t know what to expect, so be a part of the journey. 📸 Follow us on Instagram: @Off.grid.island and TikTok @off.grid.island