Clearing a Building Site for Off Grid Alaskan Homestead ┃EP3┃I Need A Place To Live 

I did exactly what you are doing over 20 years ago. I built an off grid cabin near Eagle, Alaska. I am currently in North Pole. Some things to keep in mind in interior Alaska. Towards the end of summer we start to get a lot of rain. As soon as you have your tent up I would recommend building a tiny bush cabin. This first cabin should be the size of a small shed. I have a friend who has lived in an 8'x8' cabin for over 20 years. Getting up this basic tiny shelter will provide you great peace of mind when the temps drop. When you get a wood stove, oversize it. My first winter I had a stove that was too small. When it was zero outside I could burn it for 5 hours or so but at -50F it would burn out in 3 hours. You will need to get a snow machine at some point to get into your cabin in the winter. If you keep your truck back at the main road, at some point in the winter you are going to need to plug in your pickup or it won't start. You will want to make sure you get your truck winterized. You should go with a block heater, oil pan heater, battery heater and trickle charger. If you are using a generator to plug in to them you want to have all them capable of heating your engine quickly, like a few hours. Your generator will need to be kept inside your cabin where it is warm. Luckily it has been getting warmer in the winters up here but we did hit -50F last winter for a bit. I don't know your exact situation but what I described is a pretty normal scenario for someone living in the bush in the winter. Don't stress too much about firewood. With a snow machine and sled you will have better access to everything once it all freezes. Make sure you have windows on the south facing side of your cabin. In the Fairbanks area we have just 3 hours and 40 minutes on the shortest day of the year so any sunlight can really help with your mood. If you have any questions please shoot them at me. I can tell you what I have seen work up here. Usually it's best to do what has proven to work already. My motto here is, whatever works! Keep getting after it! You'll be so thankful the first cold snap when you have your tiny space that is easy to heat. Take care...

Don’t let anyone on here try and dim your personality. Keep it up!

if you have handguard forward it locks the chain, if you rev up motor with it locked the clutch connects motor to locked chain stalling the motor

Very entertaining. I love finding a person at the start of their off grid life 😊

You’re doing what a lot of us older guys wish we did when we were your age. Enjoy what you’re doing and creating

Hello there Sean, I have been with you just with the Episode 1. You are making an old lady smile. Just continue to be your joyous self and take care. GOD BLESS. Watching from the Philippines.

As someone doing something similar to you, completely by myself, i have enjoyed your vids so far. If i could give one or two suggestions it would be to get a handheld log tongs ($15.00 to $30.00). The amount of labor you will do picking up cut logs will be cut in half. Also consider a brush cutting blade for your weedwacker. You will be cutting brush down every year and a brush cutting blade works way better than string. Good luck, ill be watching and hoping for the best for you.

I’m not missing a second of this. Watching it from the very beginning❤️

I too started clearing land by hand. After a month I finally said Eff this. Ordered a John Deere 60g for a week. Watched some RU-vid on how to operate it , logged de stumped , made a driveway and graded a build site. It’s a bit pricey. Cost me 5k Canadian. But now I have a beautiful stump free canvass to start with. I strongly consider this for you

More chainsaw advice, since ya asked. When making your notch to fell a tree, the overall angle should be roughly 45 degrees. +/- 5 degrees won't matter too much but ideally one side of the notch should be at least parallel with the ground. Plenty of great youtubers go into better detail than I can in a single comment. That being said, for your first felled tree, good job! It went where you wanted it which is all that matters. Also, keep an eye out for dead branches falling since the vibration of cutting could jar them loose. Secondly, as soon as you get the chainsaw started, turn that chain brake off (pull the guard towards you) so the engine won't be overloaded with resistance from the locked bar and stall. Don't forget to verify all advice you get from these comments. Some people don't know as much as they think they do and could inadvertently point you in the wrong direction.

Enjoying the videos and the journey. You appear very natural when being funny and talking to the camera. Forget any negative comments and just be you. Remember, you can please most of the people most of the time but you can never please all of the people all of the time. Have fun, stay safe, I'll be following along.

I enjoy watching your journey. Love the humor and the transparency and of course Gracie.

Ok, After watching 3 episodes, I'm hooked. Love your quirky personality. Ya made me giggle several times. I enjoy watching the whole process of someone braving the wild country of Alaska. You are doing great! LOVE your dog!!!! You Tube is your friend to learn just about anything. Simply Living Alaska can help you so much! Eric seems to know most everything from trial and error. He is a wiz at chainsaws , so look him up. Keep up the great attitude, it's all a adventure. And bleep the naughty words. :)

You can build the platform on girders, and drag it where ever you want down the line. Kinda like snow sled. Use gravel and pavers to level it and keep the wood off the ground.

As someone that lives in that alaskan bush get ready to put things in a place that you think is good only to find out at a later date that you want something else in its spot so you move it then later you'll need to move it again

Och dear boy, you’re doing great and just exactly as you should, I love watching all this type of video and your humour has this old lady hooked, I’m so looking forward to following your journey. Big hug and scratches for Gracie. Take care. 🌸

Hey Sean Paul, thanks for the next update. Great to see the learning and progress continuing, will be a steep learning curve for sure but you'll get there! Hopefully you get set in time to see you (reasonably) comfortably through the winter. Enjoying your style, stay safe!

Thank you for setting a good example and taking safety seriously. Keep up the amazing work - can’t wait to see more!!

I'm glad I'm here in the beginning,, keep on going

Enjoying your humour, going to watch every vid, Mike from the U.K.

Sean, it doesn't take much water in your fuel to make a chainsaw act the way yours is. A semi empty fuel container may be susceptible to condensation over time and changing weather conditions. Something to check for.

I love your humor and how open you are. Never change!!!

Kick ass! New subscriber will be following your journey of self reliance, grit & determination.. You've got this..

Loved all of your videos so far. I’ve subbed. You suckered me in with Gracie and your cat :). Be safe and enjoy.

Loving your music❤ so happy found your channel You are doing amazing Stay safe and best wishes from Melbourne Australia

Watch a few maintenance videos on chainsaws. Keep the filters clean, the chain sharp. Spare spark plug. None of us were born with knowledge. We learn as we go. You are using more energy than necessary to cut trees. Don’t move the saw back and forth like a hand saw. Set the spike bar against the tree and roll the saw forward. Reset and rotate forward. If you don’t already have, get a wedge, an axe, sledge hammer a come along and a high lift jack. If you can’t afford all that stuff, find an Alaskan women with a strong back and all the tools you might need.😎 Enjoy your videos 👏 Be safe

Keep up the hard work brother, I’ll be here every video to watch you learn and grow.

I am enjoying this. You crack me up!

Cant wait to see what you all get up to!❤ I love how genuine and goofy you are 😂 keep em comming and give those critters a cuddle for your new followers

You are doin great. Your videos are good , showing how it's all happening. Stay safe.

You're doing great!! Thr content is awesome, commentary is fun, and the videos you're making are excellent!! I am excited to follow your journey!!

It's good to see an ol southern boy challenge himself. I really enjoy your humor and videos. If the saw is new return it. It has a problem.

What a beautiful, friendly, likable, and BRAVE young man you are!! I’m so happy that I stumble upon your channel! I look forward to more videos, and wish you the best on your adventure!!

You are still so fun to watch!! I'm hooked! Can't wait to watch & enjoy your journey and to watch your subscribers grow and grow and grow....I so wish I was younger.

Dude 54k people watched you chop down trees. So keep on keeping on Guy! Great video, beautiful scenery. Love Gracie! ❤️

Don't be afraid to save that spruce for fire wood. A lot of people say not to burn it down south but it is fine to burn. We have been burning it for years. Just do chimney maint on a regular basis.

Awesome to see a young man this day and time. Going off to carve out a piece of wilderness for himself. Will definitely teach you self-reliance

Great video sir , you will get there , just read thru the comments ,great advice and support for your dream , all of us here will watch your progress ,keep the videos coming ,stay safe and do not let YOGI and BOO BOO steal your picnic basket when your not looking

wow florida winter to alskan winter that will be the biggest shock you could imagine

I am so glad I am here to follow you on this journey! The first steps to mastering something is failing, embrace and overcome your failures, and relish in your successes! You're doing a great job ❤️

Another great video. Awesome job, overcoming an issue with the chainsaw and still getting the job done. Keep it up. Waiting for the next video.

When cold starting a chainsaw, 5-6 pulls to start is typical. I'm assuming you already know how to operate the choke and fuel primer for your saw. When I've had hard starts with my saw, the intake air filter has been clogged. This has also been the case for me with generators, chippers, and other small carburetor-equipped engines. Some saws also have a "winter" and "summer" air intake configuration. See if your saw has one of those and adjust accordingly. Letting it run for a minute when starting from cold is generally a good idea. If you pull on the throttle hard when cold, it can flood the carburetor. Decent notch cut for your first attempt at felling. Most importantly, it dropped where you wanted it and didn't barber-chair. Now you have a few weeks of firewood. Once you get your tent platform/shed foundation built you're going to want to think about where you want to store your firewood in the future. Even if you don't build a woodshed this summer, you'll want to minimize double-handling if you can. When I'm stacking wood in the field, I tend to put it in a well-draining spot with southern sun exposure. 2-3 rounds high is generally good. It's a ton of work to stack it taller than that.

I love your energy. What ratio are you mixing the oil and gas for the saw? You can just build your floor and stand a couple walls with a tarp. It won’t take long to weather the place in. I did something similar building a recreational place many years ago but further off the road. It’s all work. I had a big enough garage at home to precut and lay out and mark everything so it was like a kit when I got it to the site. It now has a 48V inverter, 12v for lights and RV Pump , Rv water heater , propane range and fridge. We run an ac powered freezer in the summer. We collect rainwater in the summer. Water is heavy if you don’t have it on-site . We are in our 70s now and we still enjoy that place.

This IS interesting! We need to see all of the journey...

Dude the drone shot was awesome!!!! Well done again! You got me thinking I should spend money on land 4000 miles away cause why not😂

Love the video great to see that you take things seriously but can also find the humor in life. Keep up the hard work and stay safe. CHEERING FOR YOU SUCCESS!!!!

The big thing up here is to not be afraid to ask for help. Do not try to do it all yourself. It is how a lot of folks get hurt. We are not far away so if you need a hand reach out. Cindy has our number if you need it.

I can’t tell you how awesome this is. Absolutely love watching this! I live locally and love watching you live out a dream! Keep your spirits high and strong. Alaska is tough but it is worth it. Looking forward to the next video!!

Just some stuff to check that could cause the saw to run the way it is: 1. Are you mixing your fuel properly? 2. Aif flow. Check to see if your air filter is clogged. 3. Read other comments concerning the hand brake. I have had similar issues, and you have to go back to the basics. Air, fuel, and spark. Your spark is fine from what I can tell unless you are starting to foul the plug with the incorrect fuel mixture. Just some ideas. Good luck, you need it. 😁

The way the gas spewed out when you loosened the gas cap, you may have a plugged vent line causeing your saw to act like its running out of gas just my opinion .Keep up the progress (the good work will come later lol )

I’m definitely watching it. Really enjoying it. Pleased you’ve managed to sort out the chain saw - almost. Best of luck with it all. From Sheffield uk x

Love your attempt at the Aussie accent! 😂 Half way between British and Kiwi. Another great episode - thank you. 👋 😊

Excited for you! Preserve your hearing religiously - it could be your best friend out there :)

Sean! Totally addicted! Your doing great. You’re such a wonderful human. Seriously!

Ah, yes...anomalous fuel starvation. A) when in doubt clean it out...you've got a fine saw there, so not too much can go wrong (fingers crossed) 2) check your fuel cap breather - it may be a tad clogged from throwing the hero-chips C) checkn your positive crankcase ventilator Other than that: a visit to the warranty fairy may be in order... Keep on keepin' on, brother

You’re doing great! Make sure the spot you pick isn’t low lying (flooding) PLEASE make sure you have a good first aid kit with a tourniquet 🙏🏼 My dad put a chainsaw through his leg & almost died .. & he had 40 + years of experience w a chainsaw. Loving your channel ❤

The chainsaw struggle is real! You will learn as you go. Keep on truckin’ brother. Looking forward to your journey.

Best wishes on your new venture! I love your sense of humor. Please keep being you! 😊

😂lol love watching keep up the laughs while you are working you will get there 🎉

Hi from Western Australia I am enjoying watching your journey. Love the Aussie accent 😂

Good idea on the shed for temporary living quarters.

I'll be following you from the UK. Love your sense of humour, ignore the nay sayers. You do you .

A old truck hood works great to pull behind the 4 wheeler as a sled. It will also help knock down weeds and flatten the trail.

Finally, I found a offgrid channel with comedy lol. Love the vids....keep them coming! Watching from upstate n.y.

Appreciated the Forrest Gump reference!

Enjoying your vids! Cheering you on!

Came to check the video ended up watching 3 episodes and ended up subscribing to the channel 😂

Greetings from Islamabad Pakistan.Good to see a young man started a journey to build off grid cabin in the wilderness of Alaska. Really appreciate your efforts to start new life in Alaska singly. Best of luck for your new journey!!!!

I am enjoying your journey! I do hope you have bear mace because sometimes that works better with a bear then the gun. Good to have both. 😊

You’ve definitely got experience in shooting and editing video. Yet another very fun video. Definitely looking forward to the next episode.

Thankyou for sharing your journey with us.

If you are going to drag a lot of logs order a set of log tongs. Makes it so much easier.

You say you have no experience. It seems to me that you will need a lot of luck to survive. (If what you say is true?) I wish you success, certainly before winter.

I watched the whole thing and enjoyed every minute! I laughed at all your funny antics, too! I'm looking forward to the next video.

way to go!! Im proud of you! dont let the sun go down on you when people start ragging on you. Your doing great and we love watching you. your a funny guy we enjoy your shows keep it up.

Hello from New Zealand, I'm so happy to have found your channel so early on. I can't wait to watch your adventure unfold. Love the sense of humor. you're so funny!

Awesome videos! hope you're starting to stack wood for the long cold winter.

Hey Sean, great job downing those dead trees!! Question, do you have a water source on your property? Just wondering as that may be where you'd want to build near, sure you've already considered that. If you plan on eventually digging a well, maybe do some Water Dowsing by using a dowsing rod, pendulum, a forked stick (from certain types of trees) or a similar device to locate water underground before you get started. Just an idea. Another great video, love the new entro, thanks for sharing!! 😊

This is my new favorite series... side note, my daughters name is Gracie :)

Keep it up man! Be yourself and forget the rest! All good comes to those who true with themselves and with others. Definitely ready for this ride along and thank you for allowing us to join!

This is so fun to watch, all very interesting 😀

Loving the videos, enjoying the production, Someone need to acknowledge how well you are doing on RU-vid this early on. Keep it up, keep that fire burnin, but don't burn out. Very excited to see the growth of you, your channel & your property moving forward.

Wicket videos bud.died at the forest gump bit at the end

Enjoy your videos. Keep it coming.

Thanks for sharing your journey, I am looking forward to watching again.👍

Wait, you're from J'ville?! SAME! So glad I found your channel, I can't wait to see your progress 🙌

Right on , watch all your videos..funny and interesting..😂😂 hopefully to see more. Thanks

Looking forward to your adventures

Good start.

Thoroughly enjoying your videos! Can’t wait to follow the journey.

Stumbled across your channel and we are loving your videos. Keep the dream alive and that cool sense of humour. Looking forward to more adventures with you. Cheers from Australia :)

Luv your sence of humour and adventure! Keep entertaining Me!

I'm excited for you,it's going to be a fantastic place

We are here rooting for ya brother!! 😎💪

Just subscribed. Good job keeping it interesting! Looking forward to your future videos!

I love people with guts to go for their goals. Go for it. Just be careful and always watch your back. Alaska is still a vast untamed wilderness. God bless, I'll be watching.

Love the new intro! This channel is going to be big. Congrats man!

I am so glad I found this channel at it's beginning!! Keep up the good work! Much love from Greece!

This episode has a 'Blues Clues' feel to it....the way you talk to the camera and the background music. Wont lie...it worked.

Really enjoying your videos ❤. I hope you do well with this channel. Love your dog ❤