Ryan Bryant - Tiny Houses: How To Build A Tiny Home From Scratch Using A Minimal Budget

Ti nyHouses

How ToBuild A Tiny Home From Scratch Using A Minimal Budget

Copyright 201 2 by Ryan Bryant - All rights reserved.

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Chapter 1: The Ultimate Tiny House Building Checklist

Planning for your tinyhouse is much like building a series of check lists relating tovarious aspects of ideating, constructing, sourcing materials,budgeting, enlisting labor/volunteers and other priorities. While anumber of technology based applications exist which are structuredto streamline your approach in context with effective houseconstruction, it is recommended that you take an old schoolapproach and make physical lists in order to be aware of where youstand in terms of the progress of your house construction. This isalso a good way to keep track of finances, and will facilitatebetter choices pertaining to money saving and expenditure since youwill know exactly which cost head can be reduced or increased. Oneelement of planning for your tiny house will involve securing theland for it; this brings with it the need to meet certain legalprerequisites which will vary depending on which part of thecountry you reside in. The next element will involve budgeting andworking within it. This can sometimes be more difficult than youthink; spending money is nearly always easier than saving it.However if you choose to have a separate savings account which ischanneled towards expenditure on your house construction, you willhave a clear idea as to how much you are spending and saving. Besure not to dip into those savings for other purposes! Gettingaround your building plan will constitute the next step, and may ormay not involve a contractor depending on the building laws in yourarea. It is recommended that you set aside some money to invest ina contractor or someone who has had professional experience inhouse construction in order to ensure that your plans are on pointwith regard to safety. The last thin g you want is foryour carefully constructed house to spring a leak or catch fire; itis better to be safe than sorry. Once you have your finances andbuilding plan in order, you will need to source building materialfrom amid a range of places; if your budget permits, you couldsimply buy them from a store. However if you are looking for a morecost effective option, you have the choice of bartering with fellowbuilders, and on the internet. The internet is a godsend in termsof helping people purchase otherwise expensive materials at a lowcost. Some tiny house builders even claim to have sourced materialsfor free; craigslist is one of many websites to visit in order toget a good deal, or, if youre lucky, some free building material.Now that you are set to begin construction, it is time to assessyour own abilities as a DIY house builder. In the event that youare adept at construction work, i.e. framing, plastering etc. itwill save money but take additional time for you to construct yourtiny home on your own. If you can afford to dedicate many monthsworth of effort into this process, you do not need to worry aboutlabor costs. However if you are looking to construct your housewithin a short span of time, it is recommended that you seek thehelp of paid and unpaid labor in the form of professional paidcontractors and enthusiastic friends who are looking to be ofassistance. One of the benefits of hiring professionals is thatthey will complete the construction within a limited time frame;however, paying them by the hour will cut into your budget, so itis best to opt for unpaid volunteers. Keeping your previouspriorities in mind pertaining to incorporating safe electricity andplumbing systems in your house, it is important to maintain achecklist of how to perform a wiring job correctly. Here too, youwill have the option of hiring a professional; in the event thatyou are unsure about your skills in this department, it isrecommended that you invest a little in one. Room layout andknowing where to place certain elements is an important part of theconstruction process; it is recommended that you print out detailedplans of each room and place them where they can be viewed clearly.You could consider color coding certain areas such as the kitchenand bedroom in order for yourself and other construction workers tobe aware of what goes where. This process will save time and avoidconfusion. Organizing your window, door, and chimney/ventilationspaces is of primary importance, and the same color coding processcould be applied in order for you to be aware of where you need toplace them. It is important to ensure that your tiny house,especially the kitchen and bathroom areas are well-ventilated, andthat the entire house receives plenty of cross ventilation andnatural light. Window and door frames are often very expensive ifyou buy them firsthand, however you can always build your own orsource used frames which will suit your purpose. This constitutesthe basic plan pertaining to your tiny house construction process.There will be other elements to consider as you go along; howeverthese are the most important points to consider.

Chapter 2 : Important Space Saving Guide

Living tiny requires a fewtricks to ensure you are as comfortable as possible in your tinyhouse. The items you want to have, as well as anyone you arebringing with you, are things you must consider. Pets take upspace. They require a place to go to the bathroom, eat, and play.If you have a dog, then you know your dog will be outside going tothe bathroom, but for cats, you definitely need a place for thelitter box. What about the washing machine, dishwasher, and otherappliances you want? Do you have a collection of something like 400books and 4 or more tea sets? What are you going to have to leavebehind or sell because there is not enough space? The tricks inthis chapter are going to help you determine what is possible.1) Vertical Spacing: This is not anew concept, but it has certainly become a lot more important inthe last few years. The vertical spacing allows you to use everyinch of space you have, going up the walls. If you want to have ahydroponic system for growing lettuce and other vegetables, thenyou can attach one in your kitchen, using the vertical wall space.Whether you create shelves, nooks, crannies, or wall space forpictures, you can use everything that is not a window.2) Multi-storage/purpose furniture allowsyou to create storage space, while also using the furniture forother purposes. There are three different options for multi-storagefurniture: Couches are a great bed, as well as a storage area. Theright couch can be a full mattress, without the uncomfortablefeeling of a futon. You can also store items underneath the couch,like blankets, games, and clothing. This can be done with drawersor cubbies. Tables that are builtin can be used as an office,dining table, and game table. They can also be built to encompassmultiple seats. An example of a tiny house owner being creative inhis design was having a table that folded up into a wall, where thechairs also folded into the wall. One tiny house inventor created afoldable table that had the TV underneath. Another person createdstackable chairs that also worked as storage for everyday items.Pull out baskets built into furniture, stairs, and walls are alsomulti-purpose. Footstools that are baskets can be used as storageareas. There are also chairs that form one complete unit that hasstorage inside. They stack together, but the bottom chair hasstorage too. Consider vacuum sealed bags for storage in couches orunderneath beds. These bags help you eliminate the need for morespace and store items not in use each day, like blankets.3) Hanging storage space like basketsis another way for you to get your items where they need to go.Hanging baskets with plants, clothing, dishes, fruit, and much morecan be placed on the high ceiling out of your sightline, butprovide you with a way to store items. The higher the hangingoptions the better, so you can use the ceiling space too. Forexample, bike hangers allow you to store your bikes overhead. Youcould have a table that uses a winch system, where the table isstored overhead and out of the way. Kitchen utensils can be placedin baskets or buckets that are hung up. You could even have aclothing line that is run in your house, to hang your dryingclothing. Ikea is a great place to get hanging storage ideas,whether you are using shoe containers or other items.4) Wall mounted beds like Murphy beds aregreat in tiny houses. These beds fold up and can save you headspace when you are inside. There are twin and larger sizes. If youhave young children, wall mounted twin sized beds on top of eachother offers a place to sleep. When the children are awake, thebeds can make a desk. You can also have a wall mounted bed thatturns into your office. Murphy beds are still the most popular, butthere are other wall mounted beds as well. Considerincluding a desk or other feature, such as a TV on the backside ofyour bed. If wall mounted does not work, think about aslide out bed that is built underneath the flooring to slide out atnight. You also have couch conversion options.5) Under the staircase storage provides youwith numerous nooks. Staircase storage can be used for clothing,cleaning items, and the smaller nooks can house cat litter boxes,books, shoes, wine, or anything else small that you need to store.People have been pretty inventive with under staircase storage fromthe roll out counters and desks to sewing storage.6) Loft space is often essential whenyou only have vertical space to spread work with. A nook or nest onthe second floor can be an office, reading area, or your bedroom.If you use it for a bedroom, consider sinking the mattress to beflush with the floor, so you have extra head space. You can alsouse the floor space as storage, using built in areas between thefloor supports, with lift up floorboards. Even the walls in yourloft space can become storage. Some innovative individuals havecreated cat space, by using the walls for little catwalks.7) Go Digital and Paperless becausenothing is better than ensuring you have less junk and filing to doin your tiny house. You are not going to have a lot of space foryour bills and other mail laying around. You want to keep yourspace free of unnecessary items, so you have only what you trulywant in your home. 8) Hidden storage is aperfect way to hide things you dont want to see, liketrash cans.Why have a trash can in an open space? A little nook underneathyour sink or in a little hide-a-hole is far better than a trash canwhere you and others can see it. If you havent thought of variousways to hide things, then you might wish to seek a little help. Forexample, if you are using your counter, you could have a draw witha roll out board. A hole the size of your soup pot could be made init. You have cutting space, but also a place to put the veggies andother items you are cutting up. A fold out counter is anotheroption. 9) Sliding doors, cabinets, anddrawers can give you more workspace when you need it. You wonthave to contend with a pull out that might get in your way or haveto be closed for someone else to walk by. However, you may alsowant some pull outs to extend for more workspace. A combination ofboth certainly helps you gain more interior space. Barn doors foryour bathroom tend to work better than pocket doors or swingingdoors. Barn doors slide in and out, without the difficult pocketdoor contraption. As for swinging doors, they can get in the way.10) Use mirrors in your tiny house. A mirror is not just abathroom accessory so you can primp. Mirrors help make your spacelook bigger. The reflection of the mirror ensures you feel yourhome is much larger than it appears. 11) Tiny housesalso need light tones. Going with dark walls, furniture, cabinets,and anything else dark, will make your home feel smaller, evensmaller than it is. Lighter tones create a great illusion ofspaciousness. 12) Plenty of natural light and fixtures inyour home will also help brighten the space. A lanai or slidingglass door on one wall helps you see better, use less electricityduring the day, but also makes your home feel more open and bigger.Using reflective surfaces, not just mirrors, but Plexiglas, metalcountertops, and other items can also help lighten a room and makeit feel larger. 13) Pantry shelves instead of a small roomare also better. Yes, it is nice to have a walk in pantry, butliving small typically doesnt allow for this. If you do make roomfor a pantry room, then chances are youre sacrificing valuablespace. A small room, without shelves, also adds a mess to dealwith. Alternatively, figure out ways you can eat fresh foodsthat are healthier that allow you to limit your pantry storage.Pantry shelves can help you organize what you do have and save youtons of space. Consider getting adjustable pantry shelves to fitthe items you are going to buy at any given time. 14) Useyour outside space too. Some people have built decks that latch upand cover their sliding glass door. These decks are built withpulleys or winches. They go up when the tiny house is in movementand come down when the mobile tiny house is stationary. 15) Grills are possible. A deck can provide you with great outdoorspace, which can also be a place to have a built in grill. You canalso have it roll out from the inside to the outside with yourgrill. Another grill option is to build it to come up from theframe of the trailer. 16) If you have a neck on your trailer,where you build your bedroom, the underneath area can be storagefor plenty of things like bikes, scuba gear, generators, aircompressors, propane, mechanic tools, and much more. This space canliterally be anything you wish it to be. 17) Start watchingtiny house shows, there are even tiny house TV shows now. Theseshows provide you with innovations you might not have considered.Some storage options have been mentioned thus far, but its notuntil you see them visually, that you start putting pieces togetherto incorporate in your own tiny house, for example, a moveable roofor walls. Did you know it was possible to use a pulley system toincrease your ceiling height? You could also use winches. While youare restricted to 13 feet when on the road, you can have a roofthat is built over the exterior of your 8-foot 6-inch width orbuilt to go inside that space. It takes some innovation, but it canbe done. You can also have moveable walls that are on winches,powered by electricity or require two people to expand. These wallsprovide more floor space and seating than when it is closed. Forinstance, you could have a section that moves out 4 feet on oneside and 4 feet on the other. When open you have walking space andseating. When closed you have a full sized bed. 18) Utilizingthe floor is another option. One owner wanted to have a controlledwine area in his tiny house. There was a wine cooler built into thefloor of the kitchen, which could be opened by pulling up andextracting the wine. The floor feature was built in between thetrailer and the floor that was raised up to account for the wheelwells of the trailer. You could turn the floor into a bookshelfcovered in Plexiglas. It could be a storage area for clothing orother flat items as well. 19) Stationary tiny homes can bebuilt out of wood or shipping containers. If you want to livesmall, but save on costs, consider starting with a shippingcontainer for framing. You would need a welder to cut in windows,but the doors could be used to open up your container. You couldalso have a slider built in for the main door. Shipping containerhomes can be pieced together for more area too. They can also bestacked if you want to have multiple levels.20) Roofs can be made into decks, livingroofs, or used for your solar panels. A living roof, means you haveplants growing on there for edible and medicinal uses. In fact, alot of ways to save on space is to start growing what you are goingto eat and use for medicinal purposes. The reason for this isbecause you dont need a large pantry, you dont need a place formedicines, and you can always eat what you are growing.