Update 1.27.13
I cleaned up the site and got a lot of little items checked off the list this weekend. I finished cutting and prepping the wood floor for the loft, it still needs stained but it is all fitted. I covered all the light switches and receptacles unfortunately I think I messed some of the wiring up by trying to push too much in, I’ll have to save that for another day to be fixed. It cleaned up a lot though. I included a couple details I wouldn’t mind getting some feedback on, I think they are the last images. I will hopefully be cutting some tile this week! Here are some pictures.
Getting the kitchen counter ready
I have all the wood cut to size and ready to be set in the loft, it still needs stainded
I laid out some time to get a feel for what it will look like, I was going to lay concrete backerboard and stuff underneath but it will save on weight I may go a different route.
I got the place cleaned up so I just wanted to get some fresh, clean images, and I thought I'd share, not a whole ton of work updates other than a clean site
This is going to be stained a mid-darkish color, I am excited for that!
And the kitchn counter dry-fitted. It needs welded up more but that is the basic layout. The opening (where the frame sags) is the location of the stove, the sink will be centered on the far window. Cabinets will be built to infill below
Overall (the large gap on the left is for storage, there will be a sliding bookshelf in front of it. There is more sunken storage up above.
I love my lights 🙂
The shower is still ready to get some tile, hopefully I can start cutting tile this week.
An my bright and shiny toilet area 🙂
Overall
Overall, this will eventually be covered with ivy/my garden
Overall
Overall
This is what I WAS going to do for the floor, it's a pretty typical detail, to save weight I started thinking about doing it a different way though
This would save probably close to 4-5 pounds a square foot, which adds up fast. It has less thermal mass properties but I think it may be ok, does anyone have any advice on why I wouldn't do my tile floor this way?
Looking really good. I bet you will be done before me. A friend gave me a good idea on how to christen the house whenever i finish it. Smash tiny champagne bottles on the side at the open house like they christen boats! I thought it was a great idea.
I like it! I’ll race ya! 🙂
Ha ha- your on! 🙂
looks awesome! I have a tile saw; if you need one–just let me know 🙂
Awesome! I have I’ve borrowed for the time being, I really appreciate the offer, I’ll let you know if things change. Your trees look awesome!
I love it! It’s looking so homey. Crazy to look back at photos from the beginning and see how far it’s come!. Looking at your bed loft area helps me visualize how I’m doing one of the lofts in mine, and is how I came up with the idea- it’s going to be about the same height, with storage and my office up top & Rowe’s lil’ bedroom/fort underneath. Ah, you’ve inspired me once again 🙂
🙂 I am so excited to see yours come to life! If I was Rowe I think that would be the most awesome room ever! Safe travels Chica!
Have you thought about etching your mason jar lights?
Actually I have! All in good time ;-), the bulbs are just too bright to stare at through the jars, I was just going to get some of that liquid etching goop, shake it around in there a bit and see how it goes, thanks for the idea!
Your place is looking really groovy! I’m loving the concept of using welding and metal to help minimize the structural weight and visual elements into something a bit cleaner. Your house is really helping inspire my own designs, and I can’t wait to see the leafy green that’ll end up covering your wall!
I had a question about those planters, actually. With the added width due to the planters, how wide does the total trailer come out to? I’ve been wanting to add a similar component to my own designs, but I’ve been concerned that the extra girth will prevent the trailer from being “street-legal.”
Well thank you! (I’ve updated your link on the tinyhousers list BTW, I like the new location!) I actually have the planters set to not exceed the width, I mostly placed them under the trailer with just a bit sticking out, they don’t poke out any further than the windows on that side so there is no concern there.
One thing to note though is, IF you do exceed the width the only thing you have to do is go pay a small (I think its $19 here) fee to have an ‘oversized load’ and put a couple red flags on. If you get much over 9′ wide the requirements go up (follow vehicle etc.), you can look most of that stuff up for your state pretty easily.
I also thought about making these removable, since I do plan on gardening in them it seems that I could just have them be removable and I’ll just have to plan my moves around the growing seasons :). I’m so glad you like that idea, I am not one to toot my own horn but I personally think that will be one of the coolest functions of my tiny house! Good to hear from you!
Thanks for the updated listing!
As far as the gardening stuff: I *have* to assume you considered a hydroponics option for your garden, as you obviously put a great deal of thought and consideration into your designs. What turned you against that idea? I would think with all that big, beautiful outside wall-space, a vertical hydroponics garden that would produce you food would be too tempting to pass up!
I’m a gardening nut, and am always trying to find ways to make it easier and more efficient. My boyfriend’s condo balcony has been a great experimentation area, even if only the okra, basil, and morning glories really flourished. This next year we’re going to make a more sophisticated rig for it all, so hopefully we’ll be adding lettuce and more to that list!
Ha! Wrong! I didn’t consider hydroponics because I didn’t know it existed when I started this project. It has since been brought to my attention but I honestly don’t know much about it still. I only started gardening about 2 years ago and there has been A LOT learned since then. Once this project is over that is definitely where I am going with things though!
If you have any suggestions on wonderful sites I can learn more about hydroponics I would LOVE to read them! Thank you for keeping me on my toes, I am glad to have a great resource once I get to that stage! 🙂
It’s surely coming along! I really like your lights as well. Don’t forget to secure them when you move your house. 🙂 I once saw a chandelier that hung from a retractable cord that allowed you to adjust the height.
Would you mind elaborating on your choice in using the metal frame work for the cabinets and stairs?
They are completely adjustable, down to about a foot off the floor if I want :). They will definitely be secured too!
As far as the metal, I wanted to do something cool, I wasn’t quite sure what that would be but just before I got there my brother bought a house and made his own furniture (http://millernathanj.wordpress.com/), the site is a work in progress. It was the real inspiration, I love the geometry behind his design and I think it will fit my design perfectly. I used different metal mostly to save on weight but it just fit into place while using my material pallet (wood/steel/black/white).
And I wanted to weld more, cause its super cool! 🙂 That’s probably not as well thought out as you expected, in short… it just kinds happened :). Once that was the plan there was quite a bit that went into the planning and dimensioning and figuring out the specifics… but that stuff is boring. 🙂
Congrats on getting started with the home. I’ve been saving up to do it myself.
What was your reasoning behind building a covered porch on the back, versus using it for indoor living space and building a covered deck along side the house where you plan to park it?
Regarding the flooring, I don’t know if you finished flooring it completely yet, but have you looked into cork? They sell “tiles” made out of cork. It acts as a secondary insulator. You know how you wake up, don’t have any socks on, and you step on some cold tile? Cork helps eliminate that from your life. I have cork flooring samples at home. I’ll send you the url/info of the two places I got samples from, but I’m sure you can also find plenty via google.
Nevermind. I just went through your ‘common questions’ and saw you are/have put in radiant flooring. I don’t think cork would be the best option. lol
I actually considered cork a while before opting for tile. If I didn’t find such a great deal on the radiant system I definitely would have gone with cork! Thank you for the comments, I’m happy you’re saving for your own tiny! The porch only really happened because I had a dove tail on the trailer I purchased. I was looking for a 24′ flatbed and I got a 24′ flatbed with a goose-neck. The initial plan was to just cut off the dovetail, it’s a pretty massive trailer. I think if I had it to do over again I would cut down the size even more, the extra 5′ was really not necessary for the inside space. It seemed like less effort to build it up and call it a porch than it was to cut it off. and it helped reach my aesthetic that I wanted with the two colliding forms (it’s not apparent now but it will be soon!)
Lucky, lucky on the good deal for radiant flooring. That’s always a plus.
I’ll try to catch up on the posts before I ask any more questions that would already be answered.
You mention solar power in your about me page. If you already haven’t found the sites, homepower d0t com is a wealth of info. I’ve had a subscription to them for years, but a lot of their older articles are available online. backwoodshome d0t com also has good info. They occasionally touch on solar based subjects. I haven’t bought a subscription from them yet.
I look forward to the finished home.
Also, I just saw the bucketlist with Michael Reynolds. Good to see another person aware of earthships. It’s bold… Does that denote it as a priority, or have you signed up for one of the builds yet?
I originally wanted to build a nice 4000sqft earthship, but (luckily, I guess) it didn’t work out. Eventually discovered tiny homes, so now I’m trying to decide on a tiny mobile home or a tiny earthship with a huge greenhouse. I still love earthships. Have you gone to toas yet to look at the community center?
Thanks for the information on solar, I haven’t got there just yet, that’s great tho! As far as the earthships, i haven’t done much but study them through school. Life so often seems to happen and pull you in many directions. My first priority has been to get my arch license, from there I plan on bounding many different directions. I am ALMOST there. As soon as this build wraps up I pick up my testing again. I would like to make a vacation of the Toas center at some point. I have known several people that have gotten more intimately involved with earthships but alas, not me… yet!