(Part 2) Top products from r/TinyHouses

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We found 25 product mentions on r/TinyHouses. We ranked the 192 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the products ranked 21-40. You can also go back to the previous section.

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Top comments that mention products on r/TinyHouses:

u/[deleted] · 1 pointr/TinyHouses

I am in process of buying land and working on a house design. I speak only for my local area (which is, funny enough, the same county the guy plopped his tiny house in from the "Tiny" documentary). IANAL ETC ETC YMMV.

> So are some areas tougher on building code than others or is it the same across the board in the same country or at least same state/province?

In general cities are much, much less forgiving. They also tend to have much more in terms of regulations and rules, as well as fees. Rural counties tend to err on the side of "leave me alone" and are more forgiving. However, the least populated county in Colorado (San Juan) is near Telluride which is full of rich people, and some of the most restrictive county wide regulations that I have seen. The population of San Juan is 690 which makes 2 people per square mile.

> The goal here is to minimize total expenditure.

Then you should read The Earthbag Building because this is literally clay, sand, bags and muscle. Now my county has specific regulations about thickness and such but is one of the few counties I researched which did not have a minimum size for any building and did allow such designs. To get a certificate of occupancy is pretty simple, you need to have sanitation, water, electric, insulation done. That's not very hard to get to cheaply, especially if your goal is to just get that COS.

> Are there legal requirements regarding what sort of professional background or professional designation that you must have to be able to design a building? For example, do you need to be a licensed architect or a professional civil engineer with a stamp to do this work? Would architectural plans need to be approved by a professional or can you approve your own design? Hiring an architect or a civil consulting firm costs money. Easily couple grand each or more.

In my experience you will probably need any unusual design stamped by a PE. However, if you present plans to a PE it will be relatively cheap to have them stamp it.

In some cases your county building department will be pretty good and help you a lot because you're doing something really interesting, and quite frankly their job is boring as shit otherwise. I am lucky that my county is more on this side, and I expect to have very few problems once I finish getting land and get serious about permits and building design.

> What about various aspects of the construction work? Are there certain aspects of the physical home construction process that must be done by a licensed professional as a matter of law? For example, electrical work etc? Again, hiring an electrician costs money. If you can buy parts and do it yourself it costs less.

It is extremely difficult (I can't say impossible, but it's damn close) for a county to force you to hire a licensed contractor. In fact it would be the exception. Generally if you do the work yourself you've probably tried to adhere to the code more than most contractors anyway, and often inspections will be easier on the owner-builder than on the contractor. Obviously there are always exceptions.

If you follow the code, and you follow permit procedures, they will have a hard time saying no. If you run in to this situation it is often cheaper to take your plans to a PE and get them stamped.

Also, don't be afraid of doing electrical or plumbing yourself. It isn't that hard, and with electrical you just need to make sure the power is off. Otherwise it's all easy.

> Suppose the area doesn't have water and sewage and a septic tank and water well needs to be build and drilled respectively. I suppose a septic system will have health and safety implications and so perhaps there are local authorities that oversee this and are extra stringent on approved methods of septic tank construction?

Counties will typically have to follow state law at the minimum. In my county it is possible to do a number of crazy sanitation things but they all come with restrictions. For instance if I wanted an outhouse I could not get a well permit. Well permitting is done at the state level, but the county will not allow a well to be drilled with an outhouse. My county will allow compost toilets, they will allow other interesting situations, but quite frankly a septic system is a lot easier to deal with than a lot of the other restrictions.

You do run in to offsets and concerns with neighbors when you put in a leech field and drill a well. This just is what it is and you can't do much to skirt it.

> What other info regarding doing-it-by-the-book can you add on the subject of design & construction?

Read all of the land use regulations and county building codes you can before buying land.

Read lots of different books about design, including design books that may make you uncomfortable.

Try to design solar heating and the power of the sun in to your house as much as you can. This will save you a ton in heating costs.

u/Behemoth_haftaa · 6 pointsr/TinyHouses

>What's are some good frugal tips for building a tiny home?

Tiny Houses Built with Recycled Materials: Inspiration for Constructing Tiny Homes Using Salvaged and Reclaimed Supplies
Ryan Mitchell
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01DMQ0TEK/ref=kinw_myk_ro_title

>salvaging old campers for their propane fridge/stove combo.

Personally I am forgoing RV appliances completely. If you choose to use solar power you will have to wire your home for DC and AC electric, and to use less watts choose new appliances after 1993. Once household appliance manufacturers had to disclose how much energy an appliance consumed all of a sudden the appliance use of electric was cut in half.

While I am building I plan to use a friend's yurt to live in and have an outdoor kitchen/bathroom. So possibly you could use the combo for a while after the Tiny house is built until you have the interior finished!

Keep in mind RV appliances were designed and built for a couple weeks of use a year and regular household appliances were designed to be used 52 days a year.


My two favorite youtube channels are these :

https://youtu.be/oK_MDCPFYpA he's very informative but doesn't overwhelm you.

This guy is far more detailed, he even made his own windows: https://www.youtube.com/user/danny16p/videos peanut is the cutest urbane cultured dog ever, Dan would be much more enjoyable if he didn't drink booze so much. A slimmer waist line on him he'd be buff.

In regards to buying salvaged products you don't have to salvage the material yourself: https://www.habitat.org/donate/?link=271&source_code=DHQOW1407W1GGR&iq_id=61484080-VQ6-81398378715-VQ16-c&gclid=CLiKvvmqmtECFcq2wAodXhMFAQ habitat for humanity resell store in your state, find it.



Tiny House Design & Construction Guide Paperback – Unabridged, May 1, 2016
by Dan S Louche
https://www.amazon.com/Tiny-House-Design-Construction-Guide/dp/0997288701/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1483046655&sr=8-1&keywords=tiny+house+construction+and+design thats the best book as a primer. get it.


Tiny House Floor Plans: Over 200 Interior Designs for Tiny Houses Paperback – February 22, 2012
by Michael Janzen
https://www.amazon.com/Tiny-House-Design-Construction-Guide/dp/0997288701/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1483046655&sr=8-1&keywords=tiny+house+construction+and+design I found the page which the floor plan outlines and the cut outs for furniture, printed them on transparencies and have it taped to my desk. If you are planning to use salvage materials have 4 prototypes planned to the hilt and have those plans in sketchup http://www.sketchup.com/download have two alternative plans that are very vague and not built to use as parts of the building you can swap out with the other 4 plans.

Most states require you to have a primary dwelling started (think septic tank and foundation for a house) then your Tiny house can be your accessory dwelling.

For wiring which might complicated if you choose to use solar: http://thetinylife.com/shockingly-simple-electrical-for-tiny-houses/ that will help.

Then another of Ryan Mitchell's books: http://thetinylife.com/cracking-the-code-updated/


I hope this helps. setting aside 2 years to plan and research before starting would be an excellent idea.

u/WorstAmerican · 3 pointsr/TinyHouses

Hello, and welcome!

There are a ton of floorplans and pictures of tiny houses, the tiny house blog (linked on the sidebar) is a great resource.

Unlike the house you posted, most tiny houses are on trailers. I don't think the documentary went into this, but the reason for it is due to legality; most places have zoning laws that prohibit permanent dwellings under a certain size. By being on a trailer, a tiny house is technically an RV and can bypass these restrictions (and property taxes!) Plus, they're mobile, if traveling is your thing.

By far, the most common style for tiny houses is the craftsman look, as popularized by Jay Shafer of Four Lights Tiny Houses. My personal favorite designs are the Minim House and hOMe.

If you're interested in a great memoir on downsizing, check out the recently released The Big Tiny by the amazing Dee Williams.

u/spicyhappy · 6 pointsr/TinyHouses

Thanks for the thoughts! I read a great book with space requirements for comfortable living called Residential Interior Design so all walkways and entrances are at least 2.5 feet. Your comment made me think that I could maximize the bedroom entrance with a 3 panel slide door, or having a wall in half the space so entrance can be more like 3.5 feet. There's some storage underneath too and I'm scratching my head at how to make that easily accessible.

I think the closed off bedroom is a strong requirement. Maybe there's still someway to make the top area still useful? There is 5-6 feet height in that area so I'm guessing it would be comfortable as a gaming/movie/computer den. I could have a small couch up there too.

Was thinking the dining tables can be flipped up or down depending whether you needed them. Even when they are up, there is 3' 9" of space because my kitchen counters are thinner than standard ones. The reason the dining tables are against the wall is so that I could have sliding windows that open with tables on the other side. Tiny House Basics has a design like this: https://www.tinyhousebasics.com/our-story/

Really appreciate the feedback.

​

u/BuckRafferty · 14 pointsr/TinyHouses

Timber framing is not the same as 2x4 construction, but a timber frame may use 2x4's to fill in the gaps. The main difference between a timber frame and "stick-built" (2x4) structure is that the timbers are the main source of structure or "skeleton" of the building. Once the frame is built, you just have to fill in the empty spaces. You can do this with dimensional lumber like 2x4's, or you can do cordwood, which is cement and logs (looks amazing). There are a number of other option for filling in a timber frame that your book probably covers. Timber-framing is a bit more involved and physically demanding than 2x4/stick built framing, but it is also much more beautiful and will last much longer. I've timber-framed a few small cabins and I can tell you first hand that it is an incredibly fun and satisfying way to build.

​

Edit: this is also a great resource https://www.amazon.com/Timber-Frame-Construction-Post-Beam/dp/0882663658/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=timber+frame&qid=1563287101&s=gateway&sr=8-3

u/mrptb2 · 3 pointsr/TinyHouses

I can't tell what the relationship is between the first photo and the second are. Two instances of the same type of space? What are the dimensions? Is there a bed? Is there a heat source (depending on what climate you live in)?

My wife, while looking over my shoulder said, "It's nice." She likes to browse floor plans online, so that's high praise. :-)

My suggestion would be to try to draw this in SketchUp (it's free). It'll help you flesh out more details of your design because you're working in all 3 dimensions. I'd be happy to give you better feedback on a SketchUp drawing.

Two books I'd recommend before taking on such a project: Homing Instinct and Building for a Lifetime. The first book gives a good grounding on what to build and the broad strokes of what you would want to consider. The second gives an idea about sizing spaces and accessibility.

I drew my house and built it from a SketchUp drawing. I acted as the general contractor and did most of the work myself. It can be done.

u/WhiskyTangoSailor · 1 pointr/TinyHouses

I'm buying my 40 acres in the San Luis valley (Colorado Rocky Mountains). Super dry, super cold in winter but my plan would work in your region too. We're working in the oil fields from February until June to be able to afford supplies, well and PV system.

June we move onto the land for summer to live in a yurt while we begin excavation on our earth home. It'll be a bit earth ship, some straw, some cobb and a bunch of windows. Read as much as you can, $500 in books will save you thousands later. The design I've settled on is a hybrid design but mostly based on passive annual heat storage. http://www.motherearthnews.com/renewable-energy/passive-annual-heat-storage-zmaz85zsie.aspx#axzz3IF3b3PD6

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0615905889/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1417051788&sr=1-1&pi=AC_SY200_QL40

This book is a must but Google cord wood building, straw bale building, cobb building, earth homes, underground greenhouses, rainwater harvesting, permaculture and anything else you can get your hands on to read. I've been buying a book every pay day for the last year and am quite proud of my natural building library I've collected and as a result I have a very specific plan custom tailored to my property and lifestyle.

u/phtcmp · 5 pointsr/TinyHouses

Dont know the background/skill level/target audience you are looking for, but I found this pretty invaluable over the years:
Complete Do It Yourself Manual
It’s a pretty good walk through on all home systems in general. May be more basic than what you are looking for. I’ve got some pretty ancient books on carpentry and framing as well, the general concepts have changed little.

u/SandD0llar · 2 pointsr/TinyHouses

The reason for that is the length of counters in a kitchen aren't standardized, and placements of the pipes vary from home to home. Some of them are centered. Some aren't. And to complicate matters, sinks come in different sizes and flavors. So you won't typically find a pre-drilled slab of granite. Certainly not with a sink already included. You might luck out at a ReStore type business though.

> I can't even find a normal (noncommercial) stand-alone sink that doesn't require a countertop.

I'm thinking that, if you want to avoid having to find someone to drill a counter, your best bet is to find a sink that's the width of a counter depth. Farm apron sinks (as long as the sink is supported from underneath, this style should be okay without counters) may be the way to go. That way you can just get two rectangular countertops of whatever dimensions you need, and place them on either side of the sink without needing to worry about cutting.

Like this or this, for example. It'll take a little shopping to find one in stainless steel that you like, but I'm sure there are a few out there.

Disclaimer: I'm not positive these exact sinks are meant to not have counters support, but I know there are sinks that look similar.

u/SirSmalls · 2 pointsr/TinyHouses

This is my favorite book about self-sufficiency. Not really about Tiny Houses, but just awesome.

u/magenta_placenta · 2 pointsr/TinyHouses

For an idea of land, check out http://www.landwatch.com/

I browse that site quite often looking for land here in Oregon. There is a lot of "cheap" land in Southern/Central Oregon. Seems to always be many listings for Christmas Valley area and land in Klamath county.

For example, here is 1.5 acres for $2,500 in Klamath county, http://www.landwatch.com/Klamath-County-Oregon-Homesite-for-sale/pid/204457419 This is just a random cheap listing I pulled up. This is raw land, however, in which case there is usually not power, water, septic/sewer, so those would be other costs, which may not really be feasible. You really need to do your homework when buying land for living on.

One thing I would really recommend is buying this book, Finding & Buying Your Place in the Country http://www.amazon.com/books/dp/0793141095

It seems to pretty much be the bible, even though the latest edition is 13 years old. I bought one over a month ago but tracking info has it in Alaska ??? I don't expect it to show up and I'm waiting for the seller to either refund my $ or send me another copy.

Also keep in mind Oregon has mountains to high desert so you should really figure out where you want to live first, then start researching land in that area. There is a huge difference between living in western and eastern Oregon. As an example, you could go from 10" of rain a year to 150".

u/ellisdroid · 18 pointsr/TinyHouses

I would sugest geting the 50 dollar and up underground house book by Mike Oehler. It goes into how to safely build a nice underground house. Paul Wheaton has some videos of a few houses built this way.

u/torokunai · 2 pointsr/TinyHouses

computers are my life so this is in my plans (nothing on paper yet, alas)

I read this:
https://www.amazon.com/Programmer-Bruce-Jackson/dp/0345290798
at an impressionable age (he has a terminal in the back of his truck)

u/Yangel · 2 pointsr/TinyHouses

Incinerating toilets often have an odor.
http://www.amazon.com/Composting-Toilet-System-Book-Pollution-Preven/dp/0966678303

You should find this interesting. :)

u/puck2 · 1 pointr/TinyHouses

And if it is trying to replicate mobile homes, I say it is way behind. First step... read Wheel Estate.

u/sometimesineedhelp · 8 pointsr/TinyHouses

I lived in a little potting shed for a year, it was chilly, but fine. All you need is a 5 gallon bucket and one of these: http://www.amazon.com/Emergency-Bucket-Portable-Toilet-Standard/dp/B004KLY5CE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1414046370&sr=8-1&keywords=bucket+toilets and a 5 gallon water container that you fill up at the spigot every day or so http://www.amazon.com/Coleman-Water-Carrier-5-Gallon-Blue/dp/B00168PI4S/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1414046409&sr=8-5&keywords=5+gallon+water+bottle a bowl and a sponge and you're set up for a make-shift sink/ sponge bath...

Haven't you ever been camping? If you are homeless and broke and someone is offering you a warm, dry place to sleep why are you wasting time freaking out about building a loft? That looks like about 300 sq feet of space there and you'll be able to set up a basic "camp kitchen" and sleeping area NO PROBLEM. Get a WARM sleeping bag and a mattress to insulate you from the floor because baseboard heat is going to be EXPENSIVE. If you can't shower at the gym or at a friend's place, get a solar shower and a big pot and heat water on a camp stove and fill the bag that way. You need a place to prepare food: camp stove/microwave/folding table/minimal cooking and eating utensils. A place to sleep: floor mat/warm sleeping bag a place to bathe: a friend's place or a camp shower setup. A place to toilet: fast food restaurants/a friend's house/a camp toilet setup. A place to store clothes: fold neatly on the floor/get some cheap shelves like thishttp://www.amazon.com/Safco-Products-Storage-Black-5279BL/dp/B000789RSQ/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1414046914&sr=8-2&keywords=grid+shelves and that's it! Anything else is extra and unnecessary

u/greenhomesteader · 5 pointsr/TinyHouses

I'm assuming your in the US.

AC = alternating current (120V or 240V), current moves forward and backward really fast in a sine wave pattern
DC = direct current (12V, 18V, or 24V) current only moves forward

P = power
V = Voltage
I = Current
R = Resistance

P=IV and V=IR
For ac there is a power factor of 0.7 for power calculation.

A light bulb example:

60W bulb @ 120VAC --> 60=I1200.7 --> I = 0.5A/0.7 = 0.72A
60W bulb @ 24VDC --> 60=I*24 --> I = 2.5A

Your breakers are rated in amps and voltage. A 600V, 15A breaker could handle (20) bulbs @ 120VAC, but only (6) at 24VDC.

It's a little more complicated than that, but you get the gist. Also, lower voltage means you have more losses for the same resistance. This can be minimized with small runs (easy for a tiny house) and over sized wires. High amps means more heat generated which means thicker wires to lower the resistance.

If you do decide to do the electric yourself, go to a book store or home depot or the like and ask for the electricians Ugly Book. It's a simplified easier to understand version of the National Electrical Code (NEC) code.

http://www.amazon.com/Uglys-Electrical-References-2011-George/dp/0763790990/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1321844962&sr=8-1