Tiny Houses

[sleepy]

In a society of escalating real estate prices, often out of reach of the people, I am fascinated by this development. A return to shanty living. There is still land available at fairly low cost. This article has some of the strangest designs. Not my favorites.

https://www.yahoo.com/makers/a-look...33082166/photo-loft-living-1438114138604.html

My Tiny House of choice would be this (with a danish blue and alabaster white paint job):

http://www.tuffshed.com/product/premier-pro-ranch-weekender/

or this:

http://www.tuffshed.com/product/premier-pro-barn-weekender/

In my area, one of these would cost about $10,000 U.S.D.
There was a lot available for $8,000. But of course somebody snatched that one, probably to turn it around for $100,000. Stupid bitches.

A $10,000 lot and a $10,000 building @ 1% property tax comes to $200 a year rent to the government, but with no landlord hanging around my neck.
And that would be with doable insulation for another $5,000. And that these tiny houses can be customized, else add another one on the same lot for more rooms.

Tiny houses also have less upkeep/maintenance which is handy when we are old.

 

[sleepy]

Yeah. No. This is the one I like. But it's been discontinued. But probably easy to duplicate and improve on:

 

[Shooby Doo]

I live in a pretty small house that I bought fairly cheap and fixed up about 9 years ago. It's probably around 800 sq ft and on an acre of land out in the woods - I think it would be considered a "bungalow". My monthly payments are much less than I ever paid when renting. After being here I never want to go back to a subdivision or city-living.

It's not one of these brand-new enviro-houses like you mention here, but it's still pretty simple living that I can comfortably do without loads of cash. I think these kinds of things are more accessible than people realize.

 

[Isaac Sauvage]

that sounds awesome, shooby doo. how are you set for electrical, plumbing, cable / internet?


i love the idea of owning a tiny house-- maybe one that's portable, too. there are of course a million different ways to build them. my preference would be to make one out of recycled materials, altho of course that would probably be a permanent installation.

a big unknown to me would be where to build for purposes of utility logistics, taxes, security, zoning permissions, etc. i don't know much about communes and artist communities, but it seems safer to me to be part of a group if you can't be anonymous in the wilderness. you never know what crazy shit people are going to pull, so i would definitely not want my tiny home to be conspicuous.

maybe in some camping grounds there are deals for long-term occupancy. that could be a pretty pleasant way to spend time around the country in a portable tiny home.

 

[Shooby Doo]

that sounds awesome, shooby doo. how are you set for electrical, plumbing, cable / internet?

I'm wired to the local electrical and phone (I have a few neighbors around me as well), and have a well pump that feeds my water, which has it's positives & negatives - it's the best tasting spring water, but is pretty hard on my hot water heater, and it will be pretty expensive to fix or replace when/if it goes bad. I have a propane tank for heating that I fill about once a year. I get 3 mpbs DSL through my phone line, and have never had pay TV service. The worst is yard upkeep, it takes me about an hour to cut the yard.

Heating and cooling is pretty cheap - we've been in the 90's the last 2 months and I was surprised that my most recent electric bill was only $96, and that's keeping it cold inside... sometimes I get too cold and have to turn it off.

 

[sleepy]

Hey Shooby. Are you a musician? The isolation would be a help.

I've thought about living near a river where I could use a waterwheel to power a generator for electricity. And maybe linking 10 or 20 alternators from an auto junkyard to generate the power.

The Internet is a challenge in the backwoods. My Sister and her husband have a lakehouse in Arkansas and they can't get it there. Only satellite ISP is claimed to be available, but the local outlet can't manage to get it to work. So when they are staying there, she only has iffy mobile service with text messaging, limited to something like 143 characters per message.

 

[sleepy]

There was a Yahoo! story several months ago about a portable tiny house that was built on a tractor-trailer truck bed. But the house itself was a lot like the ones in the article. Not like a camper.

 

[sleepy]

Shooby. Your surroundings remind me of Pennsylvania.

 

[Isaac Sauvage]

I'm wired to the local electrical and phone (I have a few neighbors around me as well), and have a well pump that feeds my water, which has it's positives & negatives - it's the best tasting spring water, but is pretty hard on my hot water heater, and it will be pretty expensive to fix or replace when/if it goes bad. I have a propane tank for heating that I fill about once a year. I get 3 mpbs DSL through my phone line, and have never had pay TV service. The worst is yard upkeep, it takes me about an hour to cut the yard.

Heating and cooling is pretty cheap - we've been in the 90's the last 2 months and I was surprised that my most recent electric bill was only $96, and that's keeping it cold inside... sometimes I get too cold and have to turn it off.

thanks, interesting. would distilling the water help with the spring water issue?

The Internet is a challenge in the backwoods. My Sister and her husband have a lakehouse in Arkansas and they can't get it there. Only satellite ISP is claimed to be available, but the local outlet can't manage to get it to work. So when they are staying there, she only has iffy mobile service with text messaging, limited to something like 143 characters per message.

i wonder why the satellite ISP doesn't work. i thought all you had to worry about was being able to get clear reception.


anyway, being off the grid and self-sustaining would definitely be my ideal. i think living in civilisation is going to get a lot tougher in the years ahead, altho that's another story of course.

 

[sleepy]

Maybe it's the local B.S.? My Brother-in-Law may be a guitarist. All I know is that the outlet can't manage to achieve reception from their lake house rooftop.

And about waterwheels. Somebody could use a wide waterwheel mounted to a pier or on floating pontoons just off a shoreline with one-way triangular scoops and have it power a flywheel for consistency. The flywheel would power the generator. There has been investigation of the use of wave power, though that has always been on the basis of up-and-down wave action. Not rotation.

And I seem to remember large updrafts occurring in tall farm silos. If the drafts are reliable, a turbine rotor placed in a silo could also provide generator power.

 

[Shooby Doo]

Hey Shooby. Are you a musician? The isolation would be a help.

I'm a harmonica junkie and jam out daily. I do have a few neighbors on surrounding lots... the guy across the street has who-knows-how-many acres and his own private lake. Overall it's very quiet.

Shooby. Your surroundings remind me of Pennsylvania.

Never been to Pennsylvania. I'm actually about 30 miles from Atlanta

The Internet is a challenge in the backwoods. My Sister and her husband have a lakehouse in Arkansas and they can't get it there. Only satellite ISP is claimed to be available, but the local outlet can't manage to get it to work. So when they are staying there, she only has iffy mobile service with text messaging, limited to something like 143 characters per message.

Yeah, my parents retired up in the Appalachians and they had a hard time getting internet service, but it's gotten better now. But the mobile service is awful. I have to turn off my phone when I visit because it'll drain the battery constantly looking for a signal.

There was a Yahoo! story several months ago about a portable tiny house that was built on a tractor-trailer truck bed. But the house itself was a lot like the ones in the article. Not like a camper.

I've seen those... it isn't classified as a normal home so it doesn't have to meet all the building codes & certificates, and when you get tired of where you're living you can just move it.

There are also homes being built out of giant storage containers (lots of pictures here): http://imgur.com/a/qF25a/layout/grid

thanks, interesting. would distilling the water help with the spring water issue?

I have no idea, or how to even go about doing that. I was told that it's because all the minerals in the water are harder on a water heater than treated water and you just have to deal with it. Luckily I just have one of the smaller low-boy heaters, and I'm considering one of those heat-as-you-go wall elements when my current one goes bad. I think it would be OK in my small house.

 

[Coil_Smoke]

400 Square Feet of Comfort and Charm

Last Christmas season I responded to this offer for a Williams Lady Luck Pinball machine.
http://www.pinballnirvana.com/forums/showthread.php?t=12166
I met with Robert and wife and bought the machine. He has built a 400 Sq.Ft. home in South Carolina. His home was warm and inviting. His main entrance opens into his living and I think dining area. That is about 1/3 of the house. On the left, through large French doors, was their bedroom's 1/3 of the floor plan. To the right was the kitchen and i'm guessing a bathroom. That adds up to a very nice, not at all cramped place to live. It was a cold night and the place seemed well insulated and tight. The rural location and out building with fully working Soccer Pinball machine make for a fine place to live.

 

[Goalisoul]

Last Christmas season I responded to this offer for a Williams Lady Luck Pinball machine.
http://www.pinballnirvana.com/forums/showthread.php?t=12166
I met with Robert and wife and bought the machine. He has built a 400 Sq.Ft. home in South Carolina. His home was warm and inviting. His main entrance opens into his living and I think dining area. That is about 1/3 of the house. On the left, through large French doors, was their bedroom's 1/3 of the floor plan. To the right was the kitchen and i'm guessing a bathroom. That adds up to a very nice, not at all cramped place to live. It was a cold night and the place seemed well insulated and tight. The rural location and out building with fully working Soccer Pinball machine make for a fine place to live.

Hey Keith good to hear from you again. I got your email about the back glass reproduction site. I'll have to chase that one down when I get home, I'm at work right now. As for the tiny house I am glad you like our place in South Carolina so much. We love it and building it was the best decision we have made in a long time. To those of you considering it here's a little background on it.

My girl and I bought 4 1/2 acres out in the country and I built a 420 sqft cabin on it that we live in full time. We have a well, power and a 10mb a second internet connection. I cut down some of the cedar trees on the property and had them cut into lumber and used it in the construction of the cabin. As of now we have approximately $40k in it not including the land but furniture and appliances are included in that. We use propane for heat and as Keith said, it is plenty warm. For now we use two window units for air but will install central sometime this winter when we can get a unit on close out. Here are a couple of pictures of it as it stands now.

 

[Goalisoul]

Actually this is a more recent picture of the front now, I took this picture just the other day. The best thing of all is it is all paid for because we did it as we could afford it out of our pockets, no mortgage. It took 2 years but we own it free and clear.

 

[Coil_Smoke]

Right, 420 Square Feet...How could I forget a number like that ?

 

[StevOz]

Nice, really this is a case of less is more, it's insane here, with mini empty hotel like residences all around, though with property prices here running from $800 to $4000 per square metre...that's the way they roll, most likely negative gear and right it off against any tax they should be paying...

 

[sleepy]

Yeah Stev. Negative real estate for tax write-offs is widespread here too. The idiots snap up the low priced lots and then write-off the expenditure. And then sell it in a couple of years for 10x what they paid for it. It's disgusting.

And 4 1/2 acres sounds like land for food to me. I'd love to be eating from the garden. Best potatoes I've ever had were from the garden with no fertilizer. Just plain soil.

How far away is the nearest store or supermarket to you? The last time I visited my relations in Pennsylvania, the gas station and mini-mart was just down the road, and the nearest supermarket was about 5 miles/km away. In the Summer. And the produce section at the supermarket was horrible with corn showing smut and piled high. But the locals weren't buying it, and why should they? Many folks in the country have fresh quality because they grow their own.

 

[StevOz]

Either way to me less is more and I'd settle in one of these..

http://inhabitat.com/a-10k-tiny-house-3d-printed-in-24-hours/

 

[pinballfan1]

I like the idea of tiny houses, though I've never lived in one. I assume they're less expensive then regular houses. The idea of a mobile home seems cool, cuz I can move to wherever I want, without having to get a new home. I'd probably move to a secluded, quiet area. But I dunno what the laws are on that. Can we take a tiny house anywhere, like in the woods, and live there?

 

[Isaac Sauvage]

my sense is that most tiny houses are built for and intended for use in or close to residential areas, i.e. close to municipal water, electricity, sewage, etc.

those who want to live completely off the grid tend to build more custom situations.

just my perception.

 

[pinballdaveh]

Tiny houses don't leave much room for pinball machines.

 

[Coil_Smoke]

Tiny houses don't leave much room for pinball machines.

The above mentioned "Robert" keeps his pinballs in the barn. This is less then ideal storage conditions. The 'Lady Luck' machine I retrieved from his barn still had all it's back glass paint...in a pile of chips sandwiched between the glass and light box panel that is.

 

[Isaac Sauvage]

Tiny houses don't leave much room for pinball machines.

neither does a negligee, but you don't see me playing in one of those now, do you?

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/d8/39/1b/d8391bd529c2471744e015affd8b216a.jpg