Tiny Lights

The LED light fixtures for our tiny house arrived today.  They are Gold Stars GW21500 steel LED RV reading lights, made in China.  They were sourced from a reputable seller on eBay.  Although it is too early to tell whether these light hold up to the rigors of tiny living, they do have the characteristics that are important to me.  They are fairly cheap too, so they will not break the bank if they have to be replaced over time.

We went with LED bulbs because our goal is to run the tiny house on solar power.  LED bulbs are better suited for low-voltage systems than traditional incandescent bulbs.  Each has a switch so they can be individually controlled to conserve power.

These lights feature replaceable MR16 LED bulbs.  In many of the LED fixtures on the market the bulbs are sealed making them essentially disposibles.  Personally I cannot see going that route.

We prefer to pre-wire the house with permanent fixtures rather than relying on candles, lanterns, or table lamps.  These lights are small will fit out of the way yet be accessible where direct light is required.  Lights will be installed at either end of the sofa and bed, over the table, above the kitchen counter, and so on.

Some tiny houses use light strips.  While this is attractive to some, I prefer the swivel style spotlight fixtures.  They are advertised as RV reading lights.  If you have ever spent time on an RV or boat with swivel lights, you can appreciate their advantages in small spaces.  Each fixture can be directed downward to illuminate a specific task, such as reading a book, preparing a meal, or starting the wood stove.  Turned upward, in unison they create a soft yet broad effect throughout the room.

Each bulb uses just 3.1 watts, provides 190 lumens, adjusts up and down, and rotates 360 degrees.  We intend to install ten (10) throughout the tiny house at specific stations.

Use of an Existing Shed Versus New Construction

One of the first decisions when constructing a tiny house is whether to convert an existing building or to construct your house from scratch.  If time and cost are not of concern, new construction is probably the way to go.  Building from scratch gives you complete creative control, and ensures that your final result meets all of your requirements.  I was lucky to have been given a small utility shed as a starting point.  Using a shed not only saves money, but it shifts the focus to other aspects of the house.  Instead of spending limited time and money on the sub-floor, walls, and roof, I can direct those resources into new features.  What are the main drawbacks from converting an existing shed?  How do you evaluate whether a shed is suitable?

The first consideration should be the overall condition of the shed.  How much renovation are you willing to endure.  In my case, the building is nearly 15 years old, but has been properly maintained.  There are no signs of wood-boring insects or rot.  There is minor evidence of a leaky roof.  This was caught early, so replacing the roofing, less than a day's job for two people, will quickly remedy the defect.

Another major concern is ceiling height.  With a 10-foot peak, the ceiling in my shed is adequate.  The gamble style roof offers a lot of headroom.  Some rooflines are not as accommodating.  If you plan to incorporate a loft, then you need sufficient room to move around in the loft, as well as headroom below it.  How much height you need depends on how tall you are, whether you need to stand in that space, and whether sitting is sufficient.  Lofts in some tiny houses allow the occupant only to crawl.  That is too confining for my taste.  I am shooting for a loft at about six feet above the floor.  This will leave four feet in the loft for sitting upright.  The space beneath the loft will be reserved for sofa sitting, a coat closet, and other storage, so the short ceiling there is acceptable.

Floor construction should be evaluated.  Using an existing shed may not permit you to insulate the floor as easily.  If I were building from scratch, I would probably use floor joists that are larger than the 2x4s that were used in the construction of my shed.  For now I will overlook this shortcoming.  When complete, if the tiny house is unbearably cold in the winter, then I may try to jack it up and insulate from below.  For now, the floor is in good condition and will work.

Consider also the construction of the walls too.  The studs, the vertical boards that frame the walls, should be at least of 2x4 lumber, spaced on 16-inch centers, in my opinion.  Any smaller lumber, or greater spacing, and the walls will be weaker.  Inadequate walls can complicate the installation of windows and doors.  If you build from the ground up, you may even chose to use the larger 2x6 lumber which would permit greater insulation in the walls.  Additional bracing can be added to strengthen walls and roofs.

Finally, for what it's worth, I enjoy the constraint that an existing building offers.  Had I started with nothing, I may have been tempted to increase the overall footprint of the dwelling from 10x12, to 12x16, to 16x20, and so on.  Using an existing shed forces me to keep it small.  It also promotes the idea of re-purposing old materials.  This shed, which could easily have been torn down after a few years of neglect, will now get a facelift.  As a tiny house, this old shed will have a new lease on life and play a tiny role in the growing tiny house movement.

 

Building a tiny house lets you learn basic construction.

The rafters are connected by gussets.  This gusset has a horizontal collar tie.

Floor Planner

Another invaluable tool for designing a tiny house is floor planner.  Floor planner is a web site that lets you design floor plans and view your rooms in either 2D or 3D.  You can draw walls, add door and windows, and change colors.  You can search their database of furniture and furnishings to add to your drawing, and resize items to your dimensions.  Over several months I was able to perfect my design before starting construction--a big time and money saver.  And the first project on floor planner is absolutely free.  Great software!

"Mark On Call" Floor Plan Designer for iPhone

One of the most difficult aspects of building a tiny house is selecting a floor plan.  As in any dwelling, there are simply too many objects competing for limited floorspace.  The complexity is greater in a smaller home.  Fortunately there is an application for the iPhone and iPad called Mark On Call that allows you to quickly create and modify home designs on your mobile device.  I used Mark On Call to create more than a dozen drawings before hammering a single nail, and surely saved many hours had I chosen instead to use pencil and paper.  It is perfect for capturing ideas as they come to you, and for making better use idle time.  For example, I enjoy playing around with tiny house layouts at bedtime.  You can set room dimensions, zoom in and out, and click to add, resize, and rotate furniture.  For $4.99, Mark On Call is possibly the best money spent for the tiny house builder.

Decision to Convert Utility Shed into Tiny House

After lurking on several tiny house blogs, and browsing hundreds of photographs, I have decided to take the first real steps to build a tiny house.  Actually, I am going to convert the utility shed shown above into a fancy weekend retreat for my wife and I, our children, or some other lucky guests.  Many hours this cold winter were spent selecting the essential features and putting together a floor plan.  I am not likely to give up my conventional home yet.  Rather I simply enjoy the puzzle-solving challenge of fitting the basics into one tight package.  My years living aboard a sailboat in my youth may have something to do with this.  So does my desire to build something with my kids.  Who knows, maybe some day they will build a tiny house of their own.  I am convinced that tiny houses will play an important role in a more prosperous and sustainable lifestyle for generations to come.