The Move! And some pics!

The Tiny House moved to it's new home last month.  It was a slightly nerve-wracking drive as my 20 year old Dodge Ram 1500 was probably a bit overloaded.  But Ole Green Beauty got it done without issue.

A friend chided me for neglecting this blog and for not posting more pics in so long!  So here are some shots shortly before my mother moved in.  Still a few bits of trim I need to install (and random other odds and ends) - but let's call it 99.9% finished.

Well, that was a years worth of weekends of evenings.  Guess it's time for the next project.

The stats and details:
- Just under 20' long, and about 2.5 tons.
- Foundation is a 16' car hauling trailer I modified (a lot).
- A little better than R28 insulation all around.
- Furnace, range, and on-demand hot water heater are all propane.
- Everything else is electric, and is setup to receive solar panels (not yet installed).  Right now it's running on one 30 amp cord (overkill!).  An additional 30 amp breaker is there for when it's time to roll in the portable A/C unit.  Though it all runs well enough on just one.
- Rain/snow water collection and filtration system with a storage tank, which is all setup to work even in the freezing winter.  Alternatively there is also a standard garden hose inlet.
- Full size fridge, range, and kitchen sink!
- Shower, separate bathroom sink and composting toilet (Nature's Head).  Some day I'll finish the Japanese style soaking tub...
- Split stairs with built in storage (some hidden!).
- Fancy outlets that include USB charging ports.
- 12 LED lights that draw about 11w each, with the bedroom (loft) and living area lights on dimmers cause they are super freakin' bright.

- And of course a 42" TV (content delivered wirelessly via Amazon Fire TV and HD Antenna right now).

 

October Update - flooring, furnace, stairs.

Just a quick update today.  Lots going on this month.  I hope to have this thing nearly done by November!  That might not include the stairs and cabinets - I haven't decided between buying the cabinets or making them.  It's going to be labor intensive.

I finished the gas line installation, and fired up the Dickinson propane stove for the first time on one of the first cool days we had last week.  Man, this thing cranks out the heat!  After running it for less than an hour, I had to shut it off before I melted.  Honestly, if the plan wasn't to run this thing off-grid - a small electric heater would it all it needs and easily heats up the space (and again, only half the insulation is even in).

I had originally thought about a ceramic wall heater, very power efficient, and just effective.  It would still be a nice option for on-grid use.  It might not be too much drain on the solar-power system I have planned either - but we'll see.  I could change my mind and add it back in.  Another, even cheaper heater I used to warm up the space prior to floor installation was this one from Lasko.  Even that little guy was overkill.

Had one SNAFU with the Amani stove - when I hooked it up I was frustrated to discover that it's regulator valve shutoff had a leak.  The smell of propane is abundantly obvious in such a small space.  Back to the Home Despot it went.  This was during the Joaquin scare - and all open space was filled with Armageddon supplies.  A new stove is on the way - should be here tomorrow.

I also installed the vent for the Nature's Head, and made a power adapter for it's fan from one of the dozens of old 12v transformers lying around.  Yeah, I'm too cheap to pay the $25 or $30 bucks for the one they sell.  I'll take a pic of the toilet when it is completely installed - the flooring had to go in first, and I also need to put up the walls.  The walls have had to wait for my insulation to be delivered.  I wanted to go with the fancy cotton "Ultra Touch".  It's great to work with, and I've used it a lot in previous work.  But it's also much more expensive, and you have to order A LOT of it - more than I need.  So regular ol' nasty Pink Panther it is.

The floor for the bathroom and kitchen is in.  I decided to just do a continuous piece of linoleum, figuring it would hold up better then a vinyl tile solution in varying temperatures.  My sacrifice to the Linoleum God's apparently worked, and I got it cut and installed without screwing up.  I did have flash backs to my previous life, when I installed flooring in the sound-proof enclosures I used to build.

 It's not really visible in the above picture, but also put in the kitchen window at last.  As you can see from the picture, I removed the temporary stairs - and decided it was high time I made a final drawing so I can generate a cut list.  Big thanks again to my friend Iru for split-stair idea!

That's all for now!  I'll probably have another update in a week or two.

September Update - Plumbing!

Darn-nit - over a month since the last update!  I'll have to stop being lazy...

Backpacking season is just about upon us, after all!  This thing needs to get done so I can give my attention to more important matters ;)

This week I knocked out some plumbing.  I've spent a small fortune on brass fittings, but it's just about done.  Bathroom sink is in (temporarily since I haven't put up the wall panels yet).  And the hot water heater is installed.  I went with Eccotemp FVI-12-LP - which, really, was the only game in town I could find that wasn't $1k or more.  For $250 it's worth a shot.  There are plenty of relatively cheap natural gas on-demand water heaters out there, but few propane ones.

I was a little dubious about the water-heater, as it has some mixed reviews.  But for items like this, I take them with a grain of salt.  There are a lot of variables to getting one of these dialed in correctly, and I think people make mistakes or don't account for everything sometimes - then blame it on the machine.  Anyway, it seems to be working fine so far!  Some of the reviews do talk about premature failures and leaks - but again, it can be difficult to discern the truth of these situations.  It is the internet after all...

The Eccotemp is in indoor unit, so the exhaust needs to be vented outside.  You also need to keep it from freezing (important!!).  The utility closet will be fully insulated when it's done - you can see one panel of R13 Thermasheath in the above picture.  It's electronically lit, so no need to have a pilot light burning.  Getting the pressure right is the key thing to these.  It will only turn on when it senses adequate flow.  

The first time I fired up the pump and opened the sink faucet, I found I had to turn it most of the way hot before the heater came on - and man was it HOT.  I immediately turned the thermostat all the way down.  Wondering why it was taking so long to kick on, I quickly discovered I was losing pressure due to the water tank.  The pump was sucking water incredibly fast (the Shurflo is a beast) - creating a vacuum.  The water collectors (gutters) had some water still in them, and it wasn't draining fast enough through the filters.

  

Just realized I forgot to get a picture of the water collection system!  But basically I used Camco water hose filters, along with a couple of these bulkhead fittings directly attached to the gutter, which attach with some hose and drain directly into the water tank (the one I have is a 27 gallon, but there are a variety on Amazon).  Super simple, and works very well.  I have gutter guards which keep most of the crud out, but the filters have a small stainless steel screen on the inlet side which has to be cleaned out occasionally.

To solve the vacuum problem I just added an air relief valve.  It lets air in, but doesn't let water out of the tank.  It's all working much better, but I have yet to test it with a fully - still have to complete the hookups to the shower and kitchen sink, but that shouldn't be long.  Also pictured above is an Accumulator Tank - a 4 gallon version.  Almost certainly overkill for this application, but that's how I roll.  Accumulator tanks store pressurized water which reduces pump cycling.  That way you don't hear it clanging away whenever you open a tap, and it generally just makes everything buttery smooth.  This too, will need a bit of adjustment once the other fixtures are in.

In other plumbing, I ran the gas lines for the furnace and stove/oven as well.  I had originally planned to just go with the Camp Chef, which gets rave reviews and certainly would have been adequate.  But when I found a 20" range full size with four burners, decided to spend the extra money on that instead.

Above you can see 2x  20lb regular ol' propane tanks.  There is vertical room for bigger ones, but I'll see how long these last for now.  I couldn't find a manifold that fit my needs, so I made my own (all with brass fittings and valves from Amazon, and 2 tank pigtails with adapters - it's really amazing how little of this stuff local hardware stores carry!).  I wanted to be able to switch easily between tanks, or run them together, and wanted a regulator for each appliance line for smooth operation.  Regulators keep the pressure to the appliance constant, regardless of the tank pressure (which will fluctuate with temperature, and as the tank empties).

I think that's about it for this update.  Sorry for the over-abundance of text and dearth of pics!  The utility closet is getting quite crowded:

I still need to get batteries in there somehow, a charge controller, and inverter.  The battery in the pic is just a small one from a lawnmower I was using to test the pump while I hunted for a 12v adapter (which incidentally was not easy to locate - I'll save you the heartache associated with buying crappy China made ones.  This one works like a champ.)  Anyway, getting the real batteries in there is going to be a challenge - I'd rather not have them in the living space.  I might end up moving the propane tanks up on a shelf...I'll see what crazy scheme pops into my head when I get to that.

August Update! Power, ceilings, A/C

The new Honeywell Portable A/C unit is doing a pretty good job, keeping things relatively cool inside so I don't melt whilst working.  Circulation to the loft area isn't superb though.  Maybe I'll add a small fan - but the rest of the ceiling insulation (or wall insulation, for that matter) isn't even in so we'll see how it goes once that's done.

I had it blowing out a window for a while (it comes with a kit to that make easy) but yesterday I finally moved it to it's final home and cut a vent for it in the wall.  I just got a 6" louvered dryer vent kit (from Home Despot).  With some closed cell-foam weather-seal it made a good fit with the existing adapter on the back.  A little OSI to seal the outside for good measure, and done.


Other stuff that got done: all the electrical minus an outlet or two.  Including the dedicated line for the A/C.  Ceiling is in for the kitchen (birch panels again), and I have the layout pretty much down so I've started ordering appliances.

 Going with a full-size 20" gas stove/range and a 33" standard fridge.  20" ranges are not easy to find, at least locally.  And I was leery of ordering one without the option of easy return, so I spent a couple extra bucks and went with Home Depot's offering again.

The lumber for the stairs is in the works.  NOT going with Home Despot for that!  Their prices for nice wood planks and sheets are just way to high (and not worthy).  Luckily my Dad is a master carpenter and has sources.  Need to shop for cabinets soon as well.  I'd rather not make them from scratch to save time, but we'll see.

The kitchen!  Just needs one more light over the sink/stove...

Also on order is a water pump, so I can start plumbing this thing out.  It will be setup to hook into city water as well.

Should have the ceiling for the loft (and lights in) tomorrow (I hope).  Starting to come together...I'm anxious to get it done!

Long overdue update!

Wow, I really haven't posted any updates since February!  For shame.  I promise to do better.  So much time gets eaten up just hunting down hardware and parts.   In reading other blogs and articles on Tiny House construction, I'm often frustrated that they never tell you where to find anything!  So I've decided to start embedding links to hardware and such so that other builders can save some pain.

Work has certainly continued however, if in fits and starts.  I've only had small pockets of time to get anything done - plus the oppressive heat has made working outside unappealing.  To that end, I finally got a portable A/C unit on the way that I think will do the job.  I've had a temporary window unit in place, but it draws too much power and isn't ideal as a final solution from an install perspective.

But anyway - the outside, aside from a small bit a trim, a few more splashes of paint, and of course the rest of the windows, is DONE.

Over the door is an Outsunny awning.  I looked at fancy (and expensive) retractable-awnings.  But finding one small enough was a challenge - and they are all absurdly over-priced.  Some hunting about turned up these simple window awnings which were just the right width.  A little modification and presto, a simple porch covering.  If you can't find the one you want on Amazon - try eBay also.

The utility closet is enclosed, situated over the trailer tongue.  I installed a shore-power/rv 30 amp outlet, to go with a 30amp cord, so at last I have dedicated power to the tiny-house instead of a standard extension cord.  The big black box is one of the storage water tanks.  I'll be putting the water system together soon.

Inside the closet, I have a simple two breaker box.  My plan for now is two run everything off a single 30 amp breaker.  That should meet the needs for the current plan.  But just in case, I'll have room to expand.  I spent a stupid amount of time looking for a manual power transfer switch to alternate between 'shore power' and solar power system.  In the end, I ran across this gem, an Automatic Power Transfer Switch.  It was actually cheaper than most of the manual switches I found (makes no sense, I know).  It's also much more ideal.  If your batteries are running low, it will automatically switch over to shore power (if available) without user intervention.  It seemed complicated when I first popped off the cover, but install was actually super easy.

Moving on the to the inside:  the bathroom wall is framed out, and a pocket sliding door installed.  I had never done a pocket door before, so I grabbed a kit from Home Depot which includes all the hardware you need as well as low-profile studs.  This is a big space saver!  After a little modification, the install was a cinch.

The plan is for a shower head and stall, with the addition of a Japanese style soaking tub.  My mom wants a tub for sure - and I simply couldn't find any commercial unit that had what she wanted (or that fit the available space).  So, when all else fails, just make it yourself!

I have my eye on a couple of different very compact, wall mounting sinks, but haven't pulled the trigger on one yet.  I went with the Nature's Head Toilet.  After exhaustive research of reviews, I couldn't find a better until for the price that offered easier use.  The only con I can see with it so far - there isn't a removal bin for the solid waste.  You essentially much un-clip the entire unit from the floor to dump it.  Not a deal breaker, but maybe too awkward for some users (the lid does detach, at least to make it easier).  Maybe I'll make a bin for that purpose...other than that, it's ideal.  I couldn't justify the extra money for pricier competitors that essentially do the exact same thing.

Also in the above picture is the mock-up of the stairs - thanks to my dear friend Iru for the suggestion of split-steps!  Mega space saver, and also allows my 6' 5" frame to go upstairs without cracking open my skull on the ceiling.

Finally for this update, I'm going with birch wood panels for the ceiling treatment.  For lights, I chose cheap to operate 11w LED recessed lights.  These are designed to work with existing standard recessed light fixtures.  But all you have to do is reverse the springs, and they can be easily attached to panels!  You can find them at Home Depot or Lowes - they worked out perfectly due to their low profile.  More then enough light for very little power consumption, and a life span greater than 20 years.

That's all I've got for now.  I'm resolved to making more regular posts (and getting this project DONE), so stay tuned!  If you have any questions feel free to send 'em.

February update! Roof, Siding and Door

Life and winter have made progress slow - but there has been progress nonetheless!  It's been a long while since I put out an update, so here are some pics of the roof and siding going up, and the door going in.  Four of the loft windows are installed, with two more to go.

I used metal ridged roofing - but somehow forgot to take pics of it.  I do have pics of one of my helpers.  The siding is T11, going over R13 Thermasheath.

Door rough opening and siding going up:

French doors installed!

Walls up!

Finally there was a break in the rain for a few days.  I got the trailer uncovered and started putting up some walls!

Subfloor, and front wall frame

Short days have been an added challenge, a lot of work has been done by headlamp.

I went with metal studs for the weight savings.  Plus, they are a breeze to install with as they are uniform in size, unlike wood studs.  I've worked with metal in the past so I didn't have to contend with the usual learning curve.

Wall framed!

The exterior sheathing up.  I used R-13 thermasheath.  On the interior of the walls, I plan to apply a layer of spray foam, and then another layer of R-13 insulation in the walls.  This should add up to a total of R-33 and some change.

The dogs have been no help, whatsoever!

The local Home Depots are out of 10' metal studs which I'll need for the roof (note to self, next time just source a building supplier), so I won't get started on that until next week or the week after.  The roof design I'm planning is inspired by Bret Sutherland's tiny house, and not the standard gable design.

At least now it's enclosed so I can do some work on the interior during inclement weather!