Why Tiny Houses Might Be The Future Of Sustainable Living

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[purplecat]

Having lived in small spaces before, the fantasy about there being less cleaning is just that -- a fantasy. There's less space to clean, but because everything is so tightly packed in, you feel it immediately if something gets dirty. As a result, I'd feel like I was ALWAYS cleaning and nothing was ever clean. There's definitely a happy medium between having to clean all the time because the space is too small, and having to clean all the time because the space is too big.

[philipephelope]

A big missconception is, that the size of a house alone makes it "green". But a small bachelor appartment is just as sufficient and even if built traditionally just as "green". An appartment has 4 or 5 sides to a neighbour, where there is no heat loss, no material intensive exterial walls. Location is a key too. 200 people living in a 20 storey building use very little land and infrastructure like roads, sewage lines, power lines, busses, trams etc.. 200 tiny houses spread out use lots of space and lead to all the current traffic and urban sprawl problems. This is never regarded when comparing the quaint tiny house in savage nature to the small appartment in the concrete jungle. While your video is good and inspiring, it leaves out the bigger picture.

[MustPassTruck]

It would be interesting to see a breakdown comparison between cost of tiny houses vs massive sky scraper apartments.

[raviyeejoshi]

I think this video overlooks the environmental/climate implications of having large amounts of the population living in disparate lots of land vs densely grouped neighbourhoods (i.e. walkable cities).

The cost of sewage, electricity infrastructure, roads and transportation, but also fire, healthcare, childcare, education… all those costs and climate impacts climb when housing is designed in isolation with the individual in mind.

To speak nothing of whether you can have a job nearby your tiny home.

Tiny homes are legit, though— and seem like a lot of fun (we researched building one!), but it’s important not to overlook the system of housing and it’s impact collectively.

[juliankandlhofer]

neat idea, but i cant imagine lots of apartment sized houses being more efficient than an apartment building

[deslocc]

Tiny homes are great for 1-2 people, but not for families. I believe many of the homeless veterans should get a free tiny home to live in and get off the street.

[jackhemsworth]

i've looked into a tiny myself, was strongly tempted to buy one, but with me not having a big towing license, or a car capable of towing them, i bought a one bedroom house instead. it's pretty much as small as i could get while still being big enough to do everything i wanted it to.

[truenorthjess]

I lived in a heritage mansion that got converted into tiny units. Mine was 450sqft and I loved it. I think a tiny home community would work fine with a large central hub of services (school, grocery, rec centre, library, etc.). It wouldn't really be too sprawly since the lots are smaller, most people could get around with bikes, golf carts, or electric autonomous vehicles.

[solarcabin]

Off grid over 20 years in a 14x14 hand built cabin. No house payment, no utility bills and freedom. I teach people how to build off grid cabins and install solar power on my channel.

[theSegovia]

We built and lived in a tiny home in Alberta, Canada. It was still our favourite house so far. The biggest challenge is finding somewhere to park. Every county close to any urban center has zoning regs that severely limit or outright deny TH living. Most up here see them as no different than RVs, which are basically limited to campgrounds. Other TH people we know in the area rent some space on someone's acreage, away from prying eyes who might report them. We planned to live in our TH with our first child, but he was born super premature and required bulky oxygen tanks/equipment; so that ultimately ended our stay in there.

[ARepublicIfYouCanKeepIt]

An even bigger challenge than financing is siting. While tiny houses make so much sense, most municipalities have yet to even begin modifying their building codes to accommodate tiny houses in any meaningful way.

So, if you're a single tiny house, it's difficult to find a legal place to set up. And, if you're a land owner who'd like to develop a tiny house community, it's next to impossible as most zoning ordinances view tiny living more like a mobile home or RV park.

And, while many municipalities are adopting Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) codes, these aren't your typical Tiny House On Wheels (THOW). This kind of thinking defeats the purpose of tiny house living as we've come to understand it, by requiring larger minimum footprints, permanent foundations and utility connections for electrical, water and sewer.

So, those are some of the downsides not mentioned in this piece. One desirable aspect of tiny living that wasn't explicitly mentioned in the video is mobility. For someone who doesn't want to be tied down to a single location, wants to "chase 70" or simply wants to see and experience more of the country, tiny living, be it a THOW, an RV or a van, is very attractive.

As a divorced empty nester, I decided to right-size out of a beautiful 2, 400 ft² home in an HOA community with amenities in 2017. Since then, I've recast my career while completely changing the way that I live in just under 100 ft². I couldn't be happier.

I generate, store and distribute my own electricity, and even heat water with excess solar production. I can place a hose in a muddy puddle and make pure water. I designed, built and thoroughly enjoy a recirculating shower that uses a single gallon of water, as well as a composting toilet that produces no sewage.

Best of all, I'm free to go wherever I want, whenever I want by virtue of my ability to work from anywhere.

I started adult life as a nuclear engineer and chemist aboard nuclear submarines where I had a rack (a.k.a. bed) and 3 ft³ to call my own. So, I joke that 100 ft² is quite an upgrade :)

Tiny living definitely isn't for everyone. But for those who chose it, it should be a much easier alternative to pursue.

[Tripskiii]

I love that my house in Poland is made out of cinder blocks. Keeps the heat inside in the winter, and cold in the summer.

im 100% down for a tiny home have wanted one forever, what was stopping me was not having a solid internet connection. but once Starlink is up and running im dipping into the mountains to live in a cabin :D

[kermitdaphrogge]

That's what my friend said to his girl

[lotusdec]

Another thing to consider is a mobile tiny home will need a pretty sizeable truck to haul it around. That not only adds to the cost but also the carbon footprint.

[scottmcshannon]

at 45, 000 the price per square is about $250. most tiny home prices always seem to assume the land is free. a tiny home may be fine for 1, but beyond that you will get in each others way.

[justinfowler]

Tiny home Pros
1. Sometimes, but not usually can be cheaper.
2. Lower carbon footprint
3. Lower utilities.
4. Faster cleaning.

Tiny home Cons
1. Most places ban them. (Don't want a mobile home park mentality)
2. Most are quite expensive.
3. Insurance is high.
4. Many mobile units cannot be parked in most cities
5. Kids.

[ulrichspencer]

Personally I'd like to see shift to ~1000 sq ft townhouses and rowhouses. It would give more space to people with families, while also being a regular building that can fit in a normal city without having to park awkwardly in a rural area. Small footprint would mean high-density, walkable communities, but would still provide all the amenities people expect nowadays. Plus, you mentioned your house built in the '50s is about that size, and that seems a really good compromise size for a lot of people.

[SaveMoneySavethePlanet]

In the Lean Manufacturing world we have a saying “people will use up any space that they’re given.”

When I’m teaching this to a class I often intentionally seat two people at every table except for one where I seat one person. Without fail, by mid afternoon, that one person has dispersed stuff over their whole table while everyone else takes up only half.

We do the same things in our homes. Larger closets, garages, and yards only leads to use buying more junk.

You don’t even have to go all out on a tiny home. Just purchasing a condo or townhome instead of a single family home can make a huge impact!

[ChristianBehnke]

10:19 - I absolutely love that they're towing the home with the hanging baskets swinging around. 😂 As a tiny trailer owner, I know the importance of having EVERYTHING stowed away and locked down, even when moving a short distance - but that's just hilarious.

[geoben]

I've lived in small apartments and a small house that was about 700sq.ft. I live in a small apartment now. This one is about 700sq ft. But it's comfortable and costs about $500USD total with utilities and groceries. And it's about 10 minutes from the beach. It's in Mexico. All things considered, I'm good. 👍