Planning a tiny home cabin, looking for input

[LDennis24]

Adding a window would be very simple if you can weld or find a welder. You can even weld bars on the window to prevent theft and bear damage etc.

[brew]

For the shipping containers, anyone ever add windows? I don't think I could sleep in an enclosed metal box, let alone convince my wife too. Seems uncomfortable on many Leventhal, but don't know if I'm just being paranoid.

YouTube is a great source of info. 

[rainshadow1]

This thread is a great advertisement for building permits and codes.

Unfortunatly.

Not quite sure what you mean, do you mind clarifying? I intend to permit anything legally requiring a permit, if that's what you're getting at. 

Probably the other direction than what was being hinted at, but I know from limited experience that you're not going to get very far in any county in washington state once you plan to spend the night in it. This isn't really a free country. (It's free as long as you do everything the way they want, don't do anything they haven't thought of yet, and pay their fees.)

[JimmyHoffa]

Yeah, even most of the building inspectors can't keep up with all the constant additions to the codes. If the structure is 'permanent', it can be a real tough time before you even buy a piece of lumber. All the input for rainwater, set backs, wetlands, snow, fire, energy, etc. If it's on wheels or skids you can bypass a few things.

[buckfvr]

Condensation is a huge issue with containers.

[Special T]

Matt Reisinger the bild show on you tube. He has lots of great details on how to build to last. More expensive materials and products but make less of a difference with longevity and smaller scale structures. I think lots of the details he goes over can make an off grid cabin 100% more useful.

Air sealing for heat and bugs. Run 2 circuits for power. 110 and 12 volt. So much can be runs off a small generator, small wind or solar 12 volt. I run my cabin call 12 volt led lights usb plug ins small soloar panel. I would bet that a small wood stove would work well. My brother got a wall tent stove he added firbricks to and now heats his 600 square foot shop apartment with it.
Metal roof with a rain catchment barrel and a covered outside area expand the usefulness of an outdoor retreat.  Many counties have some kind of a footprint restriction for summer home cabins. Skagit county had a 20x20 limitation with a loft. If it were me I would go as big as legally allowed and build a big covered porch next to the cabin for grilling, fires and enjoying the outside until your too cold and have to go in.

[Machias]

Look up Tin Can Cabin.  The guy detailed his three shipping container cabin build.  Here is two major considerations with Shipping Containers.  The biggest is the floor HAS TO BE encapsulated.  The floors are impregnated with some seriously nasty chemicals that continue to off gas forever.  Serious health hazard if you are sleeping in one or spending any time inside.  Number two, unless you spray foam insulate the walls, you WILL BE dealing with mold very soon.  Even if you were to put in wall studs and insulate, even the tiniest space between the insulation and the steel container wall will sweat, condense and mold will develop.

I lived in an 16x24 foot Old Hickory Shed for 4 and a half years.  No electricity or running water for most of that time.  Spray foam insulate, cost a bit more, but you will never regret it.  Insulate the floor.  I can share a story sometime about NOT insulating the floor and having to deal with mold on everything that was a couple of inches off the floor.  Cold air from the floor rising up and meeting the warm air in the cabin, causes condensation on the underside of the dressers, etc,, and walla mold issue.  Propane heat puts extra moisture in the air, which equals....you guessed it, mold.  Check out 509 Wood stoves (Flame Innovation) in Post Falls, ID.  Best thing since sliced bread for heating your cabin.  Easy to regulate the heat and last all night.  Uses compressed logs.  Buy it by the pallet and it's 65 cents a log.  Wood stove puts out dry heat, much better for the cabin space than propane.

[Boss .300 winmag]

Look up Tin Can Cabin.  The guy detailed his three shipping container cabin build.  Here is two major considerations with Shipping Containers.  The biggest is the floor HAS TO BE encapsulated.  The floors are impregnated with some seriously nasty chemicals that continue to off gas forever.  Serious health hazard if you are sleeping in one or spending any time inside.  Number two, unless you spray foam insulate the walls, you WILL BE dealing with mold very soon.  Even if you were to put in wall studs and insulate, even the tiniest space between the insulation and the steel container wall will sweat, condense and mold will develop.

I lived in an 16x24 foot Old Hickory Shed for 4 and a half years.  No electricity or running water for most of that time.  Spray foam insulate, cost a bit more, but you will never regret it.  Insulate the floor.  I can share a story sometime about NOT insulating the floor and having to deal with mold on everything that was a couple of inches off the floor.  Cold air from the floor rising up and meeting the warm air in the cabin, causes condensation on the underside of the dressers, etc,, and walla mold issue.  Propane heat puts extra moisture in the air, which equals....you guessed it, mold.  Check out 509 Wood stoves (Flame Innovation) in Post Falls, ID.  Best thing since sliced bread for heating your cabin.  Easy to regulate the heat and last all night.  Uses compressed logs.  Buy it by the pallet and it's 65 cents a log.  Wood stove puts out dry heat, much better for the cabin space than propane.

Could you frame out the floor with 2x4s, spat foam it then sheet with plywood for encapsulating it?

[Machias]

Look up Tin Can Cabin.  The guy detailed his three shipping container cabin build.  Here is two major considerations with Shipping Containers.  The biggest is the floor HAS TO BE encapsulated.  The floors are impregnated with some seriously nasty chemicals that continue to off gas forever.  Serious health hazard if you are sleeping in one or spending any time inside.  Number two, unless you spray foam insulate the walls, you WILL BE dealing with mold very soon.  Even if you were to put in wall studs and insulate, even the tiniest space between the insulation and the steel container wall will sweat, condense and mold will develop.

I lived in an 16x24 foot Old Hickory Shed for 4 and a half years.  No electricity or running water for most of that time.  Spray foam insulate, cost a bit more, but you will never regret it.  Insulate the floor.  I can share a story sometime about NOT insulating the floor and having to deal with mold on everything that was a couple of inches off the floor.  Cold air from the floor rising up and meeting the warm air in the cabin, causes condensation on the underside of the dressers, etc,, and walla mold issue.  Propane heat puts extra moisture in the air, which equals....you guessed it, mold.  Check out 509 Wood stoves (Flame Innovation) in Post Falls, ID.  Best thing since sliced bread for heating your cabin.  Easy to regulate the heat and last all night.  Uses compressed logs.  Buy it by the pallet and it's 65 cents a log.  Wood stove puts out dry heat, much better for the cabin space than propane.

Could you frame out the floor with 2x4s, spat foam it then sheet with plywood for encapsulating it?

Most use epoxy or remove the floor and replace it.  Here is a good site for ideas.  https://www.discovercontainers.com/should-you-remove-the-plywood-floors-in-your-shipping-containers/

[brokenvet]

For heating you can use the traditional wood stove or go rocket mass heater that you can build yourself. 

[erk444]

This thread is a great advertisement for building permits and codes.

Unfortunatly.

Not quite sure what you mean, do you mind clarifying? I intend to permit anything legally requiring a permit, if that's what you're getting at. 

Probably the other direction than what was being hinted at, but I know from limited experience that you're not going to get very far in any county in washington state once you plan to spend the night in it. This isn't really a free country. (It's free as long as you do everything the way they want, don't do anything they haven't thought of yet, and pay their fees.)

Unfortunately this is the truth! This is a 12x16 I built and put a wood stove in. Even though it's on a tiny island in pierce county, I've been turned in to the county twice now for staying in it overnight and heating it. They're technically only supposed to be used for storage only and unheated. I can haul all the junk I want and let it rot on my property but this is against the rules  After multiple calls and emails to the county, the only way I can legally use it as a cabin is if I have running water and sanitation.

[CP]

This thread is a great advertisement for building permits and codes.

Unfortunatly.

Not quite sure what you mean, do you mind clarifying? I intend to permit anything legally requiring a permit, if that's what you're getting at. 

Probably the other direction than what was being hinted at, but I know from limited experience that you're not going to get very far in any county in washington state once you plan to spend the night in it. This isn't really a free country. (It's free as long as you do everything the way they want, don't do anything they haven't thought of yet, and pay their fees.)

Unfortunately this is the truth! This is a 12x16 I built and put a wood stove in. Even though it's on a tiny island in pierce county, I've been turned in to the county twice now for staying in it overnight and heating it. They're technically only supposed to be used for storage only and unheated. I can haul all the junk I want and let it rot on my property but this is against the rules  After multiple calls and emails to the county, the only way I can legally use it as a cabin is if I have running water and sanitation.

Throw a blue tarp over it and cover the walls with cardboard and road signs.  Then no one will bother you.

[Alchase]

I know four people that built tiny homes and moved them onto property. one had two young kids. Sold everything they thought they did not need. These houses Ranged from totally luxxed out to minimalist. All four moved back into regular homes within a year of moving in. All four said they were overwhelmed within a few days of moving in, with no room to move around.
I asked one what they would recommend to others who are considering moving into a tiny home.
He said, have each person get rid of all their stuff, to where "everything they own" fits in a plastic storage bin. Then move into a studio apartment with the same square footage of the tiny home they are considering, and live there for a year. This will help you realize the reality before you make a sizable investment. I asked him if he made his money back when he sold it. He said, every customization you make is your own, and may not correlate to what anyone else would want in a house that small. He lost a ton of value on the sale because they house did not really ad value to the land, and the market for resale of tiny homes is a pretty fringe market.