DESIGNING THE TINY HOUSE BASIC PRINCIPLES AND CONCEPTS

DESIGNING THE TINY HOUSE BASIC PRINCIPLES AND CONCEPTS – NOAH YOUNG

INTRODUCTION – NOAH YOUNG • About your presenter: • Studied architecture at Pratt Institute, • Earned my masters in real estate development from the University of Miami, and • Worked as an architect and construction manager in the New York City metropolitan area for the past 20 years.

WHAT IS A TINY HOUSE? • Where different people define what a tiny house is in different ways, a tiny house is: • A house significantly smaller than a traditional home, but still having the main functions of a traditional home; • From 100 square feet to 600 square feet (approximately); • Require a level of efficiency in design beyond a traditional home; and • Are often mobile or capable of replication.

HOW DO PEOPLE LIVE IN A TINY HOUSE? • Living in a tiny house is not unlike living in a traditional house. People sleep, eat, socialize, work, clean, and relax. The challenge is the way in which people perform all these activities. When your living room is also your dining room and bedroom, and your bathroom is also your shower and laundry,

WHAT ARE THE DEFINING QUALITIES OF A HOUSE • A house provides many of the aspects of daily life, but the first aspect of any house is the need for SHELTER. Today’s house often includes: Envelope Utilities Vertical Transport Convenience Doors Cooking / Heat Terraces Locks Windows Ventilation Ladders Built-in Storage Floors Light Stairs Shade / Privacy Water tight Electricity Elevators Water Closets Air tight Water / Sanitation Ramps Basins / Sinks Refrigeration Laundry ADA Access Air conditioning Dishwashing Air filtration Communications

WHAT ARE THE DESIGN ELEMENTS OF A HOUSE? • For thousands of years, most houses were one room. As families become bigger and mortality rates and average population age raised, we started adding more rooms to accommodate the additional people and the functional aspects of a house. From one common room, we added: • Bedrooms • Kitchens • Water Closets • Utility Rooms • Social / Leisure Spaces

HOW DOES THIS DIFFER IN A TINY HOUSE? • The answer is – IT DOESN’T! • The modern construction methods of a tiny house have some minor variations and innovations, but essentially are the same. • Just because a house is smaller doesn’t mean that the owners of that house will sacrifice the conveniences that are important to them, even though adding each convenience and each type of space adds size to a tiny house. • This is a major design challenge.

BASIC MODERN HOUSE CONSTRUCTION • ROOF: The roof protects the house from the weather, but all has openings for exhaust (kitchen, bathroom, furnace), water drainage, wind resistance, and snow support. • WALLS / STRUCTURE: Walls and structure are built on top of the floors / platforms, with the structural elements (either structural walls or posts and beams) supporting upper floors / roof(s). Windows and doors within the walls provide access, light, and air to rooms. • FLOORS / PLATFORMS: Floors are built on top of the foundation (or for higher floors, built on walls or a structural frame). Openings in platforms allow vertical movement through the house for people, utilities, light, and air. • FOUNDATION: The foundation is the structural element that connects the house to the Earth, and also provides protection from groundwater infiltration, temperature fluctuations, and vermin infiltration.

TINY HOUSE CONSTRUCTION

EFFICIENCY – THE SOLUTION TO THE TINY HOUSE DESIGN CHALLENGE • First and foremost, most things are smaller in a tiny house. The typical bedroom, living room, bathroom, bedroom, and kitchen sizes are shrunk in a tiny house, as are many of the appliances, plumbing fixtures, and storage options. • Beyond miniaturization, efficiency means using one space for multiple functions. DINING ROOM BATHROOM LIVING ROOM SHOWER BEDROOM LAUNDRY ROOM FLOORS have underfloor storage, furniture folds up or lowers down as needed.

EFFICIENCY IN LAYOUT

SLEEPING CONFIGURATION – THE MURPHY BED • The Murphy Bed concept is over 100 years’ old, and was originally designed for small urban studio apartments where people didn’t have enough space for living room and bedroom functions.

GOVERNMENT REGULATION OF TINY HOMES • The National Fire Protection Association defines a tiny home as “intended for permanent and non-transitory occupancy or residency. ” A tiny home is not a recreational vehicle, which is only intended for temporary use. • Regulations vary depending on whether: • A tiny home is built on site, or manufactured in a factory; • A tiny home is set on a foundation, or a trailer frame; • A tiny home is park certified (400 square feet or less, or a modular mobile home (set on a chassis)