From the Desk #10

16 Sep From the Desk #10

Question:

Is this legal? It’s an image I found online. Can I have a propane bottle in the house under the sink or somewhere in the house? I was also planning on putting the hot water heater under the sink. Thank you!

Propane tanks can not be under the sink or anywhere on the inside of the tiny home.

Question:

What’s the most expensive thing on your Tiny House? Where do you put most of your money?

One answer is the foundation. Spend your money on your trailer. Everything you own will be on this.  Secondhand trailers can be used however most of the time the cost to retrofit the secondhand trailer to support the home and repair rust, the frame, axels and tired it is better in the long run to start new. A trailer coming from an RV will not support the weight of a tiny house. And, spend your money on your trailer design. Pay attention to tongue weight 60% of the weight toward the front on a tow behind.  Electric brakes and breakaway switches are required on most homes. Make sure you have the proper axles and tires and you will not regret it.

Spend your money on good windows double insulated temper windows with Low E glass your home will be safer when in transit and your bills will be much lower. Be prepared, windows will be one of the most expensive items in your tiny house.

Put your money in the design of the tiny house. Make sure it’s everything you wanted to be. I hear over and over, this is my second tiny. After I built my first, I found things I didn’t like or things I must have. I recommend you go ahead and spend a few nights on a tiny house. You can go to Airbnb or Home Away to find Tiny Homes in different areas. Go into the home imagining not that you’re on vacation but you’re going to live there. Spend two- or three-nights cooking and doing all the things that you would normally do to live. You will find out what you like and don’t like and things you could possibly change or must have.

Question:

Can NOAH inspect a school bus conversion?

NOAH is an inspection company. We can inspect almost anything. We were recently asked to inspect an airstream gut out and rebuild, container home, and a school bus conversion. The standards and codes may change but the inspection process remains the same.

Question:

Is it ok to frame a Tiny Home using pallets?

Many Tiny homes are built to live in.

Some BUILDERS have construction skills, and some don’t.

Many are built and sold to be lived in.

Life safety fire safety,

Secondary egress and structural integrity are nonnegotiable.

Free consultation is available to our member builders. No pallets do not meet the NOAH Standard for Tiny Houses on Wheels.

Thanks for your time and attention.

Robin