Small House Style

Stopping Energy Leaks in your Small Home One of the reasons people get into small houses and tiny homes is to have less of an impact and save money.

Via: SprayFoamKit.com

[gallery type="slideshow" columns="1" ids="2331,2330,2333,2334,2349,2345,2335,2332,2342,2348,2336,2339,2337,2344,2340,2341,2338,2347"] This small, off-grid, sustainable cabin on Ragged Island twenty miles from the coast of Maine was the brainchild of the owner's architectural designer daughter, Alex Scott Porter, who designed the structure for her retired father, Bruce Porter, former professor at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. The exterior is clad in corrugated steel, with rolling storm shutters to cover the windows for when the blustery squalls so common to this region strike. Thanks to the extremely remote location of the site, 90% of the materials and all of the work crew had to be shipped in, at significant expense, from the mainland 20 miles away. The 480 square foot building (with an additional balcony bedroom) has water supplied by a rainwater catchment system which incorporates a mechanical roof washer feature: the first five gallons of rainwater during a downpour are discarded before any is allowed into the water storage tank. Then the water is drawn from the center of the tank to avoid any sediment that may have settled to the bottom or is floating on top. Electricity is provided by four roof-mounted solar panels, that top up enough battery power to last a week. These batteries in turn supply most of the power to the cabin, including the DC operated Sunfrost fridge. Two appliances run off propane (the on demand water heater and the stove), which obviously have to rely on regular refilling trips to the two mile distant Matinicus Island. Bathroom facilities include the aforementioned shower and a composting toilet. Bruce said: “There was a general feeling that this house wasn’t going to work, but everything works great, just like a normal house!” Alex estimates the cost of the five month project at around $175,000. Plans are available directly from her company at alexscottporterdesign.com. A significant portion of the cost was of course the transportation; she estimates a saving of $25,000 to $50,000 could be applied to more accessible locations. Images by Eirick Johnson Via Dwell and Inhabitat

[gallery type="slideshow" ids="2305,2304,2303,2301,2299,2302,2300,2307,2308,2309"] A laneway house, as I'm sure you're all aware by now, is a house built on existing lots (typically in the backyard of an existing house) that face onto the back lane or alley. Their popularity rose on the west coast of Canada, particularly in metro Vancouver, but have since spread across North America as a chic development in crowded residential areas, which is where Smallworks Studios/Laneway Housing comes in. Obviously space is at a premium on metro lots, so small house sensibilities are often applied in tandem with the obvious economic advantages of building with a small environmental and physical footprint. In Vancouver, the average laneway house measures only 550 square feet and consists of 1.5 stories. This home from Smallworks Studios, known as the Arts & Crafts 750, has two bedrooms and two sizeable bathrooms, and its own yard. The living space is surprisingly with a living room, kitchen, closets and ample storage. It seems laneway houses have become a little less popular elsewhere in Canada when cities began to examine their effects on safety and services, such as access for emergency services, trash removal etc. One specific report in Toronto in 2006 recommended the curtailing of such construction, citing privacy, overlook and shadowing issues for adjacent neighbors, in addition to the aforementioned. The Toronto report also cites difficulty with installing the necessary public and private infrastructure for a dwelling that fronts onto a laneway. Such construction could, according to the report, hinder emergency services. Homeowner parking could also present a problem with such access. Yet another reason to live off the grid and buy a bicycle, if you ask me. But if you must live in town, laneway houses are pretty interesting. Read more about it at BlogTo. You can check out more of Smallworks Studios' small house designs here: The Smallworks Builder Arts & Crafts - 500 sqft Edwardian - 500 sqft Loft - 750 sqft West Coast Loft - 500 sqft Check out some other firms designing laneway homes: Lanefab West Lane Homes All images courtesy of www.Smallworks.ca.

[gallery type="slideshow" ids="2281,2288,2287,2286,2284,2285,2282,2283"] Canada's Form & Forest present this unique cabin built on a pristine five-acre lot in the Rockies. Rather than go the traditional route of log homes, Form & Forest wanted to try something a little different. This 360 degree glass design incorporates a shed roof that opens up one side of the structure, allowing in a cascade of light, quite the reverse of the more conventional small cabin windows set in thickly-logged walls. With two bedrooms and two sleeping lofts, it provides the perfect wilderness retreat for a mid-sized family. Addressing the concerns of the remote locations were paramount in the logistics of construction, so Form & Forest, after pouring a concrete footing, formed the foundation from insulated concrete forms, which slot together like Legos. The forms are easily installed by two people. Here you see them ready for the application of concrete. The walls come in prefabricated panels that erect quickly, which is always handy when you're working in extreme temperatures. Form & Forest worked with renowned designer D'Arcy Jones to create the elegant lines of the cabin, with such attention to detail as the lines in the wrap-around soffits matching their grooves to the vertical grooves in the siding. The advantage the huge windows bring is coupling those inside with the environment. The reason the original pioneer cabins were so small was because most of the inhabitants' life was spent outside, hunting, repairing, farming, gathering firewood, etc. They were also easier to heat in the winter, therefore requiring less fuel. This modern, updated Form & Forest version allows that same sense of intimacy with the surroundings, while the owners remain comfortably inside. So while the term "pioneer" may be a tad misleading in the name of the design and lifestyle it engenders, it's the feeling of closeness with nature that justifies its use. All images courtesy of Form&Forest. Via Inhabitat and Materialicious.

We recently received a NewAir AC-10000H Air Conditioner to review from Air and Water, Inc.. Although many people prefer window units to portable air conditioners, people that live in small homes, apartments, etc. or in neighborhoods that restrict window units from being used (mostly for aesthetic reasons) turn to portable air conditioners to cool their homes. Others prefer portable air conditioners because they are easy to install and don't require heavy lifting (other than getting it out of the box!) And some prefer a portable units because they are still able to enjoy sun light coming through their windows (vs. having it blocked by a window unit) and have the flexibility of opening the window on occasion. NewAir AC-10000H features a 4-in-1 design: air conditioner, space heater, dehumidifier and fan so it is usable year round. It offers 10,000 BTUs of cooling and easily covers areas up to 325 square feet, making it ideal for small spaces. Patented self-evaporative technology results in hours of continuous operation without excessive condensate buildup. The AC-10000H features electronic controls, digital display and a full-function remote. In general, portable air conditioners tend to be on the noisier side because they use a compressor and a fan. In our experience, the noise generated by the NewAir AC-10000H is comparable, but a little louder than a window unit. If you are concerned with noise, use the low fan setting. This unit, like other portables requires a long vent hose. Honestly, we weren't in the know about this and found it somewhat cumbersome and not so portable. On the plus side, it leaves the view practically unobstructed, and causes no harm to the window itself, as there is no appreciable weight on the frame by the exhaust hose and window kit (our window frames sustained considerable damage from our old window unit.) The beauty of the window panel in addition to unmarred window frames, no hole in the wall, etc. is that if you decide to open the window at night, it's a snap to remove. The AC-10000H also has to be drained occasionally which was also cumbersome. On the positive side, it cools significantly more space than advertised and during a heat wave to boot. We assume heating will perform similarly well. The fact that it doubles as a dehumidifier is dandy as well. It would be great if the lights could be dimmed or turn off entirely for those who might be sleeping in the same room. It is very bright. Maybe you need a night light too! If you are concerned with aesthetics, a portable unit like NewAir AC-10000H might be for you. We read a review by a couple who restored a 1965 Airstream (check out Matthew Hofmann's Airstream project) and wanted to preserve the outside look (i.e. not have an air conditioner sticking out the side or on top.) They rigged it to vent through a door. The power consumption is also relatively low so if you were running on a generator or just trying to conserve this unit might be exactly what you are looking for. We are pretty happy with the NewAir AC-10000H. Check it out at Air-n-Water.com for free shipping.

[gallery type="slideshow" ids="2249,2260,2248,2250,2247"] The eco-friendly, small home movement marches on with this offering from Karoleena Homes, the Calgary builder's first move into prefab and modular housing. Advertised as a holiday home, backyard studio or laneway house, the Karo Cabin will be factory-built and shipped to a site of the client's choosing anywhere in North America accessible by road. What's a "laneway house", I hear you cry? In Canada, specifically the west coast in and around the packed metro area of Vancouver, The EcoDensity movement is attempting to increase the residential population per square mile, thereby more effectively reducing the city's ecological footprint. Encouraging homebuilders to create smaller housing structures on open land in existing lots is one of the key components of the Ecodensity mission statement. Typically, these efficient homes will front the service lanes running parallel to the actual street, hence "laneway". The idea caught on in other high density Canadian cities such as Toronto, and in the five years since its inception has spread well south of the border into the US. It's becoming increasingly common to see secondary structures in place of extensive backyards. Backyards are becoming opportunistically redundant, it seems, as people become more aware, in urban environments, that a little personal patch of greenery isn't as ecologically sound as one might initially think. Housing another family on the same square footage of land certainly makes more big-picture ecological sense than raising a few plants. Impressively advertised as "future-ready", the base unit (known as Module A, 45' x 14') goes for $129,000, which includes a $5,000 appliance package. Other modules, which can standalone or link together, are the Module B (30' x 14'), Module C (20' x 14') and Module X (10' x 14'). Movable interior walls lends the design a custom edge not many other modular homes can match. Module A also includes low-flow fixtures, a gas fireplace, a high-efficiency furnace, on-demand hot water and a cantilevered deck. images courtesy of Karoleena Homes via Jetson Green

Click here to view more details about the 310 square foot Harbinger Click here to view more details about the 407 square foot Harbinger

[gallery type="slideshow" ids="2189,2188,2193,2191,2192,2190,2194"] Remodeling an Airstream is one of the most sustainable things one can do. I’m an architect. I know, it’s ironic, but I don’t prefer designing a brand new home. Like you (I hope!) it’s our job to take care of the earth by our own behavior. The most unsustainable thing one can do to the earth is to design and build a new home where there wasn’t one before. Worse still, is tearing down an old home and building a new one in its place. A new home takes an enormous amount of energy and natural resources build. Using the empty shell – the floor, walls and roof – in an existing building requires significantly less energy than new construction. By eliminating the need for building a foundation, erecting walls, installing windows, and placing on a new roof thousands of dollars of resources that would have been required to build these elements can be transferred, or saved all together. The end result is a win-win. Sustainable and more cost effective. Take a look around downtown. Many urban city centers have reused old manufacturing plants or storage facilities, that were made of brick or concrete, and have remodeled them into successful residential dwellings. Today, there isn’t a city in America without “urban loft-style” projects. My 1978 Airstream project was, at its heart, an exercise in reusing an existing space.    Remember the 3 R’s when choosing products and materials (reuse, reclaim, recycle) Once an existing space is chosen, there are often times many existing elements of the previous use that may perhaps be saved and reused for the new project.  This category of sustainability can vary greatly.   Reuse – to take an existing product and use it for the same function or purpose, this is the most basic and simple method.  For example, much of the cabinetry that was existing was saved in the Airstream project.  The goucho (bed) was beyond saving, but the storage drawers beneath them made a beautiful base for the new bed.  Even the faux wood paneling was reused. The new convertible couch looks like a rich piece of furniture amid the abundance of white walls. The overhead cabinetry was removed, modified, and re-installed to form a more pleasing alignment.  All of the overhead cabinetry hardware was saved and reused, including the tambour rollup doors, plastic tracks, and metal pulls.  The front dinette set is original, just refinished and painted. Reclaim – to use an existing product or material, on-site that may no longer be used for its original intended purpose, removing it and reconditioning as necessary, then transferring it to a new use in the same project.   A trailer, by its nature, is a very small confined space. A primary design goal was to open up the space by removing unnecessary visual obstacles.  In the Airstream, there were several walls that needed to be removed.  The old oak table was beyond repair and was also removed.  These elements were stored onsite and reclaimed as shelving in the cabinetry. Recycle – In all projects, there are elements that can not be reused or reclaimed.  Instead of sending materials to the landfill, recycle!  Recycling comes in all shapes and sizes.  Many material scraps from the Airstream were stockpiled and sent to a recycling yard, such as hardware, braces, tracks, rods, plastic paneling, etc.  All of the old appliances (refrigerator, oven, sink, toilet) were sold on craigslist or donated to a new user.  Giving away or selling old parts that you don’t have a use for has three benefits: 1.     It keeps the old part from heading to the landfill; 2.     Enables the unwanted item to continue its lifespan in a different use.; and 3.     Keeps one less new product from entering the market by providing someone with a working unit.  New products = energy + resources.  Here is a Picasa slideshow with some more images: This is a guest post by Matthew Hofmann. Hofmann Architecture LLC is a multi-faceted architectural design build firm with offices in Santa Barbara and San Diego, California. Visit www.HofArc.com to see more photos or to follow their weekly blog. Contact information: Matthew Hofmann - Architect, LEED Accredited Professional Hofmann Architecture [email protected] www.hofarc.com 805.281.2461 All images courtesy of Matthew Hofmann

The creative process, Hofmann believes, isn’t accomplished by adding more, but by taking away what is distracting. “The design questions were, “How much does one remove? How much does one keep?” The must-do list included the use of regional materials and reusable products, such as bamboo for flooring, countertops, the table, along with recycled content throughout. Weight was also a huge issue. Less was more. Lighter was better. And like luggage packed on an airplane, the load needed to be properly balanced. “For me the solution was creating open space using honest materials. I wanted to bring a sense of outdoors in, so it needed to be bright and airy by nature, yet warm and multi-functional.” As a licensed architect he also needs a quiet, comfortable place to work — a space that is mobile and easily converts from residence to workspace. Hofmann is clearly comfortable blending his home and office. “For me, a space that serves only one purpose is a waste of space. But for someone else it may not work.” Last January, Hofmann hitched up and took his first road trip to the El Capitan Mesa RV Park that overlooks the Pacific Ocean and Channel Islands. “It took just 10 minutes to hook-up and the Airstream rolled along great,” he says. “The next morning I took a long walk on the beach, went for a swim, and later worked on a new project.” Here is a Picasa slideshow with some more images: Hofmann Architecture LLC is a multi-faceted architectural design build firm with offices in Santa Barbara and San Diego, California. Visit www.HofArc.com to see more photos or to follow their weekly blog. Contact information: Matthew Hofmann - Architect, LEED Accredited Professional Hofmann Architecture [email protected] www.hofarc.com 805.281.2461 All images courtesy of Matthew Hofmann

[gallery type="slideshow" ids="2049,2048,2050,2051"] Before the development of the freeway system, the main mode of transportation on Puget Sound was a series of privately owned ferries collectively known as the 'Mosquito Fleet'. The community of Fragaria was built at this time around a ferry stop that served the farmers and families of Kitsap County in Washington State. The famed steamship 'Virginia V' harbored at Fragaria at this time and a small community of tiny cabins were built around what was then the ticket/post office and general store. Most of the houses were built on piers to take advantage of the terrain, known as 'stilt houses' Fragaria is one of a handful of remaining communities around Puget Sound built with this method. This is guest post by Joel Lee. We stumbled on this area almost by accident as our search for property near our home in Seattle led us on weekend excursions driving through the countryside. With our very limited budget we knew we were going to have to think creatively and work hard for whatever we found so we started our search with very open minds. We were imaging a secluded parcel of land somewhere that we could park our vintage travel trailer, or maybe an old barn or industrial building we could convert into some sort of a loft. It was with this creative spirit that my wife stumbled upon a small 1923 stilt house in Fragaria that had gone into foreclosure. It had been neglected over the years and needed many urgent repairs, the previous occupant had stripped it of anything of value including everything from the light fixtures to outlet covers. The last major overhaul the house had gone through was in 1950 and even those mid-century updates were showing their age. On the positive side it was less than an hour from our home including a short ferry ride from Seattle. The 1950's remodel had opened it up and made the 672 square feet feel much larger than it actually is. Although it needed some immediate structural work it had great bones including walls, ceilings and floors all made from thick clear Douglas-fir planks. But best of all is its location right on the water, at high tide it feels more like a houseboat as Puget Sound rolls right under our feet. Almost daily we see seals and sea otters playing off our porch not to mention the possibility of fishing and crabbing without leaving our front deck and all of this being so close to Seattle that we never lose sight of the Space Needle. We are attempting a historically respectful and environmentally friendly restoration on a very tight budget so we have been learning to be patient and creative. Most of the appliances and fixtures are from estate sales, salvage yards and Craigslist. Some of the kitchen cabinets were repaired or replaced using recycled crates and even the window and door trim is made from reclaimed wood. We have done most of the work ourselves along with help from friends and family and a house working co-op we developed with friends affectionately known as ‘Barn Raising Group’ in which we exchange labor on each others houses. On the interior we are embracing the mid-century modern aesthetics of the 1950 remodel by installing vintage fixtures and keeping the simple open design that was developed at that time. A Craigslist find of bright orange modern freestanding fireplace has become a focal point of the main room as well as heating the house in winter. Creatively recycled materials along with simple modern aesthetics are being combined to make a cozy, functional and cost effective beach home on Puget Sound. Joel Lee is a creative tinkerer living in Seattle WA. If are in the Pacific Northwest take a trip to see the small stilt houses on Fragaria.

[gallery type="slideshow" ids="2016,2017,2018,2019,2020,2021,2022,2023,2024,2025,2026,2027,2028,2029,2030"] The current penchant for converting shipping containers into domiciles continues with this strangely attractive Texas playhouse, guesthouse and garden retreat in San Antonio by Jim Poteet of Poteet Architects, LP. Shipping containers are a readily available resource thanks to their abandonment at seaports. It’s often cheaper for companies to simply buy a new container than ship an empty one home, so thousands languish in sprawling container storage facilities around harbors throughout the world. Texas architect Jim Poteet designed this structure for artist Stacey Hill as part of her garden ensemble at her artists’ community home. Stacey picked this particular container because of its color, which she kept as is. Jim added a large set of sliding doors, windows, a heating and AC system, and bathroom facilities including a composting toilet. An attached patio forms a pleasant area to sit in nice weather, and a cantilevered overhang provides shade to the window of a garden equipment storage room at one end of the container, which retains its original access doors. The structure is mounted on a base of recycled telephone poles. The floor and walls are covered in the environmental movement’s favorite wood, bamboo. Probably the most interesting feature is the rooftop garden, which is fed by a drip-watering system installed by Jon Ahrens of Madrone Landscape Architecture, cutting down the maintenance required for obvious, precarious reasons. The 8’x4’ bathroom contains the Sun-Mar electric composting toilet and an open shower, and features a non-slip epoxy floor and red sheet metal coated walls. Stacey describes her garden addition: “The container, as we call it, is a great escape for me because the space is pure, uncluttered, wonderfully sunlit, quiet and has a great view of my garden.” She goes on to add: “My two young daughters love it because it’s practically an empty box ready to play, create and pretend in.” Jim Poteet says: “They use it as a summer house, an art house, and for entertaining; they set up and have dinner on the deck there, adjunct to Stacey’s main house.” Images by Chris Cooper for Dwell

At first glance, this 600 square foot modern home, designed and built by students at the Taliesin Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture, looks like a Transformer unfolding. It inspires the impression the unit must have been transported to the site as a small box, where amidst a cacophony of whirrs, clicks and the shush of sleeves traversing lubricated rails, it bloomed into a livable structure. Sadly this isn’t the case: the students decided building the prototype on site to be more practical, although the completed house is still transportable by road, as is hoped future units will be, enabling them to be manufactured remotely. It also doesn’t mean Taliesin Mod.Fab doesn’t possess a host of features that are as equally compelling as my flight of fancy. Sustainability was the watchword of their brief, and the owner has the option of either hard connecting to the utility infrastructure or running completely unplugged. The house is build from structural insulated panels (SIPs) for the walls, roof and floor, and incorporates numerous sustainable characteristics, including passive and active environmental control systems, low-consumption fixtures, natural ventilation, solar orientation, cutting-edge insulation, solar power, rainwater harvesting, native landscaping and a grey water system. The house stands on six small legs, which minimizes its ground footprint. The interior boasts an impressive list of sponsored amenities, including IKEA cabinetry, Cree LED lighting and Caesarstone countertops. The project was guided by faculty members Michael P. Johnson and Jennifer Segal, overseen by project manager Christian Butler, a recent Masters graduate, and assistant project manager Nick Mancusi, a current BAS student. Victor Sidy, Dean of the school, said: “The enterprising graduate and undergraduate students undertook this groundbreaking project for several reasons: to address important issues facing today’s built environment, including living compactly and sustainably; to bring a fresh perspective to the ‘learning by doing’ credo that is so integral to our educational philosophy; and to create more on-campus lodging to accommodate the growth of the school.” “From a design perspective, Mod.Fab features many of the forms that the school’s founder, celebrated architect Frank Lloyd Wright, used, among them the cantilever, distinctly defined planes, covered outdoor areas and red squares, albeit it in fun and surprising ways,” he added. Michael P. Johnson noted: “The most important learning experience for the students on this project is the refinement of detailing. No matter how small or large the building, the search for perfection is not out of reach.” The school is currently in talks with prospective contractors to market the unit, and is expected to price between $75,000 and $120,000. Via PrarieMod All images from: Taliesin, the Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture, copyright 2009 Bill Timmerman.

Credits: Urs Peter Flueckiger; noticed at MoCo Loco.

Founded in 2002 by Peter Strzebniok with a mission to explore the possibilities of prefab modular housing, nottoscale is a collaborative design firm wedded to the idea that prefab homes can be thoughtful, beautiful, sustainable and affordable. nottoscale developed its “Modulome,” a prefab modular home system designed to maximize the flexibility of modular construction while minimizing each home’s environmental footprint. nottoscale realizes this goal through an innovative prefab “building chassis” upon which its Modulome is set, as well as a highly efficient wood panel system based upon the principles of a 2-foot grid. This panel system enables each panel to be customized according to the fit, design and placement of windows, wall space and entryways. From here, the customizable panels create modules that form the body of each house. Only two modules are needed to form the skeleton of a three-bedroom prefab home. The “T-Modulome” is a T-shaped model built from two intersecting modules that creates 1200 square feet of living space. Along with three bedrooms, it includes two bathrooms, an open kitchen and living space, an office and a long stretch of deck. The building chassis forms part of a concrete foundation that raises the T-Modulome slightly off the ground, thus mitigating the impact of changes in ground temperature and enabling the home’s hydronic heating and cooling systems to function efficiently. Also available is the “H-Modulome” model that arranges two modules in an “H-shape” with a covered courtyard running between them. nottoscale extends its emphasis on customizing its modular system to fit a client’s needs by conducting a detailed evaluation of each potential building site prior to selecting the home’s model. Put another way, a Modulome is made to fit the site rather than fitting the site to the home. This enables each Modulome to become tangible evidence of nottoscale’s great effort: to maintain twin commitments to clean, thoughtful design and environmentally sound homebuilding. Blueprints for nottoscale’s T-Modulome are now available through Hometta, the online, collaborative architectural space devoted to advancing the scope and potential of small home construction. www.Hometta.com www.nottoscale.com

View Larger Map Via Inhabitat, Treehugger and ArchPaper First three images from ArchPaper Final three from Meka World

So says Anna Marie Hibble for SFGate (The San Francisco Chronicle) notwithstanding yet another Yahoo News feature indicating that the small house movement is thriving. Though neighboring Sonoma has become a "mini-mecca for the tiny house industry, with an assortment of new businesses launching over the last few years," the question of where small houses would go in San Francisco is a conundrum considering a "famously difficult" building and permit process. Check out the comments - by the sounds of them San Franciscans are not ready for small houses yet anyway. Or are they just sick of living in small spaces? It is worth noting though that many apartments in San Francisco and other metros are small - Hibble dug up 22 move-in ready small homes at or under 500 square feet on the MLS. The cheapest, shown below, is a SOMA studio on Brady St. for $198K for 320 square feet. Joy Liu, Coldwell Banker Res. R.E. Svcs What do you think? Tell us in the comments. Thanks to Reid Spice for the SFGate tip. Oh, and for all of you Friscophiles who love the poster above, check out Schaaf Design's typographic and iconographic map of the city which was based on a set of five banners that are currently hanging at the cable car turnaround at Market and Powell Streets in downtown San Francisco (see below for photos). Need a unique holiday gift for your favorite San Franciscan or Friscophile? Order here. Enter 'smallhouse' as the discount code for 10% off your order.