If you’re into finding yourself an ultra cheap housing solution, then you may be inspired after seeing this! Although, we must point out, you would have to be happy with the idea of containing yourself within tiny quarters. ‘Instructables’ user ‘Hypha’ is an inspiration when it comes to DIY dreams. A lady with absolutely no building experience, Hypha nevertheless managed to jimmy up the little mobile home you see in varying stages of construction below, with assistance from her boyfriend. What’s more, she reckons she only spent about $2000 on the entire project! Check it out for more details of her tiny, but fully functional gypsy home!
Hypha already had an old, home built utility trailer at her disposal. She started by grinding off parts of the trailer she didn’t need, before sanding it down.
She researched the legality aspects of owning a mobile home. Turns out, in her area a street legal vehicle had to be under 12 feet tall and less than 8’3 wide. However she found that even something over 8 foot tall would be difficult to transport…so in the end, her tiny home ended up with dimensions of 7’10 x 7’11!
She brushed up on her math skills when calculating the curvature of the walls for the roof.
She made sure to avoid treated lumber and concentrated on American plywood.
Constructing the floor involved covering the metal bed with a thin layer of plywood subfloor. Then she bought some untreated pine lumber for the floor proper.
Her boyfriend stumbled across these old shipping crates which were perfect to use as storage compartments for the interior!
Next step was crucial… installing the rafters to give the structure support.
To save coin on paint (which can add up) she got creative, visiting her local ‘Habitat for Humanity’ restore and investing in ‘mistinted’ paints which she then mixed together to create her own unique color.
The completed interior contains a working faucet that hooks up to an exterior source. There’s no sink though so Hypha uses a washing tub in which to do the dishes. There’s also a two burner stove.
She was constantly thinking about storage solutions when planning the furniture set up. This bench doubles as a linen cabinet, for instance!
Hypha and her boyfriend are forced to be super organized so they can manage living in their tiny home in comfort.
Hypha’s ‘futon’ bed was made by her. She used a heavy canvas shell and filled it with layers of blankets, foam toppers and mattress pads. She believes it’s really comfortable!
Hypha estimates she spent about $2000 on her tiny dream home, also taking up to a hundred hours of her time. It’s certainly not for everyone, but with the savings on utilities and lack of a mortgage considered, living here is certainly not something to scoff at! Impressive!
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