30 Questions Before You Build Your Tiny House

Before You

Build

30 Questions You Must Ask

When Planning Your Tiny House

Ethan Waldman

Let me guess. You've been spending more time than you'd like to admit looking at gorgeous pictures of tiny houses on Facebook and Pinterest. Tiny houses infiltrate your news feed. Tiny house newsletters stuff your inbox. You actually dream of tiny houses.

Trust me, I’ve been there.

However, there’s a big problem with just dreaming: It doesn’t prepare you for the very real challenge of building a tiny house. I started building my house in June of 2012, when I thought I had already absorbed all of the wisdom that the internet had to offer.

Boy, was I wrong.

By August of 2012, when I had expected to be over halfway done with the entire house, I barely even had my walls framed. I hadn’t factored in how many choices I would face throughout the process that would affect the whole project going forward.  

Fast forward to now...

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Looking back on my tiny house project, I can now see that being organized about your decisions is crucial. Had I done more planning and less daydreaming, I have no doubt I’d have been able to cut my construction time and costs by at least 15%. That may not sound like a lot, but when your timeline is measured in months or years and your budget in the tens of thousands, 15% really adds up.

I want to help you start on your tiny house right away. Building a tiny house means asking and answering hundreds of questions. You’d never build a traditional house without doing a ton of planning, would you? Though smaller, a tiny house contains many of the same systems and requires its fair share of forethought to build.

I made the mistake of “figuring out” a lot of these questions as I went along. If I’d had a guide like this one before building my house, I know I

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would have been able to get my house done faster and with a smaller budget.

There’s no getting around it: You must make these decisions in order to complete your house. You do not want to leave them up to chance. And as I learned the hard way, the more questions you can address up front, the more smoothly your build will go.

So without further ado, I'd like to present the 30 questions you must ask and answer before you build your tiny house.

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30

Crucial

Questions

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30 Crucial Questions You Must Ask and Answer Before You Build Your Tiny House Now we’re on to the good stuff! Each system you add to your tiny house adds time to install and materials to purchase. However, each system also adds comfort and convenience, making your tiny house more liveable. I’ll break the questions into three sections that cover the most basic systems every tiny house has.

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Heating and

Cooling

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Heating and Cooling

Depending on where you live, it’s highly likely that your tiny house will require some source of heat, cooling, or both. In my house, I opted for the popular Dickinson Newport P-12000 stove, but I have not been happy with its performance. I hope the questions below help guide you to a better decision than I made.

1. Will you include heat? If you plan to live in a warmer climate, a more permanent heating solution (like a wood stove or propane heater) may not be required. For example, Tammy Strobel and Logan Smith use a small electric radiator to take the chill off in their northern California tiny house.

2. Will you include air conditioning? Conversely, if you’re in a hot climate, a small air conditioning unit will go a long way toward making your tiny house more comfortable. In Vermont, where I live, my tiny house stays cool all year long, so I didn’t bother incorporating a cooling system.

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3. What fuel will you use for heating? Whether you choose wood, propane, natural gas, electricity, or something else depends mostly on what’s available to you and how much heating you plan to do. Propane and natural gas are much more efficient dollar for dollar when compared with electricity, but the heating units themselves tend to be much more expensive.

4. What type of heater or cooling unit will you buy? Your choices include radiant, forced air, and wood burning and will depend on the fuel you choose. Not all brands are created equal, so make sure you read reviews before committing to a purchase.

5. Where will you install the heater in your tiny house? This is a really important decision, because space is at a premium in a tiny house! Some heaters mount on the wall, others through the floor, and they all have different clearance requirements (how much space is needed on either side and above them for safety purposes).

6. Will you do the installation yourself or hire a professional? Depending on your skills and what you choose to go with, you may be able to install the heater or cooling unit yourself. If you’re working with

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wood, propane, or natural gas, I’d recommend having a professional handle the installation (or at least verify your work). 


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Water

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Water Tiny houses range from water-free to full grid-tied systems complete with dishwashers and laundry facilities. Your setup (and what's even possible for your house) will depend on how you plan your water system.

For example, in my tiny house I opted for a “hybrid” system. I have a 40-gallon water tank with an electric pump, but I also have the ability to hook up to the “city” water pressure if I am in a location that has such utility. My system may not be right (or feasible) for everyone, but I love the flexibility it gives me. Without some advance planning, though, I wouldn't have been able to build my house with the water system I wanted in mind.

7. Will you have plumbing? Yes, it’s possible to build a tiny house with no plumbing at all! Plumbing is something that some tiny housers (like Dee Williams) live without due to how difficult it is to maintain, but the decision isn’t for everyone.  

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8. Will you have hot water? Hot water heaters for tiny houses range from $200 to 1,200, but the decision isn’t just about money. Some people choose to go hot water free to simplify their plumbing setup or reduce their energy usage.

9. What kind of hot water heater will you have? Traditional hot water heaters with tanks are typically less expensive, but at just three to ten gallons, that means you won’t  be able to take a nice long shower in your tiny house. On the other hand, tankless hot water heaters warm your water as you use it but are often more expensive.

10. What fuel will you use to heat your water? Like heating, electric water heaters are less expensive to buy but more expensive to operate. Propane units are more efficient but require a higher upfront investment.

11. Will you have water storage (a tank) on board? Having some capacity to hold water on board your tiny house will enable you to park the house in places where there isn’t a “city” water hookup. However, the tank will add weight and take up valuable space in your house.

12. How big will your water tank be? Having a larger tank means filling it less often, but it also means giving up more of your precious interior space for water.

13. Where in the house will you place your tank?

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A water tank doesn’t have to go underneath the kitchen sink. I considered placing my tank within the floor of the house but ultimately decided against it because it would be susceptible to Vermont cold.

14. Will your house include a shower or just a sink? Many tiny houses have showers, but there are notable exceptions. Neither Dee Williams nor Tammy Strobel and Logan Smith have showers in their tiny houses. They opted to save the cost,skip the complexity, and utilize showers elsewhere.

15. What material will you use to finish your shower? There’s a range of options when it comes to finishing your shower, from pre-made plastic inserts to custom metal or even wood. It all depends on what kind of aesthetic you want.

16. Will your house have grey water (drain water) storage? Grey water is how RV-ers refer to the water that comes from their sinks and showers. In other words, it’s waste water, but isn’t contaminated with human waste (that’s called black water). If you plan to live on the road, you’ll want to consider having some kind of holding tank for grey water, since you’ll need to collect it until you can empty the tank at a dump station.

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17. Will you connect your house to a septic system or use a grey water catchment system? If you plan to stay put for a while, you’ll need to figure out where your grey water will go. Depending on where you live, you may be legally required to hook up to the city sewer system or a septic system. Other tiny house dwellers like Laura Lavoie have created alternative grey water catchment systems that filter and ultimately allow the water to run onto the ground.

18. How big will your grey water tank be? The larger the capacity, the longer you’ll be able to go between emptyings (or “dumps”), but the full tank will add weight and take up valuable storage space inside your house.

19. Where in the house will you place your grey water tank? I’ve seen many creative applications. Most notably, the Protohaus has a custom shower pan fabricated from stainless steel that doubles as a grey water storage tank.

20. Will you use a flush toilet or a composting toilet? It might be tempting to go with a flush toilet, since that’s probably what you’re used to. But the key factor to consider when making your decision is this: Opting for a flush toilet sets off a cascade of other requirements. You essentially mandate that your house either be hooked up to some kind of sewer or septic system or have a black water storage tank. That’s one reason why composting toilets are such a popular choice for tiny houses: They don’t require either of those components.


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21. Will you use a commercial composting toilet or a humanurestyle toilet? If you opt for a composting toilet, you'll have a range of choices, from a homemade humanure-style toilet that costs under $50 to build all the way up to a complex commercial composting unit that can cost over $1,000.


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Electricity

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Electricity Most tiny houses have some form of electricity, but that’s where the similarities end. In my own house, I opted to do AC wiring like a standard house but selected mostly propane appliances so that my electricity needs are minimal. If and when I want to live off-grid in my tiny house, it will be an easy conversion. Depending on where you live, I recommend you consider the following questions:

22. Will your tiny house be on-grid or off? In other words, do you envision your tiny house on a mountain in the woods or behind another home in an urban or suburban area? If you choose the former, you’ll likely need to be off-grid.

23. If your house is off-grid, how will you generate electricity? There are tiny houses that run on solar, wind, generator, and other sources of power. You’ll have to determine what resources are most readily available in the area where you plan to park your house.

24. How will you store the electricity you generate? So that your generator doesn’t run all the time and/or you don’t waste a drop of energy from those sunny days, you’ll need some kind of battery bank to store that energy.

25. Where will you store the electricity you generate? Batteries are large, heavy, and potentially hazardous to your interior air quality, so it’s not recommended that they share a space with you inside of the house. However, they need to be kept from freezing and will

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require maintenance. You’ll need to find a place for them that works with both sets of constraints.

26. How much electrical capacity will you need? The amount of electricity you'll need will depend on the appliances you choose (more on those in a moment). Before you set up your electrical system, you'll have to determine how much electricity you'll require on a daily basis.

27. Will you wire the house for AC, DC, or both? If you opt for an off-grid house, many of the lowest-energy appliances run on DC electricity rather than AC. However, running your house on DC will present wiring challenges and require specialized knowledge from your electrician.

28. What type of appliances will you buy? Electric appliances (range hood, ventilation system, oven, etc.) tend to be cheaper, while propane appliances tend to be more efficient (and use next to no electricity). You’ll also have to choose between more expensive RV and marine appliances, which are usually DC or propane, and cheaper home appliances which run on common AC power.

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29. Will your refrigerator run on electricity or propane? Refrigerators draw a lot of power—more than any of your other appliances. Depending on where you’ll park your house and whether you’re on-grid or off, you may need a propane fridge to keep your electricity use to a minimum.

30. What additional components will your setup need? When it comes to wiring, you’ll be much happier if you wire your house during construction, not afterwards. You can add things like speakers, television, phone, and internet. It’s all up to you!

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Research

Tips

Research Tips As you now know, there are plenty of questions you need to answer before you can go from dream to finished tiny house. I encourage you to use these questions as your guide as you move forward with your research. Here are my favorite tips for keeping that research organized and easy to access when you need it.

Don’t forget to document! Simply opening 48 browser tabs with potential answers doesn’t help— you need to be systematic about the way you save information. While there are many programs out there, I highly recommend the free program Evernote. It’s available for all platforms and integrates directly with your web browser so you can literally highlight information on a webpage and “clip” it right into your Tiny House Research Evernote notebook.

Here are a few more tricks in case you go the Evernote route. (Can you tell I like Evernote?) Each time you clip something, it becomes a “note.” You can file each note in a specific “notebook.” While I’d suggest having just one notebook for your tiny house project, you can further organize your tiny house notes with tags. I’d recommend tagging each note as you clip it with one to three short tags.

By way of example, here's an excerpt from my own Tiny House Research notebook. As you can see, when I clip something about stoves, I tag it as “stove.” When I clip something about solar, I tag it as “solar” and “wiring.”

If you’d like to find out more about digital curation, definitely check out Experience Curating by my friend Joel Zaslofsky (but be prepared to rethink how you capture information across your entire life experience!).




Research

Sources

Choose your sources wisely, and don’t be afraid to ask questions. Facebook and YouTube are awash with commenters who will provide you with a diatribe about what they think is the best thing and why, but I’d be wary. I’ve seen (and received) some really great advice via Facebook comments—and also some terrible advice.

A great place to start is with other people who have built and/or live in tiny houses. These people (such as myself) have firsthand knowledge of almost everything related to tiny houses, and we’re a really friendly, approachable bunch to boot.

For example, when I was building my tiny house, I personally reached out to:

Andrew Odom
 Dee Williams
 Brittany Yunker
 Malissa Tack
 Tammy Strobel
 Zboatman

Also, when you’re researching materials, don’t be afraid to actually call the company that makes the product to ask them questions. These construction materials

companies (surprisingly) have some of the best and most personable customer service professionals I have ever interacted with. I received extra awesome phone support from:

Blum (cabinet hinges and hardware)
 PrecisionTemp (hot water heater)
 American Clay (potential for interior wall finish that I didn’t end up going with)
 Marvin (windows)

One final tip: Many non tiny house professionals will sometimes balk at first when you tell them what you’re thinking about using their product for. I found it helpful to sometimes refer to my house as a “small cabin” rather than a tiny house on wheels. 





Getting

Attached

Don’t get attached. When you think you’ve found the perfect solution to your problem, don’t get too attached. Tiny houses are still on the fringe, so you may find a heater that you think is great only to find out that the company will refuse to install it in a mobile structure. That’s just a random example, but I’d encourage you to come up with at least one additional alternative in case your first choice doesn’t work out.




What’s

Next?

What’s Next? I know you’re not going to be able to answer all of these questions right away, but I feel much better knowing that you have them in your awareness. I hope you do, too.

But what if you don’t want to do this alone?

I know from plenty of personal experience that planning and building a tiny house can be overwhelming. There was no comprehensive guide when I started, no single resource to help me through the process. When I finished my own house, I decided to pull together my countless hours of research and the lessons I’d learned along the way to help other tiny house builders (like you).

If you want more context, more information, and a detailed look at my own decision-making process, delivered in the same helpful style as what you just finished reading, then I wrote Tiny House Decisions for you.

Tiny House Decisions takes you from the big questions (such as “How tiny is too tiny?” and “Should I build my house on wheels or not?”) through the systems (like heat and hot water) and construction decisions (like what kind of insulation is best), all the way through moving into your completed tiny house. It includes interviews with other tiny house owners and a list of my favorite resources, too. It’s the guide I wish I’d had when I built my house.

Learn more, read a sample chapter, and get your copy here.

I wish you a smooth and fulfilling journey into tiny house ownership!

Thank you to Susan Teare for the photos on pages 3 and 19. All other photos were taken by Ethan Waldman.

The photographers hold the rights to their respective photos.

Thank you to Bridgette Blanton for the illustrations.

This eBook contains affiliate links. I have not recommended any products that I did not use or research myself.