50 Tiny House on Wheels DIY Tips
Essential Tiny House Tips That Will Save You Thousands
Written By Someone Who Actually Built a Tiny House on
Wheels and Lived In It For 5 Years in New Zealand
Corianne Holmes
For Patrick Brunelle, my partner in all things.
Many thanks to my family, to my mother especially for her help with this project.
And to my loving Grandmother.
Contents
Title Page
Dedication
Introduction
Designing Your Tiny House on Wheels
Building Your Tiny House on Wheels
Living in a Tiny House on Wheels
Introduction
“The purpose of our lives is to be happy.” —Dalai Lama
◆◆◆
Let’s be real, building a tiny house from a trailer is a huge undertaking.
Luckily, today there is a TON of great tiny house information that wasn’t
around when we were building back in 2015. Unfortunately, all this great
information is scattered across the internet.
From Facebook groups to online forums, Reddit, YouTube, Instagram,
you name it, there is tiny house information all over the place, but often the
advice is contradictory or completely unhelpful.
This list of 50 Tiny House Tips has all the helpful building and design
tips you NEED if you are starting out or in the midst of your build. It’s the
perfect list if you are truly committed to the tiny house movement.
◆◆◆
We are Pat and Cori and we built the South Island Tiny House, a tiny house
on wheels, in New Zealand for $20,000 NZD in 2015. It was our foray into
building a tiny house, but luckily Patrick wasn’t a complete novice. He had
some residential building experience and at the time worked in the
construction industry as a welder. Conversely, Cori had barely any
experience with power tools, let alone building a house, but she learned a lot
by watching, helping, and trial and error.
The build itself took months of planning and gathering materials, but
once the trailer was secured and ready, we began. After working on the tiny
house every weekend and during every holiday for nine months, we finally
moved into our tiny house. We happily called the South Island Tiny House
home for five years. We lived in the tiny house over those five years in
multiple locations, including a full year in its current location, a spot nestled
among the native bush in Dunedin. Sadly, we moved out in December 2020,
but before leaving our tiny house life behind, we knew we had to capture our
experience and knowledge. We decided to start a YouTube channel (Pat and
Cori- South Island Tiny House); wrote a book about our tiny house journey;
and wrote this list of tips about designing, building, and living in a tiny
house.
Patrick and Cori on the deck of the South Island Tiny House, now
available on Airbnb!
◆◆◆
This list was written from the perspective of two millennials who believe
the tiny house movement is about creativity, cost-savings, simple living, and
hard work. So if you are interested in buying a brand-new $100,000 tiny
house and intend to keep it in your backyard or only live in it for a few
months, these tips probably won’t be helpful. On the other hand, if you are
embarking on a tiny house journey of your own, with a small budget, and you
plan on building it yourself so that you can live cheaply and simply, you
might find a few nuggets on this list that may save you time, effort, and
money.
We wish we had read something like this before we started our journey—
it would have come in handy! Many of these tips we learned the hard way
after wasting far too much money and our precious time. Read this list so that
you too can successfully build a beautiful, functional tiny house that suits you
and your lifestyle to a tee!
Don’t be the person who runs blindly into a huge project without doing
research and looking for a variety of information. Tackle your tiny house
project with as much knowledge as you can get your hands on, starting with
these tips!
The tips and tricks are tested, proven, and will be invaluable to anyone
starting a tiny house journey. They cover tiny house design, building, and
living. Each part will give you new insight into your project as you strive to
stay on budget and manifest the tiny house of your dreams.
This is 100 percent our personal opinion and by no means the ONLY way
you can build, design, or live in a tiny house. But if you are planning on
going down this exciting and challenging path, this list is exactly what you
need.
Designing Your Tiny House on Wheels
“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” —Leonardo da Vinci
Designing and Visualizing Your Tiny House on Wheels
1. It’s great to have a design plan, but once you get a better idea of the
space (usually once the walls go up), understand that some things
may have to change.
2. Rent a tiny house on Airbnb, tour a tiny house, or attend a tiny
house festival to spark your creativity and gather ideas.
3. Make a 2D or 3D mock-up of your tiny house to test the feasibility
of your design and layout. There are many apps and programs—
some are even free—that can help you design your tiny house
virtually.
4. Research a wide variety of tiny house designs, including
apartments, shipping container homes, boats, house trucks, and
many more! If the information is available, look into how the
owners feel about different aspects of their design choices.
5. Measure and mark your design plan onto a driveway with chalk to
get a better feel for the internal space and how things will flow.
Get the Bones of Your Tiny House Right
6. Plywood doesn’t have to be your default material for everything
(namely, walls and furniture), as it is very expensive and very
heavy. There are many great alternatives to consider.
7. It’s important to design your tiny house to be balanced on the
trailer, that way it will be safe and towable.
8. Framing material can be thinner than in a normal house; this will
help save internal space and will save on weight.
9. Use the thickest plywood you can afford for your subfloor and
make sure it is treated.
Smart Storage Solutions
10. Build as much storage as you can into your house. Even if you
don’t use it right away, you will eventually. If you don’t have
enough storage for something, there is nothing wrong with
improving the space! Sometimes all it takes is a fresh eye or a hunt
online.
11. Tiny house seating should always be multifunctional, movable,
collapsible, or contain storage space.
12. Waste no space. Maximize the empty space under the floor or
behind a corner. Even hard-to-reach spaces can fit something that
you may not need very often.
13. Make sure to designate a place for your important documents and
valuables.
14. Baskets and bins come in handy to hide ugly random things. If you
need to be able to see the contents, use a clear bin.
15. In a tiny house, wall space is potential storage space, so maximize
your walls by adding hooks, built-in storage, ladders, shelves, and
magnets.
Comfort Is King!
16. Invest in good cushions or foam so that you have comfortable
seating.
17. Make sure your pet will be comfortable in the space as well.
18. Incorporate your hobbies and collections into your design so that
you don’t feel like you are making too many compromises once
you move in. We love to cook, so we made sure our kitchen was
large enough for both of us.
19. Consider alternative ways to heat your tiny house, but don’t forget
about the additional maintenance, cost, storage, and chores that
come with them.
20. Make sure your table or work space is big enough for fun things
like games or puzzles. Ideally, this space or table should be
multifunctional.
Building Your Tiny House on Wheels
“There is no such thing as a boring project. There are only boring executions.” —Irene
Etzkorn
Before You Begin
21. Invest in good personal protective equipment (PPE), especially
safety glasses, gloves, steel-toed boots, overalls, and hearing
protection. This is very important.
22. Make sure you have an agreement or contingency plan in case you
need to move your tiny house BEFORE it is complete.
23. Take lots of photos during your build; these will be handy if you
want to sell your tiny house or if you just want to remember what
you have behind the walls.
24. Protect your tools, materials, and build by locking it up every time
you are away, setting up surveillance cameras, insuring your items,
or keeping your build away from prying eyes.
Getting the Trailer Right
25. Make sure your trailer is in tip-top shape before starting to build—
this includes having all the necessary paperwork so it is road-legal.
26. Weigh and level your trailer before you start to build.
27. If you are building on a used trailer, make sure that it is rust-proof.
Moisture and humidity can cause havoc on the metal of a well-used
trailer. Use paint or sealer for this.
28. Upgrade your tires to manage the weight of a tiny house before you
start building. While you are building, it’s okay for the tires to be
slightly off the ground and protected.
Practical Matters
29. It’s fine to have a completion date in mind, but don’t be surprised if
it takes longer than you think to build your tiny house.
30. If you find the “perfect” item that you want for your tiny house but
it isn’t available and you have a tight deadline, don’t wait, find
something else. Oftentimes you will discover that the alternative is
just as good or surprisingly better.
31. Before you head off to work on your tiny house, take the time to
prepare what you will need; break down tasks into small,
manageable pieces, and keep track of what needs to be done with
lists.
32. If you buy something and it doesn’t quite fit or work, customize it
for your needs. And if the modifications don’t work, resell it or
chuck it out.
33. If you want to be off the grid, calculate your electricity usage and
know what appliances you will be running before designing your
system.
34. If you are worried about the weight of your tiny house, keep an
estimated running total of the weight of your materials so you
won’t be surprised when you weigh the house for the first time!
35. Choose flexible lighting options for your tiny house, like string
lights, dimming lights or lights that can swivel.
36. If you are building your tiny house outside, buy a few big tarps to
cover your building materials and tools—don’t wait until a bad
weather forecast to get these items. Be prepared!
37. It is handy to have a small trailer and a vehicle with towing
capabilities while building your tiny house. Depending on how
long your build takes, it’s totally worth investing in these items.
You can always buy and then sell the vehicle and/or trailer when
your build is finished.
38. Purchase the right tools for the job—don’t be cheap or try to cut
corners. Borrowing the tools or selling them after the build is an
alternative if cost is an issue.
39. Consider installing plug outlets that have USB sockets; this keeps
the cords and mess to a minimum.
40. Understand that you will make mistakes and that in order to finish
the build you may have to think creatively or flexibly to get the
work done.
41. If you are using recycled materials, know that it will take more time
to adapt or modify the materials, and sometimes even after doing
all of that you won’t necessarily know what to use them for or
where to put them.
***If you want to know more about using recycled materials in your tiny
house build, please visit our website, www.southislandtinyhouse.com, and
join our newsletter for 10 BONUS TIPS!***
42. Make sure the appliances you buy will fit and match the decor
before installing. You may even need to bring the appliances into
the space to see if they will work.
43. Try to buy hard-wearing appliances that have good reviews and
come with at least a year-long warranty.
44. Save the receipts for all of your appliances.
45. If an appliance can’t keep up with the wear and tear of tiny house
living, don’t be afraid to spend more to upgrade to a higher-quality
appliance.
Don’t forget to have fun!
Living in a Tiny House on Wheels
“Simplicity is not the goal. It is the by-product of a good idea and modest expectations.”
—Paul Rand
Adjusting to Tiny House Life
46. Be patient with your partner if you are new to tiny living; the first
few months are the hardest.
47. Don’t expect to immediately have a good system for organizing or
keeping your household items to a minimum. Check in with
yourself and your family frequently to adjust; eventually, you will
find the perfect balance.
48. Be open to adjustments. Once you get into your tiny house, don’t
delay in making it as comfortable as you can. Don’t worry about
not getting it right the first time—the house is yours, so make sure
it works for you.
49. Take time to get away from your tiny house—stay with friends, go
camping, plan a staycation. This helps you to appreciate your tiny
house and can help you stay sane.
50. Upgrade little things to make yourself more comfortable. Buy nice
sheets, splurge on throw blankets and pillows, or get fancy pans
and good knives. You can only have essentials in a tiny house, so
make sure they are as nice as they can be.
51. Put things where they belong as soon as you are done with them, as
a tiny house can get cluttered very easily.
52. Opt for things that can nest, stack, or fold away. For example, all of
our bowls took up the footprint of our largest bowl. We used this
concept for pans, measuring cups, and plates. This also simplifies
keeping things where they belong.
53. Use the “one thing in, one thing out” rule to help cut down on
clutter in your tiny house.
54. Living in a tiny house doesn’t change your habits; in fact, these
habits appear much quicker in a small space. So if you are not
normally an organized person and living in a messy home bothers
you, set up storage systems and develop neat habits to help you stay
on top of cleaning and putting things away.
55. Buy blankets and rugs that can be washed. These items will get a
lot more wear and tear in a tiny house and will need cleaning more
often.
56. Make sure your towels and cleaning cloths are heavy duty and
made to last so you only need a few and don’t have to replace them
often.
57. Get a good, small battery-powered vacuum for quick cleaning and
for tight spots. Since we invested in Ryobi battery-powered tools to
build the tiny house, we decided to get a Ryobi 18-volt vacuum to
keep things simple.
58. Build a veranda or covered porch in order to extend your living
space. Covered outdoor spaces are helpful for storing shoes and
coats so that your tiny house will stay clean.
59. Use the outdoors for cooking pungent foods that can permeate your
clothes or if you feel a fart coming—strong smells can linger in a
tiny house!
Design, build, and live your best life in a tiny house.
Thank You for Reading!
Thank you for reading these 50+ tips! If you want to receive the 10 bonus
tips, please email us at [email protected] or visit our website
at www.southislandtinyhouse.com
