Day 9: Rafters, Ridge Beams & Jam Night

Patti started Day 9 of Yestermorrow's Tiny House Design-Build course with a presentation on roof framing. The tiny house on wheels we are building includes dormers in the center of the building, so we are cutting our rafters at two different pitches. Patti walked everyone through the vocabulary and structural mechanics of roof framing with models and diagrams. Then she demonstrated how to use a framing square to make bird's mouth cuts on the rafters. (See more photos in the Day 9 Slideshow.)

Down at the hanger we split into teams so we could square up the walls, build supports for the ridge beam, sheathe around the wheel walls, and begin cutting our rafters. The morning flew by and soon it was lunchtime. (I have resisted bragging about the incredible whole foods meal plan here, but let me assure you that the food is scrumptious at every meal!) I took the afternoon off from construction to have a nap and check in with Yestermorrow's office team. By the time I went down to the hanger the ridge beam was in place and most of the rafters were already up!

Since we only have two more days of design work the evening was devoted to studio time so everyone could work on their tiny house designs. However, most of them took breaks to join the festivities in Yestermorrow's dining room. It was a crisp evening, perfect for a jam night in the kitchen, accompanied by Cillian's famous popcorn and the ever-popular Heady Topper from local brewery, The Alchemist. The brew was courtesy of the tiny home's owner Day Benedict, who is a former Yestermorrow Intern. He came to meet everyone and see his little house. It was fun to get to know him and learn more about his plans for the tiny house. Between Dave Warren, Yestermorrow's Facilities Manager, and my co-instructor Patti we had a stand up bass and two guitars. We scrounged up some copies of Rise Up Singing and most of us sang along at some point to some good old folk songs (including one of my favorites: I'm My Own Grandpa). What a fun night!

Day 8: Walls, Windows & Models

On day 8 of Yestermorrow's Tiny House Design-Build course we spent our morning on the job site getting the rest of the walls raised. A couple people have been especially enjoying the design portion of the class so they've hunkered down in the studio to learn more about how their buildings work by building models and drawing up sections and elevations. (See more photos in the Day 8 Slideshow.)

The center sections of the wall are taller because we've done a balloon frame in the area where the dormers will be, so these wall sections are quite heavy. We've braced each of the walls up in place while we square the walls and attached them to each other. Yesterday when we were sheathing we cut out most of the window openings using the circular saw to make plunge cuts. (The trick here is to drill a hole in each corner from the inside of the wall so that you can see the starting and stopping points for your cut.) However, we didn't get all the windows cut out so Julien tackled the rest today with a reciprocating saw once the walls were up. It's messier work, but definitely satisfying to see those windows pop open!

Meanwhile, Laura figured out a plan for blocking out around the wheel wells with pressure treated 2x6s so that we would have a surface to which we can nail our sheathing. It took some head scratching, just as it did on Day 4 of the Tiny Barn building blitz.

After supper Paul gave one last slideshow about proportion, line, and color. Then everyone got back to work on their own tiny house designs in the studio. The models are shaping up nicely and many people have glued a copy of their floor plans to the models which makes them easier to understand. It's so fun to see the houses people have described start to take shape.

Day 6: Sheathing, Energy & Systems, Wall Raising

On Day 6 of Yestermorrow's Tiny House Design-Build we began sheathing the walls with CDX plywood. We're sheathing the walls flat so that the plywood creates sheer panels, which helps to keep the walls square while we install them. (See more photos in the Day 6 Slideshow.)

Since the long walls are being built in 3 sections and we have plenty of brute strength amongst the 16 of us, the panels won't be too heavy to lift into place even once they are sheathed. We decided to use 3/8" plywood to save weight since other tiny housers have done this. Unfortunately, the plywood has more warps and bows than we'd like to see so most of us have decided we'd rather use 1/2" for our little homes. (It may be that 3/8" plywood is higher quality on the Best Coast and this is another East Coast - West Coast difference.)

Now that we have the trailer level we can use it as a work surface. Our wall sheathing process involves snapping a straight line 3 1/2" from the edge of the trailer, toenailing the bottom plate of the wall to the subfloor along this line, squaring up the wall, and attaching the plywood, using the glue and screw method. Because this little house is not built down into the trailer frame we are running our plywood an extra 4 3/4" below the bottom plate so that it will cover the floor system (3/4" AvanTech subfloor, 3 1/2" pressure treated joists, and 1/2" pressure treated undercarriage). We also cut out most of the windows, using a circular saw to make plunge cuts. The windows we didn't manage to get cut out before it was time for wall raising will need to be finished with a reciprocating saw.

We got the walls almost ready to raise in the morning and after lunch I did a presentation on building science basics, energy, and systems. Afterwards we did our first wall raising and got three of the wall sections up. It's always such a thrill to see the first walls go up!

Thankfully, we set up the schedule with a 24 hour break from Saturday evening to Sunday evening, which will be a good chance for everyone to recharge. Perfect for a Saturday evening bonfire and a sing-along with a few (handmade!) instruments. It was an action-packed week and we've got another one ahead of us!

Day 5: Two Tiny Tours, Floor Insulation, Installing Subfloor

First thing on the docket for Day 5 of Yestermorrow's Tiny House Design-Build course was a field trip to Montpelier to see two little houses. (See all the photos in the Day 5 Slideshow.)

The first was a tiny house on wheels that was constructed by Yestermorrow's first 2-week Tiny House Design-Build class two years ago. This little house was designed as a collaboration between the clients, Susan and Emily, and our co-instructor Paul Hanke. It features a bay window, a set of dormers in the sleeping loft, an alcohol cooktop, and a commercial sink for a bathtub. Life got busy and the homeowners are still working on the house. So they haven't moved in yet, but they're well on their way. They've made themselves a cozy home, sweet home and I look forward to seeing it again on my next trip to Vermont in March for the Less is More course.

The second field trip was to see Ben Cheney's home, which was built by Yestermorrow's Semester Program last year. Ben's 700 square foot 1-bedroom house with a shop in the basement isn't a tiny house, but it is a small house that uses space creatively. It's setting is also spectacular, especially this time of year, with the blue corrugated siding contrasting nicely with the autumn leaves.

We had a great time asking Ben questions about his design decisions - and the cool gadgets he has in his home. If anyone can identify the mysterious unidentified object in the Day 5 Slideshow, please do let us know what it is!

In the afternoon we insulated the floor box of the trailer with rigid foam and sealed up the edges with low expansion spray foam. The floor box is 3 1/2" tall, so we inserted one sheet of 2" rigid foam and sealed the edges then added a sheet of 1 1/2" and sprayed the edges around it. Afterwards we installed the 3/4" subfloor. The AvanTech decking has the screw pattern stamped on it, which makes it especially easy to get it done in a snap. Tomorrow we plan to raise the first walls and it will start to feel like a real house. Stay tuned!

As usual, we had presentations and studio time in the evening after supper. It's been great to see the designs evolve, especially now that several of them are taking shape in the 3rd dimension with models and sections.

Day 4: Wall Framing, Drawing to Scale, A Chat with Dee

We started out Day 4 of Yestermorrow's Tiny House Design-Build down at the Hanger where we worked on framing up the long walls of the house and preparing the trailer for the floor box system. After lunch we went right back to it and we finished out the work day with the two long walls almost finished. (See more photos in the Day 4 Slideshow.)

After supper we had a Skype chat with Dee Williams. Everyone had a chance to introduce herself or himself and tell a little about her or his project. Then Dee shared her tiny house story and some lessons learned from living in a little house for the past nine years.

Afterwards students received their drafting kits and Paul gave a drafting lesson so they could put their new tools to good use. The rest of the evening was spent getting a sense of what fits and how it feels with the help of architectural scales and massing models. How fun to see these projects evolve!

Day 3: Interiors, Another Tiny Field Trip, Site Maps & Graph Paper

We started Day 3 of Yestermorrow's Tiny House Design-Build with my presentation about tiny house interior design considerations with dozens of tiny house photos I've collected over the past couple years, including John's Tiny House Truck, Brittany's Bayside Bungalow, Chris & Malissa's Tiny Tack House, Gina's Sweet Pea, and many more. We've created a shared inspiration folder for the class so that everyone can add their favorite interior design ideas. (See more photos in the Day 3 Slideshow.)

Then we headed down the road on another tiny field trip to see a guest cabin on the bend of the Mad River. The setting for this little house is spectacular, especially during foliage season. Like most little houses, this one uses a few tricks to maximize the space, including a retrofitted attic ladder to access the loft and glass blocks to borrow light from the bedroom for the bathroom.

The afternoon was devoted to free time so that everyone could catch their breath. A group of us headed to the nearby village of Waitsfield for maple creamies and maple-bacon donuts, which we ate next to the river and covered bridge. We're loving these gorgeous October days!

After supper everyone gathered in the studio to spend a few hours working on site plans and layouts. In the Less is More class Dave Cain shared a trick for exploring scale in a little house by cutting out graph paper blocks and rearranging the spaces until it works, so I passed this tip along and several students gave it a try. Of course, others sketched, made models, or poured over inspiring books, too. It's amazing to see how the ideas have already evolved from the first day. I can't wait to see what everyone has come up with by the end of two weeks!

Day 2: Undercarriage, A Tiny Field Trip, Wall Framing

We started out Day 2 of Yestermorrow’s Tiny House Design-Build in the Hanger by painting the trailer and gluing and screwing the pressure treated plywood undercarriage to the floor boxes. The house is large enough that the floor joist system was constructed in 3 parts that will be connected together. (See more photos in the Day 2 Slideshow.)

Then we headed out on a field trip to see Chris’ little house, which is one of Dave Sellers’ sculptural creations on Prickly Mountain. I’d been to Chris’ home before, but I enjoyed seeing how my perspective of the space has shifted now that I live in a tiny house myself. The studio and perched sleeping loft are still as charming as they ever were, but I have a greater appreciation than ever before for the challenges of sealing and weatherizing a curved skylight.

After lunch we headed back to the Hanger to tackle a variety of projects, including:

• drilling holes through the trailer to enable us to attach the floor system,
• wrapping the pressure treated joists with a membrane to prevent a galvanic reaction with the trailer, and
• cutting studs, plates, and headers for our wall framing

Framing always includes some head scratching, but fortunately Patti and Lizabeth have spent a great deal of time with the plans now and have determined (most of) the necessary modifications. It was, as it always is, a thrill to see the first walls framed up. And, of course, it’s a treat to see students gaining confidence so quickly as they become more familiar with impact drivers, drills, and saws. We got the two short walls framed up just as the afternoon drew to a close.

I learned a couple new framing tricks today, including kerf cutting the bottom edge of the bottom plate where the door will be so that the subfloor isn’t damaged by a sawzall when the time comes to remove that section. I also shared Dee William’s trick of building a Board Tweeker out of 2x4s to coax twisted boards into place. Thanks, Dee! Here are some of the lessons our students learned today, encapsulated in exactly 5 words, courtesy of a round of Gimme 5:

• Plates go top and bottom
• Sharp drill bits are nice
• Propane gas can heat efficiently
• Rusty trailers look better painted
• Bookcases can also be ladders
• Eccentric houses are structurally problematic
• Kerf cut the door opening
• All houses need constant maintenance

After dinner Paul presented climate and site considerations for situating a tiny house. Then I addressed the invisible structures in my presentation on code and regulations. It’s important to consider both the physical context and the invisible conditions – social, political, financial, and legal – when siting any house. But because little houses (particularly those on trailers) are alegal in many places, we want to make sure that tiny house enthusiasts consider everything from fire safety to moisture management and from space efficient storage tricks to zoning code when designing a little home. It’s certainly a lot to contemplate all at once, but the design process is iterative and context-specific – even if a little house is ready for adventure on the open road.

Day 1: Structures, Foundation, Bubble Diagrams

We started out Day 1 of Yestermorrow's Tiny House Design-Build with information about structures and the forces that all structures are subjected to (uplift, overturning, racking, sliding, etc.) See more photos in the Day 1 Slideshow. Approximately half of the class intends to design a ground-bound dwelling, but since our build project for the course is a tiny house on a trailer we also addressed the particular challenges of designing a mobile structure. I introduced several different trailer configurations and shared the trailer design Portland Alternative Dwellings has developed with Iron Eagle Trailers (which are built specifically to insure a solid and easy connection between the trailer and the house and to maximize the amount of insulation in the floor).

Then we went down to the Hanger where Patti and Lizabeth introduced the class to the trailer and the plans. Our client intends for the structure to be a part-time seasonal dwelling here in New England, so we’ll be building accordingly. The trailer is a car hauler that was purchased used, so it’s presenting some unique learning opportunities. The students who arrived on campus early to do work-trade at Yestermorrow prepped it last week by removing the decking so that we could start with the bare trailer. We began that work today by removing rust and then coating the trailer with Skyco Ospho rust treatment to prevent any additional corrosion.

Then we were on to cutting joists and rigid foam insulation for the floor system. Lizabeth introduced the circular saw and once everyone had a turn practicing with scrap lumber we switched to cutting our floor joists, which are pressure treated 2x4s. Then Patti and Lizabeth led everyone through framing the floor system in three segments, which we’ll be attaching together tomorrow.

(By the way, it’s amusing learning the little differences between building on the West Coast and building on the east coast. On the west coast Owens Corning has the corner on the rigid foam insulation market, so we all call it “pink stuff” while on the East Coast most of it appears to be made by Dow, so it’s known here as “blue board.” Similarly, I’m used to pressure treated lumber being dark brown and full of punctures while over here it’s mostly Southern Pine and identifed by the a green tint of the chemicals.)

This evening we had a presentation on tiny houses from around the world that has me fantasizing once again about building a house inspired by an elephant. The rest of the evening was devoted to design exploration, including bubble diagraming and showing off the inspiration folders students prepared as part of their program. The creative juices were flowing, the colored markers were used with wild abandon, and google images kept producing more inspirational imagery. How fun to be at the beginning of two weeks of tiny house design and building!

Hello, Tiny House Design-Build

Last night we kicked off Tiny House Design-Build with an orientation tour, a welcome dinner, and our first session in the Main Studio. A round of introductions revealed that we have students from both coasts and two other countries. My fellow instructors – Patti Garbeck, Lizabeth Moniz, and Paul Hanke  – bring a collective 100+ years of design-build experience. I’m pleased to be on the team as a tiny house dweller/connoisseur and a West Coast representative of the tiny house community.

Our students bring a variety of backgrounds from chicken coop construction, Habitat for Humanity, biology, visual arts, and architectural drafting. Some of them will be downsizing to a tiny house, but Julie and Laura have been traveling and living lightly so they will be upgrading from living out of a suitcase and a car, respectively. As they introduced themselves, students shared their partis for their tiny houses, which included everything from a Stanley hand plane to a hermit crab shell, from a tiny cast iron pan to a Leatherman tool, from a tape measure to a 3-way lantern.

Their tiny house dreams include:

• Ben and Jonathan’s cabins in splendid landscapes
• O.J.’s mobile design-build studio
• Julien’s wee mobile house for a family of four
• Apuyo’s boat-shaped art shop
• Cate’s stepping stone to her future straw bale house
• And many more…

Our first studio project was an exercise with found objects. In pairs the students spent 45 minutes modeling a structure inspired by one of the bizarre objects Paul has picked up on his wanderings over the years. It was fascinating to see what everyone came up with in such a short amount of time – and especially those precious last 10 minutes! Check out the Hello, Tiny House Design-Build Slideshow for some examples of their work.

Back Home at Yestermorrow

Tiny House Design Build 2013 begins at Yestermorrow amidst the glory of fall in Vermont. It's so good to be back home at Yestermorrow. Check out my Yestermorrow Fall Foliage Slideshow for more photos.

I arrived at Yestermorrow late last night so I would have some time to settle in before I begin teaching the two-week Tiny House Design-Build course this evening. Arriving by taxi in the middle of the night was exactly how I first arrived here for the very first time three and a half years ago to begin my Certificate in Sustainable Building and Design. Luckily, I found a classmate in the taxi line at the airport, so Sam and I caught a ride here together. When we arrived on Yestermorrow's rural campus in the middle of the night with no sense of where we were - or where we should be - we took ourselves on a self-guided tour in the dark, eventually our finding beds to crash in. We awoke to a quiet Sunday, getting our bearings before launching into the three-week core class Ecological Design in the Built Environment.

So it was deja vu last night as I bid the cab driver farewell and found my way to Elizabeth Turnbull's tiny house. Yet this time I accomplished it without any trouble and instead navigated by memory and a great sense of homecoming. (Though I will say the incredible stars were quite a distraction!) Elizabeth's story was one of my original inspirations for enrolling in courses at Yestermorrow. She had been taking a course at Yestermorrow when she found out she'd gotten into Yale's forestry school, so she decided to build herself a tiny house to serve as her home base while she was in graduate school. She and I had the chance to talk on the phone as I made plans to do the same thing myself. Elizabeth lived in her little house for 3 years and has now brought it back to Yestermorrow so it can serve as a cabin for visiting students and faculty.

I settled in right away and got a great night's sleep. This morning I understood in an instant, before I even crawled out of the loft bed, what the all the fuss is about. Autumn in the Northeast is truly spectacular! Photos don't begin to do justice to the complexity and texture of the fall foliage.

It's been a gorgeous day, perfect for reacquainting myself with the Yestermorrow campus, meeting new interns, and getting paperwork squared away. I was here in June for the Tiny House Fair, so there weren't any big surprises during my walk this afternoon, but it's a quiet Sunday so I've had a chance to really soak it in. What is it about loving a place so dearly and sincerely that gives us that sense of home? I feel like Yestermorrow makes me a better person and I can only hope that I can give back to it with my earnest devotion to creating better homes and communities.

As I walked around, snapping photos of all the structures, and admiring them against the backdrop of fall foliage, I couldn't help but think about what a long three and a half years it's been! I've completed my certificate at Yestermorrow as well as my Masters of Urban and Regional Planning. I was scheming a tiny house back then and drafted up some ideas in the Less is More class (which I'll be teaching at Yestermorrow next spring). Now I've lived in several tiny houses and I'm involved with four tiny house start-ups.

Teaching the Tiny House Design-Build class at Yestermorrow is a dream come true! I'm honored to be teaching with talented and experienced designers and builders: Paul Hanke, Patti Garbeck, and Lizabeth Moniz. As I scan at the roster for the Tiny House Design-Build class and look over the Program Worksheets our students submitted once again, I am eager to meet everyone and learn more about their tiny house dreams.  It's bound to be a fascinating two weeks! Follow along!