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5 benefits of a sustainable tiny home vs a normal house

20 May.,2024

5 benefits of a sustainable tiny home vs a normal house

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No matter what you call them - tiny homes, tiny houses, micro-homes, mini houses or ultra-small buildings, one thing is clear. These sustainable, off-grid, pint-sized dwellings are packed with big benefits when compared to your average home. They are a great option if you're looking for a full-time living solution, an alternative to a traditionally built granny flat or to use for your weekend getaways.

As well as the obvious cost savings, smaller land requirements and portability of a tiny house, there are many environmental and lifestyle advantages too. Here are just five of the many benefits to buying or building a sustainable, off-grid tiny home instead of a ‘normal’ home.

1. Cheaper to build

It makes sense that a tiny home will be cheaper to build than a larger counterpart. For a start, a tiny house can be erected in a day (or even less) instead of the weeks or months it takes to complete a normal home.

A tiny house requires far fewer materials to construct. If you packed all the building materials required to complete your typical suburban home into trucks, you’d need seven of them! Compare that to the half a truckload of material required to build an average tiny home.

Seven truckloads! That’s a lot of timber, steel and concrete, which all has a massive impact on the environment. Add to that the cost of transportation and remember to include all the floor and window coverings, fixtures, fittings and appliances.

Because less material is needed, it's also easier to build a tiny home using high quality materials. You can’t always do the same with a large house due to the quantities needed. That’s why home builders often use cheaper building products to keep costs down or otherwise charge you more for quality and quantity.

2. Smarter design features

With the tiny home movement continuing to grow, more designers are getting on board in a bid to create the ‘smartest’ compact living spaces. It’s become a competitive industry leading to greater benefits to the tiny home buyer.

Because of their size, clever design is crucial to maximise the space and deliver the comforts required. Tiny homes incorporate intelligent use of storage areas, include functional furniture and space saving appliances as well as features that serve multiple purposes or can hide away when not in use.

Vertical space is also optimised to ensure that every aspect of the tiny home is being utilised in the most practical way.

3. Less maintenance

If a tiny home is cheaper to build, it stands to reason it will have tiny maintenance costs as well! There is simply less to repair, maintain and clean which equates to big savings for you in time, energy and money. This is one of the most appealing aspects of owning a tiny home.

Even if it’s just keeping up with the cleaning, it’s going to take a lot longer to get all the chores done around your four-bedroom house than it is to flick the dust buster over your small abode.

If you’re used to hiring someone else to do the job, you won’t need to as most tiny homes can be tidied in just a few minutes. Another cost saving!

In a normal home, there are more opportunities for things to go wrong. Think about the lifetime costs of repairing roofing, painting, reflooring, updating furniture and fittings, even gardening. Imagine the difference in the time, cost and upheaval involved in just recarpeting one bedroom in a normal house versus throwing out the old rug and rolling out a new one in your tiny home!

The more time you spend on the upkeep of a home, the more it eats into your leisure time. Most tiny homeowners are pleasantly surprised at how much time they free up when not faced with a weekly to do list of cleaning and maintenance; time they can now spend on activities they love.

4. Reduced energy costs

The cost of electricity is already expensive, no matter the size your home. It makes sense then that a smaller space is going to be much cheaper to heat or cool and to provide lighting or power your appliances. The average tiny house has just six lightbulbs compared to the average of forty-five in a larger house!

Sure, you can switch to solar if you have a normal home and save money that way, or even make money if you’re selling it back to the grid. But here’s a unique benefit of a solar powered tiny home.

A normal home is built to a certain aspect to take advantage of the seasons, weather and time of day. Solar panels are fixed to the roof to maximise the sun’s rays. That’s it. Once built, you can’t move your house or shift the solar panels. You can with a tiny home because most tiny homes are portable. They can be moved under a tree in summer and positioned to catch the sun’s energy in winter.

Your solar can be portable too. Instead of being fixed to the roof of your tiny house, you can buy solar panels on a separate trailer which can be moved throughout the year to make the most of changing conditions. For cloudy days, you can invest in a small generator that will provide plenty of power to your tiny home. You’ll also be running fewer appliances and electrical fixtures – remember, six lightbulbs!

A water tank is a must if you’re wanting to live completely off-grid. You may need to buy water in times of low rainfall, but your tiny home will be fitted with water-saving devices and most tiny home buyers become increasingly mindful of reducing their use of this precious resource.

To live in a tiny home can cost you as little as $12 a month in gas for cooking, with free electricity and free water. If your tiny house is running fully on solar powered electricity, you can cut your energy expenses to zero. It doesn’t get much cheaper than that!

5. Kinder to the environment

The way people build things today matters. Every decision has an impact. As already mentioned, your tiny home uses far fewer building supplies with less energy required to transport them. Throughout the life of your tiny home, the maintenance will be minimal, hence a smaller need for materials. Even cleaning supplies are reduced to a minimum.

Your tiny home is self-sufficient, producing its own power and collecting its own water and you are making the most of the sun’s energy by moving your home (and solar trailer) to suit the seasons.

Less space equals fewer possessions, a decrease in consumables means less packaging and less waste. As your consumption drops, so does your environmental impact. And, just as your tiny home has less space inside, it also takes up less space outside, which means it has a smaller ecological footprint.

Ready to go tiny?

If you’d like to explore the benefits of downsizing into a tiny home, please contact us or browse through our selection of designs. We offer completed tiny houses that are delivered to your block, ready to move in. So go tiny with the Alphaline team today.

How to Build a Tiny House in Australia

If you haven’t heard of a tiny house before, then you have to have been living under a rock for the last few years! Tiny Houses are making global waves and have become quite a sensation.

If you’re not familiar with the concept, a tiny house is basically a small dwelling, often made out of a shipping container, that is designed to be more sustainable and efficient than a traditional home. They are often used as vacation homes, guest houses, or even permanent residences for people who want to downsize their lives and live more simply.

Tiny houses are becoming increasingly popular in Australia, as more and more people are looking for affordable, sustainable, and efficient accommodation options. If you’re considering building a tiny house in Australia, then Ross’s Discount Home Centre is the perfect place to start!

At Ross’s Discount Home Centre, we have everything you need to fit out your very own Tiny House, from flooring to feature tiles, to complete kitchens and bathrooms.

So today, we’re going to show you how easy it is to build your very own Tiny House with the help of Ross’s products!

Preparation

The first step is to find a suitable location for your Tiny House. Once you have found the perfect spot, you will need to obtain any necessary permits and approvals from your local council

Once you have sorted out the legalities, it’s time to start preparing your build site.

1. Purchase a Shipping Container

As mentioned, tiny houses are often made from second-hand shipping containers in Australia because they act as the perfect shell to construct your tiny home. The benefit of using a shipping container is that you essentially already have your roof, walls, and floor constructed, which is the difficult part of any build. While most Tiny Houses in Australia are made from just one shipping container, you can stack two on top of each other to create a two-storey dwelling, as shown in the above image. You would never believe this is two shipping containers!

If you cannot find a decent shipping container for sale, you could also look into building a timber frame Tiny House. This is a more traditional way of building a tiny house and will require more work, but it can be just as effective.

2. Design your floor plan

Before you start construction, it is important that you have a clear idea of what you want your Tiny House to look like on the inside. This means having a floor plan drawn up so that you know exactly where everything is going to go.

When designing your Tiny House, keep in mind that less is more. You don’t have a lot of space to work with, so try to use every inch efficiently. For example, consider having a loft bed or bunk bed instead of a traditional bed or using fold-down furniture to save space.

You’ll need to design a compact kitchen and bathroom with all the essentials, too, such as a sink, toilet, and shower. And, if you must have a bath and shower, then choose a shower/bath combo. It’s clever design choices like these that will make all the difference to the living areas of your tiny house.

Read ‘6 design secrets to make a small kitchen look larger‘ and ‘How to make the most of a small bathroom‘ for further tips.

For more Tiny house Australiainformation, please contact us. We will provide professional answers.

3. Find a level spot to build

One of the most important things to consider when building a tiny house is where you’re going to put it! You’ll need to find a level spot of land that is large enough to accommodate your tiny house. It’s important that the ground is level because this will make it easier to build on and stop your tiny house from shifting over time.

If you’re planning on creating a potable tiny house, you’ll need to find a spot with water and power hookups. This is so that you can easily connect your tiny house to the utilities.

Start building!

Now that you’ve prepared everything, it’s time to start building your tiny house.

This is where Ross’s Discount Home Centre comes in! We have a wide range of flooring options, tiles, kitchens, and bathroom fittings that will help you create the perfect Tiny House.

1. Gather your tools and materials

Once your design is sorted, it’s time to gather your tools and materials. Depending on the type of build you’re doing, you may need different tools.

For example, if you’re using a shipping container, then you’ll need some basic hand tools to cut holes for windows and doors. If you’re building a timber frame tiny house, then you will need more traditional carpentry tools.

In terms of materials, as well as the products you purchase from Ross’s Discount Home Centre, you’ll need things like insulation, electrical fittings and plumbing fittings.

2. Doors and windows

What makes a shipping container a tiny home is the addition of doors and windows. Without these items, you’re just living in a shipping container, which isn’t nearly as appealing.

Ross’s Discount Home Centre offers a range of Jason Windows doors and windows, perfect for such an installation. Our doors and windows range includes sliding, awning, and casement styles, so you can choose the perfect style for your home. However, quick tip, you don’t want to get too fancy with your selection; just stick to the basics, such as sliding doors and sliding windows, for the best results.

View our doors and windows

Before you install the doors and windows, you’ll first need to cut holes for your doors and windows. You can do this with a hand saw or an angle grinder. Just make sure that you measure twice and cut once!

Once the holes are cut, you can install your doors and windows. If you’re using a timber frame, then you’ll need to build your doors and windows from scratch.

Installing doors and windows is a simple process that anyone with basic carpentry skills can accomplish.

3. Insulation

The next step is to insulate and line the inside. This will ensure that your Tiny House is comfortable all year round, no matter what the weather is like outside.

There are a few different ways to insulate a shipping container, but we recommend using quality ceiling and wall installation batts, such as Earthwool.

Once you have insulated your shipping container, you can then start to line the inside with whatever materials you like. We recommend using plywood over plasterboard as it is strong and easy to work with.

4. Plumbing

Before you can think about fitting out the bathroom and kitchen, you first need to get plumbing to your tiny house. You should have already established where you need plumbing in your floor plan, so this step simply involves calling a local plumber to connect the plumbing to your mains.

5. Kitchen

Now for the fun part! Fitting out the kitchen of your Tiny House is where you can really get creative and make it your own. Ross’s Discount Home Centre has a range of products perfect for tiny houses, including:

When choosing your kitchen finishes, consider using light colours to make the space feel larger.

6. Bathroom

The bathroom is another important part of your Tiny House and needs to be given just as much attention as the kitchen

Ross’s Discount Home Centre also offers a great range of products perfect for small bathrooms, including:

Remember to keep things simple when it comes to the bathroom. Don’t forget about storage!

7. Choose your finishes

Now that you have a good idea of the products you need and a shipping container (or timber frame) ready to go, it’s time to start thinking about the finishes.

Some things to keep in mind when choosing your finishes include:

Use light colours to make the space feel larger – white bathrooms and kitchens are the way to go.
Avoid using too many different finishes and stick to a cohesive theme – use the same tiles in your kitchen as your bathroom.
Choose durable materials that can withstand wear and tear – brushed gold tapware may look fancy, but chrome will always offer the greatest longevity.
Think about how you will use each space and what finishes would suit that purpose -for example, the living area will benefit from having different flooring to the bathroom.
Don’t forget about storage – be clever about how you store things in your tiny house.
If you’re building a tiny house to advertise accommodation on Airbnb, then consider your ideal guest and the type of accommodation you’re offering. For example, will be it no frills or a luxury tiny house? If you’re looking to offer luxury accommodation, then you’ll need to choose high-end finishes.

Conclusion

There you have it! Everything you need to know about how to build a Tiny House in Australia. By following these simple steps, you’ll be able to create the perfect space for yourself, your family or your guests. Plus, you’ll be able to save money by doing it yourself.

If you have any questions that this article hasn’t answered, then be sure to read our post, Top 10 Tiny House Questions Answered!

And best of all, you don’t have to go far for all your products. Ross’s Discount Home Centre has just about everything you need to complete your build, including tiles, flooring, DIY kitchen cabinets, vanities, and shower solutions, all under one roof.

Get started today by visiting Ross’s Discount Home Centre.

The company is the world’s best 40ft expandable container house supplier. We are your one-stop shop for all needs. Our staff are highly-specialized and will help you find the product you need.

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