KCI’s construction students

There are three classes that will be working on KCI’s Fencl.  Two are construction classes and one is a cabinet making class. These are just a few of the students in the classes.  They’re viewing construction videos, and writing some tests on important construction techniques and safety codes.

Inside the Bodega

Over the years, we’ve accumulated a catalog of interior photos for our tiny house on wheels. However, since we don’t build the larger houses (250 square feet or more), but only sell the plans, we simply haven’t had the photos to show. We’ve begun creating 3d drawings of the interiors, and will add more photos for our other “small house” over the next few months.

Tumbleweed Logo Contest

Over $1000 worth of cash and prizes to the top 3 logo designs.

We are holding a contest for our new logo on 99designs.com. Prize money is $150, $100, and $50 cash prize to our 3 favorite entries. After we have selected the top 3 choices, they will be tested on our website for 2 weeks with the winner of that contest earning a free set of home plans to build a Tumbleweed Tiny House (details listed below).

Rules: Visit 99designs.com for the “brief” on the logo contest. All designs must be submitted to 99designs.com in order to be eligible for the cash prize.

Once we have 3 designs, we will create 3 different homepages for our website. Each homepage will feature a different logo. We will use google website optimizer to rotate the 3 pages and measure the click through rate of the 3 different pages. Whichever page has the best click through rate at the end of 14 days (or when 1 design reaches a 90% confidence level as the winner) will get their choice of plans from the following list: XS-House, Epu, Weebee, Lusby, Tarelton, Fencl, Bodega, Loring, Harbinger, Enesti or B-53. We will pay up to $25 of shipping cost. Anything over $25 to be paid by winner.

Inside the XS-House

In 2005, Jay lived in the XS-House, our smallest model on wheels. HGTV filmed him inside the house. Jay sold the small house after living in it for just 1 year, and this video is the only peak inside. The XS-House has a kitchenette and bathroom.

Proposal to amend

Proposal to amend IRC Code Restricting House Size:

Analysis:

Environmental Costs: The International Residential Code dictating how small our homes can be has helped make our houses the biggest in the world—four times the international average. At well over 2000 square feet, the average American house now emits more than 18 tons of greenhouse gasses every year, consumes a quarter acre of forest in its production and dumps seven tons of construction waste into our landfills.

Economic Costs: Excess and economy are mutually exclusive. We can have exorbitance, or we can have the serenity that a sensibly sized home affords, but we cannot have both. Like anything else that is not essential to our happiness, extra space just gets in the way. It requires maintenance and heating, and ultimately demands that we exchange a portion of life for the money needed to pay for these extras. Mortgage payments can appropriate thirty to forty percent of a household’s income not counting taxes, insurance, or maintenance expenses. [Read more]

Next Page »