Colorado Tiny Home Living

Hey Everyone,
I've been throwing around the idea of tiny home living for quite some time now and I think I'm ready to pull the trigger. Problem I'm having is where to put the home once its built. I'm currently in Fort Collins and I haven't been able to locate the right property yet. I'm looking to keep the home on a trailer so I can easily move it in the future. Does anyone know someone who lives in one and could help with some advice? Ideally I would have water and electric hook up but just having water could work if I installed solar. Any and all information would be helpful. I need to stay somewhere in the front range and have cell service/internet capabilities. Also, If you know someone who could build a sick home, let me know that too.  Thanks in advanced!

http://www.reporterherald.com/news/loveland-local-news/ci_30774546/home-tiny-houses-near-loveland
The article is 2 years old.  I remembering seeing another article about something positive for tiny homes near Boulder (I don't remember if it was a park opening or just legislation that would allow more options of where to put them), but I couldn't find it.
In my quick search I also found things referencing possible parks near Colorado Springs and Salida, but I did not click on them.
I have a couple friends in Westminster that were looking into the tiny house thing a few years ago and got as far as talking to a builder out of Michigan (I think), they ultimately scrapped the idea because of not having anywhere to put it.  I might be able to get the name of the builder from them, but they are not very good about replying to texts.

Hey Sean.
Im also in FoCo and have been wanting a tiny home. You should check out Mitch Craft Tiny Homes. Bad ass designs. All on trailers for easy moving. They do off the grid options, which is awesome.

Mention I sent you his way.

I’m also trying to find a place to park a home on. Heard about a possible community in Poudre Valley but am not finding any dets on it yet. Lemme know if you do.

PS, a recent ilness has kept me inside for the winter and climbing mostly at Ascent. Perhaps we’ll bump into each other.

Best
Matt

While I don’t have any info on land, I can tell you that you won’t regret going tiny. I haven’t gone with solar yet, but I would like to eventually. Everything runs on propane in my house with a tankless water heater. Couldn’t be happier with my luxury dirtbag mansion.

climbing friend,

if you are tiny home living, an adequate amount of marijuana you will not be growing inside it, nor may you have over family "thanksgiving!"

Max Rausch wrote: While I don’t have any info on land, I can tell you that you won’t regret going tiny. I haven’t gone with solar yet, but I would like to eventually. Everything runs on propane in my house with a tankless water heater. Couldn’t be happier with my luxury dirtbag mansion.

Max, did you build it yourself?  Looks awesome! Floor plan or inside pictures would be great.

Max Rausch wrote: While I don’t have any info on land, I can tell you that you won’t regret going tiny. I haven’t gone with solar yet, but I would like to eventually. Everything runs on propane in my house with a tankless water heater. Couldn’t be happier with my luxury dirtbag mansion.

Nice build man! I've been wanting this for a long time but have been discouraged due to finding where to put it. Thanks for sharing.

Matt Twyman wrote:You should check out Mitch Craft Tiny Homes. Bad ass designs.

Not interested in a tiny home for myself at the moment but out of curiosity I just took a look at their website.  Pretty amazing designs and great craftsmanship.  Prices were pretty reasonable as well.  Especially considering I’ve seen Sprinters that are far more expensive.

Thierry wrote:

Max, did you build it yourself?  Looks awesome! Floor plan or inside pictures would be great.

Much of the framing/welding was done by a tiny house builder here in Portland. My gf and i did most of everything else. Plumbing, shower/tile, waterheater venting. 

 Max,That is beautiful looking! Do you have a power hook up or do you all your lights run off of batteries? And where do your drains go? Do you have a sewer connection or do you have a tank that you have to get pumped out?Thanks for the info!  It seems like most jurisdictions around here do not allow composting toilets

Thanks David! The lot we’re in has 50amp power that we just connect an extension cord to. For drainage, our sink and shower both empty into a cobble stone/gravel “french drain” thats dug under the house. But we do have the option of using a grey water tank. 

Aleks Zebastian wrote:  nor may you have over family "thanksgiving!"

Aleks, I believe that is the entire point!

Max, do you know what it takes to heat that thing in winter? Yes it is small so the total cost might not be much, but I bet it's not very efficient. Main drawback of tiny home for me is that you don't have much room for good insulation, and you have airflow under the floor which is a significant heat sucker. What about freezing plumbing? Every wall is an exterior wall!

Sean tiny houses are super awesome, I don't want to discourage you from doing this.  But I would like to share some experiences with you so you know before you go.

I am much to lazy and unskilled to build a tiny house, so purchased a 5th wheel travel trailer. It's literally a 1 bedroom apt on wheels with a garage.  41' long, 5 slide outs. I have seen some tiny houses around but haven't spoken with the owners.  The first issue that comes to mind is where to put it.  If on your own property with water/electric/septic you are good to go.  If you plan on towing it around your first issue is going to be licensing and taxes, research this carefully. One of the things I have learned about owning something that is not "main stream" is the laws are funky and the stupidest little things will trip you up. Read the law so you know, it gets misinterpreted by folks that only know a little bit but think they have the final answer.

If you are staying on your own land skip this part. RV parks for travel.  We are glampbaggers, we are in our 8th year of living on the road.  The RV industry has exploded this last 3 years.  We literally just got the last spot at the location where we want to spend 4th of July.  Didn't used to be that way. Used to be able to roll along like a tumbleweed and drift to wherever we got the whim. For the last 2 years we have had to plan out months in advance in order to secure a place to stay.  Also, tiny homes are not allowed in many RV parks and you may have difficulty at public destinations also.  The RV park  we are in right now is talking about restricting RV's to 5 years or newer, that's really ticking some of the old timers off that have 8-10 year old RV's. However we did have two tiny houses parked here for a couple of months.  You may want to research RVIA certification, some parks have that requirement.

Towing and parking and boondocking.  Boondocking is the term used to describe when an RV is parked on BLM or other public lands but not hooked up to utilities, water/electric/sewer.  You have to study carefully what your requirements and expectations will be. I currently have a 117 gallon fresh water tank, a 104 gallon gray water tank (shower/kitchen/sink water), and a 52 gallon black water tank (poopy water).  I have a 4500kw generator and a 25 gallon gasoline tank, all built in.  12 gallon water heater that run on propane or electric, refrigerator can run on propane or electric.  I have two 6v golf cart batteries hooked up in parallel to supply my 12v needs.  I need a solar supply but haven't pulled the trigger on a particular setup yet, weight vs electric needs vs solar efficiency vs cost vs need.  I currently restrict our boondocking to 5 days at a time, remember we are old folks that like our creature comforts and no longer see the need for us to "rough" it.

The next thing you have to guard against is weight.  If you are going to move it around what are you going to pull it with and what kind of frame/suspension will it have.  My 41' 5th wheel weighs 19,825 pounds. Max GVW rating on it is 20,000 pounds.  It has 3 7000 pound axles under it. I tow it with a 2013 Chevrolet K3500 HD Dually, 4x4 with diesel Duramax and Allison transmission. Tow vehicles is a whole other adventure in learning.  So what will your tiny house weigh when it is built?  

Also think carefully about longevity vs retained value.  The average RV cannot be financed after it is 10 years old.  We had planned on staying in our first 5th wheel for 12 years, traded it at 8 because it was practically worn out, ok, we travel more than most so we are hard on equipment. That being said, think very carefully and REALISTACALLY about a tiny houses life cycle vs investment.  What is the value of a used tiny home? Can you even find one? How much are they selling for vs what was spent to build them vs the number of year they can be used.

Wait a minute, I'll bet you are asking yourself the question if all this sucks so bad why do we still do it?  I have found in life there are two types of people, nomads and castle builders.  I love my nomadic life.  Combine that with my meager skills at rock climbing and you get a glambagger, to old to be dirt bagger, can't stand to sleep on the ground, like hot showers, kitchen to cook in, etc.  We are getting ready to leave our winter ski fun at Park City, UT, headed down to Red Rock for 10 days, then back skiing at Breckenridge, again 10 days, then looking at going to Bishop, CA area for climbing, skiing at Mamuth.  May we are volunteering at The Cove Palisades State Park as flat water kayak guides (near Smith Rock). June July is travel east months headed for the Gunks, Conway, Cathedral, Rumney for late summer fall.  Don't know after that, wherever our nomadic life takes us.  

Anyway, the main purpose of this rant is just to get the gray matter juices flowing so you know some of the things you must consider. I wish you luck with your new home. Feel free to pm me if you have questions about specific systems.  I enjoy sharing my experiences.

Steve Marshall wrote:

Aleks, I believe that is the entire point!

Max, do you know what it takes to heat that thing in winter? Yes it is small so the total cost might not be much, but I bet it's not very efficient. Main drawback of tiny home for me is that you don't have much room for good insulation, and you have airflow under the floor which is a significant heat sucker. What about freezing plumbing? Every wall is an exterior wall!

We have 2 small costco space heaters that kick ass. No clue what it costs. All utilities are included in my $400/month rent. Most people cut a ‘skirt’ out of insulation board that fits around the bottom of the trailor. I’ve been too lazy to finish that. Stays warm enough. 

Consider buying a lot/land first IMO. Don't want land? Get an RV. No need to reinvent the wheel.

Julian H wrote: How about at Poudre Valley Mobile Home Park? If you can’t afford that you can do what everyone else is doing. Live in a van on the street

Agreed.

. Mobes wrote: Consider buying a lot/land first IMO. Don't want land? Get an RV. No need to reinvent the wheel.

In alot of jurisdictions a tiny house on your own land isn't even legal, but you probably wouldn't be busted unless some neighbors didn't like it.

Tradiban wrote:

In alot of jurisdictions a tiny house on your own land isn't even legal, but you probably wouldn't be busted unless some neighbors didn't like it.

 Tiny houses can be put on almost any piece of land, you just need to invest in a foundation and some sort of septic. The main problem that the tiny house people have not figured out is that the poop needs a place to go. Composting toilets work great but most towns don't accept those as safe yet so you are left with having to have a huge tank full of brown muck that needs to be emptied regularly, shitting in the woods or bumming a toilet from the guy who invested his money on land and a permanent structure.

I wonder which one holds value longer, an RV or a tiny house?

. Mobes wrote:

 Tiny houses can be put on almost any piece of land, you just need to invest in a foundation and some sort of septic. The main problem that the tiny house people have not figured out is that the poop needs a place to go. Composting toilets work great but most towns don't accept those as safe yet so you are left with having to have a huge tank full of brown muck that needs to be emptied regularly, shitting in the woods or bumming a toilet from the guy who invested his money on land and a permanent structure.

I wonder which one holds value longer, an RV or a tiny house?

*Just* a septic and foundation, it's easy! But once you hook up to those you've got a "permeant" structure that is too small for building codes.

There was only one catch and that was Catch-22, which specified that a concern for one's safety in the face of dangers that were real and immediate was the process of a rational mind. Orr was crazy and could be grounded. All he had to do was ask; and as soon as he did, he would no longer be crazy and would have to fly more missions. Orr would be crazy to fly more missions and sane if he didn't, but if he was sane he had to fly them. If he flew them he was crazy and didn't have to; but if he didn't want to he was sane and had to. Yossarian was moved very deeply by the absolute simplicity of this clause of Catch-22 and let out a respectful whistle.

I have been fantasizing about this for years...

I have a large house on a third of an acre in Boulder, Colorado and have been fantasizing about doing this for a while now.  Do you need to be connected to water/sewer in order to have this be legal?