FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Do you need a place to live?
A: No I have a home, but many outside influences have got me thinking differently about the value of real estate and questioning my own values. As a personal discovery I hope to end up with a new sense and understanding of the real value of real estate and a little home/trailer for vacations (retreats) and maybe even a home office during the week.
Q: What will it have inside?
A: It will have a bathroom (Toilet, Sink, Shower), kitchen (Refrigerator, Stove, Sink), sleeping space for three people, storage for food, clothes and essentials, a place to sit for each person, a desk, a table, and adequate lighting, electricity, heat, and possibly even an air conditioner. I’ll build it to be like a ‘park model’ trailer with water, sewer, and electric hookups. I think this is the right approach fr ths house because I think the most likely real world use for a tiny free house like this would be in a trailer park community.
Q: What materials will you use?
Wood pallets will be my primary source of wood. They are easy to get for free but will require some milling (cutting, sanding, etc). The 2×4 pieces should make good structural pieces once I bolt them together into posts, studs, beams, headers, joists, etc. The thinner flat boards will also be milled to fit together tightly as the exterior and interior skin.
Insulation will probably be cardboard. It can be fire proofed by painting it with a mixture of borax & boric acid. It will need to be protected from water too. I’m not sure how I’ll do this yet but I’m sure some sort of found plastic sheeting, paint, or spray, will do the trick.
Windows will either be contractor rejects from craigslist.org posts or plate glass cut down. I hope to avoid plate glass and use tempered since it is safer. We’ll see what I find.
The trailer will probably need to be purchased used on craigslist.org. I’ve not seen any free trailers and I’d be a little scared to pull one down the road to be quite honest. I have seen a lot of good stuff that people could sell if they took the time, so I don’t think I’ll have much trouble making the little bit of cash I’ll need to buy the stuff I can’t find.
Plumbing items should be easy to find except for specific pipe connectors. I’m certain I’ll run across an old toilet and sink. The shower will simply be the bathroom so the bathroom walls will need to be water proof.
Can I donate stuff?
Thanks but I’m going to try to do this on my own simply to show how anyone could do this on their own. The challenges I run across and how I work around them will become part of the story and solution. But thanks for asking!
Are you a freegan?
No. I really respect the ideals freegans are living by though. Actually I think that there are a lot of important lessons to be learned by the example they are setting.
