Looking for Input or Critique on 28' Tiny Home Design!

Hey everyone,

I’m in the process of designing a 28’ tiny home on wheels and looking for a critique from folks who have experience living in and/or building these spaces. I built a campervan and lived full-time in it for a couple of years, so I’m no stranger to operating in a small space, but I’ve never built or lived in a tiny home (though I’ve spent a fair amount of time in a few). I’ve attached a floor plan and sketchup model (also available via the link below). Would anyone be willing to provide feedback? Note that the trailer hitch is on the bathroom side, and there will be a tallish utility shed on the tongue.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1NDHLn68S6ZsDvI2WXgh0OFhSgG9yMJTZ?usp=sharing

I’d be grateful for any input, but perhaps some examples are comments like “those windows are way too big”, or “that giant skylight will burn a hole through your mattress in the summer”, or “your weight distribution is all messed up”, etc.

I work full time from home so need a desk area, and am expecting to share the space with my partner and two dogs. My design preferences are as follows:

• Bright spaces
• Lean towards utility over aesthetic (in other words, will sacrifice aesthetic for a more functional space)
• Smallest bathroom facilities possible
• Adequate kitchen area for cooking and preparing meals

Thanks very much in advance!
Warren

Nice looking plan in general.

What do you intend to do about the stovepipe that runs through the bed? Getting around the bed on the low side of the loft may be difficult; I would put the foot of the bed against that low wall and make a modest headboard. I hope there would be enough space to get between stovepipe and bed. Turning the bed to have the head against the end wall would work better logistically, as long as the person on the lower side has enough room.

Thanks Glenn. The stovepipe won't actually go through the bed - I was just being lazy and didn't route it realistically.

What is your climate and lifestyle like? This looks like a nice layout/design, but individuals needs will vary so much...

The inclusion of a woodstove implies at least a somewhat cold climate...


I built my 28ft tinyhouse before I owned a farm; it is very similar in layout to yours, but is on a deckover trailer and thus lacks the headroom for a sleeping loft; it has a low storage loft over the front bathroom, and an east/west bed at the back. (Built it expecting to remove it from the trailer eventually, which may or may not happen..)

These are specific problems I have with my tinyhouse, that may be applicable to yours..

1) Lack of a mudroom space. Something well heated, vented, yet mostly sealed off. I figured I would use the bathroom, with an outside door, as a mudroom area... but the long wet winters here in the PNW mean the mudroom really needs heat/airflow... and I am off grid, so tossing an electric heater in there is a no-go.

Doing it again, I would:
A) Move heaven and earth to get at LEAST couple more feet of length into the bathroom to make it practical as a dual-purpose space. It's about 4ft long currently..
B) Locate the woodstove in a way that allows a small DC fan to suck air past the stove into the bathroom/mudroom

I would give up some kitchen space in favour of this usable mudroom in a heartbeat.

2) Once I had the farm, the obvious thing to do was build a shed attached to the house for more space. The side door sucks for this, compared to a rear door.
Doing it again, I would flip the design; the bathoom/mudroom door at the back could open directly into a larger stationary mudroom, which the house could back up against. Mating a mudroom to the front door precludes moving the house in a timely fashion, and is a huge pain with the hitch there; mating to the side door is a huge pain for get sealed up and rooflines dealt with.

After flipping the layout to be bedroom forward, I would cantilever the front (in your case the bedroom loft) out over the hitch, taking care with weight distribution, for a bit of 'free' space.

It would be very easy to live in my tinyhouse if I never went outside in the winter.. it's plenty of space when it's not crammed with things one is trying to keep from freezing/molding, and a bunch of wet outerwear!


3) I built to highway standards. If I do it again, I will 100% build it oversize and have it professionally moved. A couple more feet of width and perhaps a foot of height brings a pretty substantial increase in cubage, at a very modest increase in materials required...



Other things that jump out at me from your design:

1) I'm a bit worried that woodstove will be uncomfortably close to you while using the desk/couch area... but this depends on the stove and climate... if it's a good sized stove, your location is bloody cold, and you're running it hard to keep the whole house nice and warm, it might be better off swapped with those shelves by the bathroom. If it's a very small stove in a forgiving climate, or you don't mind huddling around it while the house is mostly pretty cool, it's probably fine where it is...

2) Skylights suck. Leak potential, construction hassle, heat loss, heat gain... in a house this small, windows can provide plenty of light, and the joy of stargazing from bed is quickly wiped away by condensation dripping on the mattress... chuck em!

3) Are those solar panels? If so, I don't like panels on the roof. I put my tinyhouse in the shade, and ran wires 50ft to a much sunnier spot just past the treeline... I can easily access them for wiring, cleaning, etc... there are no extra holes in my roof... and I retain flexibility of siting for both house and panels.

If you're moving around a bunch, perhaps some sort of solar cart, stowed in the back of the tow vehicle? Or a somewhat modular rack system could be stowed in the house itself, if moves are infrequent..



Hope something in there is of use, and welcome to permies!

Thank you, D Nikolls! These are all great points. I think you're spot on about moving the woodstove near the door. I'm thinking of a small 5kW DWarf stove from tinywoodstove.com, which I hope will be enough to keep the place warm (I'm also in the PNW, though in Central Oregon right now). I'm not happy with its current location, so I'll play around with that idea. Honestly, I'm not convinced we even need a sofa given that we have two lofts to lounge in, and I'd rather not have the temptation to lay down right next to my office...

I have zero experience with skylights, so I really appreciate your perspective here. I put one over the mattress because I'm pretty tall (6'2), and having that extra space above my head while sitting upright would be great. That's really the primary reason for it, so maybe I'll chuck the other two?

Copy that on the solar panels. It's easy enough to set something up outside in an optimal position and gain flexibility on house placement. And fewer roof penetrations the better.

I think I could forego some of the kitchen counter space too. Right now, I have like 12" of counter in my van, which is a pain at times, so maybe I got overzealous there.

The way the door swings could get inconvenient. Imagine bringing in armloads of groceries. With the door the way it's shown, you'd have to go around the door with them. I'd probably want that reversed, so it swings toward the stairs instead.

Ellendra Nauriel wrote:The way the door swings could get inconvenient. Imagine bringing in armloads of groceries. With the door the way it's shown, you'd have to go around the door with them. I'd probably want that reversed, so it swings toward the stairs instead.

Maybe an outward opening door? Did mine this wayand really prefer it..

Warren Davis wrote:Thank you, D Nikolls! These are all great points. I think you're spot on about moving the woodstove near the door. I'm thinking of a small 5kW DWarf stove from tinywoodstove.com, which I hope will be enough to keep the place warm (I'm also in the PNW, though in Central Oregon right now). I'm not happy with its current location, so I'll play around with that idea. Honestly, I'm not convinced we even need a sofa given that we have two lofts to lounge in, and I'd rather not have the temptation to lay down right next to my office...

I have zero experience with skylights, so I really appreciate your perspective here. I put one over the mattress because I'm pretty tall (6'2), and having that extra space above my head while sitting upright would be great. That's really the primary reason for it, so maybe I'll chuck the other two?

Copy that on the solar panels. It's easy enough to set something up outside in an optimal position and gain flexibility on house placement. And fewer roof penetrations the better.

I think I could forego some of the kitchen counter space too. Right now, I have like 12" of counter in my van, which is a pain at times, so maybe I got overzealous there.

I had about a foot of counter in the minibus that I lived in before the tinyhouse. In the tinyhouse, I have about 36" of deep counter between sink and stove, 24" of shallow counter making an L beside sink, and about 45" @ 24" deep on the other wall.

I use... about 24" beside the stove, and the rest collects objects. Probably would reduce to about 50" in two spots if redoing, from present ~105"...  juust enough for two people to cook together.

I think a removable counter above a woodstove would be great; use it half the year, stow.it for fire season.


I have a direct vent propane heater; the abilty to be away in very cold winter weather with no risk of freezing is a pretty great bonus. Easy to do with elec heat if on grid, but if you want an offgrid backup heater best plan for it now...


5kw sounds more or less right; for reference my propane unit is rated at 8800 btu output; it has always been adequate to keep.the place as warm as I want, even if that is 24c, with outside temps down to -10c.

I have 2x8 floor, 2x6 roof, and 2x4 walls, all full of roxul, but the walls also have r6 roxul board on the outside.

Can't compare apples/apples as mt woodstove install is waiting on roof mods this summer..



I have a desk with office chair, and my bed is at couch height... and tbh I wish I had a real couch or a big comfy chair. Worth it for comfort.on indoor days, if you can swing it. Good for socializing with others if that is ever a thing again...

I wonder if 28 feet is too much.
When is a tiny house not a tiny house?
I think the kitchen is too large, a fold down dining area would be a good idea and thep steps and storage take up a lot of room.
Perhaps a smaller under bench fridge would be more practical.

John C Daley wrote:I wonder if 28 feet is too much.
When is a tiny house not a tiny house?
I think the kitchen is too large, a fold down dining area would be a good idea and thep steps and storage take up a lot of room.
Perhaps a smaller under bench fridge would be more practical.

My 28 is IMO too small for one person farming in the PNW... but it would be more than enough for 2 people with less gear in a dry climate..

For 2 + critters in the PNW, I think 28 is pretty small!

I accept your house at 28 ft is too small.
But is it actually a 'tiny house', or a small house on a trailer?
When does the switch take place?

D Nikolls wrote:What is your climate and lifestyle like? This looks like a nice layout/design, but individuals needs will vary so much...

The inclusion of a woodstove implies at least a somewhat cold climate...


I built my 28ft tinyhouse before I owned a farm; it is very similar in layout to yours, but is on a deckover trailer and thus lacks the headroom for a sleeping loft; it has a low storage loft over the front bathroom, and an east/west bed at the back. (Built it expecting to remove it from the trailer eventually, which may or may not happen..)

These are specific problems I have with my tinyhouse, that may be applicable to yours..

1) Lack of a mudroom space. Something well heated, vented, yet mostly sealed off. I figured I would use the bathroom, with an outside door, as a mudroom area... but the long wet winters here in the PNW mean the mudroom really needs heat/airflow... and I am off grid, so tossing an electric heater in there is a no-go.

Doing it again, I would:
A) Move heaven and earth to get at LEAST couple more feet of length into the bathroom to make it practical as a dual-purpose space. It's about 4ft long currently..
B) Locate the woodstove in a way that allows a small DC fan to suck air past the stove into the bathroom/mudroom

I would give up some kitchen space in favour of this usable mudroom in a heartbeat.

2) Once I had the farm, the obvious thing to do was build a shed attached to the house for more space. The side door sucks for this, compared to a rear door.
Doing it again, I would flip the design; the bathoom/mudroom door at the back could open directly into a larger stationary mudroom, which the house could back up against. Mating a mudroom to the front door precludes moving the house in a timely fashion, and is a huge pain with the hitch there; mating to the side door is a huge pain for get sealed up and rooflines dealt with.

After flipping the layout to be bedroom forward, I would cantilever the front (in your case the bedroom loft) out over the hitch, taking care with weight distribution, for a bit of 'free' space.

It would be very easy to live in my tinyhouse if I never went outside in the winter.. it's plenty of space when it's not crammed with things one is trying to keep from freezing/molding, and a bunch of wet outerwear!


3) I built to highway standards. If I do it again, I will 100% build it oversize and have it professionally moved. A couple more feet of width and perhaps a foot of height brings a pretty substantial increase in cubage, at a very modest increase in materials required...



Other things that jump out at me from your design:

1) I'm a bit worried that woodstove will be uncomfortably close to you while using the desk/couch area... but this depends on the stove and climate... if it's a good sized stove, your location is bloody cold, and you're running it hard to keep the whole house nice and warm, it might be better off swapped with those shelves by the bathroom. If it's a very small stove in a forgiving climate, or you don't mind huddling around it while the house is mostly pretty cool, it's probably fine where it is...

2) Skylights suck. Leak potential, construction hassle, heat loss, heat gain... in a house this small, windows can provide plenty of light, and the joy of stargazing from bed is quickly wiped away by condensation dripping on the mattress... chuck em!

3) Are those solar panels? If so, I don't like panels on the roof. I put my tinyhouse in the shade, and ran wires 50ft to a much sunnier spot just past the treeline... I can easily access them for wiring, cleaning, etc... there are no extra holes in my roof... and I retain flexibility of siting for both house and panels.

If you're moving around a bunch, perhaps some sort of solar cart, stowed in the back of the tow vehicle? Or a somewhat modular rack system could be stowed in the house itself, if moves are infrequent..



Hope something in there is of use, and welcome to permies!

Great feedback ( for my project too).  Especially the skylights and solar panel points.

John C Daley wrote:I accept your house at 28 ft is too small.
But is it actually a 'tiny house', or a small house on a trailer?
When does the switch take place?

At 400 square meters?

I haven't read all of the replies and have no experience with tiny homes but wanted to run an idea by you.

It might be a cool and practical thing if you could incorporate a solar wall oven for one of the window openings. Some people in "regular" houses use those for cooking as well as heating the room the wall oven is in. In your case, because it will be a tiny home, it may help to heat the whole thing on sunny days.

If you tried it and didn't like it, it would be easy to fix it into a normal window again.

Just a thought.

400 sq Metres would be a large house.