More Media for Tiny

Posted on November 30, 2015 by Ashlee Cunsolo

It seems like everyone is interested in Tiny, and where she ended up and what it’s like to live small. Recently, Tiny has been featured in a CTV National News story, and a BuzzFeed Canada story!

The CTV story weaves together clips from two separate interviews conducted by CTV Atlantic about Tiny.

The BuzzFeed Canada article covers living in Tiny, with a particular focus on the doggie elevator for the lovely Corgie, Shanti.

Matt has been fielding phone calls and emails from all across the country about building and living in Tiny Homes, and it is so exciting to see such interest. The Tiny Home movement is here to stay!

Favourite Feature #5: The Doggie Elevator!

Posted on November 15, 2015 by matthewwillox

This may be the only Tiny Home out there right now with a doggie elevator! That’s right — a doggie elevator!

This particular feature arose out of the need to transport the clients’ Corgie from the bottom floor to the top floor, because the stairs are too steep and too hard on his back. With need, comes innovation, and so Matt innovated the idea to have a doggie elevator that moves up and down via a winch system.

As with everything in Tiny, this was completely custom made. One of the main challenges was actually finding the space where this dog-evator could drop down in between the stairs, the cupboard, and counter — all the measurements had to be precise!

The end result is a one-of-a-kind Tiny Home feature, that has the Corgie and his owners happy at the outcome! And as you can see, it has the smallest Howling Dog Construction crew member excited to try it out!

Testing the winch for the elevator

All the pieces waiting to be put together.

The Elevator joints had to be strong so everything was Rabbited

All the pieces dry fit together to makes sure they all fit nicely.

Making good use of the elevator.

Getting the winch ready to mount

Elevator box hanging in place, it fits in the space perfectly.

The winch in place

Going Live (Almost) & Keeping Warm

Posted on May 24, 2015 by Ashlee Cunsolo

We are learning that when you build a Tiny Home, things take longer than expected. Working in a small space means that you have to slow down and take great care with every action and decision.

The electrical work was no different and, as with everything else, took longer than we all expected. One of the main reasons for the extra time was the sheer amount of planning that went into the electrical layout. Matt was lucky enough to work with Brandon Nielsen from Flux Electrical in Cape Breton, who understood the importance of getting it right the first time, and minimizing the number of holes drilled in the structure in order to run the wire.

Overall, the wiring process went very well. It seems like a lot of wire for a Tiny House, but every circuit has its purpose. We also had to run some 12 volt circuits to support the winch for the dog elevator (everyone’s favourite feature), and for the on-demand water heater control.

Next steps with electrical: once the house is finished, the final lights, receptacles, and switches will go in, and then Tiny will be ready to be hooked to a power source!

Once the wiring was done, it was time to insulate the inside. Once again, we used spray foam for its high R Value and air sealing abilities, as well as to provide further structural stability. Before EcoHome Insulation could spray though, all the Douglas Fir had to be covered up to avoid getting foam on it. It was challenging for the installers at times, because there were a lot of small spaces to fill, which are difficult to fill evenly. But the results are great, and all this work should help to keep Tiny nice and cozy.