31-Foot Travel Trailer to Tiny House Conversion – $12,500

• Michael
  February 2, 2019, 7:39 pm

  A travel trailer conversion could be an option because most THOW have meanwhile a price tag which many people can’t afford as long as they aren’t building from scratch themselves.
  There are a few very well built travel trailers on the market which are worth the additional efforts to make them a permanent home.
  You get chassis, body, furniture and appliances fora good price and modifications like adding additional insulation can be achieved without breaking the bank. Another advantage is that you can do it little by little because there is a livable RV available.
  However, you have to watch weight limitations when adding new stuff.
  I believe you may end up with a conversion around half of the cost of new construction.
  I think its worth to consider if you can find a well maintained and garaged one.

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  • Mal Smith
    February 3, 2019, 6:29 am

    I agree with you. Not all travel trailers/rvs are built the same and it depends on where your home is going to be sited. In warmer climates you don’t need super efficient insulation. Plus a lot of tts and rvs come very well equipped as standard. A good second hand one is a fraction of the price of a lot of thows we’re seeing these days. I feel there’s a certain amount of undeserved bias against tts and rvs. The main argument seems to be that they are not built as well and won’t last like a thow. That argument is probably right. But again it’s all down to personal needs, wants, choices and importantly budget. And there is a stigma against tts/rvs. Many people see thows and their owners as cool, quirky, green,intelligent, ecological, liberated etc. But say to people you live in a tt and it’s like “hmm social claimer, white trash,drop out, trailer trash, unemployed, uneducated or scummy hippy!! Unfortunate, but this is how many view tt/rv owners and dwellers. I live in a tt/rv/caravan. I love it. It has everything I need. Admittedly I live in a warmer climate. Its nearly 19 years old, still in great condition with no leaks or damp, most moving/working parts are still original and in good working order and it cost me less than €7,500. It should last another five years possibly longer so unless I get bored and fancy a change I see no reason to sell it. And when I do I’ll just buy another cheap one that’ll see me out. Oh and another good thing about my tt is its zero maintenance. An occasional hose down or soft jet wash. No painting or staining or varnishing of a timber thow! I’m not against thows. Far from it. I’m just saying rvs and tts get a bad wrap and could well for many be a cheaper and not necessarily an inferior choice. Peace.

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    • James D.
      February 3, 2019, 9:51 am

      For real world practicality, the only thing to keep in mind is that there are always trade offs and some things will just work better in certain situations than others.

      Depending on factors like where you are going to live, what lifestyle you want to have, what needs are to be met, what your priorities are, short term vs long term, how you make your income, how many people need to live in it, etc.

      So all sort of options can be considered… It’s just usually not a simple choice for everyone and can involve many trade offs and things not everyone may be used to considering to figure out what can work from what is actually best for any given person…

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      • Mal Smith
        February 3, 2019, 10:09 am

        That’s more or less what I said with, “But again it’s all down to personal needs, wants, choices and importantly budget”!!

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    • James D.
      February 3, 2019, 11:03 am

      Not quite, again there’s a lot of trade offs and things not everyone is used to considering.

      Like costs considerations aren’t limited to just the initial purchase price… Since, what can hurt a budget more than a higher initial cost is higher long term costs because that is ongoing and over the years can add up to multiple times the initial cost.

      What you get for the costs can also be significantly different. Just the difference between new vs old/used/second hand can include things like whether or not there is any warranty coverage, availability of parts and easy to get to repair services, availability of the latest technology and features, availability of customization options, what it costs for things like insurance, and the likelihood of it needing a renovation/remodel…

      What’s legal also varies from place to place and there are places that will allow a Tiny House but not an RV to be lived in full time and vice versa or neither or only tiny houses on foundations or some other alternative…

      And there are many other things as well that I can list for all the things that can effect different people… Like people with chemical sensitivity can’t just live in anything, etc.

      Having options and alternatives is good, generally more is better in that regard, but context is just as important and understanding the trade offs can mean the difference from choosing something that will work well for someone from choices that won’t work for some people no matter the budget…

      So it’s just not going to be a simple choice for everyone and there are many reasons why people may make very different choices even with similar circumstances…

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      • Mal Smith
        February 3, 2019, 1:42 pm

        James, I certainly don’t need informing of possible pros and cons concerning thows, tts and rvs!
        Trying to teach your Mother how to suck eggs, springs to mind.
        I can only assume you are using my post to inform other readers of “trade offs”, “real world practicality” and “cost consideration” etc etc?
        Which after pointing out certain pros and cons that I and I’m sure a great number of people were already aware of, makes my last sentence from my original post all the more true. That is a tt or rv “could for many, be a cheaper and not necessarily an inferior choice”.
        Bored now, so I’m off to the pub.

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    • James D.
      February 3, 2019, 9:16 pm

      Mal Smith, no offense was intended but I wasn’t only replying to you and the problem is most people don’t know all the trade offs and all the pros and cons.

      There wouldn’t be so many people struggling to find solutions otherwise and there wouldn’t be so many who keep on making the same mistakes because they assume they already know what they need to know…

      It doesn’t help that people tend to over simplify, which tends to take things out of context, and either exaggerate or underestimate the trade offs.

      Along with tending to form biases because of good or bad experiences they either had or heard about instead of judging each situation on its own merits.

      For example, since everything will eventually wear out it means everything you want to last will eventually need maintenance.

      Mileage will just vary depending on the material and how well built it is but unless it’s disposable then everything requires maintenance if you want it to last.

      There are things that will require more maintenance than others but things like paint apply to anything that uses them and that includes RV’s. So you’re not going to avoid that with an RV vs a THOW, which aren’t all made out of just wood…

      I understand you’re trying to counter the sometimes unfair stigma over RV’s, but the issue isn’t whether something is inferior to something else but rather whether it’s good enough and can be the more practical solution in a given situation…

      Solutions should just be appropriate to the needs and people shouldn’t limit their choices unless they need to but people should be fully aware of where it stands and not expect more or less than it is actually intended to offer or they’re just setting themselves up for disappointment and possibly failure, which can put them into a worse situation than they started…

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• Patty
  February 3, 2019, 9:19 am

  I live in a 42 foot Cyclone toyhauler. I have insulated around the bottom and added a deck. I also put a sliding glass wall unit in the back where I dropped the ramp to be part of the deck.
  I will build a roof over it next spring. My refrigerator coils froze when it got minus 18….i replaced it with a conventional refer. I can’t figure out how to add insulation to the exterior walls. If I can solve ng this problem I will insulate and put siding or stucco over it. I am not hauling this unit. It is in a permanent location. At 400 sf (three slide outs) it is a comfortable living space for one.

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• Matthew Brinson
  February 3, 2019, 9:48 am

  I have a travel trailer to tiny house that I have done the entire conversion myself. I started with a full aluminum walled FEMA trailer built by Atwood. I completely gutted it! I pulled out all Windows and reinstalled after tinting the glass with all new butyl tape seals. And repeated the process with the door, and trim. I removed the 5/8″ chipboard subfloor and replaced it using 3/4 ” treated plywood. My roof had recently been replaced by the previous owner, so all I did was coat it with 2 coats of Henry’s tropicool. That product will preserve and protect my new membrane and added several more years of life to it. All new pex plumbing, new drain lines, a propane tankless water heater and all new gas lines were installed next. The electrical system was upgraded to a 90 amp breaker box so my wife and I enjoy all the modern amenities such as a full size (18 cubic ft) refrigerator with ice maker, 1 rack dishwasher and double the electric receptacles than it originally came with. I have all lighting running off the 12v system and custom made new recessed lighting fixtures that use LED bulbs. I also converted the old propane heater into a highly efficient 12v heater ( can’t give details how, have patent pending on the design!) I refurbished the Atwood 3 burner propane stove/oven adding a battery powered ignition system which light the burners and oven. Cabinetry has all been custom built with full extension drawers. The list goes on and on. Full extension floor to ceiling pantry, queen size Murphy bed that becomes the living room with collapsing couch. We have a full size tub/shower, oblong toilet and clever storage throughout. It’s been a labor of love to create our spacious tiny house and make it still be able to haul to any RV park in the country. If you are looking from the outside you’d never know it to be anything other than an rv.

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  • Alison
    February 3, 2019, 5:31 pm

    Matthew, your house sounds great! I’d love to see pictures of it on the tinyhousetalk site.

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• Matthew Brinson
  February 3, 2019, 9:49 am

  P. S. We did it all for $10,500

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• Gordon
  February 3, 2019, 2:20 pm

  Touche,mon ami

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