This is the story of Captain Colby’s Cruising Caravan. He built an inexpensive tiny home on a used boat trailer using mostly reclaimed materials.
Colby was able to build a low-cost tiny home with no debt, no building plans, mainly just by using creative ideas of his own that he picked up from years in the boating industry. Best of all, he didn’t have to break the bank to get it done. According to Colby’s Facebook, he spent $6,986.17 to build it but plans to spend a little more on improvements over time.
You’ll get to meet Bill Thomas, the founder, and designer at Hobbitat and designer/builder for Blue Moon Rising. You also get to tour and learn more about how these unique reclaimed tiny homes are built using materials that have to be mined out of old buildings. This is what gives them so much character! Enjoy!
Wintergreen Studios built this eclectic micro cabin (less than 100 square feet) with cordwood walls from old cedar fence rails found on the land, ceiling rafters from a local woodlot, recycled glass and mirrors in the walls, reclaimed windows, door and wood stove, and slate floor tiles from an architectural salvage depot in Vermont.
We love the folding plywood bed, the charming simplicity of the tiny space, and the natural green roof!
Budget Micro Cabin Built with Recycled Materials & Green RoofÂ
We hear it all the time…Why do tiny houses cost so much?
Folks on the coasts or in big cities (who could easily pay $400-900K for a home) typically understand it, but if you are from a more rural spot where you can get a regular home for $70,000, the cost of tiny house can seem exorbitant.
In order to help you see where all that money goes when a builder creates a tiny house for you to purchase ready-made, I’m relying on a great breakdown from our friends at Rocky Mountain Tiny Houses. Then we’ll compare that with a DIY-ers cost breakdown.
Rock Mountain starts by laying out its goals: an 8×16 tiny house with average finishes should cost $35,000, while a larger one with great finishes should cost $80,000.
