May 22 2006
Designer Andy Thomson has a lot of experience with small spaces- He lived in a van with his wife and daughter for three years while at Architecture school in Vancouver. He had to see for himself- "As a designer with a deep concern for the preservation of the planetary ecosystem, the primary focus in my personal life has been to discover a viable and affordable form of housing."
Together will fellow architect and carpenter, Daniel Hall, they squeezed a lot of living and sophisticated energy and waste systems into a dwelling made from environmentally friendly materials, built a gorgeous solar and wind-powered prototype withRichlite walls and a green roof, and are taking it on the road to the Mobile Living Exhibition in New York.
The MiniHome is different from other green and modern prefabs- it comes on wheels and can be parked anywhere, on private land or in recreational RV parks. It comes fully furnished, with appliances, kitchen and storage built in, and a cozy loft above. . Many modern prefabs are built in the factory but need traditional foundations and service connections to sewer, water and power; the MiniHome needs nothing.
Heating, water, waste and power are all dealt with internally and no foundations are needed- talk about treading lightly on the landscape! And being small, it uses fewer resources in its manufacture and in its operation-talk about living with less.
Everything is designed to minimize use of electricity- the fridge, stove and heating run on propane in a dwelling so well insulated that a standard barbeque sized bottle will run for a month in the depths of a northern winter. "Electricity is a high-grade fuel" says Andy. "it is crazy to use it for anything but light and electronics. If you minimize its use to that then it is easy to generate enough from wind and solar" –of course, batteries are included.
The MiniHome is not only green but it is gorgeous. Much green design has been described as having "no edge, no, buzz, no style"- The MiniHome has them all. After all, if you are going to live in a small space it has to be well designed.
So imagine having a tiny modern home built to last from green and healthy materials, no electricity bill and minimal operating costs, which you can put on your lot, in a park or on a roof. That's the MiniHome.