Cybertruck-Inspired Micro Tiny Home For The Homeless (Part 5)

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I am so pleased to announce that the four previous articles have helped to usher in $1,770 in donations. Our revised goal is now to build five Micro Tiny Homes for the homeless. They will be carefully placed in Santa Cruz, California, for homeless people intent on protecting them. If possible, please consider contributing to the Gofundme. 

Each location will be carefully scouted and scrutinized to ensure the highest possibility of success. Should the inhabitant find permanent housing, the Micro Tiny Home will be passed on to the next person in need. This pilot project is all about providing the homeless with a chance to attain permanent housing. You should not be shocked to learn that trying to get quality sleep while being homeless is nearly a full time job in itself. The Micro Tiny Home was designed to help them get closer to achieving this most basic human right.

At first glance, the Micro Tiny Home may look low-tech to a lot of people, however, careful thought and consideration were made in its design. There were many metrics that were considered, including but not limited to cost, simplicity of construction, sustainability, safety, and efficiency. These factors were discussed in earlier articles here on CleanTechnica.

We have had a number of people contact us who intend to build a Micro Tiny Home. We have yet to release the plans, because we want the pilot project to progress a little further. Moreover, we already have an improved version in mind. We chose the silver paint to mimic the Tesla Cybertruck, but it also provides a sleek look that can blend into a city landscape if needed. Of course, it could be painted any color. Version 2 will have insulating paint, and we will not install the insulation that was used in Version 1.  

This insulating paint is a spinoff from a NASA invention, whereby microscopic porcelain beads are simply added to any paint. This additive is surprisingly cheap and available on Amazon.com. Maybe someone in the comments will give us some details, but here is its description and a link to where it can be bought:

“Developed from NASA technology, HY-TECH ceramic insulating paint additive is a fine, white powder blend of high strength ceramic “microspheres.” Each single ceramic microsphere is so small that it looks to the naked eye as if it is a single grain of flour, (slightly thicker than a human hair). When mixed into paint, the painted surface dries to a tightly packed layer of the hard, hollow “microspheres”. The tightly packed film reflects and dissipates heat by minimizing the path for the transfer of heat. The ceramics are able to reflect, refract and block heat radiation (loss or gain) and dissipate heat rapidly preventing heat transfer through the coating with as much as 90% of solar infrared rays and 85% of ultraviolet-rays being radiated back into the atmosphere. Hy-Tech insulating additive is completely inert and can be mixed into ANY paint, coating or composite including interior house paint, exterior house paint, roof paint, solvent-based coating, epoxy, urethane, high-temperature paint, elastomerics, mastics, etc. The addition of the ceramics to any material provides heat reflection, insulation, improved fire resistance, and lower heating/cooling costs. We recommend that surfaces have at LEAST two coats of paint containing ceramics to get results. This is based on the small size of the ceramics and the need to have them distributed evenly on a surface. More coats will produce better results.”

The wheels were added in case it became legally necessary to rapidly move the Micro Tiny home.  While it may look a bit odd, it was decided to put the wheels on the side of the Micro Tiny Home.  Alex Londos described his reasoning as follows:

“Without the wheels on the bottom, this structure could be placed on concrete and on dirt. If the wheels were on the bottom it could only be placed on concrete, the wheels would sink into the dirt, get dirty, possibly rust, or no longer function correctly. Additionally, it would be a hassle to constantly clean out all of the dirt from the wheels anytime you felt the need to move the structure. At the same time, what if only one of the wheels sunk into the dirt and then the whole structure would be at an angle? Having them on the side allows the structure the ability to set on the ground and become very solid and stable. If it were on concrete with wheels it would possibly roll or move too easily. The wheels on the side allow one or two people to tilt it onto its side and roll it to a new location if necessary. I suppose the wheels are some sort of backup option and allow the owner to not become dependent on a truck, dolly, or lifting the entire structure with people. The wheels offer an extensive range of additional possibilities.”

Version 1 of the Micro Tiny Home did not have a window for two reasons. The first was the cost in terms of dollars and time. As you will see in the picture, the front door can be propped open to allow light in. The second reason was that we were concerned about the safety of the inhabitant’s possessions, including the Micro Tiny Home itself. 

However, a number of people commented that it looked like a coffin. They are not entirely wrong, so Version 2.0 will have a window! In defense of Version 1.0, it’s substantially larger than a coffin, and more importantly, it’s much cheaper. It cost less than 75% of the average coffin. We cannot help but remark that in the US, we foolishly spend more on the dead than the living.

Another intelligent and practical design is the door hinges and locks. To protect against thieves, the hinges of the door were placed on the inside.  From the picture, you can see how the door swings upward to let in light while shielding against rainfall. Additionally, as you can see from the picture, the high-quality locks’ exterior bolts are tamper-proof.  

Last but not least, the entire tiny home can be locked by a chain and another quality lock. We made sure that a power tool will be required to steal the Micro Tiny Home.

Once again, if you would like to contribute to the project, here is a link to the Gofundme campaign.