Living full time in 200sf...

[Beavers]

I'm currently working on the foundation for a 16x28 house.  So far though the building is going slower than I planned, and the money is going faster than I planned...not a good combination. 

I'm considering putting the 16x28 on hold and building a 12x16 to start.  I'm confident I could have that house done by the end of summer.  My wife and I really want to hurry up and stop having a rent payment.  I'm thinking that living in the 12x16 while building the 16x28 would relieve alot of the pressure to just hurry up and get the house done. I want to be able to take my time and build a real quality house that we can be proud of.

Is there anyone here that is actually living full time in 200sf?  Is it possible to stay married living in that small of space? 

I'm sure it can be done...just would like to hear from someone who has actually done it.

[MountainDon]

Depends. Depends partly on the duration for living in the 200 sq ft. Also realize that a 12 x 16 with 2x4 wall studs works out to more like 175 sq ft max on the inside.

Here's a story.  When we first bought our mountain property we parked our RV up there. Inside living space calcs to 125 sw ft, plus an upper double bunk over the cab & not included in that 125 sq ft. My wife's first thoughts were to build a 10 x 16 ft cabin. I said she was nuts; but I was more diplomatic than that. Over the period of about 1 1/2 years our plans went through many permutations. We ended up with a 15.75 x 30 ft cabin.

After having it up and occupied for several months she told me two things. One was that she was happy I talked her into the larger cabin size. Two, she was very happy to move from the RV into the cabin; that the small RV space was getting old after months on end.

So, yes I believe you could co-exist in the 12 x 16 if it was for a finite time; 1 year?  However, IMO, even though the proposed 12 x 16 is less than half the size of the a6 x 28 you really want it will take longer than half the time of the larger cabin. I'd think that through before committing one way or the other, although only you know how much time you'll be able to devote to the project.


G/L   

[considerations]

I'm actually living full time in 192 sqft, and have for about 10 years now (long story, not worth the telling here).  But I live alone.  In the winter, when its lousy outside and the days are short, it's no picnic. 

The 14 x 24 with lofts I'm building looks like a palace, and I've developed a chronic case of cabin fever, recently much relieved by the improvement in the weather. 

Two people?...permanently?...in 200 sqft or less?  Maybe, but like me, you'd likely end up with a series of outbuildings, an office, a power plant/pantry, a huge motivation to finish building something larger... and an ongoing desire for even more.....

[Redoverfarm]

Would it be possible to go with your original demensions but only dry-in.  Then finish the smaller portion (kitchen, small bath and loft) to live in then work to complete the remainder as funds and time permit.  With careful planning you can incorporate the old with the new and once the whole structure is complete you would not be able to tell what was finished and when. 

[Sassy]

We lived in the RV part of our horse trailer for about a year - that was about 90 sq ft (that includes the queen size bed area over the hitch).  We spent a lot of time outside.  We started on the underground cabin - had a 12x8 area with plastic walls, a homemade bed & a wood stove - we lived in that area for several months, then moved into the more expansive 12x16 area, whoopie!  It's doable but the RV felt kinda claustraphobic after awhile as there was just one small window over the kitchen sink & that area you could only stand in or you could sit on the steps leading up to the bed where there were more windows.  And we were always anxious to expand the cabin.  And BTW, we're still married 

Seems like a lot of work to build a small cabin to live in & then build a larger one.  With John's plans you can start small & there's lots of options to add on - that might be the way to go...

[Yonderosa]

Elbow room is good for harmony.  The farther my neighbors are away, the better I like em.  My wife and I are about to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary (been dating for over 29 years) and having a little extra room never hurt.  Even though she is my favorite person on earth I still need a "man world" to escape to. 

If you have a common passion and things are progressing toward the achievement of a goal, living in a confined space wouldn't be bad.  If there were setbacks and delays... It would be more challenging.

[Beavers]

Thanks for all the feedback!

I'm pretty sure we can make it work living in a small space for a while.  Hopefully only a year or so.

I already have all the materials for the foundation, beams, and floor joists for the 16x28.  Like a couple of you suggested it does make a lot more sense to incorporate the 12x16 into the larger house.  I'm going to go ahead and complete the foundation on the 16x28 and then start working on the 12x16. 

[Squirl]

I did for years.  College, after college, poor living in a city.  The money really can add up quickly when not paying rent too.  I am a bit of a workaholic sometimes though.  If I lived on the same property I was building, I would be only inside enough to eat and sleep.

[CREATIVE1]

We lived in a cute little 1951 Silver Star trailer when we were first married.  It was all of 8' x 32', but because it was in Florida we were outside most of the time anyway.  Then the baby and the house came along. 

Now I don't think we could live in a space that small, but that's because I have a home office with 200 plus clients whose records I must keep for 7 years, and a huge library of 20,000 books.  Under other circumstances a smaller place would work.  I would think about 400 square feet would be the minimum, unless I had a big outdoor kitchen.

[ScottA]

I think 2 people can live in 400 sq. ft. just fine if it's laid out right. 200 would be a bit tight.

[Source_to_Sea]

Like everything - it depends. My wife and I lived in a 200 sq' yurt for 2 years during grad school, and lived in a 35sq' tent when we paddled the Mississippi River. We're planning on building about a quick and dirty 300 sq' cabin before building the "big house" (1,000 sq') in about 2 years. Part of this plan will be to buy a 20' shipping container for temporary storage and workspace.

[pagan]

It can be done. My wife and I are living in a little less than 600sf, and although generally it works well, when she's up at night talking on the phone while I'm trying to go to sleep there is no way for me to not hear her side of the conversation, even if she tries to talk quietly. Sometimes I want to rip the damn thing out and chuck it into the woods, but I refrain.

[akemt]

Have you considered using the foundation you're already building for that 16 x 12 and just building your original plan in phases?  It would take more planning now regarding framing and layouts and a bit more effort later on (if you wanted to reuse some of the materials for the end of the new addition), but then you could be working towards the exact same goal and not have to use up the money, time and supplies on a different project.  A little more work, but not as much as an entirely separate building.

Anyway, I too have looked into/done the add-on later plan and it is a bit of a pain.  My plans were to build the kitchen and bathroom with a loft and what would be our living/dining at that point (but a "hearth room" later on with possibly expanding the kitchen counter space later on if layed out well) in one building, then add on later what would be a two-story with living/family down and bedrooms up.  I do like that option because I can end up with my larger than usual kitchen in the end and the water lines are all in one location (saves money that way), but it is more work to do two separate buildings and rooflines and doesn't always save you that much money in the end since you still have to pay for some of the bigger items (septic, appliances, etc). 

Another option to consider with building in phases is to add a bit of extra wall height (say, building with 12' lumber instead of 8') to give more of a second story.  It may be worth the extra lumber cost to get the space and shouldn't affect the foundation/roof costs, really. 

My last suggestion (yes, I'm long-winded! ) is to lay out whatever small spaces you're building so that there is as much open space as possible and so that everything multitasks.  A bar-side or wall-mounted table top with hinges so it can be away for space or fold out should you have extra people, a bed that folds up against the wall so you can have a library/office/sitting/whatever space durring the day, a stair that doubles as a bookshelf, etc.  I'm all about not wasting space at this point!

This is one of my favorite living-small examples: http://www.coyotecottage.com/cabin/cabinintro.htm 
ETA the local link: http://www.countryplans.com/nicolaisen.html

Best of luck!

[Beavers]

It's good to hear that there are people out there that are living just fine in small spaces!

I'm pretty sure that we have nailed down a plan...

I'm going to finish the 16x28 foundation since we already have all the materials for it.  Then I'm going to do the foundation for a 16x16 addition, making the house an L shape.  We will then put all our time and money into getting the 16x16 livable.  It will have the bathroom a small loft bedroom and a temporary kitchen/future laundry room.

After playing around with the floor plan, doing the addition now seems to make a lot of sense.  It will give us a lot more room in the main part of the house and will house the bathroom, laundry room/mud room, along with another loft bedroom.  Should be a lot easier and hopefully cost less money to just build it all now instead of adding on in a year.

I guess I'm not too worried about living in a small space while we build the house.  The only time I should be inside is to eat and sleep... the rest of the time I should be outside working on the rest of the house! 

[Don_P]

We've lived in the camper for a year at a time before. It does tend to focus one on the goal.

I was doodling with sketchup trying to show 2 different approaches I'd been thinking of. This is what I suspect most of us are thinking of. It is doable but ambitious for a first roof. Think about the bottom of the valley. It'll sure be easier if you work out that detail and the future retrofit before beginning.


This is another way of doing it.


If you don't have sketchup yet and can download it, it sure helps with visualizing things like this in 3D. If you have it and want these to play with drop me a PM and I'll email them. They aren't dimensionally perfect but might give a jumping off point.

[Beavers]

I want to do what you have posted in your first pic.

You are right that roof does look tricky, I wouldn't even have a clue where to start building that.  I'm learning all this stuff as I go...so far all I know is how to do my foundation, and currently reading up on floor and wall framing.  Still working my way up to roof framing. 

Maybe I'll get lucky and be able to come up with the cash to at least frame the 16x28 as well.  It's got to be easier to build everything at the same time instead of trying to tie it all together later.

Thanks for the tip on sketchup, I'll check it out.

[Bishopknight]

Simple answer, I wouldnt do it.

[Beavers]

Simple answer, I wouldnt do it.

Your photo's of your 12x16 were a big part of what convinced me that living in a small space was possible!   

Has it turned out to be less livable than you thought?

[southernsis]

We lived in 228 sq ft for nearly a  year. My husband, 150 lb dog, and myself. We had everything in it we needed, full size frig, full size stove, double bed, tv. You must have a place for everything and keep it there. When 1 of us was moving around doing something every one else stayed put. We were very happy. It can be done.

[ToddSInGA]

 

Due to my decision to stay with my Dad after thier messy breakup, I lived with him in a efficiency apartment that was 12x20 and had a 2 burner stove, a mini fridge, a sink and a small bathroom, along with a built in table set. There was a wall AC unit and a gas heater which worked very well.  It was NOT a fun experience but we did the best we could, and there were perks too like free cable and no utility bills. We lived a few block from a laundromat and a grocery store so we didn't have any problems meeting basic needs. We slept in sleeping bags which became really old fast.

Privacy was a huge issue, and being a young teen I really needed my personal space that I didn't have. I ended up going outside as much as possible.

For two people this would be a test but I think it could work out well for one person. In fact I would love to live in something like how it was set up, but with double the floor space and a separate bedroom.

We lived there because no apartment complex would rent to a single father with a teenaged boy, and when we were finally able to upgrade to a 600 sf apartment it felt like living in a castle!!! We were only able to live there because I was 18, and past the "no children" restriction.

[bayview]

   My girlfiend and I, with our dog (20 lbs) are very comfortable in our travel trailer.  It has a living room slide-out that has a built-in dinette and convertible sofa.  It is 8' X 29' and the slide is about 3.5' X 12'.  Plenty of storage under the dinette, sofa, bed, etc . . .

  It works for us since we both enjoy outside activities. 

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