This past weekend I thoroughly enjoyed an interesting and informative tiny home open house in a Sonoma County park next to the Russian River. The home was built by Pepper and Dylan who run a company called Bungalow To Go. They work closely with Tumbleweed (Pepper presents at some of their workshops), but also provide some flexibility since Tumbleweed adheres to its own designs as well as a specific aesthetic. I plan to build my own tiny home, but like to see what others have done and exchange ideas.
This home was clearly well-designed and well-built. There were a number of elements I really liked including an attractive octagonal window that filled the loft with natural light, efficient toe kick drawers that help maximize use of all space, and a closet lined with cedar that was pleasing to both the eyes and nose. The bathroom (see image below) was actually more spacious and comfortable than you might think. One thing I noticed that might be an issue for me was the size of the hot water heater (19 gallons) that together with the expansion tank took up a significant amount of space in a closet. I may go with a tankless/flash water heater that will cost more initially, but require significantly less space and reduce ongoing energy costs since there is no tank of water to heat continuously. More research is required on this issue as there are tradeoffs associated with tankless water heaters.
The best aspect of the open house was the opportunity it provided to chat with Pepper and Dylan who are both passionate and knowledgeable. They shared ideas and the logic behind many of their design and construction decisions. Even though I plan to build my own home, I hope to work with Bungalow To Go in some capacity.
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