Converting a Shed into a Tiny House

 

We receive many inquiries on our social media site about the possibility of converting a shed into a tiny house. Often you see these sheds lined up along the road at a dealer and they look very nice, just like a small house or cottage. Why not simply add what we need on the inside to be like a house?

Check with your counties building code enforcement officer before doing anything. In my county these cute sheds can be used as a work space, art studio, exercise area, playhouse, or “she shed,” but not sleeping areas. They can have electricity but not plumbing.

We just now can have a tiny home build to IRC building codes as an ADU.

Reasons We Do Not Recommend Converting a Shed into a Tiny House

1. These sheds look cute but are built as inexpensively as possible.
2. If it’s intended to be just a shed, there are no building codes that need to be adhered to. They are frequently framed with 2″x3″ studs (instead of 2″x4″), and wider-spaced than the 16″ spacing required for houses. These studs are often a “manufactured” wood product.
3. Roofing and siding are clad in particle board (OSB) instead of real plywood. This type of wood swells, deforms, and loses structural strength if it gets wet.
4. Roofs frequently do not have the required underlayment under shingles.
5. They are not wrapped in the code-required vapor barrier.
6. The siding looks nice for a while but quickly deteriorates. Usually it’s just a pressed sawdust product, one step up from cardboard.
7. Nails and fasteners are lightweight aluminum with little shear strength; literally not much more than staples. They are not built to withstand the stress of being towed like an RV on a trailer.
8. Windows are usually single pane with little or no flashing to prevent water incursion.
9. It is against many states’ laws to modify a “ready-removable shed structures” into sleeping areas.
10. Ready-removables may have electrical wiring if they’re up to code, but are not allowed to have plumbing.
11. The doors are often non-standard size, shed quality. They might be too short for the average height person.

Overcoming the issues listed above

When you look at Tuff Sheds™ from The Home Depot, the sticker price is just the beginning of the actual cost. Tuff Shed™ will build to your specification but every change costs more money.

They might add a moisture-barrier building wrap like Tyvek for a couple hundred dollars*. The shed might be built with regular 2×4’s on 16″ centers, and have 2×6″ rafters per code and cost a bit more. The floor (if it’s even included) could be ordered with 12″ on-center floor joists, and the windows could be upgraded to dual-pane. Have a thermal barrier added to the roof while you’re at it.

By this time, the cost is approaching the cost of a “sticks and bricks” home of the same size.  You could do all these things and your local zoning officer could still say no.

This YouTube® video offer insight into shed manufacturing:

 

Jamaica Cottage Shop: Converting a Shed into a Tiny House

The Jamaica Cottage Shop makes sheds but also builds tiny homes. You can buy a shell that meets building codes and finish it yourself. They deliver these shells in northeastern United States, but will ship an unassembled kit anywhere. You can also buy just the plans.

Buying a kit

I love the idea of buying a kit. Everything you need comes ready for assembly with easy-to-follow plans. The end product will look great and be totally functional. Jamaica Cottage Shop can create plans with all of your design requirements included. These kits were developed with beginners in mind.

An assembled “three-season” kit prepares the building for interior finishing. It includes the complete PCK (pre-cut kit) version (shown here), vapor barrier, solid roof sheathing, and insulated floor system. A three-season building seals the structure from humidity and moisture, providing protection from the environment, insects, and rodents. DIY plans match a color-coded part-numbered kit and the hardware is included.

Financing is available

There is 0%* APR financing available thru the Jamaica Cottage Shop website. It will not lower your credit score to have them check it to see which offer you qualify for.

Jamaica Cottage Shop Smithaven Tiny House Kit

This quaint cottage stands out with its windowed dormer and asymmetrical roofline. The dormer also makes this tiny cottage feel larger than it is. The Smithaven is often used as an accessory dwelling unit, treehouse, artist’s studio, or office. The open floorplan provides homeowners flexibility for various layouts.

Floor, wall and roof insulation, insulated double-pane windows and an insulated door turn this cottage into a four-season shell. Install a woodstove, composting toilet, and solar package for off-grid living or install modern electrical, plumbing and heating options. Other possible upgrades include pressure-treated flooring, shingle roofing (cedar or asphalt), alternative siding choices, flower boxes, and weathervanes. Purchase additional windows for more natural light.

Offered as frame-only kits, complete pre-cut kits, 3- and 4-season kits, or step-by-step plans nationwide, their outdoor post-and-beam cottage and tiny house solutions give you the extra room you need for visiting guests, a corner garden office, or a country retreat. If you live within  their Northeast delivery area, consider purchasing a fully assembled turn-key design delivered to your prepared site.

This structure is available in six sizes. The price will be between $7,315.00* up to $18,751.00,* depending on size and options. See the details at the Jamaica Cottage Shop website.

Plans only just $99.90*. See more tiny house plans on this page of this website: Tiny House Building  Plans

Preparing your building site

Sheds are not made to be mounted on a trailer and moved around like an RV. A garden shed can be plopped down on some pavers and be fine, but a storage shed is not a tiny home. The law defines these structures as “ready-removables.” They can easily be picked up by a forklift and moved to a different location. A foundation is not required. All that’s required is to keep them fairly level and up out of the moisture.

Tiny homes, on the other hand, need adequate foundations, and the structure needs to be tied down to prevent high wind disasters. See this picture taken by the Cripple Creek, Colorado fire department on January 22, 2019. A blizzard brought sixty MPH winds which blew this shed conversion down the road with a person and two cats inside.

See this post on Tiny Life Consulting website for more information on preventing tiny house blow-over: Preventing Tiny House Blow-over

Building codes and permits

Buying a kit will prepare your structure to meet many building codes. However, it’s your responsibility to get the approvals from your local building officials. They will make sure you have things like a hard-wired smoke detector in each room. Other fire safety requirements include adequate clearance in the loft, and proper-size exits and stairways. These requirements and laws are for your safety. Work with them. Don’t try and skirt around them. Be proactive with zoning officers.

Both sides of the coin

To be fair and present both sides of the coin here is a YouTube® video from a guy who is all about converting sheds to tiny houses.

More pages of this website you may be interested in reading:

Look on this page for a tiny house company that will fabricate just the frame, a dried in shell, or even complete the electrical and plumbing so you can finish it out.

Best Tiny House Insulation

Tiny House Foundations

Permanent Tiny House Foundations

Being Proactive with Building Inspectors and Zoning Officers

Prefab Tiny Home from Home Depot

Buying a Tiny Home from Amazon