S01.E01: 172 Sq. Ft. Dream Castle

[David T. Cole]

The first episode!

[LuckyBitch]

Info on this show:
 
http://www.fyi.tv/shows/tiny-house-nation 

TINY HOUSE NATION
New Episodes
Wednesdays at 10ET/11PT

 
http://www.fyi.tv/shows/tiny-house-nation/about/season-1

In “Tiny House Nation,” renovation experts and hosts, John Weisbarth and Zack Giffin, travel across America to show off ingenious small spaces and the inventive people who live in them, as well as help new families design and construct their own mini-dream home in a space no larger than 500 square feet. From a micro-apartment in New York City to a caboose car turned home in Montana to a micro-sized mobile home for road tripping – this is a series that celebrates the exploding movement of tiny homes. From pricey to budget friendly, “Tiny House Nation” is not a typical design show, but one that proves size doesn’t always matter – it’s creativity that counts.

[LittleIggy]

She did laundry in that salad spinner thing? LOL! Seriously, aren't there laundromats around there? How were the utilities and plumbing set up?

[Snarkette]

I found this family so unrealistic. Three people in under 180 square feet, with so much emphasis on looking pretty and less on livable solutions and space. Just wait until Mom & toddler are snowed in for a few days. And they don't even have a normal flush toilet? Unlike week #2, where the solution really fit the family, this one really would have done better with less design and more space. I couldn't figure out why they didn't just buy/rent a double-wide and save a lot more money, have real utilities, flush toilets, washing machines, and safe inside space for the toddler that was bigger than a closet during bad weather.

[auntjess]

I'm sure I posted on this show last week, but I don't see it.
It seems to have disappeared when the episodes were set up.

[xls]

I found this family so unrealistic. Three people in under 180 square feet, with so much emphasis on looking pretty and less on livable solutions and space. Just wait until Mom & toddler are snowed in for a few days. And they don't even have a normal flush toilet? Unlike week #2, where the solution really fit the family, this one really would have done better with less design and more space. I couldn't figure out why they didn't just buy/rent a double-wide and save a lot more money, have real utilities, flush toilets, washing machines, and safe inside space for the toddler that was bigger than a closet during bad weather.

And not everone sleeping on the floor!

[StatisticalOutlier]

She did laundry in that salad spinner thing? LOL! Seriously, aren't there laundromats around there? How were the utilities and plumbing set up?

 

I wish there were one big thread for the show because there are some overarching themes of bogosity that apply to all episodes.  But...the salad spinner?  I have one.  For one, where do they keep it?  Those things take up an enormous amount of space, especially because of the handle, and you can't double-duty them.  I didn't see it in their "you have 10 cubic feet of storage" display.

 

And for another, a salad spinner would work better.  Because at least it spins.  I noticed she said the thing washes and spins, but it doesn't.  You spin it around to do the washing, but there's no spin that extracts water and it's no different from hand-washing in a sink when it comes to wringing out the clothes.  Yeah...try doing that with her enormous husband's jeans.  Or towels.  Everything takes FOREVER to dry, and knit items?  If you hang them up, they stretch because they're wet and heavy.  It's not like they have a lot of room to lay things on the floor.

 

The device is called a Wonder Wash, and I got it to wash bike clothes when we're not at a place where I can run my washing machine (I've lived in an RV traveling around for the last 10 years, with no home base--I know a LOT about tiny living).  But I think I'm going to just go back to washing them in the sink.  Or a bucket with a plunger. 

 

I get the impression, since they have a composting toilet and they're on private land, that these people will be draining their "gray" water (everything but toilet) onto the ground. 

 

I know...it's a reality show, which means it has little to do with reality.  What I'd like to know, though, is how much of the people's satisfaction is real, and how much is cognitive dissonance springing from defending their decision.  Because NO WAY is someone happy doing all their family's wash by hand, either in a Wonder Wash or the sink, every single day.  To me, they should have just left out mention of laundry because what they showed was crazy.  We can just assume they go to a laundromat.

 

 

 

[Giselle]

Can anyone say CABIN FEVER!

 

This is one tiny house I expect to see up for sale sooner rather than later. Nothing about it seems realistic for two adults and a toddler to live in. No place to sit except for a bench or lounge on the bed. Crank toilet, crank wash tub. The man can't even stretch out nor up to get dressed. Plus it just looked cluttered.

[debraran]

I read on another forum that they did have this house for sale within the year for 35.000. The listing they linked of course was now gone but I hope they broke even.

The Mom seemed so frazzled with moving the mattress and giving her daughter space, the laundry (this isn't LHOP) and the rest of the living experience. I think they should try to do a better background interview on the people involved, because if a lot of them leave the home (and I read they have had a few "failures") they wont be promoting Tiny House living as much.

 

I think if they do have success stories, have a year later show with some past participants. A month later is still a big adjustment period, a year, they are sinking or swimming. ; )