The Microhouse: A Small Home You Can Build
(Page 6 of 8)
April/May 1995
By Rev. Bill Kaysing
Now, so far we’ve only used about half the microhouse, yet we’ve taken care of sleeping, working, earning a living, plus cooking and eating. Not bad for about 50 square feet!
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The balance of the space may be devoted to items related to your hobby, professions, or trade such as ceramics, painting, music (there’s room for a small keyboard,) or whatever makes you happy or makes some money or both.
With wall space in modest abundance, lighten up your living room with a few plants, curtains, art, or lighting fixtures. A corner may be enclosed for your “portable potty” or other waste disposal fixture.
In a space as small as a microhouse, it takes very little heat to make it comfortable. One of those miniature potbelly stoves would be delightful. A low-wattage electric heater would be ideal; there would be no need for ventilation as with any combustion type of heat. Lighting can be almost free if you use a photo-voltaic panel, storage battery, and 12-volt bulbs. While initial costs are fairly substantial, the energy of the sun is gratis indefinitely!
So that’s how you can make your interior livable on a peanut budget.
Microhouses and the Law
Let’s say you build yourself a microhouse in your backyard. That is completely legal since the Uniform Building Code specifies that any structure of less than 125 square feet and no permanent foundation needs no permit. I am sure they made this ruling to avoid having to issue permits for the millions upon millions of small sheds that abound in the United States. Also, once a permit is issued, the building inspectors are obligated to give approvals and this would certainly be super boring.
Now what happens next depends on what you do with the shed/microhouse. If you fill it with firewood, no one will ever bother you. However, if you put in a hideabed and allow your sweet and lovable old granny to sleep in it overnight, you could be violating some bureaucratic regulations. These are most likely related to the health department. Certain aspects of the residential code relate to ventilation, heating, disposal of human waste, and other health parameters. These laws make sense in that they did eliminate ghastly slums and flophouses that existed in the past in even greater numbers than at present. However, there is a world of difference between an urban slum in a teeming city and a calm and peaceful, totally clean and new microhouse in your backyard. Especially when there is need for a restful and comfortable shelter for lovable Granny.
In California, it’s perfectly legal for Granny to sleep out in the microhouse as long as she’s over 60. California State Senator Henry Mello is a kindly and thoughtful person who labored for years to obtain the legislation that created the famous Granny House. This may be defined as a second unit built on a residential lot already having one house. The major stipulations are that it must be occupied by at least one person over 60 and be less than 640 square feet. Other than that, any Californian who owns an R-1 lot can proceed as though the lot were zoned R-2. This greatly expands the living space potential in the Golden State and this generous social philosophy could, no doubt, be adopted in the other 49 states. (Anyone interested in working toward this goal is invited to write to me through Mother, and I'll see to it that the latest data are provided.)
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