I saw this deep blue prefab summer house on a website called Allwin, a Chinese company that develops, designs and manufactures prefabricated buildings.
Their CH23 mobile house unit is a 20 foot-container made of light steel. The house includes one bedroom, one bathroom and an open kitchen. The total area is 15 meters square. It’s suitable for any climate and location.
There is modern styling in the bathroom and kitchen and the windows and doors allow for ample sunshine and beautiful panoramic views.
Allwin really offers a huge selection of prefab housing ranging from small summer houses and tea houses to hotels and apartment buildings. They even have a mobile cottage that looks surprisingly like the Lodge on Wheels. Their website is a little difficult to wade through for English speakers and their information is lacking, but some of their designs are eye-catching. You can contact them directly on their website for design and shipping questions.
Allwin was established in 1997 and feels it is their duty to create ecological construction and high quality buildings.Their products are prefabricated in local factories and the design can be individualized and made to withstand earthquakes, hurricanes or other disasters.
By Christina Nellemann for the [Tiny House Blog]
Great use of space, especially the living room if you want to call it that.
Dear sir,i am jj,i am come from China,this product is made from our factory,if you are interested in it ,pls contacte me.my email is jj@allwinjm.com
Love it! I just hope it isn’t built with Chinese drywall (not kidding).
While I love small living spaces it occurred to me, as I was reading this post, that by its very nature a small space will exacerbate any issues caused by potentially toxic building materials.
As someone who works directly in import/export and having dealt with Chinese manufacturers for some time, I can say with authority that the statement that something is built with high quality materials means something very different from one culture to another.
Given the recent spate of issues with construction material exports from China, how could a buyer ensure that the materials used in construction are safe? I can attest to the fact that a certificate won’t do it – is there a kit that could be used to test the paints, siding, drywall, and interior level of chemical fumes? What would the recourse be if the product was found to have unsafe levels of chemical vapor or dangerous materials used in the construction?
Seems like a domestic dealer of these tiny homes might be a safer option for the consumer. Product returns across the Pacific are difficult at best, and forget any sort of legal action if you have a problem on an individual basis.
Thoughts?
The design looks good but would not trust the quality and do all possible in my realm to not use, buy or sell chinese products. BUY AT HOME!
I’m with you. I would never feel safe. On a personal note; at this point I would not want it even if it were safe. I prefer the American ingenuity that I feel has spawned this ‘movement’. I would feel as if I had bought a playhouse from Wal-Mart.
LOL, while I don’t disagree that any goods from China need to be looked at with a critical eye to say that the Tiny House movement is uniquely American ignores the fact that 90% of the world already lives in “tiny” house and this “new” phenomena is an American vanity. Doll houses for adults.
Wow- great- I could live in that! Goin’ to check more on this co. right now.
-Deek
Kent- episode #2 of Tiny Yellow House (TV- on youtube.com) will be up shortly- I’ll let you and Michael know- and you’re given thanks in the episode’s credits as well).
Thanks for all
-Deek
Michael said everything I was going to, except better. I avoid Chinese products as much as possible.
Yeah it looks like it has potential… BUT the whole operation is based in China??!! Completely rules it out as far as I’m concerned. I wouldn’t take that thing for free. While it may be legit, I would never trust it.
Bathroom would look much better if you ripped out the shower floor and just put a drain right on the tile floor. it would make it feel bigger look so much better.
agreed re just having a drain in the floor–bet they didn’t go that route because they’ve got sheet flooring on the rest of the bathroom. But along with a floor drain, gotta move that toilet away from the shower corner. Looks like there’s a little room there.
But also, is there a floor plan at the link? I’m not seeing how the room with the flat screen and the bedroom and a bathroom and the kitchen are all squeezed into that cabin. I love when there’s a floor plan to give a clear sense of such things.
Very nice, aside from the ugly white walls. Also, the toilet is WAY to close to the shower. (imo)
Plus the who Chinese drywall situation would put me off from buying from them.
Use these sites as I do, a source for ideas for doing your own. I could live in a similar structure but if I had to import it from another country it would be prohibitively expensive. And yeah, I think everyone has heard all of the problems with Chinese products of late. Buy or don’t buy on their products, that’s up to individuals. Just look at this structure as the creative use of an 8′ by 20′ container, which it certainly is.
As previous posters have said, despite the attractive look of this home, the fact that it is made by a Chinese manufacturer concerns me, as far as the quality and chemical makeup of the materials. The aesthetics, though, are lovely.
Part of the small house movement is about self empowerment meaning self built from local materials.
The cottage you showed had an American English translation. The rest of the site was in Chinese English and not no easily translated even with my vast experience from Chinese eateries. Most seem to qualify for tiny or small for sure but I forgot about China’s no holds bar system of capitalism. Only the bottom line counts. Would we have to worry about lead paint? They seem to be fond of it. Are there no US or Canadian manufactures dealing in cargo construction? Most that I’ve seem look poor compared to these pics. Also, how much they asking for these tiny houses?
I have retired in the Philippines so am looking for something suitable for country living.I contacted the Chinese Manufacturer tonight and was impressed with their friendliness and openess. I have been thinking about containers for my new house, but buying complete has its benefits
Looks like a nice design to me. Why the China bashing, aren’t all of the containers we are contemplating for housing on this blog made in China? I am typing this on a Dell computer, made in China, you are reading this on a monitor that came out of China. Look to the manufacturer rather than generalizing – the US has it’s share of shoddy products (Orangeburg pipe, the Pinto, the Vega, etc,)
Seriously, guys, it’s pretty ugly-American of you to talk about China like that. They seem to be trying their best to be eco-friendly and affordable. If you really like their ideas, dun be put off by stereotypes or bad press. Contact them, talk to them, ask for certification. Not everything in/from China is bad.