Tiny House Blog

The other day I showed you Mike’s Micro House which he has been building for under $3,000.

Mike is also quite an inventor and is interested in solar and wind energy. He has created a simple hot water heater that I think would be useful for a tiny house or a large home. I asked Mike to share the details on how he creates his solar hot water heater.

Solar water heater. Sun during the day preheats the water in a 30 gallon water tank, prior to it being sent into the on demand water heater inside the house. This solar heater has preheated the water up to over 100F more than once when the outdoor temp was in the 30F range.

This simple setup works great, and is pretty much maintenance free. Just keep the glass clean, and you are good to go. If it starts to warm the water to hot during the summer months, just cover a portion of the solar window, to lower the sunlight bombardment into the solar chamber.

The solar water heater is simply a standard water heater (preferably one that was electric not gas powered).

Here’s what you do:

1. Peel off the outer sheetmetal skin of the water heater, and cut off the foam insulation in order to get to the internal steel tank.
2. Remove the electric heating element if needed and replace with a simple pipe plug fitting if the original element was bad, causing a leak.. Otherwise do nothing but remove all the electrical wiring to the element and the thermostat controls.
3. Verify that the overtemp/pressure valve operates and looks to be in good condition, otherwise replace it, so you have a safety feature if the pressure were to build up to high from the heated water.
4. Paint the water tank, “Flat Black” in order to help it absorb more of the sun’s energy.
5. Build an insulated enclosure that the water tank can fit into, with a window on top at roughly a 45degree angle.
6. Place the tank in the enclosure so that the southern sun exposure will shine directly onto the water tank inside.
7. Plumb the cold water going to your existing home’s water heater to the input of the solar water heater, and the output of the solar water heater to the original cold water input of the original home water heater.

Now when the sun preheats the water in the solar water heater, it will be feed into your home’s existing water heater as hot water, therefore your now backup water heater should not work nearly as hard to provide hot water for your home.

To view more of Mikes inventions check out his flickr site here.

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Doyle Doss has been living “tiny” for almost 30 years. Mostly in one travel trailer or another usually set in pristine and ideal locations. Presently he in a 35 ft 5th wheel, that’s running at 280 square ft — more space than he is used to, but it is nice. He shared with me a unique little heater that will work great in small spaces.

The Kandle Heeter Candle Holder, is a steel and ceramic radiator assembly that sits above the candle and converts the thermal energy of the candle into dry radiant space heat — very effective in small insulated space.

The heater is also available in a very low wattage electric version using either a 50 watt infrared lamp or a 60 watt quartz halogen. Visit the Kandle Heeter site and learn more.

Kandle Heeter Cutout

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Your in the process of designing your tiny house and one of the issues you must decide is how to heat your small space. “Normal” central heat or wood stoves, etc. just produce to much heat for your small space. So what are some of your options? Following are some ideas for using wood, gas, propane and electric heat.

Wood

The original Very Small Woodstove is the Jotul 602, from Norway. This model is a mere 12 inches wide, 19 inches deep. They are found most often in cottages and cabins in the woods, where the 602’s good looks are a highlight. It’s been around almost forever. Although very small it can heat amazingly well.

Jotul 602

12 x 19
$700
Available from Jotul

The tiniest very small woodstoves are those built for boats. These are designed for very tight quarters, and often have a railing on the top to keep pots from rolling off. Here is a typical one from the Canadian coast measuring all of 12 inches by 12 inches. They are made of cast iron and porcelain and are so cute and enchanting, folks have thought of getting a sailboat just so they need one. You can use one in your tiny house just as easily.

Sardine

12 x 12
$650
Available from Marine Stove

Gas/Propane

Propane is also popular in tiny houses and Jay Shafer of Tumbleweed Tiny House fame uses the Newport Propane Fireplace. This lovely little heater/fireplace. Ideal for boats up to 30/32 ft. The combustion process is completely isolated from the inside of the boat by the unique, direct vent design. A built-in blower provides good heat circulation. Heater is sold with all accessories including a stainless steel backing plate and 28″ of flexible, double stainless chimney. Safe, easy to use and extremely economical.

Newport Propane Fireplace (P9000)

17 x 9
$1044
Available from Dickson Marine

Gas is also an option and Woodstock Soapstone Company has the perfect little stove for tiny spaces called the Cottage Mini Soapstone Gas Stove.

It’s 8,000 BTU heat output is perfect for a cozy, intimate area
It takes up little space (it can be installed on a stand or wall- mounted shelf)
It’s a handsome design
The Mini Franklin will bring warmth, grace, and style to any room setting. Its small fire will add ambiance and though it is just 17″ tall, it will produce almost 8,000 BTU/hr!

Cottage Mini

17 x 14
$1049
Available from Woodstock Soapstone Company

Electric

There are many small electric heaters that will work extremely well in your tiny house. Following are a couple examples available at your local Walmart. Electric heaters cost much less than the above wood stoves and propane or gas stoves. If electricity is easily available this might be your most affordable option.

OIL- FILLED RADIATOR
De’Longhi EW0715W Safeheat Oil-Filled Radiator features Patented Easy Snap Wheels, Adjustable Thermostat and Three Heat Settings

$39.87
Available from Walmart

Titan Ceramic Heater with Thermostat #TCM16W-U
Compact yet powerful, this ceramic heater sports a thermostat that lets you choose how much heat you want.

$18.44
Available from Walmart

Toe Kick Heater

Qmark QTS1500T Electric Kickspace Heater (120 Volts)

$156

A toe-space heater will fit where no other heater will. It can be recessed into toe space areas under kitchen or utility room cabinets or into the soffit area above them. 

It can also be recessed into the risers of a stairway or under the vanity in the bathroom. It is convenient for checkout counters, ticket or toll booths and many other places where no other heater seems to fit. 

Hopefully this has been helpful in giving you some new ideas on how to heat your new tiny space.