Are Tiny Houses Safe? Tiny House Safety Issues & Solutions
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Tiny houses are trendy right now, they require less energy and resources. They’ll be on wheels, drivable with a permanent foundation even in outdoor areas. As a result, the tiny house becomes the best alternative to a traditional energy-sucking house. With many customizability and not much broad knowledge about what a tiny house includes, you might be in doubt: Are tiny houses safe?
It’s an obvious concern, especially when you consider your tiny house safety regulations. In this article, we’ll discuss in detail tiny house safety regulations and safety issues with solutions. So that you can get a clear conception of tiny house safety.
Are Tiny Houses Safe?
Everyone wants to be safe, no matter what type of house you’re living in. When it comes to tiny houses, they’re smaller and have less space than a traditional house. With smaller space and tinier size, how can they be safe, right? One of the biggest points that many have is the safety of the tiny house. Are they safe?
Of course, a tiny house is built with the building code and surely safe. Tiny houses can withstand weather conditions and common house hazards. At the end of the day, you hardly have to be aware of these hazards and take proper steps to prevent them. So, first of all, you have to know the safety regulations of your tiny house. Then, tiny houses have some sort of safety issues, all of them have a suitable solution.
Below, we’ll talk about common safety regulations for a tiny house. We’ll also discuss hazards to tiny houses, as well as the best ways to ensure that doesn’t happen.
Tiny House Safety Regulations:
What Safety Regulations Do Tiny Houses Need?
Each state, city or town has its own building codes and regulations. Tiny house building code and regulations differ, it’s depending on the specific zoning regulations. This will also highly impact how a tiny house will be built and used. Tiny House Society claim that some states in the U.S. are more tiny house friendly than others.
Zoning regulations can differ from others, but there’s some regulation that is common with each other. Here we find some standard safety features for a tiny house in the United States.
Bathrooms: One bathroom is required in all tiny houses, that’s separate from other rooms.
Ceiling Height: Tiny house ceiling height must have at least 6 feet 8 inches in common spaces. The bathroom should have a minimum height of 6 feet 4 inches in ceiling.
Stairs: Stairs or ladders required for dwellers to reach lofted regions inside the tiny house.
Emergency Exit: At least one emergency exit point must be required in all tiny houses.
As we mentioned before, each state has its own tiny house regulations. You can contact your local zoning department once you are interested in a tiny house. They can inform you of all the specific zoning laws and regulations.
Tiny house maker Rich Daniels suggests some safety should have for a tiny house, even if they are not required by law. For example, beds located in a lofted area, so there should be a sturdy railing along with the house’s stairs or ladder. Also, some barriers in the loft secure that you didn’t roll out to the below floor from the bed.
Besides, the window in the loft would be large enough for exit. Another issue is air quality and ventilation. So, check out all ventilation so that you always have enough oxygen inside. Since combustible materials made tiny houses become a potential fire hazard. Accordingly, it might be safer to consider non-combustible material before building or buying a tiny house.
But beyond all that, you always want to live in a small house with sufficient safety. Below, we’ll discuss all the safety issues and solutions for them in a tiny house.
Tiny House Safety Issues with Suitable Solutions:
No matter what type of house you have, everyone wants to live in safety. Still, there are some common safety issues, hopefully all of them have suitable solutions.
Fire Hazards / Risks: Although, tiny houses and traditional houses both have risks when it comes to fire. However, fire can rapidly spread and reach near objects in a small space. Because the space is too small that any small mistakes lead to big problems.
The National Fire Protection Association mentions some common causes of house fires. These are cooking, heating, electrical problems and burning candles. First of all, cooking in a small space is not only challenging but also a cause of fire occurrence. Especially, once you’re not careful about cooking in a small space. So, always cook carefully so that nothing goes wrong.
Fires come from any mistakes, for example, oil spills or cooking over a gas stove. Besides, overheating of a heater or wrong fuel using will be a reason for house fires. Space heaters are a common cause of deadly fire in houses. Because they overheated very easily and rapidly. Moreover, fire can easily spread on a structure made with plywood. The risk is bigger when your tiny house is built with combustible materials. Accordingly, when you’re thinking of building or buying a tiny house, always consider non-combustible materials. Fibreglass is one of the best examples of fire resistance inorganic materials. It’s non-combustible natural materials in which flammability is a serious concern. They’re also lightweight, strong as well as excellent heat insulators. That means you can depend on them during the cold.
Furthermore, burning candles is a flammable solid substance. They can also cause fires in your tiny house. Therefore, you should extinguish the flame of the candle before leaving the house.
But, this doesn’t indicate that there are no precautions to keep your small house safe from fire. Here are some best ways to make sure your tiny house is safe from fire.
Stay Safe In Tiny House From Fire:
Tiny houses and traditional houses both have the same appliances when it comes to safety from fire. However, suitable uses of applicable appliances reduce the risks associated with fires.
Fire Extinguishers: When it comes to fire protection, fire extinguishers are the most common device used to fire control. For this reason, every house must have at least one fire extinguisher, even in a tiny house.
Once you have only one fire extinguisher you should keep it in your kitchen. But, remember that there are also additional areas with your tiny house kitchen. So, you can keep further fire extinguishers in other areas of your house. Here are some of the best seller fire extinguisher in 2021. If you are confused to choose from them, then we recommend FIRST ALERT Fire Extinguisher. This is one of the best fire extinguishers for your tiny house. Lastly, one important thing to notice is that every fire extinguisher has an expiration date. So, repeatedly check out the tags and replace the expired fire extinguishers.
Smoke Detector: A smoke detector is a small device that senses smoke usually indicates an incident of fire. This small device is your first signal that there’s smoke inside your house. So, you also need at least one smoke detector in your small house.
However, you can keep multiple smoke detectors depending on the size of your house. Keeping one smoke detector in each room will be a wise decision. You may be out of the house, but some smoke detectors work with your phone. A smart smoke detector gives an alert even when you’re out of the house. Here are some of the best seller smoke detectors & fire alarms. You can choose any of them to keep your small house safer.
Indoor Air Quality: Indoor air quality is an important aspect all across your wellness. It will impact your physical health and productivity, no matter whether you’re living. According to research, a person performs poorly when they live in areas of bad indoor quality.
However, improving the indoor air quality can be very simple in any regular residential house. It’s quite simple and cheap because you just have to open the doors and windows. On the other hand, it can be quite trickier in a tiny house. A tiny house with bad indoor air becomes more problematic than a traditional house.
Above all, nothing is more important than the air you breathe in. But, how can you notice the indoor air quality is either bad or not? Danger can’t be noticed with the naked eye, because air can’t be seen.
How can you control the quality of air without seeing it? Here’s the suitable solution to keep your lungs safe from bad indoor air.
Air Purifiers: Tiny houses means you’re living in a small space. This doesn’t make any problem until you will allow airflow in your house. However, often keeping the door and windows open isn’t an option. That’s why an air purifier is needed in your small house. An air purifier is a device that can remove impurities from the air to improve indoor air quality. It’s a compact device, so you don’t need to worry about taking up much space. They are helpful to allergy sufferers and asthmatic patients. Also, reduce the smoke of tobacco. We’re in the age of modern science, so you can expect the reflection of science in an air purifier. There’s so many smart air purifiers you can find that work with your voice control. Toshiba Smart Air Purifier is one of the best examples to improve indoor air quality. It contains three air purifier filters including a pre-filter, HEPA filter and activated carbon filter. The Filter indicator alerts you when the filter needs to replace. This air purifier always ensures the safe and clean air quality of your small house.
Dehumidifiers: Once you live in a tiny house like a small space, moisture can be a problem for health comfort. Sometimes mould growth in your small living space will become a problem. Hopefully, when it’s about to reduce humidity and prevent mould growth, the first step is to use a dehumidifier. A dehumidifier is an electrical appliance that extracts water from the air. Extracting water can reduce the level of humidity in the air. As a result, you can remove musty odour from the air. It will also prevent any growth of mould in your tiny house. This electrical appliance can maintain the perfect amount of humidity in your tiny house.
Altogether, it’s truly meaningful to use a dehumidifier when you’re living in a tiny house. Here are the Best Small Dehumidifiers that keep your tiny house more comfortable. Never forget to buy a dehumidifier to maintain humidity in your house. You can look over all our recommended dehumidifiers for your tiny house. Once you are confused to choose from them, then we suggest Eva-Dry Wireless Mini Dehumidifier. This is one of the best mini dehumidifiers for your tiny house.
Carbon Monoxide Detector: Carbon Monoxide poisoning is another common risk in a tiny house. It’s a poisonous gas and also known as a silent killer. It’s more lethal than others since it has no smell and nearly impossible to detect on its own. Again, this colourless and odourless poisoning makes you more sleepy so that you didn’t notice it later. That’s why many states in the US mandate to require at least one carbon monoxide detector. So, you have to use a carbon monoxide detector along with other appliances in your tiny house. Here are some of the Best Carbon Monoxide Detectors for your tiny house. If you have any confusion choose a CO detector, then we suggest Kidde Carbon Monoxide Detector for your small living house. Just similar to the smoke detector, this CO detector comes with smart technology to alert you. This makes you feel more safe at your tiny house directly alerted with your phone.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Traditional House VS Tiny House: Which One Is Safer?
Answer: Tiny houses and traditional houses both have their own building codes and regulations. Each state, city or town has individual building codes and safety regulations. These regulations highly impact how your tiny house is built and used. Although tiny houses and traditional houses both have risks when it comes to house hazards. However, tiny house space is so small that minor mistakes lead to big problems. But, at the end of the day, It’s being aware of house hazards and taking the proper steps to prevent them. So, first of all, you have to know the safety regulations of your house. Then, take precautions all about the common hazard that happens in the house.
Are Tiny House Safe in Storms?
Answer: Every homeowner wants to be safe, specifically in extreme weather conditions such as storms. Tropical storms, tornadoes, hurricanes all are the most harsh weather conditions. That’s why the weatherproofing process comes to homeowners. Especially, for those who live in high-risk regions where weather events regularly happen. Weatherproofing is to make sure that a storm doesn’t penetrate the tiny house. You’ll have to secure the windows to make them weatherproof. You can secure your house windows over with hammering sheets of plywood for reinforcement. This plywood makes the windows less possible to break. Hopefully, a tiny house built to code with weather reinforcements can overcome harsh weather conditions. They can tolerate Category 1 and 2 hurricanes once built according to code.
Are Tiny House Safe For Kids?
Answer: Parents can closely monitor their children and become a dynamic presence of their growth in a tiny house. Lots of parents mentioned that they felt closer to their kids after living in a tiny house. Hopefully, a tiny house can be modified to adjust everything your kid needs, from kid-friendly spaces to safety railings. Here are some additional tips for living in a tiny house with your kids.
Instruct kids to stay away from electrical equipment.
Instruct kids about everything to do in an emergency.
Add safety railings to high areas such as stairs and loft.
Let out kids play outside of the house.
What Are The Advantages of Living In a Tiny House?
Answer: Living in a tiny house has numerous advantages in many ways. Here’s we pinpoint the advantages of tiny houses:
Lower Expenses: Tiny house costs
lower than a full-sized traditional house. According to Tiny Life, it’s accomplishable to build a tiny house for on average $23,000. On the other hand, the average price for a full-sized traditional house is $272,000. It’s completely ten times more than on average a tiny house! Some believe that a tiny house will be a solution to the homeless problem in the United States.
No Mortgage: Many people didn’t interest to buy a house with mortgage payments. A thirty years mortgage with a 4.5% interest increases the average cost of the house to $482,000. This will increase the long-term cost of the house. Tiny Life shows that 68% of owners of tiny houses own their house free and clear. Just compared to others 29% of total homeowners.
Lower Energy Use: Building or buying a tiny house is not only less expensive but also requires less energy. Tiny houses don’t cost less upfront, they are also less costly to maintain. Costs of energy, water as well as waste disposal all are lower than traditional houses. Moreover, it’s much easier to live in
that naturally breaks down the solid waste into compost.
Freedom of Movement: A tiny house is a small living home, so it doesn’t need a large area of land. Moreover, many owners built their house on trailers. So they can easily move with them when they shift to a new city.
This is one of the best ways to enjoy life with home for many homeowners,
Small Maintenance & Simpler Life: Tiny houses haven’t extra stuff with huge maintains. It includes only essential elements and appliances. A tiny house is easier to maintain with fewer space and appliances. As a result, house owners can give less time on maintenance and more on their work. Tiny house owners get a simpler life in addition to the harmony with nature.
Final Thoughts:
Everyone wants to be safe, no matter what type of house you’re living in. Although tiny houses and traditional houses both have risks when it comes to house hazards. However, tiny houses are smaller and have less space than a traditional house. The space is so small that minor mistakes lead to big problems.
Are tiny houses safe? Of course, a tiny house built with the code and safety regulations are surely safe. But, at the end of the day, tiny house safety is being aware of hazards and taking the proper steps to prevent them. So, first of all, you have to know the safety regulations of your tiny house. Therefore, tiny houses have some safety issues, all of them have a suitable solution.
One of our most frequently asked questions is “what do we do about SECURITY in your tiny home?” With a recent rash of stolen tiny houses, we wanted to share some easy steps and inexpensive tools you can use to deter and prevent theft. Over the past few years, we have parked in all kinds of weird places. We have never had security issues but we do take key precautions. Watch & don’t let fear keep you from pursuing your tiny house dreams!
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