Designing the Electrical System

Designing a tiny house involves tackling tons and tons of semi-separate, interlocking design problems (in the sense of "math problem," rather than problem problems). One problem that I've been wrestling with lately is electricity. Oversimplified, the big question is just a binary:

Do I need 30 amp or 50 amp electrical service?

But it's tricky. I'm learning a lot about electricity and wiring these days, but I'm still working on this one. Today I sat down and calculated the total wattage and amperage of all the electrical appliances I plan to have to determine whether I need a 50 amp RV electrical hookup, or if I can make do with 30 amps.

In case that's as opaque a concept to you as it was to me a few weeks ago, here are some electricity basics:

Hitches 101: Electrical Stuff

Okay, part two of my learning-by-writing series on trailer hitches and towing. Last time I covered the Mechanical Doo-Daws; now for the Electrical Stuff. Dad and I did some of the electrical work ourselves and some we had done professionally, so my expertise here varies accordingly!

Hitches 101: The Mechanical Doo-Daws

I'm just starting to learn about trailer hitches and all that, and I need to organize and cement that knowledge by writing about it. So, at the risk of a blind-leading-blind scenario, here's a post on what I know so far!

Pre-Trailer Confuddlement and Learning(?!)

I'm ready to order my trailer. I was ready to order my trailer two weeks ago. I want to get started, already! So the day before yesterday, I finally called up Rob Mandzij at Iron Eagle Trailers, gave him my specs and preferences and contact information... and then I asked, "Could I pick up the trailer at one of the Iron Eagle dealerships?"

You see, the Iron Eagle manufacturing facility is way down near Portland, Oregon. Picking the trailer up closer to home--say, at the trailer dealership in Mount Vernon, Washington, that sells Iron Eagle

The PAD Tiny House Basics Workshop Weekend!

My first major investment in my tiny house was a pair of tickets to the Nov. 1-2 Portland Alternative Dwellings (PAD) Tiny House Basics Workshop. This was intentional: I didn't want to take any concrete steps toward building my "Going Home" until Dad and I had had time to attend the workshop, hear from the experts, get our questions answered, and actually spend time inside an honest-to-goodness tiny house on wheels. And I'm very glad I did!

Here is my (very long and somewhat thorough) report on that weekend.