In a time where consumers are downsizing and minimising in a bid to lessen their eco footprint or to cut back on the cost of living, Tiny Homes are more popular than ever. You may be wondering, can I build my Tiny Home with a steel framing system? The short answer is YES. And we think you should. Here’s why:
Benefits of Building Your Tiny Home with Steel Framing
The many benefits of building with cold-formed light gauge steel also apply to Tiny Homes. Some of these are:
- Sustainability – noting steel’s potential for infinite recycling and minimal waste.
- Durability – being resistant to pests, fire, and other extreme weather conditions and climates, steel won’t ignite, rust, warp or twist.
- Strength – incredibly strong with the added benefit of being lightweight.
- Design flexibility – the above factors afford designers more flexibility when designing with steel than would be the case with timber framing systems.
- Precision manufacturing – The steel framing design process is so precise that errors causing wasted materials and time on site are highly unlikely – affording higher quality construction and quicker build times.
Benefits increase with Tiny Homes
No doubt we all agree that the above benefits are desirable no matter the project – be it a Tiny Home or a large-scale commercial structure, however, there are some benefits that are somewhat amplified when it comes to Tiny Homes:
- Sustainability goals – if you’re downsizing to a Tiny Home to achieve a goal of a more sustainable way of living, this one is right up your alley. While the sustainability of steel has been questioned many times over, the undeniable strength, integrity and durability of steel affords it unquestionable longevity. Steel can age 100+ years and still retain 100% of its original strength. Once it reaches the end of its intended use, steel can be recycled an infinite number of times without losing any of its original properties such as strength and integrity.
- Durability needs increase with Tiny Homes – resistance to pests, fire, and other extreme weather conditions and climates is arguably even more important in a Tiny Home as there is less physical structure to weather or delay further damage to the rest of the home in extreme conditions.
- Tiny but strong – When downsizing your home, it’s not always possible to downsize your appliances to a proportionate degree – and it certainly isn’t likely you’ll downsize the occupants! So you want a strong structural foundation to support your family and your possessions. Steel provides this with the added benefit of a high strength-to-weight ratio – meaning your Tiny home need not be any heavier due to its higher strength capacity.
- Design flexibility – You may think of large open spaces when considering the design flexibility that steel affords designers, however, flexibility is arguably just as important (if not more so) when designing your Tiny Home to get as much bang for your buck space-wise.
- Precision manufacturing – Following on from the above point, such cleverly designed tiny spaces require expertly precise manufacturing. Cold-formed light gauge steel framing has you covered there, with the manufacturing process a natural extension of precision design and detailing.
Are you building your own Tiny Home? At AusSteel, we understand that good things come in small packages – and we know just how to make that Tiny Home of yours stand the test of time with a strong structural foundation. Why not pop into one of our factories for a tour and a chat? We have facilities based in Crestmead, QLD and also in Newcastle (Hunter Region, NSW) and Goulburn (Southern Tablelands, NSW). Get in touch today!
