Necessity is the mother of invention, or so the saying goes at least and in China the need to find housing solutions in overcrowded and cramped areas of the city has led to invention of a new type of tiny house that can be assembled by a couple of average people, in about 24 hours, using little more than a hex key.
The tiny house recently constructed in China uses prefabricated molded slabs which contain the wiring and even the plumbing within the mold, which means they really can be assembled by those with little to no building experience.
The pieces link together and then are tightened with a hex key, even the insulation is part of the prefabricated units. They can even include a composting toilet for use in areas without a sewage hookup, and the best part may be the price, around $10,000 (US), which in Beijing, is about 30 times cheaper than a standard apartment. The home built in China is just around 300 square feet and was designed to utilize natural lighting and not to obstruct the views of the existing neighbors.
While this is a new concept, it is not the first project from People’s Architecture Office to use this method. They also built a tower using the same interlocking, prefabricated panel design.
With a little bit of adaptation, solar panels, and any other off grid tech you prefer, this could be an inexpensive tiny home for those living off grid. The fact that everything is integrated means that even those who know little about plumbing, electrical, carpentry, or other traditional building skills, can still manage to assemble their own off grid living space in as little as a day. Let’s hope that this technology finds its way to other parts of the world.