3 Top Maintenance Tips for Your Tiny Home

Although a tiny home occupies a smaller footprint than a traditional house, there are some important tasks you need to complete to keep your space in proper working order. Let’s explore the top maintenance tips for your tiny home so that you can spend more time enjoying your living space and less time addressing unexpected issues.

Maintain Your HVAC System

Whether your house is big or small, proper temperature regulation is essential. You must inspect and maintain your HVAC system on a regular basis. Although it costs less to operate a system in a tiny home, you want to ensure all components are working as efficiently as possible.

To maintain the proper indoor temperature, change the air filter in your unit approximately every 30 days. Putting in a new filter is an easy, inexpensive way to prevent your system from becoming overloaded. You should also have a professional inspect your HVAC unit once a year to confirm everything is working properly. By staying on top of heating and cooling maintenance, you’ll remain comfortable in your home and potentially avoid costly repairs down the road.

Inspect Your Roof

Another top maintenance tip for your tiny home is performing routine roof inspection. In general, you should check on the state of your roof every three to six months. Since tiny homes have height restraints, the roof doesn’t have a dramatic slope. As a result, you must ensure leaves and other debris haven’t accumulated on your roof.

You also need to be aware of potential water pooling that can cause long-term damage if left unattended. Any type of standing water can compromise the structural integrity of your roof. Lastly, be sure to check the gutters, caulking, shingles, and metal panels to be certain your roof is in good condition.

Eliminate Clutter

The inside of your tiny home is just as important as the outside. After all, one of the major benefits of living in a tiny house is the opportunity to enjoy a more minimalistic lifestyle. If you fill your surroundings with piles of clutter, you’ll quickly find yourself living in cramped quarters.

To maintain the interior of your tiny home, keep your possessions as organized as possible. Do your best to limit the number of new items you bring into your space. If you start to feel like the walls are closing in on you, set aside some time to purge your belongings. You can also find creative ways to organize your items, such as storage ottomans and vertical shelving, to create a cohesive living environment.

With the right maintenance routine, you’ll be able to enjoy living in your tiny home for many years to come. Your space may be small, but it’s mighty, so take good care of it and enjoy the memories you’ll make within your four walls.

Preparing for a Tiny House Move

Considering making the move into a tiny home? Congratulations! You may be surprised to learn that quite a few people would consider doing exactly what you’re doing — in a survey by the National Association of Home Builders, nearly half of the people revealed that they have seriously entertained the idea at some point. 

Of course, tiny house living isn’t for everyone and as you prepare to move into yours there will be some adjustments to make. Some of these might be more challenging than you originally anticipated, but ultimately, tiny house living is a strategy to lead a much simpler life. If you do it  right, it can also save you quite a bit of money! 

You might be feeling a little nervous, but don’t worry! Moving anywhere calls for a bit of healthy fear. Here are some tips and tricks to help you prepare for your big (tiny) move! 

Getting Ready for the Big (Tiny) Move

Perhaps the biggest challenge for most people who choose to move into a tiny home is the effort it takes to declutter and downsize from a normal-sized home. The big trick? Focusing on what is really important in your life and striving to only hold on to things that you actually use and get joy out of having. Practicality also comes into play here. For instance, you might be a big reader and get a lot of joy out of having books in your home. But in a tiny house, you will be better served by only having a handful of personally valuable books and getting a library card. 

You’ll also probably have to go through the same headache with documents. Over the years, a lot of records, bills, and other papers can really build up in your home. Before assuming everything is important and moving it into your tiny home, it is worthwhile to go through it and really decide what is absolutely necessary to keep. For the rest of it? You could rent a shredder for around $100 and use the paper mulch to start your new compost pile. 

It could also be that your tiny house adventure is not a long-term one. Perhaps you are staying in a tiny home for a year or two while your dream home is built. Although it is still extremely valuable to go through some of your things and declutter before moving, you might consider getting a storage unit for the rest of it. Storing furniture and other valuables that you plan to use again in the future can be a good strategy for saving money in the long run. 

What to Expect

Adjusting to a tiny house is exciting and nerve-racking and adventurous, but it takes a bit of effort too. As the move gets closer, be sure you aren’t procrastinating on going through items and packing. Likewise, consider some of your other options like hiring movers to help with some of the bigger items if you need the extra muscle. 

Tiny homes are actually tiny and suddenly every inch of available space has a purpose and a use. Organization is a huge component of feeling zen in your new tiny home and ultimately getting the most out of the experience. Choosing the right, multi-functional furniture for you and your tiny home space can be a big factor in feeling like there is a bit more room and functionality in your new living space. You may find early on that there are a lot of little adjustments that need to be made such as finding more hooks or shelving to make your space more functional. These needs are to be expected and you will figure it out.  

Preparing to move into a new tiny home is arguably the most stressful aspect of the entire experience. Decluttering and downsizing can be a real struggle when moving from a normal-sized home to a tiny one. You may find that even after you get into the new home you’re still downsizing to trying to make adjustments to make your space more functional. As you get more settled into your tiny life, you may soon start to realize that all of that effort was worth it because your life suddenly becomes a bit simpler and more relaxing.