C.R. Students Begin Building Fully Mobile Tiny House
College of the Redwoods’ new multi-disciplinary Tiny House Project got underway today in the recently renovated fabrication lab (FabLab) in the Career Education division on the Eureka campus. A team of seven welding students, comprised of three women and four men, along with instructors Danny Walker and Jerry Goodrow, began work fabricating a 20-foot steel trailer that will serve as the foundation for the tiny house, allowing it to be fully mobile.
The lab, which once housed CR’s Heavy Diesel program, has recently been upgraded using funds from the college’s Measure Q bond and the state’s Strong Workforce Program and now includes four new welding stations, new lighting and electrical wiring, working bay doors, and added fencing.
Students will meet for eight hours each Tuesday throughout the semester with the goal of finishing a fully road-ready trailer able to sustain and transport the tiny house by the end of the semester.
Instructor Jerry Goodrow explains the need for the new space and project, “as the name ‘FabLab’ illustrates, this course is focused not just on welding but on fabrication. Our other classes teach you how to weld but what we want to know, and what the local industry partners want to know, is can you use those welding skills to actually build something.”
This project also offered the opportunity for partnership between CR and local businesses. O&M Industries and BT Metals provided the over two thousand pounds of steel needed for the trailer, and Kevin Bradley of Kreations has agreed to come out to the FabLab to speak to students about prepping and painting metal. When the trailer is done, his shop will also give it a custom paint job. These generous donations of time and money have made this project possible and will go a long way towards ensuring that the CR students involved in this project are successful as they move from the classroom to careers in our community.
Next fall, the Residential Construction program will take up the mantle in the FabLab, building a fully functional and livable tiny house on top of the trailer. In the third semester, the Art Department will put final touches on the house with an interior design class focused on sustainability and eco-friendly spaces. The house will then be offered to the community for sale.
Join the discussion! For rules visit: https://kymkemp.com/commenting-rules
Comments system how-to: https://wpdiscuz.com/community/postid/10599/
A good article about a good program. It is so much better to invest taxes in giving a productive future than trying to fix an unproductive one. More power to you all. And thanks to the businesses donating the materials.
🕯I agree. It seems to be a noble cause. They couldn’t get a grant?
I second everything Guest said. This is better than the over used word we typically use (awesome). Way to go CR & businesses!
Yay good for them! Go young women builders, go men!!
I see a lot of hands in pockets. Not something I like to see on a jobsite.
That said, good luck and make something cool.
I wonder if they can keep it under 10,000#.
Lucky for them it is a classroom and not a jobsite. Remember the students are likely reading these postings, and for them we can all agree this is a great program and we wish them well.
Nearly any experience in the various welding processes is a great way to build a secure future. Welding is one of the few skilled trades that remains in high demand, with a developing shortage in the years ahead!
Good on you-all for pursuing this!
-Fin
I suspect the reason you see them standing with their hands in their pockets is; they are obviously listening to someone talking/ lecturing to them. It’s the classroom, not a job site.
I’m pretty sure s/he was being humorous.
This is awesome!
Fantastic! I hope that they will turn this into a great learning experience by keeping it on campus where they can study the benefits / problems. Of course they need to supply full hooks for sanitary and health reasons. I hope that they have room for hundreds of these simple but adequate houses. Bravo!
A GREAT PROJECT…..however…..Humboldt Planning Dept. will not allow it to be used as housing as
it is on wheels. They are considering the options for small houses as they are now legal on the state
level…..But not in Humboldt ….Call planning and tell they you want public hearings on this subject.
Call the sups too.
That’s a great Call To Action cause! Thanks for reminding us of how to help. Let’s roll!
Every yard in and out of town needs 1 or 2 tiny houses with hookups…the county needs to permit these for all the right reasons! Older folks need to live in groups, with access to basics& social interaction. younger folks need to have inexpensive housing& learn to enjoy the freedom that comes with waay less possessions. Return to potlucks, neighborhood gatherings, games that all ages can participate.
This one is on wheels. Are RVs illegal in Humboldt?
Aren’t tiny houses illegal and banned?
Pretty sure code enforcement doesn’t like to see them.
It’s good they are being productive, but teaching them to build illegal structures probably isn’t a good idea.
If it’s on wheels or pierblocks, no permit required!
i thought it had to be under ten by ten. or rather under one hundred square feet.
It says it’s being built on a 20 ft trailer. I think this thing could be driven and parked on a roadway if its got a trailer license.
Very cool. Do they still have the diesel lab?
Yeah, tiny houses. I read about them all the time on the Tree Hugger blog site. For more about this, see: newsletters@treehugger.com. I hope it’s okay for me to post this URL. I mean, I don’t have an agenda or anything by doing so. It’s just a blog I subscribe to, and they have some pretty good articles about stuff like this. Tiny houses are a good idea. They could be used to help eliminate the housing crisis.
Your link sends us to google to sign in. (your email?)
Here’s one that even has a walk in closet. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lnLiNNgN980
Here’s some tiny house articles on Treehugger. https://www.treehugger.com/search/?q=tiny+houses since that link is just to an email.
Nice. They’re building a single-wide.
I’m sure these students are learning some very valuable skills, but does anybody else see the irony of paying tens of thousand dollars in tuition to learn how to build a mobile home.;>)
My hands are in my pockets in the picture because it’s FREEZING in that space. And my total cost for the semester is $40. Totally worth it. Thanks for the support. There’s nothing I’d rather spend my Tuesdays doing.
Thanks, Kate. Ignore the naysayers. This is an awesome project.
I meant no offense Kate. Frankly I’m a little jealous you get to embark on such a cool project. I’m very interested in the results. Again, good luck.