Last week I talked about how to live simply and decrease your carbon footprint living in a tiny house. Even better than buying a tiny house is making your own, and Michael Janzen is blazing a trail with his free tiny pallet house. Not only is his house made out of recycled shipping pallets, it isn’t costing him anything to build. And lucky for us, he’s sharing his plans so you too can build your own tiny free house.
You can save money, sharpen your DIY skills, and further decrease your environmental impact by following Janzen’s example of building a free pallet house.
Keep pallets out of landfills
Here are some disturbing statistics about shipping pallets:
- Approximately 40% of all hardwood harvested in the U.S. is for making shipping pallets
- About two-thirds of pallets are used only once before being thrown out
- 1/4 of all wood in landfills is from used pallets
You can help prevent deforestation and keep pallets out of landfills by finding creative alternative uses for them, like building a house. Pallets can be found everywhere. Once you start looking for them, you’ll see them scattered all over your town or city.
Contact a local warehouse, supermarket, or any business that receives large shipments, and get permission to pick up their used pallets. Most companies are happy to give their pallets away.
Plans for a free pallet house
Janzen has made plans for building a free pallet house available on his website. These plans are a guide for building what he calls a disaster preparedness and emergency shelter. Janzen says:
As hurricane Gustav plowed across Cuba headed for the gulf coast of the United States memories of Katrina and the potential displacement of thousands got me thinking. I wanted to do something to help. It occurred to me that someone else might find what I now about building with shipping pallets useful in the coming weeks and months.
With some creativity, you may find that shipping pallets can be reappropriated in other ways to build your own free tiny house. For example, I have a friend that has disassembled shipping pallets and used the wood to build roof trusses for his straw bale building.
Ultimately, you can help prevent deforestation and keep pallets out of landfills by using them to build creative housing.
Think tiny and free!
(Image credit: flickr via KGBKitchen)
This kid is the new Tony Stark
I clicked on this article with the sole intention of getting a peek at this kids’ invetion but I walk away with something more. As impressive as the “home dome” is, I’m more impressed with the selfless, loving spirit that resides within the creator, Max. He truly has a servants heart. At 10 years old he has already built a legacy of love that someone 90 years old would eny. Thank you, Max.
I think this boy has a good heart.
This boy IS a breathe of fresh air!!! Not to mention warming of the heart! Awesome! This is great! I can not stress enough how seriously wonderful Max & his invention is!
Loved it!!
Green is so 2008.
that is an awesome idea
Green is so 2008.
that is an awesome idea
I was excited to read about the kid who created a shelter from trash. After watching the video, it didn’t seem like any of the materials were trash. It all looked like new material to me. How much of the material was actually reclaimed or diverted from the waste stream and how much was purchased new for this project?
I was excited to read about the kid who created a shelter from trash. After watching the video, it didn’t seem like any of the materials were trash. It all looked like new material to me. How much of the material was actually reclaimed or diverted from the waste stream and how much was purchased new for this project?
See…why can’t the Government expand on this, and save Billions of dollars on sheltering people??? I applaud this young man, whole heartedly !! Great Job !
Very ingenious! a wonderful way to make a bad situation into positiveness, and money too.Being without will definitely make us use our brain(maybe a plan of God).
See…why can’t the Government expand on this, and save Billions of dollars on sheltering people??? I applaud this young man, whole heartedly !! Great Job !
Very ingenious! a wonderful way to make a bad situation into positiveness, and money too.Being without will definitely make us use our brain(maybe a plan of God).
Max,
Totally awesome job dude! You’re going to make a lot of people happy! Good luck with everything and congratulations on your invention and achievement
I like design of the shelter and the spirit of a 12-year old. I am only wondering:
1. How does air circulate?
2. Would there be enough oxygen if you fall asleep for more than five hours?
3. What about wind, would the shelter be blown away?
GIVE ME THE $10,000 I can use it to pay for my HOUSE! ! ! If you don’t need it!
Pretty sad when a 12 year old boy can grasp a simple concept like helping your fellow man, while the majority of people seem only intrested in helping themselves. I applaud his effort and congratulate him on his accomplishment. The world could be such a better place with a few more like minded people. We could all learn a thing or two from this young man.
what a bright kid!! very creative. maybe i shuld go dumpster diving and see what i can come up with.
what an awesome idea
I like design of the shelter and the spirit of a 12-year old. I am only wondering:
1. How does air circulate?
2. Would there be enough oxygen if you fall asleep for more than five hours?
3. What about wind, would the shelter be blown away?
GIVE ME THE $10,000 I can use it to pay for my HOUSE! ! ! If you don’t need it!
Pretty sad when a 12 year old boy can grasp a simple concept like helping your fellow man, while the majority of people seem only intrested in helping themselves. I applaud his effort and congratulate him on his accomplishment. The world could be such a better place with a few more like minded people. We could all learn a thing or two from this young man.
what a bright kid!! very creative. maybe i shuld go dumpster diving and see what i can come up with.
what an awesome idea
kind of starting out early for a homeless bum don’t ya think. i guess he knows how to survive though when he turns of age. now all he has to do is learn to beg bawhahahaha
kind of starting out early for a homeless bum don’t ya think. i guess he knows how to survive though when he turns of age. now all he has to do is learn to beg bawhahahaha
Great idea to keep warm.
Death trap in a fire.
Beats freezing to death!
Scrap fiberglass from construction sites would insulate without the fire hazard. But then you get to deal with the fiberglass fibers.
Great idea to keep warm.
Death trap in a fire.
Beats freezing to death!
Scrap fiberglass from construction sites would insulate without the fire hazard. But then you get to deal with the fiberglass fibers.
Something is trash when it has been used and thrown away. So, unless he dug this stuff out of the garbage, there is nothing green about this project. The materials themjselves are cetainly not green. Good design- Yes. Green Building- No.
I don’t get it.
The story claims the kid invented this and in the video you can clearly see the adult is leading/teaching him the design process and assembly process and explaining how it will assemble.
I think this is simply amazing. Way to go!!!
Something is trash when it has been used and thrown away. So, unless he dug this stuff out of the garbage, there is nothing green about this project. The materials themjselves are cetainly not green. Good design- Yes. Green Building- No.
I don’t get it.
The story claims the kid invented this and in the video you can clearly see the adult is leading/teaching him the design process and assembly process and explaining how it will assemble.
I think this is simply amazing. Way to go!!!
Now I don’t want to be a buzz kill, but since the story doesn’t go deeper, is the structure going to be provided to the homeless? Seems easy to call this a homeless shelter, however, what are the chances of the homeless having all the materials required? Also,
I noticed a lot of tools required, torch, heatsealer, etc., really, on the street?
Now I don’t want to be a buzz kill, but since the story doesn’t go deeper, is the structure going to be provided to the homeless? Seems easy to call this a homeless shelter, however, what are the chances of the homeless having all the materials required? Also,
I noticed a lot of tools required, torch, heatsealer, etc., really, on the street?
I love kids like this! Way to go!
I love kids like this! Way to go!
There is no isulation between the segments, and it is not weathertight. was the larger version merely a model as well? kudos to the kid for a good idea and engineering using readily available materials. is the idea that these could be manufactured and distributed to the homeless, or was it just a cutesy contest idea that serves no real purpose?
The homelessness is a symptom of the drug addiction, kid. You’ll hurt ‘em by helping ‘em.
There is no isulation between the segments, and it is not weathertight. was the larger version merely a model as well? kudos to the kid for a good idea and engineering using readily available materials. is the idea that these could be manufactured and distributed to the homeless, or was it just a cutesy contest idea that serves no real purpose?
The homelessness is a symptom of the drug addiction, kid. You’ll hurt ‘em by helping ‘em.
Wow. A shelter made of trash. Under the I-75 bridge there is an entire neighborhood made out of trash. Sorry kid, but bums have been doing this for a very long time. Come on Greenbuildingelements.com, why don’t you also do an article on how these homes also have their own yard/toilet/garbage dump/compost heap around back, or sometimes inside! Fascinating. Who would have thought that the quaint mind of an innocent 12 year old boy could have come up with such a humble living space that can help….umm, wait….what’s the big deal again? Oh yeah, the genius built a house out of trash. Hey editor, go downtown, ask for Boogaloo. He is the Frank Lloyd Wright of the trash house architecture community. Most notably, Fallingurine. He is currently developing the concept of Urinesonian home, something he calls “The Urine House.” He believes there is nothing more organic than urine, which is why he bases all of his designs around it. He attempted to create a Fecaldom, but it did not receive much acclaim. Unfortunately crap, much like urine, has limitations. The benefit to urine is that it does not stain the developers clothing (if they are wearing any) like a nasty stool will. But fear not, Boogaloo is attempting to break new ground by incorporating boogers (they have quite an adhesive property to them) with his next urine soaked idea. The man is a genius and these kids are stealing his glory.
Yeah, this is practical. I see homeless people welding all the time to build a house out of trash. I always find a ton of peanuts lying around to fill my precut plastic bags as well.
What a joke of a contest.
His invention is pretty good but the sad thing is that it has nothing to do with building something useful out of trash not one single bit of the material used to creat his full scale product could be found or manufactured out of normal trash. Finally the plastic and foam are some of the most harmfull products for the enviroment. Unfortunately some child out there probably made a real good invention out of real trash and lost.
This just goes to show you that kids today CAN have a positive effect on society. If only more would work toward what the can do and not put their energy into how they can avoid doing the right thing.
Parents! Stay active with your children!
Wow. A shelter made of trash. Under the I-75 bridge there is an entire neighborhood made out of trash. Sorry kid, but bums have been doing this for a very long time. Come on Greenbuildingelements.com, why don’t you also do an article on how these homes also have their own yard/toilet/garbage dump/compost heap around back, or sometimes inside! Fascinating. Who would have thought that the quaint mind of an innocent 12 year old boy could have come up with such a humble living space that can help….umm, wait….what’s the big deal again? Oh yeah, the genius built a house out of trash. Hey editor, go downtown, ask for Boogaloo. He is the Frank Lloyd Wright of the trash house architecture community. Most notably, Fallingurine. He is currently developing the concept of Urinesonian home, something he calls “The Urine House.” He believes there is nothing more organic than urine, which is why he bases all of his designs around it. He attempted to create a Fecaldom, but it did not receive much acclaim. Unfortunately crap, much like urine, has limitations. The benefit to urine is that it does not stain the developers clothing (if they are wearing any) like a nasty stool will. But fear not, Boogaloo is attempting to break new ground by incorporating boogers (they have quite an adhesive property to them) with his next urine soaked idea. The man is a genius and these kids are stealing his glory.
Yeah, this is practical. I see homeless people welding all the time to build a house out of trash. I always find a ton of peanuts lying around to fill my precut plastic bags as well.
What a joke of a contest.