How living small saves you big
Many of our articles feature ways to enhance the environment around you and provide food and shelter for all the little forgotten creatures in your neighborhood. But today, we are going to take a ride to the bank! We are going to talk about how doing these things helps YOU! Now, not only can you convince your friends, family and complete strangers that you are helping the planet, but you can become richer from doing these things too, not just richer in biodiversity, but richer in greenbacks!
Efficiency saves money
That may seem like a simple moniker, but it rings true in your household when you make incremental changes to minimize your lifestyle. Americans and many other first world households spray money in all directions for no reason at all. There are fundamental rules to becoming richer in monetary wealth: earn more or spend less, or some combination of the two. The tiny house life is focused mainly on spending less, as the “earning more” part is sometimes harder to control. Take a look at these tips below and see where you can make a difference in your life today without much effort.
Water: you are washing your money away!
Dropping cash on a big outdoor green carpet that you fertilize, mow, and tend to (my distaste of traditional lawns knows no bounds) is like spraying dollar bills all over your yard just for them to wash away. Ask yourself, how much of this lawn do you actually use? How much do you need for a tromping area for kids or a dog or socializing? Because the reality is, nothing is free. Americans spend on average 120 gallons of water a day which comes at a financial and environmental cost (1). There are other options: consider filling native plants in the space you don’t actively use, especially the edges. If grass is life, consider replacing your nonnative grass (which is likely what you have, i.e. Kentucky Bluegrass) with a short, native grass which will be drought tolerant and require little mowing, like Buffalo Grass. This could save you precious water resources and up to $600 a year in irrigation costs (2).
“I have a strange infatuation with grass… I love the feel of it between my toes and reading on a blanket outside. But we could not understand the mindless cycle of watering and mowing it… which is why we sought out solutions!” -Mrs. Vertakking
Toilets and plumbing is the other strain on water resources. If you have not installed a water efficient toilet that has a #1 and a #2 flush setting, then you are literally flushing money down the drain as well! You don’t need to get a composting toilet to be radical in saving money on your water bill. It may only be a few lattes worth of money per month, but remember; the more margin and savings you build up in your life, the better you can weather any financial storms. Imagine fixing your plumbing issues is like repairing the leaky portions of your financial boat.
Electricity
When you live in 290 square feet, lights cover a lot more of your house with fewer bulbs. Not just that, but you can splurge on more expensive [but longer lasting & energy sipping] LED (Light Emitting Diode) lights. Our tiny house is outfitted with 19 LED can lights on the inside and just 3 timer-set lights on the outside. Pair this efficiency with a host of Energy Star rated appliances and a dual split (a heater and air conditioner bundled into one), and you have a recipe for never going above $80 for electricity bills. And this is even in the most hot and humid Midwest summer, or when the temps drop into the negative double digits. Who wouldn’t want to have brighter, yet cheaper lights in their home? Insulation is another aspect that can be increased in a tiny house. Because there is no attic, a tiny house can be a completely sealed envelope with no air gaps. Pair that with thicker closed-cell spray foam, and you have a snug and thermally buffered house that requires less climate controlling to remain hot or cool.
Fossil Fuels
We use propane only for one thing in our house: water heating. This saves us money on heating and it also saved us from cutting holes in the house for more ventilation, if we had gone with a propane heater or propane stove. The water heater is also an efficient use of both space and fuel because it is tankless. It was definitely a hard choice on whether to go with a tank or tankless water heater; newer tank models are also extremely well-insulated and have comparable prices, but as far as space-saving goes, there is no comparison to a tankless water heater. Some units only take up the space the size of a small microwave and turn on the heat only when you move your faucet or shower to the hot water side. I will be honest, with our tankless heater, there is a small delay of five-seconds to get heated water, but it is well worth the wait knowing we don’t have to worry about running out of hot water. I also liken a tank water heater to leaving your car running in the garage in case you need to use it; it just doesn’t make sense having hot water sitting around all day being heated just for the few times in the morning or evening that I actually have to use it. Propane usage is a tiny line-item in our budget due to how little fuel our water heater sips on throughout the year.
Stuff
This is the easiest (and hardest) part to target for minimization. This is also the primary aspect people think of when they hear the word “minimalist”. They think that person just has less stuff in their house, not that the person has less house, less water waste, less cars, less lawn, less electricity, and as a consequence MORE money and MORE time! Getting rid of your stuff is completely a subjective task, and is easier for some than it is for others; but I will say, donating, selling, or just giving away unnecessary things is one of the most fulfilling and freeing parts of going small. Your wallet may also appreciate the nice bump and the less things you have, the less maintenance, storage, ongoing repair and upgrade costs you have associated with those things. All in all, going smaller using these steps as your guidelines will be like adding rocket fuel to your savings rate and can help you achieve your financial and personal goals.
” We aren’t suggesting people live like hermits…we want people to know there are easy alternatives that can provide you with MORE money and MORE time.” -Mr. Vertakking
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