Elon Musk lives out of tiny 375-square-foot prefab trailer

[freebeard]

That hut is not space efficient

Energy efficiency is based on internal area versus contact surfaces

Beg to differ.

The half cylinder has less area than a box of the same dimensions. The minimal surface area would be an hemisphere.

But it's only half the story. Air stagnates inside a box. So long as it's not thwarted by internal partitions, the half cylinder will have an automatic air circulation driven by the temperature difference between inside and outside.

For spray on roofing Cork paint [is greater than] polyurethane foam. What's the mechanism for mold growing on metal? I know there's mold growing on the outside of the ISS, but what, trapped moisture?

[jakobnev]

prefab trailer

What's classy if you're rich, but trashy if you're poor?

[freebeard]

Quoth whom?

A search on prefab found two mentions in the OP and yours. I showed a trailer at #4 but didn't mention the prefab part.

Anyways, trailers make an inferior tiny house. Especially once you've seen a shed delivery trailer in action.

https://www.pinehilltrailers.com/she...-shed-trailers

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Originally Posted by rmay635703

That hut is not space efficient

Seems to be still more space-efficient than some slope-roof chalets which are stereotypically Swiss.

[freebeard]

Similar as well to an A-frame cabin. Doors and windows want to be on the narrow ends.

If you lift the A-frame up onto a stem wall you get the Swiss style sloping roof.

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Originally Posted by freebeard

Similar as well to an A-frame cabin.

Sometimes I refer to the A-frame cabins as a Swiss chalet

[euromodder]

Originally Posted by Cd

What are some of the main drawbacks of Quonset huts ?

Used to work in them for a while
Noisy in rain, hail

The traditional / industrial ones (ie Nissen or Romney huts) are not sealed, just relying on overlap
So wind & snow blows through, critters creep through

You could go for more overlap, more bolts, and/or seal the overlaps and boltholes, and the roof-to-ground area

If you install inner walls and insulation, would this make the huts as efficient as a normal home ?

If you look at the Quonset hut as an outer shell only, and build a seperate, enclosed, insulated living space inside them, they'd be quite efficient IMO.

Trying to insulate the whole hut itself would be far more involved & costly due to shape (round, corrugated) and size

Would that just be senseless, since you are building a home within the hut itself, and could just build it without the hut in the first place ?

I doubt you could built an outer shell cheaper than this per sq foot.

One of the issues in more traditional building is linking the outer shell and the inner insulated living spaces.
Leads to cold bridges, moisture seepage, sealing issues ...

With a quonset-style hut you can physically separate both shells

Do they require any roofing maintainance besides caulking around the bolts and such every few years ?

Bit of corrosion control
In the industry, they stand for years and years with very little maintenance

Some wood is used on the inside, so that won't rot easily
Structural metal is on the inside as well

I see the main drawback as the lack of space,

Space in the industrial versions is enormous
Sure you loose floor area due to the circular shape, but a somewhat bigger shed won't cost much more, and you can get them with vertical sides as well.

You'd get lots of covered space, though not (completely) insulated
But for much stuff, you don't need fully insulated & heated space

and lack of light. How easy is it to cut sections in the roof and add skylights ? ( using corrugated plastic sheets )

You can get them that way
No cutting out sections, you can swap steel sheeting for translucent plastic ones - but they're more prone to hail damage


These sheds come with a garage door -or two- if you want, which could easily be replaced with windows


Have a look at what a local company builds
I'd expect you also have these in the US, rather than the smallish real quonset huts

https://interloods.be/nl/over-interloods/realisaties

They even have a pic on there of where I used to work

[freebeard]

I'd expect you also have these in the US, rather than the smallish real quonset huts

The other end of the scale is homeless people living in culverts.

The local equivalent, ribless single-skin construction, does have more surface area. The curved inner face can promote air circulation if the inner walls are copacetic. A double-envelope passive house is certainly possible.

Spray-on cork paint can insulate and deaden the sound of rainfall. Inside, outside or both.

You might consider a 120 degree arc oriented East-West, on the ground to the North and raised eight feet to the South with a Solar wall. as the basis of an Earthship. Six inch air gap to the North and an atrium/gallery on the South

[Piotrsko]

We did a quonset hanger in sprayfoam 12" thick with couple of cover coats of latex elastomeric. 50k btu gas heater kept it warm in winter, quiet and dry.

[freebeard]

Inside or outside?

Inside, over polyurethane foam, I'd want intumescent paint for fire safety.

Or cork.

Or outside, berm up a living roof.