Houses on Trikes-Who's to Blame-Mud Huts-MORE!

[Kent]

In China, Tricycle House Is Off-grid Home and Garden for the Land-Starved
Treehugger-Kimberley Mok
Design / Green Architecture
January 4, 2013

© People’s Architecture Office & People’s Industrial Design Office
Private land ownership is something that most of us might take for granted, but it's not the case in communist China, where all land is either state-owned or run by collective economic organizations (CEOs). But with China's rapidly developing economy, skyrocketing real estate prices, unscrupulous "land grabs" and recent legislation towards a civil code protecting private ownership, the issue of owning land is in a tumultuous transition, prompting designers like People’s Architecture Office (PAO) and the People’s Industrial Design Office (PIDO) to explore different possibilities.

Their joint effort is the Tricycle House and Tricycle Garden, a paired mobile home and garden plot mounted on modified three-wheelers. Made with CNC-scored, translucent polypropylene plastic, the house is an accordion-shaped, expandable temporary shelter. Say the designers:
"Through this design, single family homes can be affordable and sustainable, parking lots are not wasted at night, and traffic jams are acceptable. The Tricycle House is man-powered allowing off-the-grid living."


Created as part of Beijing's Get It Louder 2012 exhibition, Tricycle House was shown alongside other temporary urban shelters, like this one made out of spray foam insulation. Of course, this house's hidden amenities gives it a more comfortable edge, allowing it to be a multipurpose living space in small quarters:
View attachment 3
Facilities in the [Tricycle] house include a sink and stove, a bathtub, a water tank, and furniture that can transform from a bed to a dining table and bench to a bench and counter top. The sink, stove, and bathtub can collapse into the front wall of the house.



The mobile garden is a clever addition, showing that living small and on the move doesn't mean a landless existence. More images over at ArchDaily, People’s Architecture Office and the People’s Industrial Design Office.

Comment: all thats needed now is decent electrical propulsion and a solar panel on the roof!

 

[John in CR]

Here's one of my favorites for living small. I call it the Motorhome Trike.

 

[HAROX]

i can just barely make out the subframe, a parallel rail/trellis scheme.
http://endless-sphere.com/forums/download/file.php?id=99467

 

[arkmundi]

Occubagos

 

[dogman dan]

Very cool the way it accordions out for more livingspace once you park it. Squatters dream home, beat's " this old box" by a mile.

My not so brilliant idea for such a lifestyle was a low box cargo trailer, with a tent can be pitched on top of the box. Lowish wind drag while traveling, but expanded with the tent at night.

 

[Kent]

If they made it so the roof folded down with a lower profile, it would be a great way to travel and camp out thru the summer. Solar panel on the roof. Stop the days travel early to make camp and "charge up". Stay at a campsite w/elect when needed.

So what would be the best running gear/set-up? Mid-drive or front wheel drive?

 

[Dauntless]

Around me, they figure out that a homeless person is living in a camper, they confiscate the vehicle. The day will come in China.

They've built homes out of foam in Japan for years.

http://www.i-domehouse.com/index.html

 

[dogman dan]

Those domes look ultra cool. Just what they need for the local tent city near the soup kitchen. Here in the SW USA, lots of homeless gravitate south for the winter where it may be a bit cold,but not snow covered for more than a day or two. Typical high, 55, typical low 28F. No problem with enough alcohol in ya.

Hoovervilles are alive and well here.

For a folding camper, I bet the 4' x 8' coroplast sign panels would be the ideal building material. Light, waterproof, durable, flexible. I use them on the north wall of my greenhouse, for panels I can easily remove in summer for ventilation.

Re the mobile garden, the roots of potted plants don't particularly like vibration when you move them. It's part of why a percentage of new plants just shipped in die. It tends to damage the invisibly small root hairs on the roots. Transporting less moist helps, vibration on just watered plants tends to make the soil into a jelly. I bet it would work best with a hydroponic setup, or at least a highly artificial soil. No clays in the soil for sure.

 

[Jason27]

I would call these "Bushvilles"

George W Bush is responsible for the economic deregulation and job outsourcing. People are broke because of his failure as president. There is no denying this.

Wanna debate me on this???

Just go to YouTube and watch the Bush vs Gore Debates of 2000 when the news was bragging about the economic prosperity of the USA. We could have went in a different direction had Gore won.

Very Very sad.

 

[TylerDurden]

Watch out for those plastic enclosures. I have yet to see any "fire rated" plastic materials that don't actually turn into napalm.

 

[MikeFairbanks]

Interesting idea, I guess.

Where I live there is a lot of extra land that is unused. I work in an elementary school, and between it and the road is over a hundred yards of forest that just sits there year after year.

Also, the school I work in has a second story that's for maintenance. Above each classroom is just acoustic tile, so you can't walk on it, but the hallways below have a real sidewalk upstairs, and there are several areas that are large and wide up there. You could, if motivated, travel anywhere in the building without coming down. I've often wanted to live there for a week just for the heck of it.


Now, where I grew up there were people living out in the canyons (San Diego). They had makeshift shantytowns (undocumented workers). When we came upon one we just left. They never hurt anyone (although they did litter a lot).

In Southern California there are lots of people building structures out of sight.

 

[amberwolf]

Where I live there is a lot of extra land that is unused. I work in an elementary school, and between it and the road is over a hundred yards of forest that just sits there year after year.

What a strange attitude. :/

It's funny about forests and things, how they can sit there "unused" and still do very useful things that don't get done if they're not there.

I guess to some people, if it's not got buildings or parking lots or roads or been plowed up for something or other, it's just not "used" right.

 

[chvidgov.bc.ca]

We call those areas "parks", in British Columbia, whether they are or not, until they are decimated (used).

 

[Dauntless]

I would call these "Bushvilles"

Nope, they're Obamavilles. It's been four long, hard, destructive years and O Duce is responsible for every minute of it. It's all on him.

Just go to YouTube and watch the Bush vs Gore Debates of 2000 when the news was bragging about the economic prosperity of the USA. We could have went in a different direction had Gore won.

Long overdue you get over that one, Dubyanomics has long given way to the Iron Fist of Obama's Third Position. More debt in 4 years of O Duce than in 8 years of Dubya.

Instead you should watch any debates between Hillary Clinton and O Duce. Or between McCain and O Duce. Boy, did McCain get it right about Joe the Plumber, eh? This is why McCain won that debate. $250-280k annual gross is quite small, but then in the case of that business, is quite GONE, as is much business that was there when Obama rose to power. First, the foreboding as Joe the Plumber talks to the candidate in the street and draws out the falseness of Obamas message. Then the warning from McCain:

http://www.examiner.com/article/mussolini-s-rise-to-power

[youtube]pssvmgEWVqM[/youtube]

Very Very sad.

Getting sadder by the day. 1,461 days of an ill advised second failure.

 

[dogman dan]

Put the blame where it belongs, on both parties. Clintonvilles? Much of the legislation that led to the melt down while Bush was president was signed by Clinton.

Maybe Greenspanvilles is more accurate. FWIW, there were even more homeless in this particular town durnig Reganomics. Everything has always taken too long to trickle down the Rio Grande to here. They do shut off the Rio grande every fall, so we are well used to getting just a trickle of piss down here.

I think this trip to poverty would have been much worse if Bush, yes Bush, hadn't started the spend your way out of a depression policy. Same way Regan did it BTW. But now, 4 years later, it's high time they figured out a way to get us to pay for it. Both sides tax policy is bullshit and relies on fuzzy math or theories designed for insuring reelection.

Hell yeah, even the middle class needs to be taxed more to pay for it all now, but my wonderful representative in congress wouldn't even vote to tax millionaires. Not gross, he wouldn't vote to tax people that NET a millon a year. You'd have to have what, 10 mil in the stock market to do that? That's not Joe the plumber.

 

[etriker]

Very cool the way it accordions out for more livingspace once you park it. Squatters dream home, beat's " this old box" by a mile.

My not so brilliant idea for such a lifestyle was a low box cargo trailer, with a tent can be pitched on top of the box. Lowish wind drag while traveling, but expanded with the tent at night.

Like this ?

http://www.amazon.com/Kamp-Rite-Bushtrekka-Bicycle-Trailer-Oversize/dp/B002KKBT9Y

 

[arkmundi]

Like this ? Kamp-Rite-Bushtrekka-Bicycle-Trailer

No, no. Why if you're going with a tent would you want to camp on top of the trailer? Doesn't make sense. All that extra metal being pulled by a bike? Sometimes peoples imaginations get reved up with some rather bizarre ideas. I have one of these, a "mobility-rig" of bike trailer plus camping gear. Such a fun way to travel. Gotta be lite weight however.

 

[Dauntless]

Put the blame where it belongs. . . . Much of the legislation that led to the melt down while Bush was president was signed by Clinton.

Maybe Greenspanvilles is more accurate. FWIW, there were even more homeless in this particular town durnig Reganomics.

There is no legislation that caused this. It was actions. #1 problem was run away real estate, which the Bush administration encouraged for short term benefit. #2 problem was runaway spending, which has made the current depression WORSE, not better. Keynes acknowledged that Roosevelt proved him wrong in his economic theories, but people have continued to worship at the altar of 'Stimulus.'

Hell yeah, even the middle class needs to be taxed more to pay for it all now, but my wonderful representative in congress wouldn't even vote to tax millionaires. Not gross, he wouldn't vote to tax people that NET a millon a year. You'd have to have what, 10 mil in the stock market to do that? That's not Joe the plumber.

To make $1 million in the stock market in one year you'd pretty well need $30-50 million right now. But noone would risk making that in the stock market right now anyway, the government would use that as an excuse to take it away and punish EVERYONE.

As Bill Clinton told Obama, 'In America, we don't punish people for succeeding.' To which O Duce responded 'Maybe you don't, but I do. I sure do.'

 

[oatnet]

They've built homes out of foam in Japan for years

[/img]

In the US for years too - I've been dreaming of building one of the 60' versions of their domes for over 30 years:

http://aidomes.com/

 

[arkmundi]

As long as the thread has morphed into dream homes on the far side of unusual:

 

[dogman dan]

I always wonderd if that guy who started the earthship movement read Tolkien. Chances are about 100% he did.

Re the bike trailer, I was thinking in terms of literally living off the bike for long time periods with such a setup. Not just a camping trip. Ability to pitch the tent above the ground is nice if it's raining much. It can be much much easier to level a trailer up, than find level, and dry ground. I've camped a LOT, in a LOT of substandard spots. Looks good at sunset, but by morning after the rain starts, you find you camped in a really bad spot!!!

Definitely, the real blame for the current worldwide recession is just good ol fashioned greed. But legislation did get signed that made american money hogs able to create risky things to invest in. Can't put a stop to greed, but we had about 20 years of it was made a bit too easy for em.

Flip side, during the boom, I was able to buy a nice house with easy to get money. Wisely, I did not buy as much house as I was being pressured to buy. About 6 more years of an easy payment, and I'm clear. My house is worth less now, but not less than when I bought. Dumbshits got hozed buying dream homes.

Smart man takes advantage of the conditions as they last but not taking big chances, then rests easy during the next trickle down. You know it's coming!!!!!!

 

[arkmundi]

Any choice is a gamble on the future. Like I'm going to have a job with sufficient income to afford such-and-such a house. Buy more house than you can afford and its a gamble that you can increase your earning power. Its all speculation under current economic conditions. I'd love to be standing under one of those rain showers of trickle down, but again, pure speculation on where to stand and that you won't get shoved out of the way when it begins to pour. My conclusion is that all bets are off. In other words, time to be extremely conservative and take no unnecessary risks. Doesn't mean we can't have some fun playing with our toys as we wait for the apocalypse. Where did neptronix decide to move to?

 

[Tom Tom]

George W Bush is responsible for the economic deregulation and job outsourcing. People are broke because of his failure as president. There is no denying this.

Wanna debate me on this???

Every president since December 23, 1913 is responsible.

 

[docnjoj]

George W Bush is responsible for the economic deregulation and job outsourcing. People are broke because of his failure as president. There is no denying this.

Wanna debate me on this???

Every president since December 23, 1913 is responsible.

Well that was when Income Tax was born here in the US. The problem is if you want some government you need some taxes. Graduated Income Tax is the fairest of all policies. Where you tax and how much are the real issues. Here is where our elected officials have some "difficulties". Even Regan raised taxes to pay for the destruction of the Soviet Union, and he was known as a Conservative. We don't want to pay for stuff anymore, just have it for free. It doesn't work like that! IMHO
otherDoc

 

[Dauntless]

The problem is if you want some government you need some taxes.

You mean 'If you want too much Government, you want too much taxes,' right?

Graduated Income Tax is the fairest of all policies. Where you tax and how much are the real issues. Here is where our elected officials have some "difficulties". Even Regan raised taxes to pay for the destruction of the Soviet Union, and he was known as a Conservative. We don't want to pay for stuff anymore, just have it for free. It doesn't work like that! IMHO
otherDoc

You're right, it DOESN'T work like that. Reagan didn't raise taxes to destroy the Soviet Union, nor did he destroy it. The USSR benefited greatly from the Cold War, which was better than NAFTA for them. It was the US that was hurt. The reason that Gorbachev is so reviled is he ended the socalled good times of the USSR. They may call what's there now Organized Crime, but the commies were far better sorted out.

And not so fast on all the Reagan as conservative. The biggest welfare buildup before O Duce, regular finger pointing within the republican party over his being too LIBERAL. . . .