Tiny Houses

Old grain silo transformed into one-of-a-kind micro-house

Old grain silo transformed into one-of-a-kind micro-house
Silo Living is envisioned as a simple shelter, rather than a full-time home
Silo Living is envisioned as a simple shelter, rather than a full-time home
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Silo Living measures a total height of 7 m (22 ft) and is accessed by steps
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Silo Living measures a total height of 7 m (22 ft) and is accessed by steps
Silo Living is topped by a small hatch that serves as a lookout point
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Silo Living is topped by a small hatch that serves as a lookout point
Silo Living designer Stella van Beers cut windows and doors into the old silo
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Silo Living designer Stella van Beers cut windows and doors into the old silo
Though it's very snug inside, Silo Living does feature a small bedroom area
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Though it's very snug inside, Silo Living does feature a small bedroom area
Looking to the future, Silo Living designer Van Beers plans to convert more silos into micro-homes
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Looking to the future, Silo Living designer Van Beers plans to convert more silos into micro-homes
Silo Living is envisioned as a simple shelter, rather than a full-time home
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Silo Living is envisioned as a simple shelter, rather than a full-time home
Silo Living's silo was sourced from a Dutch farm by designer Stella van Beers
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Silo Living's silo was sourced from a Dutch farm by designer Stella van Beers
View gallery - 7 images

We've previously reported on micro-houses that are based on everything from concrete piping to dumpsters. Now there's this charming example, which was made from an old grain silo by Netherlands-based Design Academy Eindhoven graduate Stella van Beers. Named Silo Living, its snug interior is split over two floors and squeezes in a small living area and a bedroom.

Silo Living came about when Van Beers contacted a local farmer who was selling a grain silo. After they'd had a chat, he liked her idea of turning it into a dwelling so much he decided to give it away for free.

The silo reaches a maximum height of 7 m (roughly 23 ft). It has been painted and had double doors cut into it and windows added. Another nice touch is a lookout point up top with a clear hatch. Access is gained by some external steps, and it's very compact inside. However, despite the lack of available floorspace, the first-floor living area does squeeze in some storage units, while a ladder leads up to the bedroom, which contains a 2 x 1.2 m (6.5 x 4 ft) bed.

Looking to the future, Silo Living designer Van Beers plans to convert more silos into micro-homes
Looking to the future, Silo Living designer Van Beers plans to convert more silos into micro-homes

The structure is definitely not intended as a permanent home – obviously, there's no running water, electricity, or even proper insulation, for example – but was instead built to meet Dutch planning laws for a "hiker's cabin," which means it can be legally occupied for multiple days at a time.

Silo Living was featured at Dutch Design Week 2021 as part of Design Academy Eindhoven's graduation show. Looking to the future, Van Beers next plans to take what she's learned from the creation of Silo Living to continue to develop silo-based micro-homes.

Source: Stella van Beers

View gallery - 7 images
10 comments
10 comments
paul314
It seems remarkable that it's stable against side-to-side movement, but then it would have to be pretty strong to hold a full load of grain.
Uncle Anonymous
What a cool idea. A little small for my taste but that's just me. I wonder, how well would this tower do in a thunderstorm when a bolt of lightning hits?
TomLeeM
I think it is creative but I am not sure if it is a tiny house since it lacks so many things. Perhaps if it is a 'hikers cabin', it is not really a house?
Lamar Havard
She might wanna think about putting a guard rail on that 'porch'.
clay
Interesting, thought it will be challenging for anyone over ~5 feet tall to sleep in it... horizontally, anyways :-)
Inga
Even on a temporary basis, one would need to cook and use a toilet. The toilet appears to be the neighboring bushes, and one would likely get carbon monoxide poisoning if they tried cooking in there.
Wile E. Coyote
It's more practical than building a tree fort, and as Lamar Harvard said, it needs a guardrail. I live in Florida and that would bake like an oven in the summer. No electricity, no water, no toilet as Inga pointed out, It's a metal treehouse and in good weather it'd be a nice play space for kids but only with the right safety equipment installed.
ljaques
I take it that the restroom is at the bottom?
SplineDoctor
I wonder how comfortable it is under the all day summer sunlight or in freezing cold... but as a hiking shelter it could work.
GregVoevodsky
How much do you want to bet a jail cell is bigger? Why does anyone think this is a good idea or design? A 60s VW mini van would be way more luxurious and moveable too!