Environmental Activist Rob Greenfield Builds Comfortable 100-Square-Foot Eco-Cabin for Less Than $1,500 Using Only Re-purposed Materials

The tiny house gets power from a mains hookup(Credit: Rob Greenfield)

An environmental activist who built entire an eco-home for less than $1,500 using almost all re-purposed materials has explained how he created the house on such a small budget.

Rob Greenfield, who lives in Orlando, was determined to build himself a small home, just 100 square-feet, that would accommodate everything he needs in life, without generating a large amount of waste.

Using innovative space saving designs and carrying out all the building work himself, he was left with a homely cabin complete with bed, food preparation area and storage compartments, made entirely from second hand materials.

Walking viewers through his home, he explained he wanted the house to look like a shed in order to fit in with planning restrictions that could have prevented him from moving in.

And boasting of his food storage area, he said: ‘A big part of this place is basically food. So I need lots of storage.’

The tiny house is located in Orlando, Florida(Credit: Rob Greenfield)

The tiny house measures just 100 sq ft (9.2 sq m)(Credit: Rob Greenfield)

Showing off what he describes as a fermentation station, he points to a few shelves containing home-grown vegetable and pickle jars, along with some honey and cider.

He cleverly uses space beneath his bed for more storage, and then shows viewers the honey he harvested from the bees he keeps.

‘99% of this house is built with second hand and re-purposed materials,’ Greenfield explains.

‘The floors were from a house that flooded and the stuff was thrown away, the bed was leftover word. The burlap for the curtains are from another project.’

He explains the house isn’t 100% finished yet, but that he has been able to move in and will keep on building as he goes.

The tiny house includes a small desk made from wood scraps(Credit: Rob Greenfield)

The tiny house floor is decked out in wood salvaged from a flooded home(Credit: Rob Greenfield)

The tiny house includes a small desk made from wood scraps(Credit: Rob Greenfield)

‘I spend most of my time outdoors, in my garden, in my community,’ he explained.

Showing off his kitchen, also made from leftover materials, he explained that he would soon move away from all non-renewable energy sources, and that he only spends $100 a year on a small amount of electricity, because having a solar panel system introduced for the project wasn’t sustainable.

The build comes amid a wider project for Greenfield, who is trying to live a sustainable life.

He told the Dailymail.com: ‘For one year I am growing and foraging 100% of my food in the urban environment of Orlando, Florida. No grocery stores, no restaurants, only food that I grow in my gardens or urban or wild forage.’

SOURCE: Daily Mail, Rod Ardehali