One of the things I hear discussed most regarding tiny house design is whether or not to have a loft. This is a HUGE decision, and one that should reflect who you are and how you want to use your space.
One of the questions I get most often is do I mind climbing up and down in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom. I can honesty say, not really. Because I have the storage steps as shown below, I can still make it up and down to my loft half asleep. Although I was cautious when I first moved into my house, I quickly learned how to navigate the stairs.
The obvious advantage to lofts is that they represent an excellent use of space. Meaning your sleeping space doesn’t take away from your overall living space. However, there are some great designs that have main level “bedrooms,” that use space creatively so you don’t have to worry about lofts if you don’t want one.
Overall I love my loft. It is one of my favorite spaces in my house because it is so cozy and comfy. I have a queen pillow top mattress in my loft and have plenty of head room to be able to sit up in bed and read, so from that stand point it is incredibly functional and relaxing.
And although I would do a loft again without question, there are three challenges I want to share with you regarding my loft.
1. Temperature control
I currently live in Georgia where the summer temperatures stay in the high 90’s for weeks at a stretch. Even at night it doesn’t drop below the 80’s. It is also quite humid in the summer, which makes it “sticky” in the house at times.
My air conditioner works well for the living room space, but since heat rises, my loft is often quite a bit warmer than the rest of my house. Sometimes as much as 10 degrees warmer than the downstairs space.
I use a small high-powered directional fan to help with the air flow. Up until a month ago, I had placed this fan on my counter to blow the cooler air into my loft.However, I recently changed my approach. I now put the fan in my loft to blow the hot air out. This seems to be working even better.
The only downside to the fan is that it is relatively noisy, which can be annoying. Now that the fan is in my loft this is less of a problem, but still something you will need to consider before you purchase one. This one is a LASKO brand that I think I purchased from Target.
2. Making the Bed
Okay, this is not one of those things I had really given much thought to before I moved into my tiny house. Making a bed was just a weekly chore I added to my to-do list. But the second biggest challenge with my loft is making the bed!
It requires a certain amount of agility to get fitted sheets on and off. Since I don’t have tons of extra floor space, moving pillows and comforters out of the way while I swap sheets also takes a little bit of work.
This is certainly not a reason to not have a loft, but this chore is one of the few things that is harder in my tiny house than in my “normal” home. I must admit I change my sheets a little less often these days Don’t judge!
3. Guest accommodations
I have mentioned this in a previous post, but one of my biggest regrets is not having a place for guests to sleep easily. I would love it if my mom could climb up in the loft with me, but that isn’t what either of us want!
As you are considering a loft make sure you have a place for people to stay. Even if you are an introvert like me who doesn’t normally like to entertain, you will wish you had a place for people to stay from time to time.
My plan to fix this challenge is currently in the works, and I will keep you posted on my progress!
Overall, I love my loft and despite the three challenges listed above, I would still build my next tiny house with one. Just make sure you are taking into account all of your physical limitations (or potential near-term limitations) when you build.
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