In this week’s video, Derek Sherrell and Kyle Allred take you on a tour of Kyle’s brand-new 810 sq ft live/work space, thoughtfully designed to prioritize health and well-being while maximizing every inch of the space.

---

The average person spends over 90% of their life indoors, so the quality of our indoor environment, in many ways, determines our overall health. In this video, we go over basic, more affordable than you think, ways to keep your indoor environment as healthy as possible

Indoor Air Quality
Number one is, of course, windows that can open up and allow fresh air in, as well as skylights that can open. A ventilation system, like one in the house, takes stale air from several locations and continually pumps fresh air into my office, bedroom, and living room.

I run a medical education channel where I interview different experts and do a lot of research on ways to optimize health. I work from home and live here, so we’ve added a lot of upgrades to make this an optimal indoor environment.

Here in Ashland, Oregon, we talk about the four traditional seasons, but we also have “smoke season,” where we get smoky air that’s not safe to breathe and can be toxic for sometimes more than a month at a time. With a new build like this, we wanted to create an indoor environment that’s safe. We have a combination of mini-split systems that don’t bring in outside air and can just be on recirculation mode to either heat or cool the house. But we also have an energy recovery ventilator (ERV) with an option to recirculate only. It just recirculates the indoor air through an MERV-13 filter, which is dense enough to effectively filter out smoke.

Other strategies include using good portable HEPA air cleaners or air purifiers around the home. I don’t know if you’ve heard of low-VOC or no-VOC paint, but there are a couple of different certifications for products like paint, furniture, and fabrics. One of them is GreenGuard, which does independent testing on products. This was important to me. For example, the couch has GreenGuard Gold certified fabric, which gives me peace of mind knowing it won’t emit a bunch of volatile organic compounds (VOCs).

Our target for air changes per hour was four. That’s the threshold for optimal cognition and mental performance, especially if you’re working from home. It also helps avoid that “sleepy feeling” we all know—like when you’re in a meeting, and all the windows and doors are closed, and you just start to nod off. Good air changes per hour help counteract that feeling.

Vaulted Ceilings and Skylights
Kyle, can you talk about how ceiling height affects your day-to-day mood and overall health?
This space feels really good, and I credit Derek for designing it well. Adding the skylights was an expense, but if it’s within your budget, I highly recommend it. Everyone I’ve had over to check out the house can’t believe it’s only about 800 square feet.

Natural Materials
We’re using a water-based product that’s low-VOC for the real hardwood flooring, as well as real wood, stone countertops, and slate floors. We’re trying to use natural products that have fewer VOCs than synthetic ones.

Soundproofing
There’s some road noise coming from the street, and someone else lives right next to me, so we went the extra mile to soundproof the walls. We used Rockwool insulation to dampen sound, plus two layers of drywall with a layer of Green Glue in between. We were careful not to make unnecessary punctures in the walls, and we added soundproofing putty to the outlets. We also invested in triple-paned windows, which have a better sound rating, so there’s visual privacy (since there’s a house right next to the window) and good sound privacy. I can’t hear my neighbors or street noise.

Blackout Curtains
Another thing Kyle wanted for the “sleeping cave” was light management. Some studies show that even the amount of light coming from typical appliances can disrupt your sleep and affect how much deep sleep or REM sleep you get. So, it’s a nice dark place to help optimize sleep.

Optimal Lighting
Light during the day is great, especially natural light—it helps keep us awake. But in the evening, once the sun sets, studies show that overhead light can suppress melatonin release, making it harder to fall and stay asleep. We’ve achieved optimal lighting in this house with lights below eye level, in the reddish spectrum. We also have lights in the kitchen that don’t come from overhead, which helps avoid suppressing melatonin release.

Modern Electrical
This is Kyle’s cool little gear garage. Tell us what we’ve got here.
So, I don’t know much about electrical stuff, but this is called a transfer switch. If the power goes out, I can use an electric vehicle that’s set up for this or a generator. I can plug it in outside and run the whole house off a generator or a battery. I also plan to add solar panels in the future, so I could potentially run the house off solar power.

Siding and Design
It’s a small house—800 square feet. I wanted to spend most of my time towards the back, away from the street. It’s an unorthodox entry, where you walk past the back of the house down a pathway, and you get a nice view of a public park that will hopefully never be developed. The front door ties into this idea of a smaller footprint house, with a nice big deck and a big outdoor space where I can spend a lot of time.

Outdoor Health Center
An inexpensive outdoor cold plunge can be a lot of fun, and we also have a sauna and an outdoor shower—pretty simple. There was a chain-link fence between my neighbor and me, but we put up a 7-foot-tall roll of bamboo fencing with zip ties to give us some privacy.

Smaller Footprint
The final hack for a healthier home just might be living in a smaller house. What do you think, Kyle?
I agree. Building a smaller house freed up some of my budget to add things I really wanted, like the sauna, a nice big deck, skylights, and other finishes. A smaller footprint makes it much more affordable. I’m also an aspiring minimalist. I enjoy my time at home more when things are orderly and not cluttered. For people living in small spaces or even a van, you really have to pare down what you need and organize it well. It’s forced me to do that, which is good from an environmental standpoint, too. Fewer materials and resources are used.

Thank you so much for subscribing, liking, and sharing this video—it really does help!

Designing for small living spaces requires creativity and practicality. The challenge of crafting a functional and aesthetically pleasing living space within a limited square footage has led to the emergence of innovative design principles that you can leverage to make your Tiny Home or ADU feel remarkably spacious. Here are a few ways to employ them, tailored specifically for house-hackers, DIY builders, and real estate visionaries with a passion for turning small spaces into income generators

Open Concept, FTW

The concept of open layouts is a small space designer’s best friend. One layout Derek has perfected over time consists of a simple rectangle with an open floor plan designed to maximize natural light and elevate the overall ambiance. A single wall galley kitchen where cooking, plumbing, and mechanical infrastructure gets strategically located along a single wall (a cost savings measure) is set opposite to a bedroom that can be closed off using a pocket door. Pocket doors allow for privacy when needed, but when open, they improve sightlines and create the feeling of spaciousness by allowing sunshine to pour in from all sides.

Vaulted Ceilings: Elevating Space

Vaulted ceilings are a key architectural feature that can instantly transform a cramped interior into an expansive haven. By emphasizing vertical space, vaulted ceilings draw the eye upward, creating a sense of openness and grandeur. The upward sweep of the ceiling not only adds visual interest but also enhances natural light distribution. This effect is particularly impactful in small living spaces, where every inch matters. The additional height also allows for creative storage solutions, such as lofted storage areas, optimizing the use of space while maintaining an airy atmosphere. Derek is a huge fan of the storage loft, a necessity for him in each project and always accompanied by a quick and easy-to-build DIY ladder. Watch: How To Build A Custom Loft Ladder For Your A Frame Cabin, Tiny House or ADU.

Color Palette and Tiny Home Vibes: The right colors can transform your ADU into a cozy retreat 

Choosing the right color palette is fundamental in small space design. Light, neutral hues, such as soft whites, pale creams, and gentle greys, play a pivotal role in creating an illusion of expansiveness. These colors reflect natural and artificial light, brightening the space and erasing the boundaries between walls. A light palette not only visually enlarges the area but also imparts an elegant and timeless ambiance. Integrate subtle variations in shades to add depth and prevent monotony, keeping the interior engaging and inviting.

Strategic Windows: Framing Space

Windows are more than mere openings; they are strategic design elements that can dramatically impact the perception of space. Integrating windows on every wall floods the interior with abundant natural light, reducing the reliance on artificial lighting and casting away shadows that can make a room feel closed-in. Moreover, thoughtfully positioned windows create a visual connection with the outdoors, seamlessly merging indoor and outdoor spaces. You can also consider incorporating a sliding patio door. The wide patio door not only enhances the view but also tricks the eye into perceiving the interior as larger than it actually is.

As the ADU trend continues to spread from Oregon and California out across the US and abroad, it’s crucial to wield these design principles with precision to create living spaces that defy their physical limitations. Vaulted ceilings, light palettes, and windows that open up the interior are instrumental in making a small living space feel expansive and inviting. By embracing open-concept layouts, you can craft a home that embodies both comfort and style. So, whether you’re a seasoned builder or a passionate DIY enthusiast, these principles offer a blueprint for embracing the ADU movement and designing small living spaces that truly shine.

Transcript

Good day, ADU enthusiasts! Derek That ADU Guy here taking a minute to talk about zoning.

The very first step in the ADU process is calling your planning department and asking if you can build an accessory dwelling unit at your address.

Time and time again I see folks go out, they get a designer, they find a builder, they spend thousands of dollars to come up with an awesome plan just to go down and find out that there’s no allowable use in their zone. So the very first place that you need to be starting is with your community development department. A phone call, an email… you can do the homework yourself. You can go into the code and you can look at zoning maps, but it’s a lot easier if you just send an email or call.

This question comes up a lot: “what is the order of operations?”

A lot of people say well, budgeting is more important. You need to make sure that you can finance an ADU before you do any of the planning work, or before you do any of the zoning work. I disagree and I’ll tell you why.

If you have a spot in your town or county or municipality where you can build an accessory dwelling unit — it’s as an allowable use in your backyard — but you don’t have the financing there are avenues to find financing. Whereas, in the opposite argument, if somebody says you need to start with budget and you need to go through the whole process of getting pre-approved for the money, no matter what (even if you have money in-hand), if it’s not an allowable use in your zone, you’ve wasted your time.

So I always coach people with the simple starting process of going down to, or calling, or emailing your local planning office to ask directly if you can do an ADU in your front yard, backyard, side yard or incorporated as a part attached to your primary house.

Hope that helps. Again, the starting point is call your local planning and zoning office. Thanks for your time. Hope everybody’s having a good day!