100 Dollar Homeless/Emergency Shelter

I think its awesome

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hG0aRjKDnKo

Different, and innovative.I wonder how it handles condensation?

At about 2:50 there's view of the back wall with vent holes...I imagine if you have either additional vent holes above the front door, or crack the front window a little, condensation might not be too bad. I've located a coroplast dealer about an hour away in Riviera Bch, FL and will call them Monday for availability of coroplast. This could very well be my next project.

Barbakane,if you make one would you take pictures of the construction,I bet there are others who would like to make one,me included.
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EDIT-
I see he has a site with more about it

http://www.elkinsdiy.com/homeless-emergency-shelter/

Checked out his site as well. Very interesting stuff there. Some of his Burning Man projects look cool too.

Yep,that guy is a visionary who can put ideas into action,IMO must be one very smart talented person.

I'd love to have one! I love even more the fact that he's trying to make life a little better for those who have so little.

That's a really cool idea. Like a more solid version of a tent. Genius.

I was thinking of trying to build a folding version to take Scouting. If that comes to fruition I'll post it here with all the specs.

Interesting idea.

I used translucent coroplast for the sides and roof of a greenhouse. It's pretty durable -- held up to high winds, light hail, northern cold and summer heat. Ten years later, the stuff is a bit brittle but still intact.

The translucent stuff would be generally adequate as privacy panelling IMO, and the interior would be nicely lit.

I wonder how he got it to fold into a half moon like that? It's pretty flexible, but it can kink if you fold it too far. Maybe do small, incremental folds on a hot, sunny day?

I'm not sure about his zip-tie system. The wind can work this stuff and enlarge the holes. I would add a few bolts with large washers on either side (maybe small eyebolts for a light clothes line or interior attachment points?).

This shelter would need some sort of ground anchor. It's light, large, and potentially airborne.

Hikermor raised a key concern: moisture management. It needs much better ventilation for both heat and cold. Coroplast is waterproof plastic, and condensation/frost would form inside on cooler nights. That can make it pretty miserable at 5 a.m.

Lastly, what did he use for the floor? Coroplast would get mangled pretty fast.

Would you do it again or use better material? Thinking light pass thru.

It's a Quonst hut not made out of sheet aluminum. About as innovative as fire. The SeaBees were making these back in WW2. All this guy did was take a proven design, use new materials and make it smaller.

This might be interesting for the homeless iff completed in context. The SHARE /WHEEL tent city advertises a 2person tent donation at $50. The $150 cost should be evaluated in that context: is it appreciably warmer or friendlier or more durable than the 50 dollar shelter it hopes to replace?

This product seems most suitable as an instant igloo in the snow, or in cold weather generally if you have a sleeping bag for warmth. However, there is the issue of condensation, as someone pointed out above.

Also, this shelter is a no-go in weather that has any kind of heat (basically any time you feel like wearing shorts). That includes warm nights too. You'd sweat all the water out of you like if you were in a sauna.

It's really not much of an innovation. It's basically a big dog house. Actually, I wouldn't make this my dog's house because of the issues I noted above. It is such a non-innovation that I am guessing the issues noted by me and other people made this product a non-starter a long time ago.

As Kennedy said, some people look at things and say why, others look at the same thing and say why not.

This particular shelter design has some limitations for human habitation, to be sure. But I don't think this guy is flogging a product. It's just a creative thought exercise, and makes no claim to cure all the world's ills. The use of Coroplast for temporary sheds/shelters is a valid concept. I'm sure if we were to put our heads together we could create a design that works pretty well.

-Doug, the optimist

It's hard to say. My old greenhouse had double-paned windows (scrounged) on the entire sun-facing side. Translucent Coroplast was used for the simple roof, back and sides. It lets in some light but also reflects some light around so (in theory) the plants don't get quite so "leggy."

Light transmission is a trade-off. On the one hand, double-wall polycarbonate is far superior for light transmission. On the other hand, most polycarbonate greenhouses require shade cloth and power ventilation in the hottest months. As for transmission of needed light wavelengths, I really don't know enough to comment.

I would use Coroplast again for micro-greenhouses/row covers around plants, where maintaining night-time temperatures and humidity is the real key to ongoing productivity.

The nice thing about Coroplast is that you can experiment without breaking the bank.

My 5c (no pennies in Canada any more).

Thanks Doug for the reply.

As ideas go it is not so bad, but where would a homeless person get $100 to make such a shelter? In any case most of them would probably use the $100 to buy drugs. By the time you got a decent sleeping bag it would be more like $200.

I am pretty sure there are very few places that want tent cities made of plastic cardboard popping up anyway.

As a solution to the homeless problem it has very little going for it. No toilet or bathing facilities for one thing.

As a winter camping shelter it has some merit. especially for car campers.

Car camping was the application I was thinking of. The kids would love it because it's different and would seem "fun". If it didn't work out you could always turn it into the greenhouse as mentioned earlier...or make a shelter with a greenhouse addition off the back porch

Nice find. I like the folding origami kayak among other things on the site. Though, no plans or instructions how to fold it properly. Just images' descriptions.

I once ran across plans to make a row boat and a canoe out of similar material.

As cheap and sturdy as it is, it looks like it could be used for a lot of things.

interesting idea, but without insulation a guy would freeze to death!

In a shelter like that your clothing and/or sleeping bag is your insulation. Even without that, you will definitely be warmer inside that shelter compared to the outside.

A Coroplast panel gives you maybe R1-R2 tops in insulating value. Not much. But in a cold climate, it gets you out of the wind and into a dry-ish space, which is huge. And if you're somewhat functional you can quickly pile up some snow on the sides. That adds a surprising amount of R-value (which is somewhat surprising in itself; but snow holds a ton of air in tiny pockets, which is a kind of insulation, though not the snuggle-up-cozy-blanket kind).

The point of this is that the simplest of shelters can make the difference. Witness, for example, the 17-year old who survived two nights in a self-made snow shelter while rescue operations were suspended due to the weather. http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/m...676f_story.html

Edit: I see the snow shelter story is the subject of another thread. Probably best to make related comments over there.

you can survive a lot if you can get out of the weather.

it is not really practical for much of anything, but still a neat idea.