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Modern Shed’s Maxed Out Portable Home: The DW (Dwelling on Wheels)

04.18.22 | By
Modern Shed’s Maxed Out Portable Home: The DW (Dwelling on Wheels)

Seattle-based Modern Shed has taken their backyard shed concept and given it wheels by adapting the design to be a portable dwelling. At 220 square feet, The DW (Dwelling on Wheels) is a modern, self-contained structure that’s spacious enough to make it a home, yet compact enough to take it on the road.

The DW is designed with a classic gable form and a wall of windows at one end to capture the views and maximize natural light entering the interior. A dark, low-maintenance exterior is outfitted with a solar array on the roof that’s equipped with batteries and inside a wood stove is used for heating, allowing the DW to go off-grid. It also comes with two electric wall heaters as backup, if needed.

Despite its tiny footprint, Modern Shed designed the interior so it doesn’t feel cramped. Sight lines are kept open with a floor-to-ceiling window placed at the end of the hallway, opposite the end wall of windows. At the front end, a deck extends out allowing space for a couple of chairs and a small table to enjoy the outdoors.

While the exterior is dark, the contrasting interior is clad in light, pre-finished birch-faced plywood and sustainable linoleum flooring. The pitched roof makes the inside feel more spacious, as does the side window that extends up to the roof.

The sleeping quarters in the back can fit three with an almost queen bed (just a few inches smaller than a queen) on the bottom bunk and a single bed above.

The efficient unit is built with slim, high-intensity insulation paneling in the walls and can accommodate water tanks or a composting unit.

Modern Shed can work with you to customize the unit to your needs, whether you want to use it as an office or a year-round home.

For more information, visit modern-shed.com.

Caroline Williamson is Editor-in-Chief of Design Milk. She has a BFA in photography from SCAD and can usually be found searching for vintage wares, doing New York Times crossword puzzles in pen, or reworking playlists on Spotify.