A Prefab Tiny House in Rural Spain That Took Just Five Hours to Build

Quick Assembly and Modern Design

This 354 square foot prefab design is made from galvanized steel, wood and slate, located in northwestern Spain and took only five hours to erect. The tiny prefab took less than four months to build in a factory, and another five hours to assemble on the building site. The minimalist modern prefab design is set in Valdes, a tiny town in Asturias, just northwest of Madrid. Studio Baragano designed the prefab Montana House as a modern mix between traditional home design and the granaries (storehouse for threshed grain) found throughout the area.

Traditional Inspiration and Modern Interiors

The prefab design was constructed in less than four months in a factory in Madrid then transported to Valdes, where a local artisan added a slate roof. This prefab construction was designed using the traditional local architectural design as inspiration. The prefab design is used as a residence for an English landscaper and his family with two floors and plenty of common space. Diffuse natural light is used on the top level of the tiny prefab with light polycarbonate panels that function as barriers between the rooms. A metal staircase acts as a centerpiece around which the other spaces in the tiny prefab were organized. The tiny home has a minimalist interior, with the defining feature being the fireplace that is suspended from the living room ceiling.

Architectural Heritage and Construction Process

The tiny home designers drew their inspiration from the architectural style of traditional residential architectural design that is found in the region, as well as granaries (storage for threshed grain) built in wood and then raised on pillars, which is typical of the Iberian Peninsula. The tiny home design was constructed in less than four months in an indoor factory in Madrid and then transported to Valdes. Once in Valdes, the tiny prefab had a traditionally designed slate roof added. It only took a short five hours in total to assemble this prefab design on-site.

Budget-Friendly and Client Collaboration

The prefab design was built for $148,500 in a Madrid factory before it was assembled in the mountainous, coastal region in northwestern Spain. When the Madrid-based Architects were engaged to build the second home for its English clients, they decided to take a more industrialized approach to the prefab construction. The result is this contemporary prefab retreat that was actively developed together with the clients, with only a $148,500 budget.

Integration with Surroundings

The tiny prefab was then shipped 600 miles across the Cantabrian mountain range to the building site of an old stone granary complex. The tiny home is built of galvanized steel sheets, with the modules clad with thin vertical wood slats, and then assembled on-site, with the black slate roof put in place by a local craftsman. The tiny home is 1,076-square-feet in size and pays homage to the surrounding historic structures to fit in perfectly with its remote, rural locale. The tiny home has an open-plan kitchen and living room that occupy the ground floor. Outside there is a wooden deck that surrounds three sides of the prefab house, and a large glass door and windows open out to the porch.