Walking the floor of the National Association of Home Builders’ International Builders Show in Las Vegas this past January, many attendees stopped in their tracks when they came across two 96-in.-diameter concrete pipe segments converted into a functional tiny home. Using two standard ASTM C76 concrete pipe segments with an ASTM C361 joint, the home has all the features of a tiny apartment, with modular components fitted into the pipe without any additional penetrations or coatings.
The design for the Rinker Pipe Dream home, by architectural student Sandra D. Guillen, was the grand winner of a new design contest sponsored by the American Institute of Architecture Students and concrete pipe manufacturer Rinker Materials. “I felt the design had to be something practical, since homelessness is such an issue,” says Guillen. “[The goal was] for it to be affordable housing, but I also wanted the design to be for someone to live comfortably in that space.”