Originally published 2022-02-03.
Jude, a solo traveller in New Zealand, lives in a tiny house she built on the back of a brand-new truck. The cedar-clad home is about 6.4 metres long and 2.4 metres wide, runs off-grid on an 800-watt solar panel, and still fits in a full kitchen with a gas oven, a regular-size fridge, a stand-alone shower, a fold-down bed and even a fireplace. Big French doors and a rear picture window open the small space to whatever view she has parked beside that day.
Her home was featured in a video tour by the New Zealand channel Living Big in a Tiny House, and it is a good case study in how thoughtful design can make a very small, mobile home comfortable for full-time living.
Why Jude built her own
Jude liked the idea of tiny houses when they became popular, but she did not want to be tied to one piece of land. She had already spent around eight years living in campers designed by other people, and she found them poorly insulated and cold. When she finally built her own, comfort and warmth came first.
She chose a new truck rather than a second-hand one so she could travel without worrying about breakdowns, and she has lived in the finished home on her own for more than a year at the time of the tour.
A tour of the layout
From the outside, the house is clad in two tones of treated cedar. Its windows were handmade by the builder. There are no windows at the cab end; instead, light pours in through a large rear picture window and a pair of French doors. When the doors are open, the living area feels almost like part of the landscape.
Inside, warm timber and woodwork give the room a calm, Scandinavian feel, with space to hang artwork. The layout is built around a few key zones:
- Living room and bedroom in one. By day the main room is a lounge and yoga space. At night a bed drops down from the wall on a pulley system, resting over the end of a pull-out couch.
- Kitchen. There is a pantry, generous storage, a food-prep counter, a full-size gas oven and a regular household fridge rather than a small camping unit.
- Bathroom. A stand-alone full-size shower, a vanity and a micro-flush toilet.
- Fireplace. Added after years of feeling cold on the road, it is one of Jude's favourite features.
Living off-grid
An 800-watt solar panel on the truck's roof supplies the electricity, and the home carries its own tanks for grey water (from the sink and shower) and black water (from the toilet), so she can stay in remote spots without hookups.
Solar output depends heavily on season, weather and where you park. In a New Zealand winter, with short days and frequent cloud, a single panel of that size produces far less than in summer, so off-grid living usually also means careful energy use, gas for cooking and heating, and sometimes a backup way to charge batteries. Jude's set-up works for her lifestyle, but anyone planning something similar should size their system for their own needs and climate.
Safety and solitude on the road
Jude often parks in stunning locations where she is the only person around. Asked whether that frightens her, she said she reads each place by its atmosphere and the people who pass by during the day, adding, "I refuse to live my life around what somebody else might do."
Loneliness is less of an issue than many people expect. She explained that she thinks of the many people she meets on her travels. She spends quiet days reading and enjoying the views, and she sometimes realises only in the evening that she has not spoken to anyone at all.
For anyone considering solo vehicle living, a few habits help: let someone know where you are, trust your instincts about a site, keep your phone charged and know where the nearest mobile coverage is.
Rules to know before you park up
A home on wheels gives freedom, but not unlimited freedom. New Zealand tightened its freedom camping rules through amendments to the Freedom Camping Act 2011. According to the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE):
- Vehicle-based freedom camping on council-managed land must be done in a certified self-contained vehicle, unless a site is set aside for non-self-contained vehicles.
- To be certified, a vehicle needs a fixed toilet; portable toilets no longer qualify.
- From summer 2024/25, all vehicles used for freedom camping need the newer green warrant card, and the old blue warrants are no longer accepted.
- Fines can be higher than the old $200 level and must be paid within 14 days.
Whether a tiny house on wheels counts as a vehicle or a building has also been contested in New Zealand. In the case Dall v MBIE, a District Court judge found that one tiny home on wheels was not a building under the Building Act 2004. Rules can change, so check with MBIE and the local council before you build or settle in one spot.
Is tiny, mobile living for you?
The wider tiny-house movement grew from the idea of simplifying life and reducing living space. Supporters point to lower running costs, less clutter and smaller energy needs, which can make rooftop solar practical. Critics note that tiny homes can cost more per square metre than larger houses, offer limited storage, are hard to share with guests and often run into zoning and legal hurdles.
Watch the full tour of Jude's home below:
Jude's truck shows what is possible when a home is designed around one person's real habits: a warm fire, a proper kitchen, a bed that disappears by day and doors that bring the outdoors in. Bigger is not always better, but small works best when it is planned with care.
Sources: Video tour by Living Big in a Tiny House (presented by Bryce Langston, December 2020); home details as reported by Positive Outlooks; freedom camping rules from the MBIE freedom campers fact sheet; movement background and the Dall case from Wikipedia: Tiny-house movement.
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