Castlemaine tiny house builder Fred Schultz receives award

The house is a two bed home he built himself, with an open plan kitchen-living area, bathroom with a tub and a solar heating.

It's also just 10 square metres, off the grid and fossil fuel free, sitting in his Castlemaine backyard.

And it's where his daughter took her first steps.

The house was the first of many. Mr Schultz now runs a business teaching others to build tiny houses.

Read more: Open up the family story behind Bendigo's oldest house

Mr Schultz began to design the home in 2010. It was when the exchange of his time for money began to be a "bad deal", so he tried to reduce his living costs, he said.

The design changed a bit when his now partner Shannon came into the picture.

It was finished in 2015, and the couple lived there for a year with their daughter.

When a son came along they began to outgrow the space though and settled into a house in Castlemaine.

There they began to rent the tiny home out on Airbnb.

Mr Schultz now runs a business building other tiny houses, and teaching others to do the same.

He's seen a growing interest in among young people, who are "getting wise" to the fact that they can no longer afford property, he said.

The popularity of tiny living comes down to three things, Mr Schulz said.

Affordability, how you spend your time, and a personal consciousness about footprint on the planet.

His own tiny house uses no fossil fuel. The ongoing running costs are just alcohol for the meths stove, and wood for the fire.

This fire provides heat for the house, and heats the home's hot water.

Read more: Tiny houses attract big interest in Bendigo | PHOTOS

Mr Schulz design dilemma was how to keep the home cool, and allow it to run solar panels in the summer.

The home is kept cool by verandas, carefully placed windows, and a barrier in the roof and walls which reflects heat.

"Anybody who's lived in a tiny house in Australia knows that it's not so much heat retention in winter that you have to bring your mind in focus to it's about keeping it cool in summer time," Mr Schultz said.

For Mr Schultz the business isn't just about selling houses, it's also about doing some good in the world. Through his workshops he wants to empower others to take better care of themselves.

"We want to put the hammer back into the hands of people who want to reclaim their shelter making," Mr Schultz said.

"If you didn't have to think about how much money you spend on rent... you would have your time back and you would maybe choose to do something else, maybe something that gives you more joy."

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