
Show HN: Occupod – a solid mobile sleeping shelter - occupod
https://www.occupod.org/
======
duskwuff
"No Place For The Living" seems... rather the opposite of the intended
message.

On a more technical level, many pallets are chemically treated to prevent
insect damage. The chemicals used for this treatment can be quite hazardous;
sleeping on top of a damp, chemically treated pallet is practically a worst
case.

~~~
jacquesm
> sleeping on top of a damp, chemically treated pallet is practically a worst
> case.

Worse than sleeping out in the rain?

~~~
toomuchtodo
Is it wise to compound homelessness with chronic health issues and permanent
disability? Methyl Bromide is frequently used for pest mitigation of pallets
and their contents, and pallet cargo can also leak onto pallets (and you won't
be none the wiser).

~~~
rstuart4133
Even in an absorbent material like wood Methyl Bromide will dissipate within a
week. It's very rare for a pallet to be discarded within a week of being
shipped and but if you are super cautious you can just wait a week.

Toluene, Benzene and Ethylene dichloride on the other hand are used in all
sorts of materials like glues, and will be out gassed for months. Kids toys,
phones, shoes, furniture, paint - normal houses (as opposed to Occupod's) are
full of them. Provided you are little careful with the painting, I'd take the
Occupod any day.

------
pjc50
Nice bit of cheap woodwork from scrap materials, but the main problem this
will run into is that most jurisdictions will apply (or bend) laws about
parking and temporary structures to take away and destroy your wooden trailer
shelter.

Or, in the case of Hungary, make homelessness illegal entirely.
[https://edition.cnn.com/2018/10/15/europe/hungary-
criminaliz...](https://edition.cnn.com/2018/10/15/europe/hungary-criminalizes-
homelessness-intl/index.html) / [http://abouthungary.hu/fundamental-law/qa-on-
the-upcoming-am...](http://abouthungary.hu/fundamental-law/qa-on-the-upcoming-
amendment-to-hungarys-fundamental-law/)

Homelessness is a complex social problem that requires quite a lot of social
intervention work to fix. It's not something that can be papered over with a
wooden shelter.

~~~
jpdoherty
You're right that homelessness is a complex problem. However, taking steps to
protect lives (or even just improve comfort) isn't papering over the problem.
I think taking tiny steps toward a solution, even limited in scope, is still a
very helpful thing to do.

~~~
radiantswirl
Homelessness is an incredibly simple problem with an incredibly simple
solution: build more housing. Since this is not a step in that direction, it
does not seem like a "step forward" to me. If anything, all these "occupods"
do is widen the social divide between homeless and housed people..... While
poisoning the homeless with chemicals from the wood pallets. LMAO at this
misguided attempt to do good that actually does harm.

~~~
jpdoherty
Build more of that good ol' free housing that capitalism loves to provide?

~~~
radiantswirl
No just build more housing in general

The studies have been done bro, there is only one solution and I just
described it

Also we don't actually live in a capitalist system, health care and housing
are already socialist in many many ways. It would be easy to pass govt
regulations making it easier to build housing. Capitalism is not the problem
because we don't actually live in a fully capitalist society dude.

~~~
jpdoherty
I'm not sure which studies have you so convinced that one overly simplistic
thing can "solve" homelessness. This paper from 1991 does a great job of
laying out the dozens of different factors which make homelessness such a
complex and challenging issue to address:
[https://scholarship.law.umn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=...](https://scholarship.law.umn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1381&context=lawineq)

A lack of affordable housing compounds the challenge, but to say housing is
the only solution when it isn't even a good partial solution misses the entire
problem.

------
DennisP
Interesting but I think I'd rather have a backpack carrying a tent, sleeping
bag, and pad. That's a fine shelter used by backpackers everywhere in all
sorts of severe conditions, with much easier and less conspicuous mobility
than rolling this thing around.

~~~
jpdoherty
Those things do not provide any physical security though, which is a very real
concern for homeless people. In fact, the sort of lightweight, high-quality
equipment that most backpackers choose, would likely just invite theft and/or
violence.

------
briankelly
This looks like a worse version of a teardrop trailer. There are many DIY
guides and templates available on how to build a them, like this one:
[https://www.instructables.com/id/Teardrop-
Trailer/](https://www.instructables.com/id/Teardrop-Trailer/)

~~~
Gys
Totally different purpose ?

------
tropdrop
It's hard to get an idea of scale in these pictures, so the pods seem
impossibly small and unlikely to fit a whole person.

A picture of a person laying inside for scale would help.

~~~
Qworg
The floor is a standard 42" pallet.

~~~
tropdrop
I have never tried laying on a 42" pallet - have you? I really can't say if
it's too small to sleep in.

A simple picture (even a stylized, human-sized vector drawing) would put
debates about whether this pod is too small to bed.

~~~
sleepychu
42" is slightly over half my height, hard to imagine this being comfortable

~~~
Broken_Hippo
To be fair: If I'm given the choice of sleeping outside without protection or
sleeping in one of these, I'm gonna take these. I think it is a horrible
choice to have to make, mind you, but neither is comfortable. I'm gonna guess
I'd not be stretched out on a city street either.

~~~
ErikHuisman
But if you are going to build a pod why not build a slightly bigger pod that
fits you?

~~~
larl
It looks like there is a hinged floor that folds down and is covered by a
tarp. That should get to about 80"

~~~
justusthane
Ah, you're right. That's not at all clear without parsing through all the
instructions - there should really be a photo of one set up.

------
Gys
Interesting. I miss a description of the design decisions ? Like why there is
an angle of 45 degrees on one size. An overview of the final outside sizes
would also be nice.

------
matt_the_bass
Lots of critical comments in this thread. But I applaud that the OP made the
effort to try and help. That is more than most people do.

------
newnewpdro
"Unlike a tent, an Occupod is a solid mobile sleeping platform that rolls down
a sidewalk and provides safe sheltered sleeping at night."

Unlike an Occupod, a tent isn't easily rolled off a cliff or into traffic
while the occupant is too high to notice.

There's so much wrong with the execution of this, I don't know where to start.

~~~
dsfyu404ed
>There's so much wrong with the execution of this, I don't know where to
start.

This looks like every other mechanical engineering undergraduate capstone
project. Relying on paint for waterproofing is the real kicker.

------
occupod
The back has a hinge section that folds down to fit a +6' person fully
extended. I will work to make that part clearer by including a second picture
at top of site. Also, I will include to find HT pallet rather than a
chemically treated one. These completed Occupods run $50 each. The city can
trash them if that is their prerogative and I am not opposed to shanty towns
at all.

------
msadowski
I didn't get it from the article but is there enough airflow to ensure you
won't get a CO2 poisoning of you lock yourself inside?

~~~
scotty79
There are no seals on the doors so probably plenty of airflow.

------
pontifier
Some of the people at my Makerspace have contemplated a similar project using
foam board insulation to help deal with the extreme cold here in Utah.

I can't believe how we continue to fail these people with discriminatory laws,
innefective innitiatives, and nimbyism.

------
tln
Cool concept! You could fit a twin mattress in there.

How about adding a variant that uses 2x4s for the bottom frame instead of
pallets. If you're getting everything else at Home Depot, 2x4s will be easier
to source.

Now that you have an MVP, go get your first 10 customers! :)

~~~
thrower123
Most of the time, pallets are free for the taking if you just ask. Whitewood
pallets are mostly not returnable, and businesses get stacks and stacks of the
things with deliveries. The lumber in a pallet costs on the order of $10-$20
if you were buying it retail.

My father-in-law built an entire horse barn out of pallets and shipping crates
that were thrown away from his job.

------
User23
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shanty_town](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shanty_town)

------
WhiteOwlLion
What's the problem being solved that a donated popup tent can't handle? Popup
tent is lighter, portable, and you can set up and tear down in seconds. I'm
not sure what the point of this is.

~~~
occupod
You are disconnected obviously

------
explorigin
There isn't enough space for a 5' person to lay down. Maybe if you put two
together.

~~~
Broken_Hippo
If someone is homeless, what is the likelyhood they'll be stretched out
anyway?

~~~
newnewpdro
I don't understand what homelessness has to do with extending one's limbs.

~~~
Broken_Hippo
Stretching out on one's back or side or stomach is something mot folks take
for granted. We are in relatively safe, warm, and dry conditions. Trying to
find those good conditions when you are homeless can be a bit more of a
challenge, at least if you don't have a car. Even with a car, most folks are
crunched up in the seats to some degree.

------
BobFromDown
Good idea. Poor execution. 5/10.

~~~
n4r9
What would you do differently?

~~~
evolve2k
Make it longer. Consider an internal secure storage. Could you really leave
valuables in it during the day if you were away. Reconsider the flap at the
back. Consider when there are say over 20, over 100. This is when officials
get ansy. Could the design accommodate a small group being encouraged to
cluster (and optionally encourage supporter networks). Eg to protect the weak
entrance area.

------
crb002
Curious about the pathology of homelessness and chronic sleep deprivation.

~~~
xrd
The woman who founded Right To Dream Too
([http://right2dreamtoo.blogspot.com/](http://right2dreamtoo.blogspot.com/))
gave a presentation at my work. I mentioned that I thought it looked like many
homeless were dealing with drug addictions and if they had services to support
them. My perception is that people look much more stressed out than the
homeless people I used to see in Portland twenty years ago. She remarked that
people who are dealing with chronic sleeplessness often look like what you
would see someone who is withdrawing from drug use, and that made me think.

It makes you wonder if more/less policing has an impact on the ability of
people to find safe places to sleep, and if not, how that leads to an
interminable cycle of destruction to their bodies which is maybe worse than
drug use. I wish I knew the facts on that speculation.

