A happy horse truck home

With tiny homes continuing to be a trend amongst savvy self-builders and Airbnb enthusiasts, there’s a lot of variation out there if you want to stay in a cool, quirky space during a trip away. However, what you probably haven’t come across yet is the horse truck version of the tiny home phenomenon…

Step forward Co Meath entrepreneur, Jamie Duff, from Horse Truck Homes, whose latest venture is just that – a renovated 1999 horse truck which has just been listed as an official Airbnb residence and is already proving very popular.

Jamie’s Horse Truck Home is a converted horse truck complete with outside recreational area.

Rather fittingly located in the grounds of his family’s equestrian centre near Ashbourne, Jamie’s Horse Truck Home was featured on RTÉ’s Super Spaces show, hosted by Dermot Bannon, during the initial stages of the project. The television team is subsequently due to return soon to film the finished project.

“I’m just doing the finishing touches now,” says Jamie, “I had a deadline of this Friday (July 14) to get it done, as they’re going to film the final reveal – although it’s looking like they can’t come now on Friday, due to the rain forecast.”

Having started the horse truck renovations back in October 2022, nine months later, Jamie has birthed a tiny home which embodies everything he set out to achieve – somewhere utterly unique – and comfy – for his guests to enjoy. The idea for the project was sparked, he says, while travelling around Europe with his girlfriend, Martha.

“I converted a van into a campervan during Covid and we were travelling around Europe,” he says. “We met this family from Cork – the McCarthys – who had converted a double-decker bus into an Airbnb and I thought, ‘I’d like to do something like that’. When we came back, I then bought the horse truck and just started off from there, really.”

Ready for renovation

The process of finding the perfect truck went quite smoothy, he adds, although there were a few hiccups getting it back to Ashbourne…

The interior of the Horse Truck Home includes wood detailing.

“I bought it in Limerick and it still drove, but ten minutes on the drive back to Ashbourne, the thermostat started going through the roof,” he says. “The seller ended up going halves on the tow truck fee, which was good of him, as we had to hire an articulated lorry to get it back and, because of the size of the horse truck, that was quite expensive.”

Once they finally got home, however, it was all systems go on the renovation front and Jamie got stuck into his project. His first job was to gut the insides, something which took a lot longer than expected and which threw up its own challenges along the way.

“When I bought the truck there was a living area already in it,” he says. “There was also an old kitchen – and sleeping quarters above the cabin. The truck could hold five horses, so it had those five sections at the back, too. I had to rip everything out and that took me so much longer than I thought it would. I kept finding leaks and holes. I had overlooked that process of ripping stuff out.”

Despite the setback, Jamie got everything gutted and then it was time to map out his ideal interior – the first part of this being to create a floor plan. This was key for ensuring that the inside of the truck would be carved up into the appropriate sections and for identifying where fixtures and fittings would go.

“Before putting the walls in you need to lay down the wires and cables for sockets and sort out the plumbing,” says Jamie. “So, I had to know where the kitchen and toilet would be going and so on. I was basically working from a blank canvas after ripping everything out, so I made my floor plan and just went from there.”

Bathroom building

With an open plan design, the horse truck was ultimately divided into sections by the bathroom, which sits, perhaps unusually, in the centre of the space. This is something which often surprises people when they enter the truck, says Jamie, although once they get over their initial astonishment, they tend to like what he’s done with it.

The bathroom features large format grey tiling from Bathshack.

“It’s funny because every time someone walks in, they also say they didn’t expect the bathroom to be that big,” he says. “I love the layout. I kept it all open plan and the bathroom is smack bang in the middle of the truck but, without interior walls, it kind of divides it into separate rooms. The layout is my favourite thing – and I love the bathroom.”

Surprisingly spacious, the bathroom is perhaps the jewel in the crown of Jamie’s project, as it manages to fit an ample shower along with a toilet, sink and accessories. Being situated on the grounds of an equestrian centre, many visitors like to go horse-riding and will appreciate a good shower afterwards, he says. Indeed, it’s one of the things relishes himself when staying in Airbnbs.

The bathroom’s grey PVC panels from Bathshack.

“Every time me and Martha go to an Airbnb, I would always look forward to a good shower, so I knew that had to be really good in the horse truck,” he says. “The bathroom was actually one of the first things I did – and I made sure it was a full-size room. There’s quite a lot of space in it and it’s done up very nicely.”

“We got grey PVC tiles for the shower from Bathshack. They’re very easy to clean and are low maintenance, which is good. They saved a lot of time with installation, too. I bought the tiles with waterproof corner trims which seal it all in and then used more of them around the sink and toilet.”

The large format grey tiles – Grosfillex Element Extra-large Tile-effect Wall Panelling in Grey PVC – create a contrast with the black that borders the upper walls of the bathroom. They also give the illusion of even more space, thanks to their neutral tone and larger size.

With a tongue and groove design, they’re quick and easy to install and are great for fitting to both smooth and uneven surfaces, so were ideal for the horse truck. Meanwhile, their realistic mineral appearance and tile style adds an authentic look which belies the PVC panel reality.

“Bathshack delivered the panels super-quick and I even got a call the day before from the delivery driver, who was bang on time on the day. So, I was delighted with the service.”

Industrial-inspired interior

Inspiration for the interior design as a whole was an industrial theme, adds Jamie, who subsequently based the rest of the interior on this central idea.

“I kinda knew I wanted to go with a wooden and black industrial style,” he says. “I had a vision in my head and kept building on it.”

The result is a space which subsequently combines these elements to great effect, achieving a contemporary, industrial and also slightly rustic look, with the wood detailing.

Having stayed in a fair few “cool, unique” Airbnbs himself, Jamie says some of those definitely influenced the interior, which boasts OSB wood for the walls. This is a more cost-effective option which Jamie says works very well and gives a patterned, textured appearance suggestive of wood chipping. “That was definitely inspired from other Airbnbs,” he says.

The kitchen features gold handles which contrast with the darker wood cabinetry.

The Horse Truck Home’s living area.

Moving throughout the truck, the core industrial style is brought together with complementary colours, such as gold handles on the kitchen cabinets and gilded accessories like mirrors, taps and light switches. This all works alongside the golden hues of the wood-panelled walls and the black from stool and table legs, which further black wall panelling in the bathroom and the dark cabinetry.

There is, of course, a full working kitchen inside, along with a living area for relaxing – complete with a home cinema and projector. A double bed is also located above the cabin, creating a cosy nook for sleeping, while the sofa also folds out into a king-size bed, for additional guests.

Outside, however, the horse truck has plenty more to offer guests, including a jacuzzi, fire pit and an outdoor kitchen and barbeque.

“I’ve seen lots of people convert horse trailers into coffee trucks and so on, which fit onto the back of jeeps, but I’ve never seen anyone turn a horse truck into a tiny home,” says Jamie.

“I definitely recommend it as an experience, but there are always challenges. It was a lot of work, so you need a lot of time and patience. For example, I was out in the freezing cold in winter trying to seal these leaks in the roof. That tested my patience!”

Having just completed the renovation project the plan now is, he adds, to take some time off and to manage the horse truck as a short-term rental on Airbnb.

“It’s already online and August is nearly full,” he says. “The outside area is really nice at the minute too. It’s nice to see it all come together, finally. I’ll see how this truck goes, but I might make another one… Hopefully, the next one will be a bit easier, though, because I know what I’m doing now!”

Guests can enjoy al fresco dining in the recreational area outside the Horse Truck Home.