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Container Home?
If we look for the first official record of a shipping container home we find a man
named Phillip Clark. On Monday 23rd November 1987, Clark filed a patent called
the“Method for converting one or more steel shipping containers into a habitable
building”.
Within the patent Clark outlines how shipping containers can be sited on a
weight-bearing foundation to create a habitable building. He claimed that
shipping containers make the perfect modular building material. He also
commented that reused shipping containers can be used to make homes
economically.
It took two years for the patent to be granted, and on Tuesday 8 th August 1989,
Clark was presented with his approved patent #US4854094A. If you are interest
the original patent can be view here.
So where did Phillip Clark get his idea from? Was he the first ever person to think
that shipping containers could be used to build homes?
Far from it. Just 2 years before Clark‘s patent was filed, shipping containers
made their way on to the big screen. In 1985, in the film Space Rage, shipping
containers were used to make numerous buildings on the production set.
However, we can go further back than that to the 1970‘s where UK architect
Nicholas Lacey wrote his university thesis on the concept of reusing shipping
containers and turning them into habitable dwellings (Source).
However, we can still find earlier examples of shipping containers being used as
buildings. The earliest official record we could find was 1962.
Well here in the US we import a lot more than we export- so when goods are
shipped into the country we aren‘t using the shipping container to export our
goods back. This means that there is a surplus of shipping containers. Just how
much of a surplus?
This means there was surplus the equivalent of more than 5 million 20-foot
shipping containers. Now clearly not every shipping container is left in the US- it
would be worthwhile shipping new containers back to Asia to use again but a
considerable number of containers are left in the US.
This trend has been occurring for many years and we have taken a snapshot of
the available data from the US Department of Transportation: Maritime
Administration for the last five years
So we have a big surplus of shipping containers in the US, could we not just recycle
them?
Well a standard 40 foot shipping containers weight 8,820 pounds. To melt down
this much steel would take around 8000 kWh of energy, nearly the same amount
of energy as a US household uses each year (Source).
The average amount of energy used to convert a shipping container into a home
takes around 400 kwh, so around a 95% reduction when compared to melting
down the steel.
So building with shipping containers is environmentally friendly, but not only that,
we know that building shipping container homes can be significantly cheaper
than traditional homes. In our blog post on ‗How Much Do Shipping Container
Homes Cost‘ we lifted the lid off homes which have been built for less than
$100,000!
So we know that people had the idea to build shipping container homes way
back in the 1980‘s and that there is, and has been, a surplus of shipping
containers here in the US. But how did shipping container homes turn into
a mainstream trend?
Well we already know that the US army helped establish the shipping container
as the standard method of transporting goods on ships (we spoke about
this here). During the Vietnam War the US government were looking for a quicker
way to ship goods, this is when they adopted the shipping container and its
popularity took off after that.
But how did the US army help to put shipping container homes on the map?
During the Gulf War the US army used shipping containers as emergency
shelters because they could be quickly converted and easily fortified. Containers
were fortified by placing sandbags against the external walls of the containers;
this helped to protect against rocket propelled grenades.
After this in 1994 Stewart Brand, an American writer, published a book title „How
Buildings Learn‟. In it, Brand goes on to write ideas about how to convert
shipping containers into office space. This was the first real publication which
mentions building with shipping containers.
From here shipping container homes started to gain moment and the first
completed build we could find on record was the ‗The Simon‘s Town High School
Hostel‘.
The school wanted to use the containers to build a hostel which was capable of
housing 120 people at any given time.
The project cost a total of $227,000 and was ready for its first lodgers on the
30thNovember 1998.
Known as the Redondo Beach House, the home was approved under the
national Uniform Building Code and was completed in 2007. This was the first
‗real‘ shipping container home.
Since then we‘ve seen shipping container homes popping up all over the world!
Some of the more famous ones include:
By far the two most popular containers you will come across are the regular 20
foot shipping container and the regular 40 foot shipping container; the majority of
this article will focus on these two containers.
The standard 20ft shipping container is a popular pick for many people who
decide to build a home out of shipping containers. They are easier to manoeuvre
and due their size can be easily combined and modified to create exceptional
living spaces.
However, 40ft containers are more expensive to transport, and delivering these
to remote locations and be challenging. In addition they are also difficult to
manoeuvre so make sure you know exactly where you want them placing on
your land before they get delivered.
So there you have it, you should have a good understanding now of the
dimensions of both the regular 20ft and the regular 40ft container. However as
mentioned earlier these aren‘t the only type of container that are available to
purchase.
US 45 Foot Containers
The last variant of shipping containers we are going to discuss today is the 45
foot container, which is mostly used in the US. The 45 foot container shares the
same dimensions as the 40 foot containers with regards to its width and height
however it‘s an additional five feet longer. We‘d normally say if you aren‘t
desperate for the room, then don‘t go out of your way and spend more money for
the extra 5 foot unless it‘s an absolute must for you!
The massive advantage of a new shipping container is the peace of mind you‘ll
have when you sleep in your container home that it has never been sprayed or
treated with harsh chemicals to protect it from the seawater, and also that it
wasn‘t used to carry toxic goods.
A new shipping container also gives you the choice of how it is made and the
size of the container.
You can also customize the inside of your container- such as fitting a custom
wooden floor the way you want it. This saves you time modifying the container
when you receive it.
The often unspoken benefit of buying new containers is their availability.
Because you‘re buying them brand new, you can order exactly what you want. If
you are buying used container you sometimes have to take what you‘re given.
It‘s sometimes difficult to find used high cube containers.
Finally, new shipping containers will come with a guarantee- this is normally at
least 10 years. This means if something goes wrong with your new containers
(i.e. paint corrosion), you will be covered by the manufacturer.
We talk about this more in how long will my container home last for?
Another big disadvantage is new shipping container‘s take a long time to get
delivered as they are shipping from China. A used container can be bought the
day you are looking for it and be shipped to you within a week of purchasing it.
For people living in trading cities, it could be possible to have your used shipping
container delivered within a few days.
Finally, and possibly the biggest disadvantage is they are not eco-friendly. You
are not recycling or reusing the container, you are making a shipping container
just to build your house with.
The shipping container would only be used for your home, rather than being
reused after it had been used to transport freight around the world.
The second advantage of used containers is they are very easy to find and buy.
At any point in time around 6 million of these containers are travelling across the
ocean- leaving between 14 and 19 million at a port or unused.
If you were to go to eBay or Craigslist you would find a shipping container ready
to be shipped to you today. Because there are so many used shipping containers,
finding one to your preference and near you is easy and gives you the perk of
being able to start constructing your home sooner than if you were to buy a new
one.
Read our guide on how to purchase used containers for more information.
The biggest advantage of used containers however is that they are an eco-
friendly choice. You are removing an item that would otherwise be left to take up
space and spread toxins into the environment. With taking it to your place and
reconstructing it into your home you are helping the atmosphere and surrounding
environment. Many governments give tax breaks or credits when a home is
green, giving you another incentive to build with a used shipping container rather
than a new one.
To avoid this, make sure you see purchase shipping containers in person.
Whenever that is not possible (i.e. you are buying them online), it is encouraged
to ask for a video or zoomed in pictures so you can see what you are buying and
know how much work you will have.
The other disadvantage of used containers is that you don‘t know what they have
been used to transport. There are no international regulations requiring freight
companies and cargo ships to report exactly what is put into each container or
record exactly what happens throughout its journey.
1. Swimming Pool
In number one spot is the swimming pool. How cool, would that be to have a pool
in the back yard and better yet know it‘s made from a container! The first time I
saw this I was blown away; I don‘t know about you but looking at the picture I
couldn‘t even tell this pool was made from a shipping container.
Beese started by sourcing a container, stating it‘s important to find one without
rust and large dents in it, because this would be visible once the pools made.
Once the container was onsite, it was cleaned and sprayed with anti-corrosive
paint. Next step was to dig out a shallow hole to drop the container into and then
the hole needs lining with limestone to protect the soil. The container is then lined
with half inch insulation foam and a pool liner. The container was then dropped
into the hole and cladded with pine slats to cover up the steel. In total the pool
cost around $6,000 but Beese claims it could have cheaper if he did the labour
himself.
2. Hospital
Our second most surprising use for a shipping container is this incredible cardiac
surgery centre based just outside of Sudan close to the river Nile. The hospital
was built in 2013 using old shipping containers and its hot water is powered by
an on-site farm of solar panels.
3. Restaurant
Now how many of you thought you‘d ever be eating a spicy Mexican burrito in a
shipping container that was once used to send TVs from china all over the world?
Wahaca, a Mexican restaurant based in London, launched a massive eight
container pop up restaurant in Southbank Center back in 2013. One of the
shipping containers has even been modified into a street stall so you can grab
your burrito to go!
Guests can either eat inside the shipping containers, which have huge glass
windows in them providing views out onto the Thames, or dinners can eat
outside. The inside of the restaurant was decorated with recycled benches
adding to the ‗upcycle‘ theme.
The pop up restaurant was used in a street art exhibition back in 2013 and fitted
in perfectly with other tourist attractions at Southbank, including the roof gardens
at Queen Elizabeth Hall and the world‘s largest solar panel bridge which cuts
over 500 tonnes of CO2 emissions each year.
4. Hotel
At fourth place is a hotel (or advertising billboard!) which is made entirely of steel
beams and shipping containers. Earlier last year we got a sneak peak at one of
Hong Kong‘s most anticipated hotels, the Hive Inn. It‘s designed by OVA Studio‘s
and will be over 20 containers high when it‘s finished.
The Hive Inn will be a modular design so rooms can literally be ‗traded in‘ or out
by the crane which will be based at the very top of the Hive. This will allow the
hotel to adapt and get bigger or smaller depending on the amount of containers
that are currently stacked inside it.
It‘s expected that once the Hive has been built there will be lots of advertising
opportunities for companies who want to place their own themed container within
the Hive. The inside of the container could also be branded providing fans of the
brand with a unique experience.
OVA Studio has also indicated that their design, on a smaller scale, lends itself to
emergency housing. The modular design could be used to give quickly build up
containers within the ‗hive‘ structure to provide housing.
5. School
The fith most surprising use for a shipping container is this school classroom
made for Vissershok Primary School in South Africa. The classroom was funded
by three companies in South Africa and was built in 2010. Since then the
classroom has received significant press coverage and has inspired numerous
other similar initiatives.
The shipping container is now the classroom for 25 first graders who live in
impoverish conditions in Dunoon, Cape Town. The classroom even doubles as a
library in the afternoon for the entire primary school!
The container has a huge roof which acts as a sunshade for the children in the
warm summer heat, it also allows air to blow through the top of the classroom
and cool them down. In addition to this there are several windows on the side of
the classroom that allows air to blow through the classroom to cool it down.
The classroom was built under budget so the rest of the sponsorship money was
spent on creating vegetable patches nearby which the children grow their own
vegetables in and get to keep them!
6. Art Studio
It‘s not often that you find an art studio that is arguably as good as the art inside
of it but this is the sixth surprising use of a shipping container; an art studio.
Fittingly called the container studio is it 840 square foot and was made out of two
high top 40 foot shipping containers.
This stunning building was designed by MB Architecture who are based in New
York. Andrea Shapiro, the artist who lives in Amagansett- New York, wanted an
affordable but spacious solution to house their artwork. The final product is a two
story art studio which was built using two shipping containers above ground and
to dig out a basement which was concreated and acts as the main studio room.
Their total budget was $60,000 and the picture art studio was delivered under
budget for $58,000. Each of the containers cost around $2,500 and this includes
the delivery costs. The art studio was completed in 2010 and is now open and is
located in the forests within Amagansett- New York.
7. An Office
Royal Wolf hire and sell shipping containers so it seems fitting their company
offices are made out of them! Back in 2013 they approached Room 11,
Australian architects, and they sat down and put this plan to paper.
The offices are made using both 40foot and 20foot containers and are arranged
in a giant rectangle which creates gaps in the middle of the office to make room
for four courtyards; nearly all the rooms within the office can see out onto a
courtyard.
The ends of the 40 foot containers have been cut out and replaced with
incredible glass windows which really allow a lot of light into the offices. The ends
were then used to double skin the walls to give the office more insulation. Paying
tribute to the shipping container Royal Wolf have left the ceiling of the containers
untouched so you can still see the exposed corrugated steel.
The offices were built in 2013 and are still a great spectacle and conversion
piece for everybody who visits them.
1. Price
The most common response we received from our subscribers was price. They
said, they either live in a shipping container home or wanted to live in a shipping
container home because of the cost savings they expected to make.
We have previously discussed this in, How Much Do Shipping Container Homes
Cost?, where we showed three shipping container homes which have been built
for less than $100,000.
This isn‘t to say that all shipping container homes are cheap, quite the opposite
we‘veseen shipping container homes sell for more than $1,000,000. However it‘s
to show you that shipping containers can be used to build affordable homes and
this has been done across the globe.
2. Eco-Friendly
Running a close second place was eco-friendly; in-fact there was only a few
votes difference between this and price! A lot of people want to own a shipping
container home because they want to build homes in a sustainable,
environmentally friendly manner.
Each time a shipping container is re-used we are saving the earth over 3,500kg
worth of steel! Not only that, we are also saving the use of other materials we
would need to use instead of the steel such as bricks or wood. I mean sure we
can melt the container back down into steel and use it for something else but
that‘s the beauty of container homes, we don‘t need to do any of that we simply
‗up-cycle‘ the container into something beautiful.
By far the price and eco-friendliness received the most amount of votes, however
three other categories still received a decent amount of interest.
3. Style/Looks
The third most popular reason people want to live in shipping container homes is
because of their looks!
It‘s not really surprising, is it? They look incredible!
4. Off-Grid Living
In fourth place was off-grid living. For those of you not familiar with the term, off-
grid living refers to living in a home which isn‘t connected to a mains electrical
supply. In essence it means to live in a sustainable self-sufficient manner.
Shipping container homes can make the perfect off-grid home; remember Brenda
Kelly‘s off grid home which was featured by living big in a tiny house? The home
was completed with two 135watt solar panels and a grey water system. The
home was built for around $30,000!
Shipping container homes can be purchased pre-fabricated which then means
you can simply get your container delivered and you have your off-grid home
ready to live in.
We haven‘t yet seen any 40 foot off-grid homes, but I think thats due to the
nature of where we normally see off-grid homes (remote, hard to access
locations). It‘s probably more trouble than it‘s worth transporting a 40 foot
container there…
5. Speed
The final reason we received from our subscribers was speed. Now by this, it‘s
meant the speed by which a shipping container home can be built when
compared to a traditionally built house (using bricks and mortar).
Shipping containers can be laid at pretty impressive speeds. Take for example
theRiverside Building Offices which is part of ‗Container City‘.
Here, 73 shipping containers were used to build the office block, and it only took
eight days to install them! A traditional office block made from concrete would
have taken much longer than this.
How Should You Ventilate Your
Shipping Container Home?
Of equal importance to insulating your container home is ventilating it properly.
Without providing your container with effective ventilation, whether passive or
mechanical, you are asking for serious problems with your newly built home.
Ventilation becomes even more important when we consider ‗tiny‘ shipping
container homes which are less than 600 square feet, because any ventilation
issue is enhanced due to the small space.
Shipping containers are designed to be inherently air tight. This is due to them
being used to ship goods in all kinds of weather across the ocean. Wemust
remember when goods are inside of containers the last thing we want in there is
corrosive saltwater!
This doesn‘t bode well when we take shipping containers and use them as
habitable homes, because as we know, homes require ventilation. Not to worry
though- as today we are going to address exactly how you can ventilate your
shipping container home.
Having poor ventilation within your container can cause harm to both your home
and the people living within it. One of the biggest problems caused by poor
ventilation is mold.
Mold
Mold is a fungus which when left untreated can be very expensive to remove and
when its fumes are inhaled by a human can cause harm.
Diseases
Poor ventilation has been linked with numerous human diseases such as:
pneumonia, dry eyes and nausea. In addition it has also been linked with
respiratory diseases, the most common of which is asthma.
Rust
Poor ventilation can also lead to a build-up of condensation which can cause
your steel containers to rust. This rust can also affect any metal pipework (such
as your plumbing) which run throughout your container. Repairing rusting
containers can be a time consuming and costly job.
Poor Aromas
The final problem we are going to look at is odours. Poor ventilation can lead to
damp which creates musty odours. You‘ve probably smelt this before if you‘ve
walked into an old room which hasn‘t had any fresh air for a while.
Also, because the air has nowhere to go, any scent within your home will
linger and cause a build-up of generally unwanted scents!
When warm air touches a surface that is colder than itself, the moisture within the
warm air escapes onto the colder surface. And as we know, where there is water,
shortly after there will be mold.
Warm Front
This occurs when warm air gets inside your home and touches the cold internal
walls of your containers- however in poorly ventilated homes this isn‘t so
common.
Noteworthy Articles
o How Do I Keep My Container Home Cool?
o How Do I Keep My Shipping Container Home Warm?
o 5 Methods To Insulate Your Shipping Container Home
There are two overarching methodologies when it comes to ventilation. The first
method being passive ventilation and the second method being mechanical
ventilation.
Passive Ventilation
Passive ventilation gives you the ability to ventilate your home without having to
spend lots of money. Mechanical ventilation such as air conditioning requires a
hefty energy bill, however, passive ventilation utilizes the earth‘s natural
elements to ventilate your home.
Vents
The cheapest, and most common, way to provide your containers with passive
ventilation is to fit either vents or a whirly bird onto your container. Placing vents
onto your containers allows air to blow both and in out of your containers just by
utilising the wind.
This is most commonly referred to as cross ventilation. You place vents on the
side of your container in which the wind blows into and then place vents on the
opposite side of your container. This allows air to blow in through vents on one
side of your containers and out of the vents on the other side of your container.
Design
Another great way to passively ventilate your container is by designing it in such
a way to utilise the wind to blow through your home.
We first saw this with shipping containers in 2011 with ‗Containers of Hope‘.
Containers of hope is a shipping container home in San Jose, Costa Rica which
uses windows placed just beneath its roof to allow air to blow through the
containers. These strategically placed windows keep the container cool on hot
summer days and it also helps to reduce the humidity of the containers.
We have also seen smart building design with Vissershok Primary School in
South Africa- who decided to use shipping containers for classrooms.
Vissershok Primary School placed lots of small windows along both sides of the
shipping containers wall, this again allows air to blow straight through the
container and remove stale air.
In fact in many countries like the US, Australia, New Zealand and the United
Kingdom it is a building regulation standard to fit mechanical ventilation in
kitchens and bathrooms. Depending on your country the minimum amount of
extraction required is 15 litres per second in each room.
This fan allows the humidity to be extracted out of your home before it settles on
a surface and turns into moisture and damp. The fan should be fitted as high as
possible on the wall which is furthest away from the main source of air placement
(either your door or window).
Balanced Ventilation
Your final, but most expensive option is to use a balanced ventilation system.
This involves having fans to both push stale air out and suck fresh air in. The air
can then be sent throughout your container using ducts.
This means in moisture prone areas such as bathrooms and kitchens air can be
extracted, and fresh air can be blown into other areas of your home such as the
lounge and bedrooms.
Using a balanced ventilation system you can very easily manage the moisture
and humidity levels in your home.
Dehumidifier
Although not a mechanical ventilation device, a dehumidifier can help stop many
of the problems caused by bad ventilation. A dehumidifier reduces the level of
humidity in the air and thus can reduce the water content and stop condensation
occurring and corroding your containers!
They can be purchased as small stand-alone appliances which can be moved
room to room. Or you can buy entire home solutions which have ducts fed
throughout your container.
Foundation Ventilation
One issue which we haven‘t discussed so far is the importance of ensuring your
foundation is ventilated; this is also known as crawl space ventilation.
Now, not all foundations can be ventilated. For instance, if you have a raft (slab-
on-grade) foundation then you won‘t physically able to ventilate it. However if you
have a concrete pier foundation, or any other type of raised foundation, then you
need to ensure you have sufficient air flow underneath your containers.
Failure to ventilate your foundation can bring back that dreaded condensation
which can cause your foundation some serious problem such as mold and rot. In
addition, if your shipping container floor hasn‘t been insulated you can
experience even more problems such as moisture rising up from underneath the
containers into your floor.
The most common way to stop moisture and allow ventilation underneath your
foundation is to use vents.
In-fact many areas stipulate through their building code that you must use vents
to provide your foundation with air flow. These vents are typically fitted with a
wire mesh screen which keeps pests and insects out of your crawl space.
Vented crawl spaces work well in cold climates, however, in humid climates
using a vented crawl space can actually do more damage than good, because
the external air is normally more humid than the air already in the crawl space.
In humid climates it would be better to seal off the airflow to your crawl space
completely and use a dehumidifier.
Reasons Why You Should Have a
Shipping Container Home
Eco Friendly
So you want to do your part for the planet and become more environmentally
friendly, but when we talk about environmentally friendly homes this normally
costs the earth, take for example the million dollar green homes The Washington
Post reported. Most of us have the willingness but not the commanding price tag,
so what else can you do?
Another eco-friendly solution people are venturing to is log cabin or timber homes.
Whilst these warrant attention, and are certainly a viable solution, shipping
containers offer several distinct advantages over them. Firstly, they aren‘t
susceptible to dry rot and other fungus infections. Secondly, wood is predisposed
to mould which steel isn‘t. Finally water leakage is much more common in log
cabs when compared to the steel roofs on container homes.
Aesthetics
Whether or not you want to live in a container home aside, nobody can argue
that they aren‘t aesthetics stunning! Some of the ‗Cargotecture‘ we have seen
over the past several years has been stunning. Blending the rawness of the steel
containers with 21st century style has resulted in some of the most icon houses of
our times.
We would normally associate design and aesthetics like this will a million dollar
price tag however this isn‘t the case here.
If the Cottage in the Woods isn‘t entirely you then how about Sven and Anna
Pirkl‘s container home in California, designed by architect Peter DeMaria, which
literally caused two car crashes whilst people were crowding around the house to
take a glimpse and admire it.
Speed
Another fantastic reason people decide to build their houses from cargo
containers is that they can be built with incredible speed. The typical container is
over eight foot high and 40 foot long and these can be stacked side by side and
on top of each other like massive Lego blocks! It‘s common that once the
foundation‘s laid the ground floor can be constructed in under a day; imagine
how long it would take a traditional bricklayer to build the equivalent size wall.
The 2012 Census Bureau‘s survey on construction found that the average length
of time it takes to build a family home is 7 months after they have acquired
planning permission. The majority of shipping container homes can be built far
quicker than this, with even complex container homes being built within six
months. For exampleTodd and Di Miller, a Brisbane couple, who managed to
build their dream home in less than six months and this included losing weeks of
time due to floods and storms whilst they were building.
We have even seen some shipping container homes that are made up of just one
40ft by 8ft container. This container is prefabricated with everything you‘d need
from a kitchen, to living space to a bedroom. They‘re literally just delivered on
site with a set of key to your new home; how fast is that!?
Price
With the current global economy everyone is conscious to try and save a bit of
money here and there. Nothing can swallow your money up like an expensive
house; fortunately this isn‘t the case with container homes. For as little as $1,500
you can pick up used 40 ft shipping containers; you can imagine it doesn‘t take
many of these to build a sizeable family home.
The cost for an average equivalent brick wall would be at least $2,500 plus
money to actually lay the bricks! When you multiply these figures up for an
average America household it‘s easy to see why so many people are interested
in building their own shipping container home instead, for a fraction of the cost of
a traditional brick and mortar house.
Not only this if we compare them to wooden homes, you can see even more
savings. Houses made from wood typically need the wood routinely treated
which can be expensive and is time consuming, no such treatment is necessary
with steel!
Flexibility
The humble shipping container is incredibly flexible and as shown with the
homes in this post they can be used to craft just about anything you can imagine;
bar circular designs!! The beauty of the containers is that they are already built
so all you need to do is cut and chop away to make your perfect design.
Do you know how difficult it is to take down internal walls in a traditional house?
Very. With containers all you need to do is cut away the internal walls and you
can open them up together to create really impressive sized rooms. Also
because shipping container sizes are generic you can easily stack them up and
they fit perfectly together.
Virtually Indestructible
Just in case you‘re still on the fence here, the final awesome reason is that they
are virtually indestructible; it‘s no surprise the US army are using them as
shelters! These containers are designed to hold up to thirty tons of weight and to
be stacked up to seven high; that‘s over 200 tons when fully loaded. So there no
doubt that cargo containers can easily withstand whatever weight loads a typical
house will place upon it.
Earlier we mentioned Todd and Di Miller who built their home in less than six
months in 2013. The inspiration for their shipping container home came in 2011
when sadly, during the Queensland floods, which did over $1 billion worth of
damage, their brick and mortar family home was destroyed. Now they have
a shipping container home which they claim is flood proof!
There are a number of reasons for the worldwide popularity of container homes.
On November 23, 1987, Phillip C. Clark file for a United States patent describe as a
―Method for converting one or more steel shipping containers into a habitable building at
a building site and the product thereof.‖ This patent was granted on August 8, 1989 as
patent 4854094. The diagrams and information contained within the documentation of
the patent appear to lay the groundwork for many current shipping container
architectural ideas.
In 2006, Southern California architect Peter DeMaria, designed the first two-story
shipping container home in the U.S. as an approved structural system under the strict
guidelines of the nationally recognized Uniform Building Code. Even more impressive is
Lot-Tek‘s Puma City, which was built with abundant material at a low price, without
substituting design quality. As such, there are many great examples of shipping
container architecture in the world.
Shipping container architecture gets a lot of encouraging coverage in the design world
as a trendy green alternative to traditional building materials, and seems like a smart
choice for people looking for eco-consciousness. However, there are a lot of downsides
to building with cargo containers. For instance, the coatings used to make the containers
durable for ocean transport also happen to contain a number of harmful chemicals, such
as chromate, phosphorous, and lead-based paints. Moreover, wood floors that line the
majority of shipping container buildings are infused with hazardous chemical pesticides
like arsenic and chromium to keep pests away.
Reusing containers seems to be a low energy alternative, however, few people factor in
the amount of energy required to make the box habitable. The entire structure needs to
be sandblasted bare, floors need to be replaced, and openings need to be cut with a
torch or fireman‘s saw. The average container eventually produces nearly a thousand
pounds of hazardous waste before it can be used as a structure. All of this, coupled with
the fossil fuels required to move the container into place with heavy machinery,
contribute significantly to its ecological footprint.
In many areas, it is cheaper and less energy to build a similarly scaled structure using
wood framing. Shipping container homes makes sense where resources are scarce,
containers are in abundance, and where people are in need of immediate shelter such
as, developing nations and disaster relief. While there are certainly striking and
innovative examples of architecture using cargo containers, it is typically not the best
method of design and construction.
ISO Shipping Containers and Building Code Requirements
General Comments on ISO Shipping Container's Inherent Capacity to Satisfy
Building Code Requirements in Shipping Container House Applica tions:
ISO shipping cargo containers are tested in accordance with the requirements of
International Standard ISO 1496/1 which stipulates static and dynamic design load
factors to be complied with. In the case of a 20' steel container, it is designed to have a
maximum gross weight of 52,910 lbs (typically has a tare weight of around 5,000 lbs and
a payload (P) potential of 47,910 lbs). The container when loaded to its maximum gross
weight must be capable of withstanding imposed loads of 2g downwards, 0.6g lateral
and 2g longitudinal plus be able to withstand eight similar containers loaded to maximum
gross weight stacked on top of it in a ships hold or at a land terminal. It therefore has a
very sever operational life and, notwithstanding its low tare weight it is very strongly built.
The side walls and end walls/doors have to withstand loadings of 0.6P and 0.4P
respectively, these values equate to 28,746 lbs and 19,164 lbs based upon the payload
given above. The side wall area in contact with the load is 146.56 sq. ft. giving a
pressure of 196 lbs/sq. ft. Corresponding figures for the end wall/doors are 51.78 sq. ft.
and 370 lbs/sq. ft. These figures are well in excess of the 20 lbs/sq. ft. wind load
required for structures less than 50 ft. high. A wind of 100 MPH produces a pressure of
only 30 lbs/sq. ft.
The roof load test is 660 lbs over an area of 2' x 1' applied to the weakest part of the
roof. The load is usually applied at the center of the containers positioned with the 2'
dimension aligned longitudinally. Thus the roof is able to support an imposed load of a
minimum of 330 lbs/sq. ft. The design is easily capable of supporting the basic snow
loads of 30 lbs per sq. ft. evenly distributed.
It is difficult to quantify uplift and suction forces. Unlike a building, the roof of a container
is an integral part of the structure; it is continuously welded around its entire periphery
and is itself made from sheets of corrugated 14 ga. Cor-Ten steel also continuously
welded together. This steel, also used for the side and end walls has a minimum yield
strength of 50 ksi, and tensile of 70 ksi. The probability of the roof being removed by
these forces is practically zero as the entire container structure would have to be
destroyed for this to happen.
However, it is not unusual for the complete container to be lifted or blown over if it is not
secured to the ground in storm or hurricane conditions. This would be prevented by
adequate foundation design which is the responsibility of the customer. As you know
when containers do blow over in container yards the resulting damage is almost always
minimal, another testimonial to their strength.
The floor is design to pass a concentrated load test of 16,000 lbs over a foot print of 44
sq. inches. The floor has also been designed to pass a test at twice its rated payload
capacity of 47,895 for a 20 container and 58,823 lbs for a 40' container when evenly
distributed.
The boxes are suitable for earthquake areas of seismic rating of up to the California
standards.
Source:
http://www.residentialshippingcontainerprimer.com/ISO%20Shipping%20Containers%20
and%20Building%20Code%20Requirements
Does the Upcycle House live up to its
advance billing?
Last May we showed the design of the Upcycle House by Lendager
Architects, which had " the ambitious goal of being the first house build only
from upcycled and environmentally sustainable materials." Now that it is built, the
question is, does it live up to its advance billing? Much depends on how you
Upcycling is a step beyond recycling, the materials are not just reused, but
Now don't get me wrong, this a great idea and there is a lot going on in this
project that I think is terrific. However, they call it "an experimental project, aimed
raised.
But lets start with the shipping containers. These boxes are designed to stack
sixteen high, they can hold tons. They are designed for international shipping.
They are now holding up a light roof. There is no question that these boxes are
seriously bashed up and at the ned of their useful life (and from an era when the
floors and paint are toxic) but is it upcycling to have so much steel doing so little
work?
An empty 40' shipping container weighs 8380 pounds. A galvanized steel stud
weighs a pound per linear foot. These two containers, melted down and rolled
and formed, could have been upcycled into 2,095 8' long steel studs. Framing the
walls instead of using shipping containers would have used about 144 of them.
The siding and roofing of the house is made from "recycled aluminum soda
hugely energy intensive (the stuff has been nicknamed "congealed electricity"),
The problem is, there isn't enough of it to go around, there isn't enough recycled
means that new aluminum has to be made to make up the difference. That's why
one should think twice about using it at all. A case can be made that making
children. But there are serious issues with aluminum. The process of producing
the pure metal we all know and love from its most basic natural occurring state
(Bauxite) requires an incredible amount of energy. So much energy, in fact, that
you would have to recycle the same piece of aluminum 20 times to just break
even on the energy used to create it in the first place. And that is just the tip of
the iceberg.
The kitchen floor is clad in tiled champagne cork-leftovers, and the bath tiles are
Walls and floors are covered with OSB-panels consisting of wood-chips that are
recycled materials are not very visible and the house does not radiate a recycled
look – The house looks and functions like a contemporary house built of
conventional materials.
A special emphasis has been put on the house‘s passive properties. Therefore
Source: http://www.treehugger.com/modular-design/does-upcycle-house-live-its-
advance-billing.html
What's wrong with shipping
container housing? One architect says
"everything."
Shipping containers are now such a thing that in Denmark, they are putting
them in glass cases. I have had a troubled relationship with shipping containers
since I was ten, when my dad went into the container biz. They were made in the
USA and Canada then and were really expensive; you wouldn't think of living in
them. But every now and again he would get sent a photo of some shipping
container in Africa that fell off a truck and had windows and doors cut into the
walls.
I had some fun with them in University, designing a summer camp for temporary
use that folded out of a forty footer. Because you would never actually use a
container empty; the dimensions are lousy for people and the flooring was
treated with insecticides and the paints were designed to last through ten years
on the high seas, so are seriously industrial. It may have been a really bad career
I grew up around shipping containers; my dad made them. I played with them in
handling technology that made them cheap and easy to move. But in the real
world I found them to be too small, too expensive, and too toxic.
Today, shipping container architecture is all the rage, and we have shown
they are cheap and ubiquitous, and designers are doing amazing things with
them. Did I make a terrible career move? Reading Brian Pagnotta in ArchDaily,
in one of the most balanced and thoughtful articles I have seen on the subject of
There are copious benefits to the so-called shipping container architecture model.
A few of these advantages include: strength, durability, availability, and cost. The
abundance and relative cheapness (some sell for as little as $900) of these
containers during the last decade comes from the deficit in manufactured goods
coming from North America. These manufactured goods come to North America,
from Asia and Europe, in containers that often have to be shipped back empty at
a considerable expense. Therefore, new applications are sought for the used
containers that have reached their final destination.
He then gives a bit of history, tracing container buildings back to a patent in
1989. Here, he is patently wrong; people were playing with them back in the
seventies.
My dad built this in the seventies, moving shipping containers full of equipment to
the Arctic, where he lined them up in two rows and put a roof between them and
doors on the end, so that workers had an enclosed environment to unload the
containers and assemble whatever it was. The key here was mobility; the next
year when the containers were empty the building would be shipped south again.
(A container cost $ 5,000 in 1970 dollars, you didn't just abandon it).
The same basic idea is being used by everyone from Adam Kalkin to Peter
Demaria- they recognize that the container is too small an element for most
When I played with shipping containers in the 70s at school, it was all about
folding stuff out of them and about movement. The container was the box in
which you shipped stuff. Because really, by the time you insulate and finish the
interior, what are you going to do in seven feet and a few inches? You can't even
fit a double bed in and walk around it. And you certainly couldn't live in any
container made for international travel; to be allowed into Australia the wood
floors had to be treated with seriously toxic insecticides. To last ten years in
the salt air of a container ship, they were painted in industrial strength paints that
The real attraction was their mobility. Who in their right mind would nail them
down permanently?
At Archdaily, Peter picks up on all of these issues of toxicity and size. He also
writes:
factor in the amount of energy required to make the box habitable. The entire
openings need to be cut with a torch or fireman's saw. The average container
be used as a structure.
He concludes:
While there are certainly striking and innovative examples of architecture using
cargo containers, it is typically not the best method of design and construction.
MEKA in Manhattan
I have watched the shipping container meme with some bemusement and a bit of
depression, thinking that I seriously missed the boat. But 30 years ago I thought
them too small, toxic and expensive, and that hasn't changed. It is about to, as
designers and builders finally figure out what shipping containers actually are,
which is not just a box, but part of a global transportation system with a vast
infrastructure of ships, trains, trucks and cranes that has driven the cost of
This is what I think is the future of shipping container architecture, and it is not a
happy thought. Shipping containers have globalized the production of just about
everything except housing, because houses are bigger than
boxes. MEKA manufactures and finishes new containers in China, then uses that
world, from Stuttgart to St. Clair Avenue in Toronto, a block from my house.
When you think of a shipping container as more than just a box, but part of a
system, then it begins to make sense. And the logical, and inevitable conclusion
is that housing is no longer any different than any other product, but can be built
anywhere in the world. The role of the shipping container in architecture will be to
offshore the housing industry to China, just like every other. That is their real
future.
If you care about getting consistent, high quality housing that's fast and cheap,
this will make you happy. If you care about all those jobs that have vaporized in
Source: http://www.treehugger.com/modular-design/does-shipping-container-
architecture-make-sense.html
He speaks from some experience, having actually built a container project, and
notes that "For sites where on-site construction is not feasible or desirable, fitting
a container out in the factory can be a sensible option." But for housing? On his
personal website,Mark makes some very good points. Here are some of the
most interesting:
Housing is usually not a technology problem. All parts of the world have
vernacular housing, and it usually works quite well for the local climate. There are
certainly places with material shortages, or situations where factory built housing
this case prefab buildings would make sense- but doing them in containers does
not.
Here I might argue that the great genius of shipping containers is not the box but
the handling systems; there are ships, cranes, trucks and trains all designed
around them. So if you do want to deliver stuff fast after a disaster, there is no
better form than the shipping container. He then goes through the fundamental
problem of width, which is just too narrow really, Insulation, which is a huge
stacked like Lego building blocks, or with one layer perpendicular to the next.
Architects love stuff like this, just like they throw around usually
misleading/meaningless phrases like ―kit of parts.‖ Guess what- the second you
don‘t stack the containers on their corners, the structure that is built into the
containers needs to be duplicated with heavy steel reinforcing. The rails at the
top and the roof of the container are not structural at all (the roof of a container is
light gauge steel, and will dent easily if you step on it). If you cut openings in the
container walls, the entire structure starts to deflect and needs to be reinforced
because the corrugated sides act like the flange of beam and once big pieces are
removed, the beam stops working. All of this steel reinforcing is very expensive,
space to run utilities. Because of the problems with insulation mentioned above,
you will need to install a very robust HVAC system to heat and cool the building
(that Mumbai tower shown above would literally be a deathtrap without cooling).
You will have a hard time taking advantage of passive strategies like thermal
mass if you maintain the container aesthetic. You‘ll also end up with low ceilings,
as even high cube containers are only 9-‘6‖ (2.9 m) in overall exterior height, so
Finally Mark mentions the issue of recycling. I have looked at this in the past,
with theUpcycle House which had " the ambitious goal of being the first house
An empty 40' shipping container weighs 8380 pounds. A galvanized steel stud
weighs a pound per linear foot. These two containers, melted down and rolled
and formed, could have been upcycled into 2,095 8' long steel studs. Framing the
walls instead of using shipping containers would have used about 144 of them.
There is a lot more steel in a shipping container than you actually need for a
building; that's so they can be stacked full nine high and get tossed around the
ocean and thrown on trucks and trains. It's really being wasted when it's put into
a house. And as Mark notes, you can probably build it faster and cheaper than
Relatively untrained people can build a room that size of simple wood framing in
a day without needing to rent a crane or learning how to weld for about the same