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Shipping Container Homes

Posted 32 months ago|4 comments|3,307 views
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celebcrazy
New Orleans, LA
So, you want to go green with your new home? The new trend is shipping container homes – they’re constructed out of used shipping containers. Homes built from steel last forever, and they don’t have to be ugly. There are whole photo galleries of shipping container homes online – the picture to the left is just one of many possible cool houses you can build out of shipping containers.

There are many of benefits from building a shipping container home, too. First, the shipping containers are cheap (around $900 each) and easy to find. There are several online businesses that have shipping containers for sale, including “SG Blocks,” a company that was recently featured in a great CNN article (first link).

SG Blocks has a great website (second link) and can custom-design your home from scratch. Their shipping container designs are really cool. If only I had the money…

My dream home would be constructed out of recycled materials – like shipping containers. It would also have a bunch of solar panels on the roof and a big greenhouse on the side.

Shipping containers are plentiful, easily transported, stackable, cheap, and very strong. There’s even some structures built out of shipping containers that can withstand hurricanes, so they could be built in Florida and in the Caribbean.

Do you think there are any downsides?
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32 months ago: And what bank will lend money to construct using these? It's a great idea and if you live near a port you can get them cheap but it you live inland you might have trouble even finding them.

As for your solar plans, good thing you are saving money on the frame for your home, the price of enough panels, batteries and electronics to do the job will more than make up the savings in construction materials.

Don't forget, you still have to "finish" the inside and part of the outside, not to mention building code compliance in city areas.

Good luck.
32 months ago: 6'r, good points. Yeah, these things can be stacked.
How many of you have ever been inside a "Container"?

They are long and narrow. Have they come out with a "double-wide" container?

Where are you going to place furniture? Hang it from the ceiling? Oh yeah. By the time you add all of the insulation and internal walls they are even smaller inside.

Green? No. Better statement would be cheaper than a trailer. Sleep in a bag. That sound like home.
Rudi Stettner
Rudi Stettner
 Moderator
32 months ago: My dream is to refit and move into an old subway car
johnsimmis
johnsimmis
New York, NY
17 months ago: Building with containers is worth taking a look at if you are contemplating a new home.

Good resource is the Residential Shipping Container Primer website. A DO IT YOURSELF (DIY) REFERENCE AND FOR CONVERTING RECYCLED INTERMODAL CARGO SHIPPING CONTAINERS INTO BUILDINGS AND ARCHITECTURE.

Lots of example buildings, details, facts, and links to other articles. They have something new that you can setup your own project wiki to get help with your project if you are the design build sort...

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