So I've been putting quite a bit of thought into this. Most shipping containers are 8'(2.44m) wide by 8'6"(2.59m)" tall, by varying lengths. Usually 20'(6.10 m) long. I figure, depending on what you insulate it with, you will have about 150 sq feet of floorspace per container. One of these wouldn't be much space, but if you stick 2 or more together, you are getting somewhere.

You could stucco or side over one, put a little roof on top of it, and not many people could tell that it was a shipping container. I've actually seen one of these in real life(minus the roof), and it looked pretty good.

With 8 and and a half feet of headspace, you should have plenty of room to run overhead plumbing and electrical conduit.

With some good insulation, it wouldn't be tough to keep warm with a small potbelly woodstove. Im not sure what one would use on insulation. Perhaps a layer of bed liner stuff[ala Rhino Liner], as it has a decent r-value, and is watertight, with a layer of foam insulation[R-Max or similar], then a layer of sheetrock.

.In this order

Steel

Bed Liner

Foam Sheet

Textured Sheetrock

.

Pros

<UL TYPE=SQUARE>

<LI>They are cheap and easy to come by

<LI>They can be put together and stacked atop each other.

<LI>You don't need a building permit to bolt one down to a concrete runner(Applies to CA law)

<LI>They are a lot stronger and safer than an RV.

<LI>Termite proof.

<LI>Fairly easy to transport(much easier than a mobile home)

</UL>

As for cons, none really come to mind. Rust wouldn't be much of an issue, as most are built to withstand sea transport.

I don't see any reason why you couldn't make one of these things just as nice, if not nicer than a regular home. And for a lot less money too.

Post thoughts.

Interesting idea, but I would go with a steel&gt;Foam&gt;Drywall. Fuck bedliner.

Something I found on the web

dude thats cool idea. btw how much does one cost?

Good find Parks. Toxic mildew might present a dangerous issue.

Check out this little floorplan thing.

PB

RK

Imagine that those letters are the end of the container (8x8.5' squares).



B would be the bedroom. It could contain a bed, some space for whatever. I'd use an exterior staircase to save interior space, and maybe just put a ladder to get down into the lower level.

K would contain your kitchen area and bathroom.

R would be recreational area, a sofa, tv, amplifiers, or whatever. Just space for kickin it, jammin, storage, methlab, etc.

P wouldn't be a shipping container. It would just be an outdoor patio on top of R. You can put a water tank and a hot water heater up here, along with a power generator(propane too if you were feeling balsy). The hot water heater and water tank overhead would save you from having to use any additional energy for water pressure. Just get somebody else to pump it up there for you. In addition to your utilities, you could throw a few chairs, bbq pit and an awning up there too.



Edit:spelling

And Warrussia, these things range anywhere from $0 to $2000. You can get a nice fancy brand new one, or you can get one from some guy for nothin'(just what it costs you to haul it off).

[This message has been edited by Generic Box Of Cookies (edited 09-17-2006).]

I'm going to work over this using my favorite home designing software, The Sims.



Sort of a loft bedroom.

awesome. It's cool to have a real architecht working on this.

Don't forget to post pics!

thanks. i would make a two story house. but there would be two on the top. three on the bottem . that way one would be a patio. there would be a ladder in the inside. i would put the ac/heater on the top. also i would cover the containers with brick.

Then why not just buy a house?

Because several governments are considering the use of shipping containers to solve the lack of housing problem.

this would be awsome and very cost effective

The best part is if you want to move, you can take your house with you. If you bribe the shippers, you can probably ride in it.

Do you not know how to think?

Price wise, it would be much cheaper.

Chances are, you wouldn't need a permit(One of those alone can run $15,000+). You wouldn't need to frame exterior walls, floors, or a roof, or have a full foundation(which includes the flatwork). Those are a huge part of the cost right there in a home.

You wouldn't need nearly as much expertice or time to construct one of those as you would a regular house. Doing a good job on a foundation takes some skill. I've seen some guys who have been doing it their whole life, and they still manage to fuck it up. Same thing goes with the framing of the walls and roof. With these, all you need is a concrete runner, which is about a 14" wide by 6" deep by however long you need the length to be with some bolts sticking out of it at even intervals.

One of these places would be really easy to make an addition to. Just level out the ground, pour out another runner or two, and bolt or weld the things together.

Many structural advantages. It would be practically invulnerable to hurricanes and earthquakes(I wouldn't say the same about tornados or volcanos though). And if a flood carries it away, it will probobly remain intact. These things are somewhat buoyant too. Even if it does sink, it isn't going to get waterlogged and fall apart. http://www.veromarine.co.nz/dirvz/ma...otoFeature0007



Read my above posts for more reasons.

Really, I think the only reason everyone isn't living in these already is they are either:

A. Haven't thought of it.

or

B. Their pride in their social class will not afford them to live in a metal box, despite the significant advantages.

Wurd..:P

You could weld L brackets on top of the containers, and use those to bolt them together, and caulk the joint between the containers. I think that would be the way to go if you planned on disassembling it. But I dunno, there may be a better way to go aboot it, because I've never studied one of these up close.

When I was thinking of this, the idea of bolting down the furniture and everything came across my mind. That would enable you to just toss the thing on the bed of a car trailer, chain it down, and hit the road without any worries of shit thrashing around. It would be like a ghetto military-grade RV.

Im all about heavy duty and military grade. If it were up to me, I would replace the counter tops in my house with 1/2" tool steel, and the sponge with a wire wheel grinder and a sand blaster. As for the bathroom, there was this exhaust fan that I helped install on a F-16 hangar at the local navy base that would be fabulous in any bathroom(given the toilet was bolted down and you were strapped onto it). Im sure you can get one at any local home depot or nasa scrapyard.

i say this is a great idea. forget social classes. who cares. if it works it works. i hate these rich snoby guys with a 50 bed room house and 5 pepole stay there max. and we are thinking about a house that functions. not looks good. your house isn't art. you live in it.

Dude, how about making a huge hexagon cube out of shipping crates and then putting a prosthetic frame over it to appear as a real home.

That'd be so badass and cheap as fuck.

Hell, I might do that when I'm older and need a house.

yeah im gonna do this but im burying them under ground outside of the house.

all ready have 3 containers

so what does one of these things cost and can they be easily and cheaply moved around an empty lot?

Theres nothing saying that this house has to look ugly. Sure, leaving it stock with no siding or finish won't be pretty. Thats why we have siding and stucco.

Underground ones are cool, but you have to take into consideration the water table, unless you want an underground swimming pool.

I've been dicking around with gmax a little bit, and I've come up with this. The render is ugly, since I just formatted and I haven't been able to update my drivers yet. As you can see, there are 3 40' containers side by side, 2 20's on top of that, and another 40' on those. That is the closest I've had to a stucco texture. There are windows and doors. I don't have a very good selection of textures right now, so I just used garage door textures . http://img237.imageshack.us/img237/1...rthing1do8.jpg

As I get a little farther along, I will clean up the model, find better textures, and maybe add interiors and more extras.

What you see in this picture(minus the windows and stairs and stucco) could probobly be done for just a few grand, and you would have about 1600 square feet of interior space, and about 640 square feet of elevated outdoor patio space(not including the top of the highest unit, which would be space for solar panels, antennas, water tanks, etc).

Im sure you could build the complex shown(including the interiors) in this picture for ~$10,000 if you had a good supply for your materials.

There are billions of combinations you could do. You can stack these atop each other in the real world up to 9 stories. That would make for an awesome pyramid...

If you want me to make any more mock-ups, tell me, and I'll be glad to slap one together.

[This message has been edited by Generic Box Of Cookies (edited 09-17-2006).]

Ok, so here's some alternate designs.

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Here is the one I mentioned in the last post. It is 3 40's side by side, two 20's on top of that, with a 40' on top of the 20's.

http://img237.imageshack.us/img237/1...rthing1do8.jpg

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Here is a little different design. It utilizes 40' containers and 25' containers.

It has 3 40'ers resting atop 2 25'ers, with another 40' on the ground to close it off, and to add an above ground balcony. The area under it is left open, which is a great place to park your car and chill in the shade. You also have lots of room on the top to chillax, party, and put all your utilities. Plexiglass skylights(not shown) could be incorporated and benifited from a lot in this design. http://img97.imageshack.us/img97/462...rthing2vv9.jpg

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Same as the above design, except it uses all 40'ers(9 of em). Tons of semi-outdoor, indoor, and patio space. Could make an awesome manufacturing, residential, and partying complex all at the same time. http://img242.imageshack.us/img242/9...rplace3gp4.jpg

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This is one of the earlier ones I mentioned. It is made from 3 20 footers. It looks small, but you actually have about 480sq feet inside, with 320 outside. It isn't huge, but Im sure 2 people could live there comfortably. http://img88.imageshack.us/my.php?im...rbasic4ax6.jpg

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you could get a shipping container that was refigerated. that would solve almost all insulation problems. it might be a bit more expensive to come across.

he's right. Just make sure you've got a proper ventilation system (solar powered?) and then a manual override (like a big hatch you open) just in case it fails. You don't wanna cook to death in one of those do ya?

I wish I were an Architect, But I am no more than a Carpenter studying to be a Draftsman.

I still gave this a shot, And my mind is going absolutely off the hook with this.

I'll see you in a couple days, as always is with me.

hahaha that made my day.

Apparently refrigerated containers are ~50 000 USD so it'd be cheaper to buy a regular one and insulate it yourself. This sounds like a good idea. I'll keep it in mind for after college!

http://tinyurl.com/mpqwu

looks like you can get shipping containers for a pretty reasonable price.

The only problem I can see with this is the actual logistics of stacking the containers. How would you do it? You'd need a crane or something.

Those things weight like 8000 pounds.

[This message has been edited by Sentinel (edited 09-17-2006).]

http://tinyurl.com/kbqjr

i like my desighn but its hard to read here, i need to find something better than freehand in photoshop

Refrigerated units probably contain their own high powered refrigeration system, not just insulation.

Personally I want to stack a couple 40's on end to make a tower. Then add a horizontal 25' on top of that, and replace part of the floor with glass for a freaky observation deck.

Freaky obeservation deck



I'll post more on this later, I have homework.

i would bury 4 40's for the basment. then only put 2 40's on top of the ones at the edge. then put as many 40's as i can fit sideways to create a car port. then i would put brick on the outside. i would use wood floors. sheet rock wall. with inslation in btween them and the container. and a diy drop ceiling for conuit, a/c heating, etc. but has anyone thought about making a 5 level apartment complex. and renting it for very cheap. it wouldent include furniture. but it would have bed room, bathroom, kitchen, and livnging room. make system to lift it into positon. build some scofolding and use winchs to lift containers after you put all the stuff in it. i would but a 3-4 inch gap between the floor and the bottem of container for inslation. so pepole don't complain they can't sleep becuse they keep hearing footsteps. oh and make it almost sound proof. and make it so everthing is easily accsesible. or you could build homes out of them for pepole. i am going to build one that relys on alternative fuels. and renable energy.(solar, geothermal, etc.) after applying for alot grants. for it. i could come out of it with a free house. and then buy alot of land around it. imagine the possiblitys.

No need. I added a couple extra doors and solar panels..

I might get to work on the apartment complex later.



Oh yeah, Spatch, here is your tower

If I did that design, I would prefab everything on the ground, and weld a post beam into the first one.

[This message has been edited by Generic Box Of Cookies (edited 09-17-2006).]

Here is my favorite layout so far. It is like Dreggmans, except it has more upstairs and patio room, a bigger carport area, and less wasted space.

It has about

1480 square feet of interior space, and 640 sq feet of patio(second story only).

yeah i like that one too. but i would make a foundation by burying some cargo containers below it. then add one on the top level to put staris in. then you could just use the basement for anything.

God damn get off my fucking case

I was talking to the guy above me, who was talking about putting bricks and everything around it. Also, it says on their site, the one that is built and has the foundation and everything costs $140,000+. If you cant find a house for that much for that amount of square footage, i think you are looking in the wrong neighborhoods. The only benefit i can see to having this over a house is not having to have a permit, or if you live in Shitafornia, where a ranch house costs $300,000.

[This message has been edited by skidmeister927 (edited 09-17-2006).]

my family owns a brick plant so i could get a lot of brick for litle or no money at all. also i could get some inslation for pretty cheap. and i know this warehouse where i can get almost anything i want for very cheap. so i could buildn it for aabout 50,00-60,000. try finding a good sturdy house that will last a good while. with good sq footage. even in a shitty neighboorhood. in rowan county, nc. btw that wharehouse gets stuff that gets paid for by insurence claims. i can get 300+ feet of seat belt matrial. to a bunch of tools. and i might be able to qualify for grant beacuse i am recyclying matireals

[This message has been edited by Warrussia (edited 12-10-2006).]

Then you are blind/stupid.

There are low quality 1800' track houses here in the middle of BFE nevada that go for $300,000.

And the $140,000 probobly includes the septic system, well, utiliites. Those things can rack up $30,000+ fairly quickly. Not to mention the land they put it on, which could have easily been 80% of that that $140,000.

Those are different, those are truck containers. He is talking about shiping containers. The truck containers are made to be attached to the truck and are really attached to the frame. A shipping container is just a big steal box although sometimes they are set onto trucks, but most trucks you see have different ones.

Except that the refrigeration shit is a hazard to your health.

And expensive as hell and depletes the ozone.

ive thought about this, but as a nuclear bomb shelter. you could bury it, then to add storage add a real bed, preferably with room underneath, water tank, etc.

then all you need to worry about is ventilation, and misc supplies

it wouldnt need insulation then, as the soil will provide enough. you could make an underground tunnel from your house to the shelter if you really wanted to :P

also, a prison near my place uses containers as cells :P try cutting through 5mm mild steel with your razor blade.

cuz a house is 50x more expensive lol

you can get refridgerated shipping containers. they usually have the refridgeration unit inside the container, although ive seen some 40' containers with the unit on the outside. they use them for transporting biological specimens in mass amounts usually

You can get insulated ones as well, without the cooling unit. Some places even sell shipping containers with windows, flooring, and siding installed.

SO fucking true man.

made a post about this container house idea in:
http://www.totse.com/community/showt...8#post10064588

any feedback would be great