What great things can you do with a used shipping container? Have you ever seen a house 100% made from the recycled materials like shipping containers? Well, it seems to be a novel idea, but dreams come true thanks to talented and creative designers and architects. This article will list out top 10 shipping container home plans for you to consider.
Things to Consider about Shipping Container Home Plans
The size of the shipping containers
Normally, the standard shipping container has 8 feet width, 8.6 feet height, and 20-40 feet length. If you need the container with a higher ceiling, you should find the high cube container that has 40 feet length and 9.6 feet height.
Previous life of shipping containers
You should be aware that most of the shipping containers were sprayed with pesticides because they are often used for ocean travel, and even some of them were used to transport toxic chemicals.
So, it is necessary to do research about the previous life of the containers you choose in order to create a greenhouse.
The weather
It is difficult to insulate the shipping containers from the impact of weather. You know the container is not good at anti-noise, so if you build a container house at windy places, you have to face with noise issues every day.
You shouldn’t choose the areas having extreme changes in weather to construct the container house either. This is because these change might cause the moisture condensation in the interior.
Permission
Not all areas allow the residential construction that uses shipping containers as the main materials, so sometimes you need to ask for a permit from the planning department at your local first.
Engineer or Architect
To make your idea come true, you should consult the experts’ advice, and they will instruct you how to build and turn the shipping containers into a comfortable house.
It is common sense that you need to cut out the container for doors or windows and reinforce it before building. Also, the installation of electricity, plumbing, water, etc. is also a challenging issue that you need to ask for an engineer or architect to support.
10 Typical Shipping Container Home Plans
1. Green House
The Greenhouse is built on a 2000-square surface. The house has an industrial style on the outside, but its inside is designed with the walnut wood finish.
Floor structure and window system are two most important things for a shipping container house. Architects cut several small windows and use the dual pane aluminum material to make the house brighter due to natural light. The concrete floor is a good idea for this house.
There are five decks located outside for small coffee or dinner with a beautiful view. Compared with a normal house at the same size, a metal container house seems to be more attractive as it costs less money but still beautiful and stable.
2. Guest house
A Guesthouse needs at least two 40ft containers. Thanks to many large windows, the house looks more spacious and comfortable, and you might not realize it is a metal container house.
Instead of getting a giant loan for a normal house, why don’t you consider building a container house like this? It is more affordable and creative while still making sure the stability.
3. On-Water House
If you love living near a lake, a container house on the lakeside might be a perfect idea. This house is combined from six metal containers located side by side. Its rooftop can be used as a Greenfield, which makes the house more environment-friendly.
However, the most challenging to build the same house is location. Not all the shore are for construction use, so you have to ask for permission whether you can implement the project or not.
4. 2-piece container house
This kind of shipping container house is perfect for any family having children and pets because of a nice yard between two separated houses. You can set some furniture and a patio here. From windows of the house, you easily keep an eye on your babies.
Although these houses are made of 12 shipping containers, they seem to have no difference from other normal houses. 2-piece container house is especially suitable for those who have just got married and want to live closely with their parents while still have privacy.
Floors of the house are made with two layers including the firm and concrete. Besides, the house looks much cooler with a lot of grass covered the panels. The walls are redesigned by using drywall outside so that you might not think that they are metal.
5. Tiny container house
If you prefer a small house, you could consider this model of tiny container house.
This house is made of 2 shipping containers. From outside, the house looks rather small. However, it contains six different rooms: a living room, two bedrooms, a bathroom, a kitchen, and a laundry room.
If you want to save money on electricity, you can set up some solar panels on the top of the house. With a tiny budget, this small container house is worth your consideration.
6. White House
The house looks rather prominent from other regular houses due to its special architecture. It is perfectly impressive by the unique angles.
There is a large parking area on the ground floor, which can contain two SUVs. Moreover, the house is more spacious thanks to some wide windows. At your first look, you are difficult to know this is a container house, only when you come closer to the house can you realize this.
Compared to the common houses, this house costs less money and less time to complete. Therefore, if you want to save money of house, this is one of the best options to consider.
7. Stacked container house
This model of shipping container house is as same as the green container house above.
There is a balcony on the left side of the house, which is made of a lot of short glass rectangles. The ground is connected to the top floor by a staircase so that you can directly go to the top floor without any difficulty.
Inside the house also stays a metal staircase leading to the top floor. Besides, the living room with a sofa and a fireplace is located at downstairs.
This container house makes sure a good stability due to a steel framework for all containers.
8. Small container house
This container house is suitable for those who have a small budget or want to save money. There are solar panels well installed on the top of the house so that you can benefit electricity from the sun without paying too much fee.
Though it looks quite small, this house can accommodate four people. The living room is spacious due to a large glass door. Furthermore, you can set up some patio furniture under the deck so that the whole family can enjoy breakfast or coffee shop right in front of the house with a very nice view.
9. 8-container house
If you need a big house for many people living inside, this model of container house is good to consider. This house is made of 8 shipping containers with the total areas of 2200 sq.
You can find so many windows around the house. They are designed with two layers, including glass and metal. As a result, you are secured for the best privacy when closing them.
A slim metal staircase plays an important role in connecting two floors of the house, so the inside of the house is much more spacious. All the bedrooms are located on the second floor while the kitchen and the living room are on the ground floor.
This container house is perfect for those who love the industrial style.
10. Container Villa
This container house is specially designed to withstand for the floods due to its flood proof ground floors. Besides, it also shows its outstanding features if you live in a place of strong wind up to 175mph.
You might be surprised at its weight capability, as it weighs approximately 200 tons with seven containers. The house also impressed you with a huge garage, which can accommodate 2 – 3 cars.
Conclusion
So now have you got your ideal architecture for your container house? At any rate, there are several things you need to bear in mind before going ahead with shipping container home plans:
- It is evident that container houses are much cheaper than other regular However, they are possible to be made to have the same look with the regular houses.
- Always remember to ask for building permission of your container house from the authority, and the most important thing is to find out a site plan first.
Do hope that you will succeed with your creative plans for shipping container house. If you have any questions, feel free to drop your comments below.
