/diy/ - Do It Yourself

[Anonymous No.30186]

Let's see some gangster ass shipping container home designs.

[Anonymous No.30205]

proceed...

[Anonymous No.30204]

[Anonymous No.30239]

>>30204
>>30186
WELL POST MORE FAGGOT

[Anonymous No.30294]

What's the legality of these?

I've got the skills and know-how to stack two of them, cut out windows, build a deck for it, get it wired etc (Costing MUCH less than a standard home)

But how do I actually register it as an address? Do I need to own land?

[Anonymous No.30315]

>>30294

You will likely need an licensed architect to draw up stamped plans to submit to the county for a building permit. The rest of the stuff (electrical, plumbing, etc.) you can pull permits yourself and DIY, depending on jurisdiction.

If you're out in the boonies you can probably get away with putting a structure on land you own, if the zoning allows. You will still need permits to get the powerco/waterco/sewerco to connect you.

[Anonymous No.30319]

>>30294
They're not typically intended to be moved. They're a dwelling structure and must follow local codes if any exist.

[Anonymous No.30324]

>>30294

It depends

In most rural areas it probably wouldn't be an issue

[Anonymous No.30334]

>>30294
well i figure the easiest way would be to buy some land and a shitty trailer and register the trailer as your house but actually live in the container house.

[Anonymous No.30346]

If you own land in the county you probably do have an address, something like RR 123, Box 456.

The boondocks is generally a lot more forgiving of building codes .. you can get power pulled to a empty field by asking the co-op to do it and (depending on your balls) string wire from there to your structure (or get the co-op to do it, or ask any other farmer).

Protip : if you have money to buy the land, but don't want to farm .. agree to lease farming on it to the guy nextdoor .. he will plant and harvest soybeans and shit and pay you rent for the property that is way cheaper than the interest on loan if he had to buy. Win/win .. plus you could negotiate free meat/groceries/anything. Same goes for letting people hunt your land, if you're okay with it (eg: yeah, it's cool, but I want a couple venison steaks).

Farmers are great folks to have as neighbors, generally.

[Anonymous No.30354]

>>30315
Suddenly not cheap or quick to build

Permits alone will most likely double the cost, even though I have a licensed architect buddy who would most likely do it pro-Bono if I could do some handywork for him.

[Anonymous No.30363]

Guy who asked about creating one IRL here. I did some research.

Found some books on demonoid about actually making/moving/buying the containers. Covers insulation, cutting, foundation all the way to design.

demonoid(DOT)me/files/details/2625548/44810888/

[Anonymous No.30366]

>>30354

nah .. usually a building permit for a new structure runs a few hundred bucks. electrical/plumbing/hvac and shit run less than a hundred each. Ring up the relevant authority and ask .. I've found they are generally appreciative of folks that ask *first* although I've dealt with plenty that have caught me mid-job.

I remodel old houses btw.

[Anonymous No.30373]

Also, for building one as a home, I would highly recommend the deck feature. Then, build a straight ladder on to the roof and add railings at about 4 feet off-the roof and you can use the roof as a full size deck. Make the railings with a bare bottom, clearance of about a foot, so you can simply push the snow off of it in the winter. Would be a great way to turn a two floor shipping container house into nearly a 3 floor one.

I'm looking in to doing this but I don't see it happening. I have hope but the more research I do the more I realize it will cost me $$$ and a cheap monthly price is what I wanted. I live just outside of a city, and land is very expensive and I think it's all lease only in my town.

[Anonymous No.30384]

So, since I know I'm not the only one thinking it, I'll go ahead and ask.
What are the odds, assuming you do the paperwork and all and that isn't the problem, that you could get do this in a city like Sam Flynn did in Tron?
I would post a pic but I'm on mobile, sorry.

[Anonymous No.30390]

okay this is easy
do the pic
garage door where you can see into it
everything else is easy
some places will let you build in the wild around you (desert, forest, etc.) for free if nothing is in that area
electricity is another issue
you could line the top with solar panels if you don't need alot of power all at once
then you could always add more panels or even get a windmill eventually.
water is easier, you can get a tank next to the house and have a company fill it up for you every week or month depending on needs
of course a generator is necessary for emergencies.

[Anonymous No.30410]

these things look rather cool, but what about foundations and a basement?

[Anonymous No.30411]

Suggestions on where to buy used shipping containers? Did about 6 google searches, all but one came up with only new, and the used ones I found are all $4k+

[Anonymous No.30418]

>>30390
Sounds pretty good, and not to knock your contribution, because, seriously, that's a lot of helpful suggestion, but, where in hell will they let me build in the wilderness without buying land? I have to move there.

[Anonymous No.30424]

So.... How viable is solar energy for one of these? What should I expect to pay for a good-sized solar panel?

[Anonymous No.30434]

Is it feasible to bury one of these as a subterranean dwelling - or to have a two-story one with one container below ground and the other above?

[Anonymous No.30440]

>>30424
It'll cost more than the place itself but for long-term cheapness and benefit do what Les Stroud did and get a multi-direction "Tower" with 4 solar panels facing each direction, above tree level, and have it all connected to a bunch of car batteries (With a few batteries backup JIC) and use that system to power your entire place indefinitely. No monthly cost. After 2 years it's paid for itself.

IIRC his system required almost no maintenance. Snow wouldn't build up, and there where enough batteries that a week-long storm wouldn't cause a blackout (And he had a Genny just in case)

[Anonymous No.30448]

>>30410
You need to build a foundation. No basement. If you're worried about storms, bolt the thing to the foundation (Use giant bolts that the anti earthquake structures use. The ones that go a few feet in the ground)

[Anonymous No.30458]

How do I buy two of them, cheaply? Is there a place to get them cheap, and then fix them up good?

All the ones I find are either cheap but rusted so bad there's holes through it, or in pristine condition but cost $4-$5k.

[Anonymous No.30471]

>>30458
open a savings account or something.
keep saving.
you don't need everything RIGHT FUCKING NOW.

[Anonymous No.30478]

>>30458
there are companies that rent out these things to residential and commercial customers, obviously they'll treat them well, see if you can find one of those and see what they're getting rid of. although they're probably a pretty penny in scrap

[Anonymous No.30481]

>>30458

They are generally GIVEN away at major ports .. if you check eBay, the ~$3k cost is just somebody picking it up from the guy that doesn't want it and dropping it off at your place.

Note .. they are designed to stack, not bury. Check survivalist forums for details on how to safely do a subterranean one.

[Anonymous No.30498]

>>30294
Duh. Unless squatting is legal wherever you are or your society has collapsed or something. The council would have to give approval even if you did own land, and that is where these little projects usually end.

[Anonymous No.30508]

>>30478

40' ISO is ~28k # .. steel is ~$220/ton .. so you're looking at at least $3k in scrap metal. Take that into account when you buy one.

The fact that it's 28k# means it's not easy to move, which is why you don't see crackheads with them in shopping carts. Also .. the acetylene you'd burn in cutting one into scrappable pieces would cut into your cash from the yard bigtime.

If you know a trucker (or search LTL wanted ads) and have a accessible (by a 80k# truck) lot you can probably get one trucked back from a port pretty cheap .. ask for ones that are watertight but no longer servicable .. if the rails get bent 1+" out of spec they no longer slot into the ship, and they sit in the rustbin until somebody hauls it away.

[Anonymous No.30535]

>>30508
So are you saying that I could potentially go to a port, tell them I'll take one off of their hands that's wasting their space, and pay a trucker to load it to where I want to go?

Or are you saying that it's gunna be about $3k no matter what, but at least I can get some cheaper shipping


>>30471
Already have a savings account for my own /diy/ place, and I know I don't need everything right now. I just want to do my research and plan ahead so I don't make any expensive mistakes, while I'm saving for it.

[Anonymous No.30539]

>>30434

Shipping containers don't do well underground, you'd have to reinforce the FUCK out of them.

[Anonymous No.30551]

This is why I love living in the south. It's pretty much one big DIY haven.

[Anonymous No.30556]

>>30508
Some pothead near me has like 15 storage containers. He doesnt use them and I have no idea how they came into his possession.

[Anonymous No.30557]

>They're not typically intended to be moved.

waitaminute. couldn't those permits be avoided if you just... idunno, tack some wheels on and claim that the structure is mobile?

[Anonymous No.30559]

There's no damn point in putting shipping containers underground anyway. The whole point of shipping container dwellings is their simplicity and relative cost effectiveness.
Start burying the fuckers and all that goes to hell.

[Anonymous No.30560]

>>30539
What if you dig a hole, plop a steel container in it (after putting together some form of waterproofing), stack ANOTHER container on top of that, then fill in the sides? Instant basement!

[Anonymous No.30564]

>>30557
People do it often; I wrote an entire final paper on this for my master's work in architecture.

[Anonymous No.30568]

>>30557
>>30557
Then you have to conform to the required engineering standards for a mobile house, or whatever.

[Anonymous No.30569]

>>30560

The sides of the container aren't made to withstand that amount of stress being put on them.

[Anonymous No.30571]

contribootin!

From my time in afghanistan,(Bagram) I found out that a lot of the new military living facilities were actually re purposed shipping containers.

Shit looked pretty cash after finished out IMO

[Anonymous No.30580]

.,.,

[Anonymous No.30591]

Well depending on where you live and the land purchase plus all the permits needed, you may find yourself wishing you had a stack of lumber and a hammer and nails in hand in place of those several ton and rusting containers sitting in the dirt.

Three years later and a drive down the road to the lot you bought just to see those containers still sitting there rusting away, remembering what a great idea it was at the time. and the county re-zoning and on your ass about getting them out of there..

No i don't want to be an ass about it, its just something that would probably happen to me.

[Anonymous No.30597]

Not basement guy here.
What about doing a partial berm for temperature control? Being a big metal box means it's gonna get pretty hot in the summer.
Pretty much build a small hill over most if it with fill dirt.

[Anonymous No.30618]

amazing thread is amazing

more please

[Anonymous No.30657]

>>30418
when I say wilderness I mean like hours from any real civilization
I live in las vegas so I can build in the desert for dirt cheap

[Anonymous No.30669]

>>30597
they have insulated boxes that you should use instead of plain ones

[Anonymous No.30683]

>>30657
Ah. Sounds pretty cool.

[Anonymous No.30690]

[Anonymous No.30694]

[Anonymous No.30702]

[Anonymous No.30721]

>>30411
Look for decommissioned containers.
Try auctions like Insurance Auto Auctions and Coparts, sometimes they sell containers there.

[Anonymous No.30743]

For reference, used container costs in western canada:

20' bulk storage ISO container: approx $3500 CAD
40' bulk storage ISO container: approx $4900 CAD

The condition of the containers isn't great. But to live in one, you'd need to frame it out and insulate it anyways. Thus, there's elbow grease involved either way. Frankly, it wouldn't make sense to buy a new container for the purpose of living in.

Shipping is fairly cheap, even to remote locations. Expect approximately $100 an hour for the delivery of a container from wherever the supplier is.

I've been exploring, personally, a lot of concepts proposed in this thread.

[Anonymous No.30852]

Idea,

Metal beams welded into a rectangle frame and several pegs into the ground.

Then build a ramp and use a truck to pull the container onto the metal "foundation".

By being off the ground the home is warmer during winter and cooler during summer!

Also, what to do about rusting in an all metal home?

[Anonymous No.30859]

my god. i have had the biggest hard on for these for the past two years.

[Anonymous No.30924]

>>30852
Like eh?
from
http://earthsci.org/education/fieldsk/container/Jun2011_full.jpg

[Anonymous No.30927]

>>30859
When you say "biggest", how big are we talking? If we hollowed it out and built a house inside, how many square feet would we have?

[Anonymous No.30937]

>>30690
I actually have visited this house in Manhattan beach. It is quite beautiful.

[Anonymous No.30963]

>>30690
what a fucking beauty

[Anonymous No.31042]

After I finish school and my girlfriend finishes grad school we'll be building one of these. Just a few questions that I've been looking for answers on.
>Assuming im just looking at stacking these in a single column how high can I go? I was thinking about 3 high

>After insulating these things whats the sq ft wind up looking like will these things handle furniture and people at the same time?

>I like lots of windows and i like to be naked. Now people seeing my junk isnt a huge deal to me but would be to them would a courtyard set up be feasible? how much light would I lose from this?

>We're looking at spending about 80k on this after land on this is it feasible to walk away after 80k with 1500 sqft, a solar setup, and a killer kitchen? (co/ck/ here)

>Whats running gas lines through one of these look like? I plan on making one of the boxes into a kitchen.

[Anonymous No.31071]

>>30186
Where do these get their support from?
my question is, when cutting into the sides of these things for doors/windows, and also stacking them, is there any concern on the integrity of the building, or are only the corners load-bearing?

[Anonymous No.31113]

Wouldn't building them underground be best?

[Anonymous No.31114]

>>31042
>Assuming im just looking at stacking these in a single column how high can I go? I was thinking about 3 high
There's one four high in here. I've seen them on ships as much as eight high.
>After insulating these things whats the sq ft wind up looking like will these things handle furniture and people at the same time?
Most insulation materials are only a few inches thick, you're not losing too much.
>I like lots of windows and i like to be naked. Now people seeing my junk isnt a huge deal to me but would be to them would a courtyard set up be feasible? how much light would I lose from this?
It's feasible. How much light you lose depends on relative positions.
>We're looking at spending about 80k on this after land on this is it feasible to walk away after 80k with 1500 sqft, a solar setup, and a killer kitchen? (co/ck/ here)
Sure.
>Whats running gas lines through one of these look like? I plan on making one of the boxes into a kitchen.
I don't see why it would be different than running a gas line through anything else.

[Anonymous No.31118]

>>31071
I remember we discovered it's primarily the corners when we were looking into burying them. Still, you should crunch your own numbers or get an engineer to weigh in. If they have the same orientation, I can't see you having much problem.

[Anonymous No.31127]

>>30690
i think my idea of a dream house just changed big time.

[Anonymous No.31138]

Hope this thread is here in the morning. I'm very close to saying fuck buying a house and just building one of these.

[Anonymous No.31151]

>>31113
>>31118

These guys are on to something here.

The only problem I can think of is that is where to put the solar panels.

[Anonymous No.31157]

>>31118

engineer here with some back of the envelope estimations:

If the container were buried under under grade, the sides would almost certainly need to be reinforced to prevent bowing. This is especially important if you intend to inhabit the container. If you intend to load the roof with soil, it would almost certainly need to be reinforced as well. Methods of reinforcement vary.

When burying anything metallic underground, one should also consider the impact of galvanic corrosion. Unless the container was properly sealed from the outside, it's unlikely that the super structure would last more than a couple of years. To me, the whole container would need to be sprayed with some kind of sealant that would probably cost as much as the container did -- that is, to do it "right".

Footings and drainage are also important, depending on the depth of the water table. Otherwise, you could end up with a couple inches of water in your container. Or, the container could settle unevenly into the soil. Frost heaving probably wouldn't be an issue if the container was placed completely below grade (unless you're in some kind of crazy-cold climate).

Intake and exhaust air, when buried, are also crucially important both from a "not-suffocate-to-death" and a humidity perspective. Realistically, unless you put a lot of thought into it, expect everything to seem damp.

.. There's a huge amount to consider, especially if you want to bury the container underground AND live in it. Permanent, and unoccupied, storage is a different story and you could probably cut a lot more corners.

... If the goal is to live underground, it would probably be cheaper and easier just to build conventionally with a medium like reinforced concrete.

[Anonymous No.31159]

I'm from Christchurch in New Zealand and someone's building a mall ('shopping centre' for Americans) out of shipping containers. And another guy from London is threatening legal action because he reckons the idea is his intellectual property. Fucking hilarious, it's a stupid idea, why would you want to claim it anyway...?

[Anonymous No.31167]

why would it need to be reinforced to be below dirt? theyre soo strong. i unload them at work sometimes. theyre made like tanks.

[Anonymous No.31169]

>>31159
We call them malls in the US.

[Anonymous No.31170]

I think we need to have alternative housing general threads. Get all of the mini homes on trailers, storage containers, and converted RVs/vans into one thread.

[Anonymous No.31178]

>>31169
Sorry, I remember struggling to communicate that when I visited a while ago. Maybe it was my accent? Hahaha

[Anonymous No.31180]

>>31167

as stated in the thread, they're designed to be sacked, the structural members in the container are around the perimeter. If you center-load the corrugated flashing/siding of the container it will almost certainly bow. I'm not saying it'll collapse, but it *will* bow. Then, good luck framing it out and having a reasonable place to habitate.

Consider 1 cubic-yard of soil. It has a wet-weight of approximately 3000 lbs. On the superstructure, this isn't a big deal -- but in the center of a 8' foot span made of corrugated steel flashing, you will have a problem. Expect several cubic yards of soil to load the container, even if it's only a foot-or-two under grade.

[Anonymous No.31182]

>>31159

dear god i love the empire.

[Anonymous No.31189]

>>30384
Just wanted to mention, along with another Tron reference.

The kid's house is made like op's in Tron 2. I thought it was pretty badass, even though it was just some crates thrown together. Figured I would do the same with my own empty lot sometime.

[Anonymous No.31241]

In Berlin I saw what appeared to be a villa inside the city.

No pictures but it was property adjoing two buildings, it looks like parts of 1 or two containers were taken apart and used as wall parts while a three stacked container formed the other wall.

There was also a courtyard presumably but this looks like an amazing mini mansion

[Anonymous No.31863]

Tips for finding land?

Doing a search, and all I come up with are houses for sale. Checked the town website and nothing on the matter

[Anonymous No.31913]

>>31863

From a buyer's perspective, it usually doesn't make any difference whether a realtor is used or not. Commonly, realtors, especially ones in remote locations will have listings for land (acreage). This is the easiest and quickest way of purchasing, especially if you're inexperienced. They'll also be able to help you digest all of the complexities of buying vacant land. Familiarize yourself on any farming or agricultural reserves your area may have, in addition to a little property law (easments, right of way, general survey details)

Depending on what country your in, sometimes there's online listings that act as a catch-all for all of the realtors in the area.

[Anonymous No.31961]

>>31042
Just get net curtains.

[Anonymous No.33592]

BAMP!

[Anonymous No.33638]

So would one of these things ever be viable in california? Seems like they would consider it a death trap, and you couldn't do it.

[Anonymous No.33651]

Quality thread.

[Anonymous No.33674]

http://www.architectureandhygiene.com/rammedEarth/rammedEarth.html
Delicious.

[Anonymous No.33710]

I would never be able to do this in Houston.

[Anonymous No.34544]

>>33638
They are actually really popular in California.

[Anonymous No.34564]

shipping container houses are so fucking hipster

i see this shit popping up all the time in those parts of town

[Anonymous No.34570]

>>31151
>>31113
these things can't take sheer stress

so no, underground will destroy it

[Anonymous No.34577]

>>31913
>on /diy/
>telling people to use realtors
lol

enjoy wasting money

realtors are vampires

[Anonymous No.34803]

Anyone got any pics of that kids apartment in Tron?

[Anonymous No.34823]

http://www.google.com/search?tbm=isch&hl=en&source=hp&biw=1366&bih=598&q=navy+va
n+citys&gbv=2&oq=navy+van+citys&aq=f&aqi=&aql=1&gs_sm=e&gs_upl=1884l4665
l0l5267l14l11l0l4l0l0l217l829l3.3.1l7l0#hl=en&safe=off&gbv=2&tbm=isch&sa=1&q=tro
n+container+house&oq=tron+container+&aq=0&aqi=g2g-S1&aql=1&gs_sm=e&gs_upl=20
938565l20941192l9l20943367l15l15l0l4l4l0l183l1244l6.5l11l0&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.,cf.osb
&fp=c963ef07165b9b13&biw=1366&bih=598

[Anonymous No.34881]

So I've been killing my brain for the past month or two on how to stick a basement on one of these things (I'm a /g/entooman, I wouldn't feel comfortable without my PC in the basement). At first I had gone with the "stick a container underground," method, but of course I quickly realized all the fucking problems that will arise because of it. Now I'm thinking "cement basement with reinforced steel columns," then just stacking the containers on top of it.

Thoughts?

[Anonymous No.34896]

>>34881
thats your only real choice

[Anonymous No.34899]

>>34896
Thanks, looks like I may get to have a Bat-cave in the end.

[Anonymous No.34911]

>>34881
There's a video of a guy on YouTube using one of these things to make an underground wine cellar.

[Anonymous No.34948]

>>34823
you really should learn to clean up your urls

http://www.google.com/search?q=tron+container+house&tbm=isch

[Anonymous No.35100]

OP's design looks like the house in Tron Legacy

[Anonymous No.35333]

>>34577

I dont think you know what you're talking about. Realtors are typically paid by the seller from the proceeds of the sale. Thus, it makes no difference from a BUYER'S perspective.

Sure, it could *potentially* inflate the cost of the land due to the fact that the seller assumes some overhead, and thus, raises his price. But, in a lot of places, you don't even have a choice. There's no effective way of determining who owns an empty plot most of the time. This is especially true if there's no civic address. What are you going to do, drive around in the middle of nowhere and start looking at places? The vast majority of the owners aren't even going to live on/near the property.

Title searches aren't free most of the time. And, there's a time-value to assembling all the papers on any applicable easments, rights-of-way, etc. Also, drawing up a contract of purchase and sale by a lawyer isn't going to be free. Three or five percent on the price gross price of a piece of vacant land probably wont exceed the value of all these fees anyways. Thus, let the realtor do some of the work -- you might as well.

If I were selling, I'd never use a realtor. Or, i'd at least try to avoid it, market permitting. Yeah, realtors are bottom feeders, I agree with you. But in some circumstances it just makes good sense. Buying acreage is one of those situations.

[Anonymous No.35681]

>>34948
Thanks for cleaning it up for me.

[Anonymous No.35790]

>>33710
Why not? I am looking into it now.
They allow a house made of beer cans and all kinds of crap. And a local art gallery is in a shipping container. And she may live in it as well.

[Anonymous No.35816]

>>30508

28000 lbs? 40' high cubes tare less than 9000 lbs.

At $220/ton that comes to about $1000. A box that weighs 28000 would only be legal for ~25000 lbs of freight. That's not very feasible. I'm hooked up to a box half the size of a 40 right now with 18 tons of cargo in it. I'm an intermodal truck driver.

[Anonymous No.37681]

>>30597
This. You need to insulate them sunsabitches.