/diy/ - Do It Yourself

[Anonymous No.522882]

is it possible/viable/cheaper to build a mansion like this using shipping containers? what needs to be considered for something like this?

[Anonymous No.522886]

What do you honestly think?

[Anonymous No.522890]

>>522886
>>522886
im not sure. i don't know enough about the necessary components for a house that would be inhibited by utilizing a shipping container, hence why i asked here.

i personally think it would be cheaper compared to a wooden frame, but i can't back that up other than just common sense. I'm really asking because I'd like to have my own home built someday in the far future and i heard about shipping containers being used in some designs, so here i am.

[Anonymous No.522899]

>>is it possible/viable/cheaper to build a mansion like this using shipping containers?
No. There is nothing cheaper about building a home with a shipping container if you want it to include plumbing, electrical, insulation, and windows.

[Anonymous No.522907]

>>522899
well i know that the insulation and windows need wooden frames still, but what about the plumbing and electrical wiring that makes the cost difference of a steel frame over a wooden one negligible?

[Anonymous No.522912]

Do murricans heard of bricks? Seriously, its either shipping container or wood?
Also where the hell does op want to build this imagination house of his and when? As time passes and shit costs more due to many factors such as rapidly rising energy costs and increasing minimum wages. How much would op do by himself or his family? Do you even know what kind of stuff a house needs? where it needs it? Ever build, or just refurbished a house yourself?

[Anonymous No.522913]

>>522912
i don't have much experience and i want to do it out in the countryside where land is cheap. this is meant more as a home from home. i'd like to do it before 2040 at the least, if that's possible. as >>522899 stated i know that a steel frame cost difference isn't going to make plumbing/wiring cheaper, but i'm not arguing that. i'm just wondering if the end result will have enough of a cost difference, and if not, why.

[Anonymous No.522914]

>>522912
and i'd hire a contractor to do various tasks for welding if needed. i'm not dumb enough to think i could do it myself before i croak.

[teka No.522916]

>>522907
You can expect the heating/ac gear, plumbing, electrical to all cost just as much as conventional wood-frame, with the extra wrinkle of complications from working inside a metal box, framing inward and losing more space, extra insulation and so forth. The effort saved in framing and sheathing gets replaced and overrun by the effort of blasting, repainting, sealing, building-in and more.

Outside of some specific uses, like a tiny windowless hunting cabin or a roof-between-container barn, Containers are not really a shortcut and come with some heavy troubles to work around.

(that is aside from things like zoning permits that don't have a section that covers steel boxes, problems with the not-magical portability, shipping, etc.)

>Do murricans heard of bricks?
We've just not been doing a lot of stuff with bricks for a while now so there is no great workforce of load-bearing bricklaying laborers and all of the material pipelines mean wood is cheap compared to brick.

[Anonymous No.522915]

>>522914
sorry not welding, anything/everything.

[Anonymous No.522918]

>>522916
so basically, if i wanted to modify a steel frame box so that it doesn't have the hazardous coating, has openings for the window frame, and leading points for wires and plumbing, it would all nullify the saving of not building a wooden frame on site? damn. well i can't argue that. guess it's better to have clarified this here than when i was halfway in a money hole.

[Anonymous No.522921]

>>522882
OK, I'm calling Unbelievable Bullshit on the entire goddamned 'shipping container' thing once and for all.

Henceforth all posts regarding 'building a home using shipping containers' will automatically be considered trolling.

[Anonymous No.522922]

>>522921
you don't need to get upset. i was just curious about using shipping containers for building a home over wood or bricks. if you take it as trolling, tough luck.

[Anonymous No.522923]

>>522922
1. I'm not upset. Incredulous, but not upset.
2. The entire subject has been gone over a million times already. Everyone is sick and tired of threads like this.
3. Please, for the LOVE OF GOD, delete this thread and don't post it again.

[Anonymous No.522925]

>>522923
im interested in this. if you are tired, hide the thread.

[Anonymous No.522924]

if you made the design simple enough that you did minimal cutting for windows and stairs, would it still be pointless? if you stacked two on top of each other and then just cut the holes for windows and stairs, surely that would be cheaper than building a wooden structure, right?

[Anonymous No.522928]

>>522925
Oh, I will. But I'm just saying: The only people who have done this on the cheap already had the containers or got them for free, and already had access to free or extremely cheap materials. Otherwise it doesn't cost any less than building with traditional materials.

[Anonymous No.522931]

>>522928
i don't fully believe that. i mean, wood itself is cheap and all, but having someone blueprint a frame using it, then cutting the components and arranging it, is in no way just as much as a steel box, sandblasting, and torch/plasma cutting out holes and putting frames for windows and insulation. i just don't buy it. how can that possibly make sense to you? think about the labour needed for the designing and assembling as opposed to the steel frame already proven to be capable of supporting weight and various holes. i'm not trying to ignore the plumbing and electrical wiring that needs to be done, but i need some actual numbers.

[Anonymous No.522953]

>>522918
>so basically, if i wanted to modify a steel frame box so that it doesn't have the hazardous coating, has openings for the window frame, and leading points for wires and plumbing, it would all nullify the saving of not building a wooden frame on site?
Correct.
>>522931
>>but having someone blueprint a frame
Guess what, you're going to need to blueprint the inside of your steel box so you can plan out room divisions, electrical, plumbing, and so on.
It's not saving you any work at all. Especially considering how cost effective sheeting, siding, and roofing materials are, which is all the shipping container will be replacing.

And just by themselves the tools you need to modify a shipping container (plasma cutter, grinders, stick welders, sand blasters) for use as a domicile are significantly more expensive than those used for traditional wood framing.

If you want something you can ship-to-site and slap on a pre-planned foundation then you need modular home construction.

[Anonymous No.522958]

if 38 get shipping containers is now a meme

[Anonymous No.522976]

>>522928

Well sometimes you do shit because its different ya know?

[Anonymous No.522996]

>>522953
it's not the material cost it's the assembly cost. the shipping container is already made, a subtractive approach to it is cheaper than an additive equivalent with wood, and renting the tools isn't going to be any less expensive compared to those for handling wood (sanders, saws, drills, routers, lathes, etc)

[Anonymous No.523006]

>>522996
>a subtractive approach to it is cheaper than an additive equivalent with wood

You've never had to re-do plumbing or electrical, have you?

And there's PLENTY you need to add if you want anything more than a very minimal shack.

[Anonymous No.523013]

[Anonymous No.523030]

>>522916
>We've just not been doing a lot of stuff with bricks for a while now so there is no great workforce of load-bearing bricklaying laborers and all of the material pipelines mean wood is cheap compared to brick.

This, we pretty much do wood frame or skip directly to reinforced concrete.

[Anonymous No.523034]

>>522996

You don't just cut windows out and call it a house. Prepping these things for the climate and building codes is not going to be cheap.

[Anonymous No.523051]

>>522882
the metal they use rusts too so all other things aside if u did manage to build it it would not last.

>probly not the brightest idea

[Anonymous No.523064]

I wish we could get a word filter. "shipping container" should become "turds", thus making all such queries "Can I build a home out of turds?"

[Anonymous No.523065]

>>523064
I wish angry little people like you could learn to minimise threads that rustle your jimmies instead of wasting everyone's time with opinions we don't care about.

[Anonymous No.523071]

>>523065
>angry

Projecting much are we?

Hey, look at me posting in a thread I don't care about. Does this make you mad?

[Anonymous No.523236]

>>522882
It is very possible to build virtually any home like structure with a shipping container. Viability would really depend on your distance from the coast, as shipping the containers isn't inexpensive, couple that with availability and that starts to decrease viability. As far as cheaper more than likely the answer will be no. Unless you are comparing strength/durability vs cost outlay then maybe.

First of all if you proceed forward look for "high cubes," taller ceilings make them much more tolerable. You can find ISBU's that won't need additional insulation, but are limited in flexibility of design.

A real savings with the container homes comes from the fact they don't need traditional foundations. Sono tubes are simple diy style designs, and are perfect for the structure, and make it easy to anchor these to the ground.

Insulate them from the outside, don't frame in walls, adds cost. Sandblasting is expensive, epoxy coat the floors, they will last forever, and are durable as all hell. Windows must be framed in, once you cut that corrugated siding you immediately start to loose the effectiveness. When looking at these as a cheaper secure form of housing think of them as a loft approach. Skip built ins when possible, or anchor things to the floor. The corten is strong but not designed to have shit drilled into it. Don't bother trying to do shit "outside of the box," they are designed to be used in the exact configuration they are now. Stack them on on top of each other. Deviate from this and you will need massive steel reinforcement.

Final point, if you can't weld, then you are fucked. Most places welding costs more than a carpenter, but in my opinion can be easier to learn within the scope of this project.

Concrete is more than likely going to be a better idea if you want cheaper. Insulated concrete forms are like fucking legos. I don't have direct experience with these outside of assisting a neighbor with his.

tl;dr Yes, maybe, probably not

[Anonymous No.523246]

>>523065
#REKT

[Anonymous No.523276]

Where is Mr. X? I bet he knows all about this.

[Anonymous No.523290]

>is it possible
Absolutely.

>viable
No, it's really not. A steel house would act like a big echo chamber/oven, and to overcome those issues with insulation is cost prohibitive. Plus, of course, the steel would need close attention to make sure it doesn't rust and compromise the structural integrity.

>cheaper
Quite the opposite. The only thing a steel house does better than wood or brick is attract lightning, tweakers and heatstroke.

[Anonymous No.523314]

>replying to a troll thread
>i get the irony

on a totally unrelated note, could i build something like pic related out of shipping containers?

[Anonymous No.523365]

>>523290
You obviously don't even have the slightest clue what you are talking about.

[Anonymous No.523448]

>>523314
WE HAVE THE TECHNOLOGY.

also,
>>523290
is right. After using a bare shipping container for months as a makeshift office, Fuck That. Any time it rained i couldn't answer the phone because it sounded like i was at a festival for smashing drums to pieces, any noise i made was magnified by ten, it was hell.

[Anonymous No.523455]

>>523314
We have to try, damn it.

[Anonymous No.523467]

>>523314
I'm not sure I want to experience fucking a shipping container, no matter how pretty

[Anonymous No.523652]

Where I live they built an entire shopping complex out of them. Don't think it would be that different?
http://www.restart.org.nz/

[Anonymous No.523678]

>>522976
just because its "different" usually requires more money to achieve. or more skill

a boilermaker/welder can make shipping containers work for him no problem. a carpenter probably could too. but not a pleb. plebs cant make anything work for them without money to pay people, so its frustrating to come across people who have no idea and no money. specially when they're ambitious

shipping containers are very useful but only in the right hands. anyone who cant see that is just as bad as anyone who thinks theyre gods gift to cheapasses

[Anonymous No.523685]

>>523314

> tfw no qt built from shipping containers

[Anonymous No.523703]

the general way to make a mansion from shipping containers is by filling the containers with trade goods, and selling them to other countries. refill the empty containers with local goods, return to another port, offload, rinse and repeat, and quite rapidly, you'll find that the containers have produced the money required for a mansion.

[Anonymous No.524196]

>>522882
mansion
shipping containers
Pick one

[Anonymous No.524276]

>>523703
This is the correct way of making anything from shipping containers.

[Anonymous No.524495]

>>522882
I propose that the /diy/ sticky states that anything about shipping container homes is shitposting.

It may have been a cool idea when the first few people decided to use them architecturally. It may also be a decent idea for people who happened to come across some containers for free.

Now, it has become a stupid fad, and there is nothing cool about it. Unless you have 10 containers sitting in your backyard, there is no financial reason to use them as building materials either.

[Anonymous No.524539]

>>522923
No need to be a cunt about it, you aren't a mod, this is a community and if you're going to fuck around and bog things down then just hide the thread shit-tits.

[Anonymous No.524573]

How much is a single shipping container anyway?

[Anonymous No.524579]

>>522882
what the fuck is it with /diy/ and shipping containers?

Here's a quick tip. Look up how much a shipping container costs. Now look up how much concrete, lumber, nails, and fiberglass insulation costs.

Now figure out why contractors don't build houses out of shipping containers.

[Truckerfag !!+KSIm6sOufE No.524604]

>>524573
About $2000 used, or their value in scrap, whichever is higher (depends on the size and market, mostly).

[Anonymous No.524701]

>>524579
shipping containers are already built

[Anonymous No.524737]

>>524701
But their substrate isn't. And as soon as you start adding more of them together, they'll need welding, re-inforcing, roofing, insulation.

I looked into this. The amount it would cost to build a home out of shipping containers was more expensive than using traditional british methods.

[Anonymous No.524755]

>>524737
not to mention the obvious fact that you're trying to make a home out of, what is, in effect, scrap metal, with limited box sizes cobbled together.
its about the equivalent of going to a scrapyard and saying "if I take a wheel off this, and that panel off there, I can build myself a ferrari... when in reality to get somethng worse than a ford model T.


and really, that says it all about the people who ask these sort of questions. what kind of a shitty, scraping the bottom of the third-world society do they have to live in, to think "hey, you know, living in a couple of welded together shipping containers would be a pretty nice house..."

pic related is the reality of the shitty sort of shed they're likely to send up in.

[Anonymous No.525668]

>>524755
That looks pretty cool.

[Anonymous No.525670]

Connexs are a really shitty way to build a house. You know what else is cheap? Mobile trailer homes. Why dont you go buy 6 of those from your local trailer park and duct tape them together with 10 blue tarps....thats probably where you belong if you think a connex house is a good idea in this or any universe. Haha.

[Anonymous No.525672]

>>524755
>its about the equivalent of going to a scrapyard and saying "if I take a wheel off this, and that panel off there, I can build myself a ferrari... when in reality to get somethng worse than a ford model T.

or not

[Anonymous No.525713]

>>525672
That thing is custom built with proper machined parts, and is probably more expensive than just picking up a used civic

[Anonymous No.525726]

>>525672
>bespoke chassis
>hand-built engines
>way north of $60k

get thee back to /o/, skidmark.

[Anonymous No.526459]

>>522996
Never seen a lathe on a building site. wtf are you turning? Balusters? Just buy them.

[Anonymous No.526461]

>>522996
also yes they will be. I don't know where you're from, but wood working equipment is heaps cheaper than metalworking shit. The most expensive shit you're likely to buy for framing is a pneumatic nail gun and a mitre saw.

[Anonymous No.526489]

How do I make money?

Buildings from shipping containers?

Two topics that should probably be banned on /diy

[Anonymous No.527320]

>>522882
wood would be cheaper and containers are best used for a temporary fix up.
we have a yellow shipping container outside which we slept in when we were building our house, it was warm enough with all the kingspan stored in it, my dad says he might cut a hole in the back for a flue and put an old cast iron stove in and then he can use it as a work shop even in the coldest winter nights

mostly it just sits there storing lumber and things we dont want in the house, its nice to be able to open the doors and sit there with a beer in summer

my advice would be to buy one if you have the money spare, but dont expect miracles

[Anonymous No.527321]

>>522996
you can have a log cabin shipped to you and built to your specifications on site by trained professionals for £50,000 and all they ask you to do is lay the concrete base, which they will actually do for you if you pay another £15,000

stop trying to be different for the sake of it, eventually you have to realise that Diying is a mixture of necessity and practicality

[Anonymous No.527347]

>>526489
You can make good money selling shipping containers to other morons.