Here are three of our favorite home designs using shipping containers.

Redondo Beach House – De Maria Design:

The Redondo Beach House takes advantage of the structural strength of the shipping container as well as the flexibility of standard stick built construction. The two building methods are used side-by-side to create a clean modern home that fits in well with its surroundings and that will stand the test of time.

The containers were modified off-site to include cut-outs for doors, windows and large window walls and then transported to the site where they were installed as large structural blocks. Once installed, construction was completed like any other site-built construction.

 

12 Container House – Adam Kalkin:

The 12 Container House comes from the mind of Avant Garde artist and architect Adam Kalkin who has used shipping containers not only to create functional homes, but to communicate his stance on consumer wastefulness and the alternatives to our standard construction methods. Kalkin used 12 shipping containers to anchor two sides of an expansive living space. The two 6 container modules contain the bedrooms, private living spaces and other secondary functions. The 12 Container House is located in suburban New Jersey.

Kalkin has also developed what he calls the Suburban House Kit, which utilizes an a-la-carte function selection and recycled and upcycled building materials, including used shipping containers. While the building philosophy of Kalkin hasn't exactly caught on in suburbia, art collectors and sustainable-minded home owners seek out Kalkin to design unique, customized sustainable homes.

 

The Seatrain Residence – Office of Mobile Design:

Located in The Brewery community of Los Angeles, California, the Seatrain Residence is an exploration of the use of recycled and found materials. This spacious 3000 square foot home, designed by Jennifer Siegel of the Office of Mobile Design, utilizes used shipping containers and recycled steel found on-site. The home is adjacent to a scrap yard, perfect for finding the materials for creating this unique home.

With distinct modern styling and features such as a Koi pond and large expanses of glass, this home clearly shows the potential of shipping container construction. In this home, the modular nature of the shipping container also provides a means of dividing spaces into functions. Each container demarcates a specific function in the home.

 

A Warning:
Shipping containers do have inherent strengths based on their construction and modular nature, but many designers push their designs beyond these strengths. Many designs that are floating around the internet include large overhangs, criss-crossed container arrangements, vertical container orientations and oversized openings in the containers. While all of this is possible, the cost of engineering and the additional steel reduces or even eliminates the benefits of using shipping containers for home construction.

 

Conclusions:
As we push into a new age of conservation and environmental awareness we will be presented with many opportunities to reduce, reuse and recycle. Using shipping containers for residential construction may not be for everyone, but so long as we continue to import goods into this country and consume at current rates, shipping containers will continue to be available. We say, “Why not use them?”