shipping container homes

[fishenjim]

Anyone building shipping container homes in puna?

[rainyjim]

There is someone on this forum that lives in one, maybe they will speak up -

As I recall it is very hot and uncomfortable. I think also you would need to put a roof on it and in order to do that you'd have to reinforce the ceiling...or make the roof a seperate structure. Then theres finishing the inside and cutting windows doors and connections if using multiple containers. Seems like a headache that'd be much more expensive than 'conventional' housing with no incentives. Basically a handful of cons and no pros.

It might work / be possible for someone - most likely someone not in Hawaii. But if you can make it work - power to you

Aloha mai kakou

[MarkP]

That would be me. No, it is not hot and uncomfortable. It is COLD and uncomfortable, somewhat. I jest, but really, everyone I talk to this about assumes that it is hot. That would be during the day when I am up and about and mostly outdoors, and frankly, in Eden Roc, it is quite pleasant during the day. I put a roof on to catch rain and keep the sun and rain off of the container so that helps a lot. The morning sun (when it is sunny) shines on the side of the container which instantly gets hot, like over 100 degrees such that it feels hot to the touch and even noticeably radiates heat, but that is just for a couple of hours. As the sun gets higher the shadow of the overhang blocks sun from more and more of the wall so it is "hottest" during the mid morning.

During the night and on rainy days, it is cold. On winter nights it is really cold. I bought a down comforter from Hawaii Restore. They sell second hand and donated/recycled household items and building materials. They had gotten in a large consignment of bedding from Bed, Bath and Beyond I was told. Anyway I scored this down comforter. Will this be too much, I wondered? Yeah, RIGHT. It must have been a cheap one because I fricken' FROZE. It's OK now as the nights are not so cold but I do also wear long underwear to bed.

Steel does not have good thermal properties as far as housing is concerned. It has a non-existent R-value in the thickness we are talking about and probably in any thickness. Same for thermal mass. It has pretty good emissivity though, meaning it radiates heat away into space. All objects above absolute zero trade heat back and forth via radiation. During the day the sun naturally wins. During the night the shipping container wins. Brrr.

The main pros for the shipping container are that it is modular, it is strong and secure, and it is there. Drop it off a truck and it is ready to go. Everything else about it is a con as far as housing is concerned. No regular doors or windows until you put some in and then each installation is custom. Doors and windows are designed to be nailed into 2 x 4 stud walls not thin sheet walls of corrugated metal. Long and skinny so hard to lay out. Cold or hot depending on where you are. In Eden Roc it is cold at night and pleasant during the day. In the desert it would be cold at night and probably hot during the day. I must stress that most people are active during the day but are essentially trapped at night with nothing to think about except how cold it is. The steel is a vapor barrier. Condensation forms on it. Don't put insulation on the inside. It must go outside the vapor barrier. Also putting anything on the inside would further reduce an already small space.

Shipping containers are unit body construction. They don't have a frame per se. If you cut anywhere you are seriously weakening them. They can be stacked 10 high IF they are cargo certified meaning there are no holes or damage and IF the doors are closed and locked. Cut it or damage it and their vaunted strength is no longer assured. They were built in China by the lowest bidder, folks. There is no extra strength. I put a 36" door in the middle of a long side where the tension and compression is greatest at the top and bottom (which I didn't cut) and the shear is near zero. I have put small windows along the sides right up against the top. The windows have heavy welded steel frames that carry the shear forces. I had some larger 36" x 36" windows that I got rid of because I didn't think I could make the frames strong enough. I opted for another steel door at the end of the container just for a second escape route in case of fire. The windows are way up at the top and are for light and ventilation only. No view through them because they are so high and have frosted glass. All this helps maintain security such as it is, which is way better than the average house but heck I cut the doors and windows in after all so someone else could too.

The roof is strong enough to walk on for one or two people but is not strong and is not flat. You would be disappointed in it as a floor or lanai. The corners carry all the strength. Ignore all fanciful computer generated designs that show them stacked like leggos. They stack great like shipping containers, not at all like leggos. DON'T cut out an entire wall and install a sliding glass door.

My philosophy is that anything is possible with enough reinforcement, but presumably you started with a shipping container because its original shape got you well on your way to the end product. That end product better be a long skinny metal tube supported at the corners. If it is, you're 90% there. Since you won't be insulating it, make sure it is located somewhere it doesn't get too hot or too cold, like Puna. Since it'll always be ugly put it somewhere where it doesn't stand out, like Puna. Since it was built from the ground up to be secure, don't ruin that with big windows and put it somewhere where that asset will make a difference, like Puna.

Get a wood stove. In am in the process of doing so.

[csgray]

Someone just put one in on an ocean front lot between Maku'u and Paradise.

Carol

[Seeb]

if you got the money for an ocean front lot why would you want to live in a trailer

[rainyjim]

I've also seen one on an ocean front lot down on the red road - I think its between Kehena and Seaview
- mauka of 137
- painted white
-multiple containers utilized



I bet it bakes down in that sun - but I'd also bet - judging from the money they put into it - that it has insulation / AC.

[Chas]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Seeb

if you got the money for an ocean front lot why would you want to live in a trailer

---

'Cause they spent all their money on the lot!

[fishenjim]

Thanks for the info Mark P. Seems like container homes would fit the puna life.Hope you get your Wood stove on line soon.

[Cagary]

http://www.affordableportablehousing.com...sales.html

-Veritas odium parit”(Terence 195–159 BC))-"Truth begets hatred".

[kander]

I thought I would chime in here, I am in the starting processes of building my container home.

There were a couple reasons behind this.

Containers are steel and therefore wont see termite pest problems like stick built homes.

Per square foot the cost of a container home is less than stick built or steel framed houses.

Using elastometic sealer coating the containers can have some moderately inexpensive water and temperature (thermal) barrier. The difficult part is that the containers need to be in good shape heavy wall damage will be a structural fault you dont want cropping up down the road. You can cut a fair amount of walls out on the inside, but you will have to span beams across for support, especially if stacking.

Perhaps one advantage is with steel containers it could be possible to break them apart and move them to another site easily if the lava were coming down the mountain.

If considering building always try to find the high cube 9' containers. John at http://www.affordableportablehousing.com/ is the most informed person to deal with as well as price on getting containers in Hawaii. If your planning on containers for your home/office/workshop he will cherry pick the good ones. He also will help people step by step from drawing up the plans/architect stamp building permit etc.

The cons of building a container home..

no matter what you do, its still going to look like a cracker box.