Using ISO Containers to Build a Home

[Debaser]

Firstly, it goes without saying that if I were to go ahead as the thread title suggests I would of course consult a qualified structural engineer (and maybe even an archi...archit...aaaaarrrrggghhhhh...I can't even type that word for some reason). ;-)

So, I've recently stumbled across the 'tiny house' and the somewhat related eco housing movements, and I am intrigued by the use of ISO containers to create permanently habitable dwellings, ie homes. Most of the websites out there seem to have been created by manufacturers who already supply fully kitted out containers or amateurs 'having a bash' at converting them, sometimes literally.

I'm basically looking for professional opinions, ideally from engineers who may have worked with them, and any pros and cons they may have identified in the process both in the design and also out on site, erecting them.

(I have found a three year old thread on the board which asks a similar question, but which has been dormant for almost all that time. I'm hoping that, in the interim, building with ISO containers has become popular enough that some engineers on here have worked with them in this way).

Also, please advise if this query is better suited to another forum.

 

[MiketheEngineer]

I presume you mean the sea-going containers?? If so, been done - quite extensively. They take them and stack then - turn them 90 degrees, cut all kinds of holes in them. W/O running any numbers - look good to me - at least structurally - otherwise look like bunch of stacked up boxes after a bad accident.

 

[LowLax]

I have done some engineering with them, and didn't enjoy it. The problems from an engineering perspective are:

1. You don't know what materials and sections you are dealing with. Any time you are trying to reuse something for a different use, it's more difficult for the engineer than just specifying something new. You have to verify the steel grade, the dimensions, connections etc. If you don't have detailed drawings then you have to thoroughly visually inspect it.

2. You are asking an engineer to take a liability for something designed by someone else.

3. The analysis is complicated. Once you cut a hole in the corrugated side panels for a door or window. How much strength does that portion above the door have as a header? You might have to do FEM analysis or something.

4. People use these because they don't want to spend a lot of money. But the engineering will probably cost double what they would pay for an equivalent square footage of conventional construction, for the reasons above.

These things make sense if you can avoid getting an engineer involved. Maybe for a hunting cabin or a storage building or something. Once you start trying to make it a real building it doesn't seem cost effective to me. You still have to frame walls, insulate, run electrical, mechanical. All you are saving is the cost of exterior finish material. Why not conventionally frame a building and throw some corrugated siding on it?

 

[demayeng]

I did a lot of reading about this recently - there's lots of good information and case studies on the web. From what I read, basically what LowLax is saying is all true. Unless you want one for portability or aesthetic reasons, there is not much point as it ends up more expensive than normal construction.