Shipping Container Homes

Short answer = no (with the key word being "affordable")

Briefly looked into this. My opinion (based on insufficient research) was basically you either spend as much money as a normal home or find a source of free labor.

Only options I've glanced at that actually looked feasible were a renovated bus into an RV or one of those tiny home concepts, but there's definitely compromises with both. Modular prefab homes are probably still the best bang for buck out there in my opinion but no matter how you slice it, housing is expensive to do correctly.

Ian Riley, PE, SE
Professional Engineer (ME, NH, MA) Structural Engineer (IL)
American Concrete Industries

Yea you won't find a cheap option for a turn-key shipping container supplier given it's hip nowadays and on HGTV. To reduce cost, you would need to source you own container (very easy to do cheaply) and hire specific contractors piecemeal style (hopefully in big pieces though to reduce complicating coordination) to accomplish your goals.

I've seen one that used 2 containers about 25ft apart with roof trusses spanning over them. It made a pretty decent barn.

I couldn't resist responding, but what's this doing in a structural engineering forum?

I believe they only make economic sense in locations where there is no need for insulation and lax building code enforcement exists.

what? you mean like Christchurch NZ ? "Container Town" was a going concern when I was there a couple years back (after the earthquake).

another day in paradise, or is paradise one day closer ?

Not sure what is going on in your area, but in all the areas I've worked, getting a standard building through the permitting authorities is a monumental task.

In all the cases I've been approached by developers trying to do the "next big thing", they never have the budget to properly compensate me for my time, and i dont think i would be the only one. On top of that, there is all the back and forth with the local authority which becomes a long drawn out waste of time before everyone throws in the towel and nothing gets built.

There was a good presentation at this years AISC steel conference on the use of Shipping Containers for buildings. I know this is not exactly what you are looking for but should be interesting at least and highlights some of the pitfalls and solutions for the use of containers as building materials.

You should be able to view the presentation here.

Problem also is the "junk" deposited under and around the buildings = Pests, rats and vermin, disease and sewage-human waste-kitchen trash discarded in and under and around the steel boxes. The corrugated outside walls and roofs and floors are perfect breeding grounds and housing for these pests.
Regrettably, the actual users of these apparently "cheap" housing units are seldom (if ever) able to/willing to/trained to keep up and keep them clean and pest-free. Too often, the "government officials" offering such free housing/temporary housing units are themselves corrupt and don't properly use and spend the maintenance and upkeep money (goes instead to bribes, other officials, or miss-use), or the money is one-ended (funds are granted to provide the units, but not maintain them or provide water, sewage, cleaning, and sanitation needs for the long-term.

Can they work in theory? Yes, absolutely.
Do they work in practice? No. They become new slums and hovels and expensive, rusting huts inhabited by ever-poorer people in ever-worse conditions.

See previous post with some links and much the same points.


Remember - More details = better answers
Also: If you get a response it's polite to respond to it.

Thanks to all who provided their comments. It certainly seems that this is a market that has been explored to the point that the economics show it doesn't work.