# Container home plans??



## gidaddy911 (Dec 31, 2012)

OK my fellow preppers. Would you ever consider a recycled shipping container home? Why or why not? If so, what are your ideas?


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## swjohnsey (Jan 21, 2013)

I have a 20 footer in my back yard for storage. I think a 40 footer would make a good shelter. It takes some work.


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## AKPrepper (Mar 18, 2011)

As long as you're not planning on burying it, at least without some serious reinforcements, they make a good shelter if modified properly for the environment in which it will be located. A buddy of mine back in Texas has a couple on his hunting property which he uses to store stuff in. And let me tell you, during the summer it'd bake you alive in there, and it was located under some huge trees giving it plenty of shade from the sun. We'd stay in one of them durign the fall while hunting, and with a portable heater, it did just fine. Never did go in during the winter, but I'd imagine without insulating them, they'd get pretty cold.


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## AuroraHawk (Sep 12, 2012)

Shipping Container Homes

I could live in one of several of these homes.


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## seanallen (Nov 13, 2012)

Ive thought much on this. While i love the idea of burying them, it would be impractical w/o major mods. I do, however, think that buying 4 of them and laying them out in a block pattern with a small central courtyard would be doable. What would i use the courtyard for? Why, my well pump area. Run it off solar panels mounted on top of containers. On top of a couple other containers have a raised bed garden system. Have a parapet wall on top around the perimeter of your containers.


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## gidaddy911 (Dec 31, 2012)

I have thought about "the fort" layout myself. I was thinking that making the courtyard into a greenhouse type of thing. Where I am looking to relocate, I will need a greenhouse to keep things growing. I had also been checking into wind and solar power. I also would want to put stone or brick on the outside to give it a better look.


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## jeff47041 (Jan 5, 2013)

I read somewhere that if you are going to insulate one, you should use spray foam type insulation or they will sweat and build up mold and moisture.


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## seanallen (Nov 13, 2012)

jeff47041 said:


> I read somewhere that if you are going to insulate one, you should use spray foam type insulation or they will sweat and build up mold and moisture.


Sounds smart. Closed cell foam, of course. These attics i go into that have been sprayed with that arent hot at all. Very comfy.


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## Transplant (Jan 10, 2013)

YES!! We are actually planning on living in one as soon as we find land. We intend on burying ours well at least having it surrounded by dirt on 3 sides. We want it to face southeast and have the dirt to protect it from storms for the southwest, west and north. We will use spray foam insulation and we plan on havind poured concert walls around it to help give it some support. The bottom two will be used for a family room and a storm shelter/root cellar The top two or 3 (thinking about have a 5th one as a guest room) will be our living quarters. We want replace the side of the top one that is facing out with windows or French doors so that we will have natural light. The bottom one will have a medieval (rustic) door and windows. 

We decided on shipping containers because we are in a high fire hazard area due to year round high winds and dry conditions. We also decided on them because we want to down size since it is just me and hubby now but with an additional container we will have a guest suite for when the boys come to visit. 

Not only that but you can get containers for about $3,000 delivered to your property and depending on how much you do to them you can be living in them within weeks instead of months. And why would I want to spend 150k on a house that I might not live in very long I mean I am 50 years old I don't want to spend the rest of my life making house payments.


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## Harvest (Jan 25, 2013)

What kind of mods would need to be done to bury it? It's pretty strong so it wouldn't need to be reinforced right ?


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## seanallen (Nov 13, 2012)

Harvest said:


> What kind of mods would need to be done to bury it? It's pretty strong so it wouldn't need to be reinforced right ?


Ive heard of the walls buckling in because of the dirt pressure. Ive also heard of that NOT happening. I would brace the insides all four directions untill the earth is well settled all around it.


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## AKPrepper (Mar 18, 2011)

Harvest said:


> What kind of mods would need to be done to bury it? It's pretty strong so it wouldn't need to be reinforced right ?


No, the strength of a shipping container is in it's corners. The sides, bottom, and top, are just sheet metal with no reinforcements. If you bury it, the weight of the dirt will collapse the container. You can reinforce them on either the outside with steel, or the inside with wooden beams. Or you can build a cement block enclosure and lower them into that. But if you're going to go to that extent, why not just build your underground shelter out of block, water proof it, and be done with it? Up here in Alaska those things are frequently used for hunting cabins and make great shelters with minimum mods, but we don't bury them.


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## Transplant (Jan 10, 2013)

Harvest said:


> What kind of mods would need to be done to bury it? It's pretty strong so it wouldn't need to be reinforced right ?


You will need a ventilation system if the container is buried. Plus you will need something on it to keep it from rusting. To my understanding a 20ft container can support 3ft of dirt. The walls can handle the dirt but the tops can not there is no support and they tend to collapse in on themselves. The 40 foot probably can not handle more than a foot of dirt.

We will have pour concrete walls and foundation then we will stack the containers as close to the walls as possible and then fill the gaps with foam insulation. The dirt will not be touching the containers.

The reason we are doing concrete walls is we are in tornado alley and do have flash flooding.

The top of ours will not be buried it will have a slant roof because we plan on having catch system for rain water.


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## hiwall (Jun 15, 2012)

I guess with all the mods needed to live in one, I would just buy a used camping trailer that is made to be lived in already.


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## WWhermit (Mar 1, 2012)

Harvest said:


> What kind of mods would need to be done to bury it? It's pretty strong so it wouldn't need to be reinforced right ?


They actually aren't made to withstand a lot of force from the outside, and not good at all being buried without good reinforcement. Watch a few youtube videos, and you'll see that most that are buried start to buckle and leak.

There was one smart guy that successfully buried a storage container by building a plywood, then reinforced rebar structure on top of the container, and only after that, poured concrete on top. I'll try to find a link later, when I get home. If I was to bury one, he's the one I'd model after.


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## gabbyj310 (Oct 22, 2012)

They say you need to re-enforce the top with ibeams to hold the weight of the dirt(the strength is on the corners)also you need to spray the 'outside" with the foam insulation as they are STEEL and will rust(rust weakens too)or use some kind of protection(someone mentioned a heavy duty pond liner).I want one on my property for a storm shelter(central Kentucky)tornado alley)and you can always use it for cool storage.Don't forget air vents on top sticking out of the ground and maybe power and water????


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## bigtrain2020 (Mar 20, 2013)

gidaddy911 said:


> OK my fellow preppers. Would you ever consider a recycled shipping container home? Why or why not? If so, what are your ideas?


Yes, but I would reinforce the top and sides if I were to place it underground. On an episode of mythbusters they had one under just a foot or so of dirt and it collapses.


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## uncledon (Mar 1, 2013)

*20' Shipping Container Underground*

http://tinyhouseblog.com/tiny-house-video/shipping-container-as-an-underground-shelter/

Here is a link you might enjoy about placing a 20' shipping container underground.


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## Peacekeeper (Mar 25, 2013)

See www.bodyguardarmor.com for bulletproof shipping containers.


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