\\\ PREVIOUS (HTTP://DESIGN-MILK.

COM/EDIMULTIFUNCTIONAL-DESK-LAMP-BY-

\\\ NEXT (HTTP://DESIGN-MILK.COM/DESIGNYOUR-OWN-CLOTHING-WITH-CONSTRVCT-

VALSECCHI-1918/)

AND-WIN/)

12 HOMES MADE FROM SHIPPING

CONTAINERS
Posted by Marni Katz (http://design-milk.com/author/marni/) on 05.07.13 in Architecture (http://designmilk.com/category/architecture/), Interior Design (http://design-milk.com/category/interior-design/), Main
(http://design-milk.com/category/main/)

\\\ VIEW THE PHOTO GALLERY (HTTP://DESIGN-MILK.COM/12-

HOMES-MADE-FROM-SHIPPING-CONTAINERS/ROUNDUP(http://design-milk.com/12-homes-made-from-shipping-containers/roundup-containerCONTAINER-HOMES-STUDIO-HT/)
homes-studio-ht/)
Photo by Braden Gunem

Shipping containers meet a variety of requirements: Modern. Check. Low-cost. Check.

Environmentally-friendly. Check. See twelve homes that make them work and check out
our resources for shipping container builders and plans at the end of the article.
Above: Two shipping containers flank a taller common space in this residence designed
by Studio H:T (http://www.studioht.com/). The bedrooms are in the containers while the
entry, dining, living, and a loft is in the center area. The project is planned to be o-thegrid using solar orientation, passive cooling, green roofs, pellet stove heating, and
photovoltaics to create electricity.

(http://design-milk.com/12-homes-made-from-shipping-containers/roundup-containerhomes-benjamin-garcia-saxe-architecture/)
Photo by Andres Garcia Lachner

Benjamin Garcia Saxe Architecture (http://www.benjamingarciasaxe.com/) designed this

orange container home for clients in San Jose, Costa Rica. The goal was to provide them
with the spectacular views of the natural landscape. The roof between the two containers
is made from the scrap metal.

(http://design-milk.com/12-homes-made-from-shipping-containers/roundup-containerhomes-arcgency-wfh-house-wuxi-china/)
Copenhagen-based architecture firm arcgency (http://arcgency.com/) created the WFH
House in Wuxi, China, out of three stacked shipping containers. Upcycled steel shipping
containers were used for a steel frame, which was then clad with a sustainable bamboo
facade. The home includes a rainwater collection system, solar cell-clad green roof,
skylights, and permeable paving.

(http://design-milk.com/12-homes-made-from-shipping-containers/roundup-containerhomes-lot-ek-mdu/)
Photo courtesy of the Walker Art Center

This structure, which was exhibited at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York
City and the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis is called the MDU, or Mobile Dwelling Unit,
and was designed by Lot-EK (http://www.lot-ek.com/). It is meant to travel with its
dweller to long term destinations. When traveling, its sub-volumes are pushed in to fill the
entire container, and then interlock so the container is left flush and can be shipped
worldwide. When in use, the sub-volumes are pushed out, and its 500-square-foot
interior is suitable for living and working.

(http://design-milk.com/12-homes-made-from-shipping-containers/roundup-containerhomes-guzman-ph-lot-ek/)
Photo by Paul Warchol

Lot-EK (http://www.lot-ek.com/) also designed this 1,500-square-foot penthouse

apartment in New York City. The project involved transforming a mechanical room and
adding a bedroom with a patio on the roof. Pictured above is a yellow aluminum
container that has been partially deconstructed to become an open outdoor space.

(http://design-milk.com/12-homes-made-from-shipping-containers/roundup-containerhomes-dwell-interior/)
Photo by Jack Thompson

Note the white corrugated wall; that should tip you o that this is the interior of a shipping
container home. In fact, this Houston residence is composed of three containers, to make
a total of 1,538-square feet of living space. Architect Christopher Robertson of local firm
Robertston Design (http://robdes.com/) says one of the goals was to make it feel like a
typical home.

(http://design-milk.com/12-homes-made-from-shipping-containers/roundup-containerhomes-dwell-interior-2/)
Poteet Architects (http://www.poteetarchitects.com/), a firm known for its adaptive reuse
of existing buildings, designed this 32-square-foot guest house in San Antonio, Texas
using a shipping container. The interior is lined with bamboo plywood for the floor and the
walls and the deck is made out of recycled soda bottles. It has a planted roof too.

(http://design-milk.com/12-homes-made-from-shipping-containers/roundup-containerhomes-crossbox-by-cg-architects/)
The emerald green-accented Crossbox house in Brittany, France was designed by CG
Architects (http://www.cgarchitectes.fr/). Two shipping containers are cantilevered above
two more, and theres a planted roof too. Like traditional setups, the bedrooms are on top
and the living/dining spaces below.

(http://design-milk.com/12-homes-made-from-shipping-containers/roundup-shippingcontainer-homes-cove-scotland/)
Cove Park (http://covepark.org/residencies/fielding-mentored), located on 50-acres of
Scotlands west coast, is a community of established artists. In 2002, Container City
(http://www.containercity.com/cove-park.html) created three cubes made of shipping
containers to act as artist retreats, and another six were added in 2006.

(http://design-milk.com/12-homes-made-from-shipping-containers/roundup-containerhomes-adam-kalkin-califon-nj/)
This Adam Kalkin Container House (http://www.quik-build.com/index.htm) in Califon,
New Jersey, is three shipping containers wide by two shipping containers tall. Glass on
two sides allows ample light to shine in, and the industrial materials continue throughout,
with a concrete floor and steel beams and columns. Rustic fir flooring and mahogany
closing doors ensures it works in its wooded surroundings.

(http://design-milk.com/12-homes-made-from-shipping-containers/roundup-containerhomes-1/)
This perfectly simple, wood clad, absolutely horizontal 40-foot cargo container house sits
on a flat site in the Galician countryside of Spain. Its porch and removable awning allow
for outdoor enjoyment, which is ideal since its a summer house. It was designed by

Navigation

architects Severo Fernndez and Basilio Rodrguez of Estudio Base

(http://www.bdastudio.com).

(http://design-milk.com/12-homes-made-from-shipping-containers/roundup-containerhome-maziar-behrooz/)
Maziar Behrooz Architecture (http://www.mbarchitecture.com/) designed this 840-squarefoot art studio next to the clients house in the summer enclave of the Hamptons on Long
Island, New York. They used two shipping containers which were painted dark charcoal
to match the main house; both blend into the surrounding woods.
Resources: Shipping Container Plans, Architects and Builders
- O Grid Living: Shipping Container Home Designs
(http://www.ogridworld.com/shipping-container-home-designs/)
- Shipping Container Homes (http://shippingcontainerhousedesign.com/)
- Containerhome.biz (http://containerhome.biz/)
- Shipping Container Home Plans
(http://www.residentialshippingcontainerprimer.com/Intermodal%20Shipping%20Container%20Home%20Floor%20Plans)
- Cargotecture (http://www.cargotecture.com/)
- ContainerHome.info (http://www.containerhome.info/)
- Building Lab (http://buildinglab.com/) (Oakland, CA)
- Ecotechdesign (http://ecotechdesign.com/) (Los Angeles, CA)
- Leger Wanaselja Architecture (http://www.lwarc.com/) (Berkeley, CA)
- LOT-EK (http://www.lot-ek.com/) (New York, NY)
Got a good shipping container builder, architect or resource? Leave it in the comments
and well keep our list updated.
+ Share

\\\ PREVIOUS (HTTP://DESIGN-MILK.COM/EDIMULTIFUNCTIONAL-DESK-LAMP-BYVALSECCHI-1918/)

\\\ NEXT (HTTP://DESIGN-MILK.COM/DESIGNYOUR-OWN-CLOTHING-WITH-CONSTRVCTAND-WIN/)