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Welcome to The 30 Most Influential Shipping Container Homes ever Built ! This resource has been designed to showcase and celebrate the momentum of the ISO Shipping Container Home Movement around the World. It is made available for free as an electronic download and we are planning a small run of printed copies that will be available for $19.95 + shipping . If you are interested in purchasing a printed copy please contact us at admin@containerhome.info and ask us to reserve your copy. Why create such a resource? As ISBU based construction techniques continue to gain momentum around the World and edge their way into more mainstream awareness we felt it was important to showcase and celebrate some of the projects that have been competed over the past 10 years that have had a profound impact and influence on this stream of Architecture and Design. As the market continues to grow and expand we are starting to see new businesses and young Designers enter the market bringing with them new ideas and enthusiasm, reinvigorating the Shipping Container Home concept more than 20 years after its foundation. Its fitting therefore that this new generation have a resource that showcases the work of some of the early leaders and risk takers, the owners and builders and designers that broke the ground and influenced literally 1000s to think inside the box as well as some of the more recent high profile projects. As the Worlds leading resource on the How To of Constructing Container Homes, we are in the unique position of being able to not only bring together this material, but also to promote it to the widest possible Global audience. I felt that creating this book would make an appropriate and valuable additional resource for our readers, complementing our ever expanding training materials and software. If you have any questions about this book email us at admin@containerhome.info Regards Victor Wallace www.containerhome.info
If you enjoy this free e-book showcasing the 30 Most Influential Container Homes ever Built then you are going to love our exclusive Members Only Area.
3, Over 10,000 pages of valuable 3rd party resources on the subject of Container and Self Building
4, A free copy of our 3D ContainerHome Design Software .
If you have any questions please drop us an email at admin@containerhome.info Regards Victor www.containerhome.info
Project Type
Owners Country
Year Completed
2006
Architect / Designer
There are some that might argue its design merits, but that is not what this list is about. This list is dedicated to the 30 Projects that have most influenced the Container Home market, moving container based construction closer towards mainstream acceptance and in that respect this project simply has no peers. Completed in 2006 in notoriously difficult to permit Redondo Beach California this was not the first container home built in the US by any stretch but it was the first container home to gain mainstream awareness and acceptance by the majority that saw it. De Marias professional approach to issues like the building approval process showed many of the old guard of the alternative housing movement that historical issues associated with Container Homes like gaining permitting approval where often created as much by the attitudes of the applicants as by the approval authorities themselves.
It would be impossible to create a showcase of the 30 Most Influential Container Homes of the last decade and not have the Redondo Beach House by Peter De Maria at the Top of that list.
Project Type
Owners Country
Year Completed
2008
Architect / Designer
Adam Kalkin
Adam Kalkin has designed and built a number of high profile container homes that have caught the imagination of Architects, Designers and Owner Builders around the World. My favorite of Adams projects is the project referred to as the Quick House Project We reference several more of Adam Kalkins work in the Members Area portfolio.
If Peter De Maria has any serious competition for the Title of Most Influential Container Home Designer of the last decade it could only come from one man the larger than life designer and Architect Adam Kalkin.
Project Type
Owners Country
Year Completed
2007
Architect / Designer
Leger Wanaselja
Photographs of Jan Grygiers Container House are sometimes incorrectly labeled as Peter De Marias Redondo Beach Home featured as Project 1. I think this is because the Houses are very loosely similar from outward appearances and both where under construction at almost exactly the same time, as such they both got swept up together in the online press.
The Leger Wanaselja designed home is an airy yet compact 1350 square foot comprising three bedrooms the main feature of note is the use of insulated containers into the design. Two forty-foot containers are stacked on one side and a third is cut in half and stacked on the other creating protective walls for a two story atrium living room in the middle. Bedrooms in the upper containers where given added width with bay windows. A stair and a bridge through the atrium connect the two upper containers to the space below.
The house was also designed to minimize energy use through passive solar design. Deep eaves minimize summer solar gain, while allowing winter solar heating. Well placed windows supply excellent daylighting and summer ventilation. Additional energy and water saving features such as stacked plumbing, roof rainwater collection, high efficacy lighting, and solatubes further reduce ecological impacts.
Country
Architect / Designer Year Completed
There can be few better testimonials to customer satisfaction than completing a Container Home and then going ahead and retaining the same Design and Engineering team to build a almost identical home right next door. Owner/Builder: g a d design + construction Architect: Francis Kirkpatrick Structural Engineer: George W. Runkle, P.E., Runkle Consulting, Inc.
Project Type
Owners Country
Year Completed
2010
Architect / Designer
CG Architects
There was significant discussion online about whether or not this stunning home was really built using Shipping Containers or was simply a modular home. The Cross Box uses 4 x 40 ft HC containers in a complex cross stacked configuration. For those seeking inspiration from these projects please take note that significant ( and expensive ) engineering and modification is required to do this safely. Its not just a case of dropping the containers down like Lego blocks. For those interested in off axis stacking we have a free video tutorial you can watch online. This type of project although visually stunning is best considered statement architecture rather than affordable housing.
The French Design Team behind Project 5, CG Architects caused quite a stir in 2010 when the launched the Cross Box
Project Type
Owners Country
Year Completed
2006
Architect / Designer
Project Type
Owners Country
Year Completed
2010
Architect / Designer
An often quoted benefit of Container based construction is the ability to easily move the house at a later date, however there are in reality few houses ( even in this line up ) that could be relocated practically, this house is as close as it gets to relocation capability and remain a real house. Designed and constructed by Proyecto ARQtainer and Architect Ruben Rivera Peede the design brief was to design and construct a house quickly, that was earthquake resistant, at low cost and be to be no more than 115m2 in size.
Constructed from five repurposed containers the Liray House in Santiago Chile makes the cut of our Top 30 because it is one of the very few houses that can truly claim the potential for easy relocation.
Country
Architect / Designer Year Completed
2009
Numen Development
Numen Development created this three bedroom, three bathroom1860 sqft house in Houston Texas as an exercise in high efficiency building. Some of the green elements include SIPs incorporated in roof and floors, on-demand hot water heater a high efficiency AC system and energy recovery ventilation system. Bamboo flooring and low-VOC paints and the use of fiberboard products.
Project Type
Owners Country
Year Completed
2011
Architect / Designer
Specifically:
1, The reuse and repurposing of 2nd hand materials. 2, The creation of affordable housing solutions.
A number of high profile container construction builds over the last 2-3 years have caused many early leaders in this space grave concern that we are simply heading down a path of repeating the mistakes of the past. Several designers have been creating huge low density homes, some have even resorted to getting around the restrictions of standardized containers by having brand new custom made over sized containers made in China for their projects !
Gabriela Calvo and Marco Peralta have built this wonderful container home on their property outside of San Jose Costa Rica. By utilizing recycled shipping containers and doing some of the work themselves, they were able to keep the ultimate cost of the home down to an extremely affordable level.
The house consists of two 40 containers installed on pier foundations, slightly set apart to create a wider cross section, larger window sections and great views of both the east and the west.
In my opinion this wonderful example of a Shipping Container Home deserves inclusion in this showcase because it heralds a return to the core principals of the Container Home movement, something I think some new designers have forgotten.
Bamboo Groove Housing is a Costa Rican based design & construction company, developing sustainable affordable houses with the use of plantation bamboo and the re-use of insulated shipping containers.
Country
Architect / Designer Year Completed
2009
Maziar Behrooz
The containers were placed on top of 9' foundation walls, and most of the steel flooring was removed to open up and provide access to the lower level. With the stairs connecting both levels, the studio ended up with expansive 18' floor to ceiling walls and abundant natural lighting. Shapiro now has about 850 square feet and plenty of wall space to hang future pieces.
Shapiro's project is built with two 9'6" x 40' x 8' shipping containers obtained for $2,500 each (including delivery)
Project Type
Owners Country
Year Completed
2010
Architect / Designer
Ken Kwok
Project Type
Owners Country
Architect / Designer
Year Completed 2010
Project Type
Owners Country
Year Completed
2010
Architect / Designer
Tom Cheek
Video 2 in our series of 15 How to Build a Container Home Video Tutorials looks at How a Shipping Container is manufactured Vital information if you want to re-engineer them.
Louisville
Shipping Container Homes Steve Ross New Zealand Self Designed Steve Ross 2008
Shipping Container Home Extension Undisclosed Nantes, France Christophe Nogry 2009
Simple yet beautiful. Christophe Nogrys house extension in the suburb of Nantes Framce was constructed using one 40-foot and one 20-foot shipping containers. Due to the narrowness of the site, shipping container was a perfect solution for the addition. To cope with shipping container proportion, a storage wall system was designed for one side while the connecting bridge enlarge the living areas makes it a more comfortable living area. The second floor contains a new master bedroom with en-suite bathroom.
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Owners
Country Architect / Designer Year Completed
DEKITs first home is 3,000 square feet with four-bedrooms. It cost about $175,000 to build and turns container design on its head. Rather than feature the exposed containers on the exterior, the containers are exposed on the inside you can even see serial numbers, dents, and corrugated detail in several places throughout the home. On the outside, the home has five inches of insulation that is topped by brown wood siding. You can see more in these videos:
Using seven recycled shipping containers, architect Bernard Morin and wife Joyce Labelle built this contemporary residence in St. Adele, Quebec. The home is the first of many to come for their new company, Maison Idekit, which will help homeowners turn containers into architecturally unique, and inexpensive, homes. The company has two more residential projects set to break ground in the next couple months using a total of twelve container modules.
Project Type
Owners Country
Year Completed
2011
Architect / Designer
EcoTech Design
Project Type
Owners Country
Year Completed
2010
Architect / Designer
theworkshop 308
Project Type
Owners Country
Year Completed
2011
Architect / Designer
Home Contained
Project Type
Owners Country
Year Completed
2010
Architect / Designer
Project Type
Owners Country
Architect / Designer
Year Completed
Video 3 in our series of 15 How to Build a Container Home Video Tutorials looks at Purchasing Second Hand Containers. What to look for and what to look out for !
Louisville
Project Type
Owners Country
Year Completed
2006
Architect / Designer
Project Type
Owners Country
Architect / Designer
Year Completed
D3 Architects.
2006
Country
Architect / Designer Year Completed
Made in China
2010
Meka
The reason this studio from Meka Homes is included in this list not because of the design team because of the genius of the Meka Marketing Team. Not since Peter De Maria Redondo Beach House was launched back in 2006 has a Container Home had so much press and publicity and interest from those outside the movement. The reason behind all that press ? A large part at least was the location West Village - New York City. The downside of the Meka Project for me was that the business model of Meka Homes is to manufacture in China and import completed homes into the US something I dont support - the only benefit is some cost savings at the expense of local businesses and the environment. These great designs could easily be executed locally and still be affordable.
An honest review of this Container Home Studio would need to say that there wasnt anything outstanding about it that would entitle it to a position in the 30 Most Influential Container Homes Ever Built.
Project Type
Owners Country
Year Completed
2002
Architect / Designer
In 2002, the team that would eventually go on to create the famous Container City project USM Ltd created three en-suite accommodation units to act as artist retreats at Peaton Hill, Scotland.
Each units is constructed from 2 - 8 x 20 containers providing kitchen, sitting, bedroom and bathroom (with shower) spaces. The 960 sqft green roof was planted This project deserves inclusion in this book for the simple fact that in 2002 there where just a handful of people building with containers most projects where private and tucked away, this was a very public and high profile project at the time. Due to the success of the first three units, six more were commissioned and completed in 2006.
In order to blend into the beautiful rural the exterior was painted dark green and a green roof was constructed to grow out of the landscape due to the slope of the terrain, sliding glass doors lead out onto the decked balcony.
Video 4 in our series of 15 How to Build a Container Home Video Tutorials looks the 10 biggest mistakes people make when building a Container Home.
Louisville
Project Type
Owners Country
Year Completed
2010
Architect / Designer
Damith Premathilake
This Shipping Container Holiday Cabin located on an Special Forces army training base in Sri Lanka was built entirely from reclaimed materials. It is surrounded by jungle and sits on the shore of a beautiful lake with views to the mountains beyond. The cabin was constructed in about a month without skilled construction labor under the architects instruction. The Architect considered all the natural and man made elements already available in the setting and advised the owner to find the reclaimed material to be used in the project. Materials used included timber strips from old bunkers and weapon boxes, and used railway sleepers. The overall intent of the designer was to create a relaxing and enjoyable space by using already available resources and the surrounding environment. Principal Architect: Damith Prematikake Associate: Anil Arumpura Photography by Logan MacDougall Pope. The total Project area: 700 SQFT Client: Lieutenant Colonel Chandimal Peiris
Project Type
Owners Country
Year Completed
2010
Architect / Designer
Jim Poteet
Jim Poteet created this guest house / garden retreat for San Antonio Artist Stacy Hill in 2010.
The reclaimed 40 ft Shipping Container features a green roof and composing toilet and bamboo floors and wall paneling.
If you enjoy this free e-book showcasing the 30 Most Influential Container Homes ever Built then you are going to love our exclusive Members Only Area.
3, Over 10,000 pages of valuable 3rd party resources on the subject of Container and Self Building
4, A free copy of our 3D ContainerHome Design Software .
If you have any questions please drop us an email at admin@containerhome.info Regards Victor www.containerhome.info