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I really do not understand the appeal of shipping containers as houses. We already have several industries around "containerized" homes. There are pre-fab hou

by blhack 9y ago

I really do not understand the appeal of shipping containers as houses. We already have several industries around "containerized" homes. There are pre-fab houses, there are RVs, and there are "mobile homes". Shipping container as a home just seems like function trying to follow form. Shipping containers looks industrial-cool, but from everything I have ever been able to find on them, they make terrible houses.

chris_va 9y ago
It's buried at the end, but the article agrees with you: """ But for his nonprofit, which wants to build affordable homes at scale, “factory-built from scratch with lumber and steel would make a lot more sense from a cost standpoint.” """
rdoherty 9y ago
I agree, this type of solution is 'trendy' and 'innovative', but is not a real solution to the Bay Area's housing problem. We do not have a space or money problem, we have a legislative one. Building height limits, NIMBYs and other laws affect how many homes are built. We have plenty of space in the sky to build 12+ story buildings for housing, but we don't.
- racer-v 9y ago
  This is true, and not without good reasons. In places where long-term residents have enough financial and political clout to control their own neighborhoods, they almost universally want to keep density low for better (perceived) quality of life. Visit Palo Alto: the downtown looks like it hasn't changed since the 70's.
Johnny555 9y ago
I really do not understand the appeal of shipping containers as houses. One thing a shipping container house has going for it: The structure itself is guaranteed to be earthquake proof, assuming you don't cut too many doors or windows. It could sink into liquifaction'ed soil and still be structurally sound. Of course, the interior finished walls and furnishings may be a problem, the the container itself should survive nearly any size earthquake.
- stevenwoo 9y ago
  They cut down a full size container by at least a third then put huge windows in them and placed them on a what looks like a concrete foundation with a cinder block base - not sure why they even bothered with shipping containers at all, these were brand new containers to guarantee they were never used to transit toxic materials.
taneq 9y ago
I can't speak for anyone else, but my own interest in shipping container houses is that you can literally ship your own house somewhere else for a reasonable sum. Then you have it trucked to a remote location somewhere with a bunch of supplies and you're good to live there for a while. If you're just using it as a prebuilt structure for a permanent dwelling then prefab would make much more sense.
- blhack 9y ago
  From what in understand, you actually can't. As soon as you modify that shipping container, nobody is stacking it on a ship anymore. An RV, however, can absolutely fulfill that requirement.
  - taneq 9y ago
    Well that's why you don't cut windows in it or anything. You keep the container's integrity and just build a home inside it, making sure to keep everything "ship-shape". I'm not sure how you'd transport an RV to a different continent but I bet it wouldn't be as cheap as shipping a container. Also, to use it you'd have to get it road registered in every country you passed through, which would be an expensive pain.
    - k_sh 9y ago
      Could you not put the RV in a shipping container, though?
    - Retra 9y ago
      How often do you plan to move across continents? And why couldn't you just use the homes already built there?
    - tonyarkles 9y ago
      Generally how you ship vehicles to other continents (e.g. an RV) would be to put it in a shipping container :)
Spooky23 9y ago
The new trend is to allow people to build mini houses in the backyard. It started as a movement to convert garages or sheds into inlaw apartments, but as more one and two family homes turn into rentals, the reality is that it’s just another way for a landlord to squeeze a few more sheckles out of the lot. Containers are appealing because they are cheap and can be lifted in by crane. The real estate guys are pushing for them, and in my city we’re fighting proposals to modify the zoning to allow them.
- jimrandomh 9y ago
  And that right there is the reason housing is so expensive in the Bay area: people oppose any and all new housing, so construction falls far short of population growth and there's a shortage.
  - Spooky23 9y ago
    I’m talking about the national trend. The Bay Area is broken on many levels.

by blhack 9y ago

chris_va 9y ago

It's buried at the end, but the article agrees with you: """ But for his nonprofit, which wants to build affordable homes at scale, “factory-built from scratch with lumber and steel would make a lot more sense from a cost standpoint.” """

rdoherty 9y ago

I agree, this type of solution is 'trendy' and 'innovative', but is not a real solution to the Bay Area's housing problem. We do not have a space or money problem, we have a legislative one. Building height limits, NIMBYs and other laws affect how many homes are built. We have plenty of space in the sky to build 12+ story buildings for housing, but we don't.

racer-v 9y ago
This is true, and not without good reasons. In places where long-term residents have enough financial and political clout to control their own neighborhoods, they almost universally want to keep density low for better (perceived) quality of life. Visit Palo Alto: the downtown looks like it hasn't changed since the 70's.

Johnny555 9y ago

I really do not understand the appeal of shipping containers as houses. One thing a shipping container house has going for it: The structure itself is guaranteed to be earthquake proof, assuming you don't cut too many doors or windows. It could sink into liquifaction'ed soil and still be structurally sound. Of course, the interior finished walls and furnishings may be a problem, the the container itself should survive nearly any size earthquake.

stevenwoo 9y ago
They cut down a full size container by at least a third then put huge windows in them and placed them on a what looks like a concrete foundation with a cinder block base - not sure why they even bothered with shipping containers at all, these were brand new containers to guarantee they were never used to transit toxic materials.

taneq 9y ago

I can't speak for anyone else, but my own interest in shipping container houses is that you can literally ship your own house somewhere else for a reasonable sum. Then you have it trucked to a remote location somewhere with a bunch of supplies and you're good to live there for a while. If you're just using it as a prebuilt structure for a permanent dwelling then prefab would make much more sense.

blhack 9y ago
From what in understand, you actually can't. As soon as you modify that shipping container, nobody is stacking it on a ship anymore. An RV, however, can absolutely fulfill that requirement.
- taneq 9y ago
  Well that's why you don't cut windows in it or anything. You keep the container's integrity and just build a home inside it, making sure to keep everything "ship-shape". I'm not sure how you'd transport an RV to a different continent but I bet it wouldn't be as cheap as shipping a container. Also, to use it you'd have to get it road registered in every country you passed through, which would be an expensive pain.
  - k_sh 9y ago
    Could you not put the RV in a shipping container, though?
  - Retra 9y ago
    How often do you plan to move across continents? And why couldn't you just use the homes already built there?
  - tonyarkles 9y ago
    Generally how you ship vehicles to other continents (e.g. an RV) would be to put it in a shipping container :)

Spooky23 9y ago

The new trend is to allow people to build mini houses in the backyard. It started as a movement to convert garages or sheds into inlaw apartments, but as more one and two family homes turn into rentals, the reality is that it’s just another way for a landlord to squeeze a few more sheckles out of the lot. Containers are appealing because they are cheap and can be lifted in by crane. The real estate guys are pushing for them, and in my city we’re fighting proposals to modify the zoning to allow them.

jimrandomh 9y ago
And that right there is the reason housing is so expensive in the Bay area: people oppose any and all new housing, so construction falls far short of population growth and there's a shortage.
- Spooky23 9y ago
  I’m talking about the national trend. The Bay Area is broken on many levels.