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ST1DinOH
Joined: 13 May 2008
Posts: 4
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 Posted: Tue May 13, 2008 11:48 am Post subject: Cargo container house, starting from scratch. |
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My name is Jason, i'm 30 yrs old, and I'm about to buy my first home. there's lots of options out there for a guy like me in a market like this but I'm leaning twords building a cargo container house.
Problem is i have no clue where to start.
So far i've seen many inspiring pictures and articles on the subject, but I haven't yet been able to find a step by step "tutorial" for a guy like myself who wants to get started.
I've managed to find a business that deals in used ISO's here localy and I can obtain them for a very reasonable price. I have a general plan for a simple yet effective home which I can add onto in the future, but no clue as to who i'd need to contact in regaurds to building this type of structure.
From what i've gathered so far i must adhere to the basic building codes implimented by the fed, and then of course all the state and local codes as well.
Other than that i'm completely lost and in need of some direction.
What I'd realy love to look into is the angle of getting any sort of grants or free money and/or low/no intrest loans for building a "green" home.
My biggest concern is the definition of "green housing" and how it would apply to this type of home. The concern being the thermal properties of a steel box and how it almost seems to fly in the face of energy efficiency.
I realise that the recycled aspect of the building material itself is a big plus, but the fact that the entire structure being a thermal bridge would almost negate the whole concept without a ton of insulation.
The fact that one can easily construct a good sized home out of 4 $2000 ISO's is a definate bonus... but will the added cost of fabrication and retrofitting negate these savings? Or is this truely the "next big thing in green housing"?
I know a guy who builds/fixes ships and cargo containers for a living... he comes with all the welding and cutting equipment/knowledge/and experience one could hope for. I also work for a construction company so materials and labor will be coming at a considerable discount.
I've got lots of things working in my favor, so this is definatley the direction i've decided on... but what should i do next?
Any help anyone can provide would be huge right now because I'm basicly flying blind.
Ok just to give you a general idea of the design i have in mind i'm going to use 4 of the 40 foot ISO's to construct a 2 story square dwelling. Each floor will be layed out in this fashion.
set two containers parrell on concrete pillars about 40 feet apart, remove the "interior" walls. use them to make the walls connecting the two containers. The next floor would be a duplicate of the first only turned 90 degrees and placed directly on top. A traditional pyramidal shaped roof with long overhangs would be utilised to provide more shade in the summer time to keep as much sun off of it as possible in the summer.
As per the insulation i plan on studding out the interior, running my electric, then spray/foaming all the exterior walls with expanding foam. once i have that trimmed back to studs i'd be drywalling it.
exterior finish would most likely be a aplication of tyvek house wrap, then furring strips to accomidate an aplication of insulated vinyl siding.
So...
How am I doing so far  |
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ST1DinOH
Joined: 13 May 2008
Posts: 4
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| Posted: Thu May 15, 2008 2:16 pm Post subject: |
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well
ok then...can someone at least point me in the right direction?
google was under the impression this forum would offer tips on green home design and construction...i realy need to find out as much as possible, as soon as possible.
i can't stand paying rent for nothing anymore...it's just pointless to pay someone else's mortgage. |
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Antisthenes
Joined: 28 Nov 2006
Posts: 494
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| Posted: Thu May 15, 2008 2:42 pm Post subject: |
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you mean pay the interest on their principle just as you would be doing on what would be your own property?
all your bases are belong to the bank
i would say start with a metal cutting blade and a jigsaw ?
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The most necessary/useful piece of learning is that which unlearns what is untrue: 'evil'
may be acquired, Happiness through virtue which is based on knowledge!/? |
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ST1DinOH
Joined: 13 May 2008
Posts: 4
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| Posted: Fri May 16, 2008 1:22 pm Post subject: |
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| Antisthenes wrote: | you mean pay the interest on their principle just as you would be doing on what would be your own property?
all your bases are belong to the bank
i would say start with a metal cutting blade and a jigsaw ? |
now thats funny...never thought i'd see that quote on an architecture forum.
basicly it's like this...
i'm not exactly independantly wealthy, so cheap affordable housing is what i'm most interested in for financial reasons. buying someone's nightmare (foreclosure) is not something i'm wanting to deal with.
the only advantage of buying a preexisting home is the low PMI no money down low intrest rate morgatges available to first time homeowners.
unfortunatley a construction loan for a first time homeowner is a rare breed.
the advantage of cargo container housing is once i get the locks on the doors the thing is worth exponentialy more than what i would potentialy borrow to construct it.
one of the rare "instant equity" scenario's out there.
even better if there are any grants, or "special" loans available for building a "green" home.
again...not even sure if a shipping container house would qualify as a "green build" due to the insulation properties of the structure.
highly energy efficient it is not, but cheap, and recycled it is.
so do they offset, or will i need to go through additional steps (solar pannels, max use of natrural lighting, ect...to qualify.
basicly i'm a complete noob to this whole process and i was genuinely hoping to speak to some guys and gals who know what they are doing and wouldn't mind lending a helping hand to someone attempting to do something unconventional.
i need a little guidance, and i'm turning to teh intrawebz for help.
i'd love to build a nice simple 4 40 foot design with a pyramid roof.
the design i have sketched up is cheap and useable and would create a nice 40x40 2 story much cheaper than traditional construction.
so a bank should be interested in the possibility of me defaulting and turning them a nice proffit on auction day.
it would help if there's free money out there for houses like this.
and it'd be much easier if i knew more about what i'm attempting to accomplish.
if anyone has any help to lend or experience to post...please do. i have a feeling i'm gonna need to do a lot of digging and research before i try to go talk to a bank. |
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djswan
Joined: 17 Aug 2007
Posts: 338
Location: Montana, USA
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| Posted: Fri May 16, 2008 2:07 pm Post subject: |
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40 x 40 two story house. My construction master calculator isn't on my desk for a sqft calc at this time. But my best guess says this is a big house built by big dreams. Start off with old grain silo for practice.
_________________
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I am a builder and there are no masters.
"I'm not one of those who in expressing opinions confine themselves to facts"
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