New shipping container shop...

[jinman]

Your roof line has me curious. Why have a flat section? It seems that one continuos slope would mean one piece of metal that you don't have to tie into another piece at a different pitch. If it was me, I'd add some lumber to the far side of the container roof to raise it to the same pitch as the lean to. 1:12 ?

Something else to consider. Even though the container is water tight, or should be depending on the level of abuse it received, allowing water between your metal roof and the container creates a situation down the road for rot to the wood, mold and bugs. Keeping the water out all the time is the only way to gurantee the life of any building and eliminate long term problems.

Eddie

Eddie, I used screws for all Simpson ties and tie-ins to the posts. I also used screws on the the blocks that tie to the container. I only used nails on the flat purlins where I'll attach the metal. I shot three nails into each purlin over the lean-to and two on each one on top of the container.

I'll be putting materials shelves on the back side of the container (see attachment). Those shelves will also have a short roof, 6', and run the length of the container. The flat roof (shown in blue) will actually overlap both sides of the container by 6". There will hardly be any gap between the overhang and the sloped metal, 1/2" maximum.

I'm going to shoot sealing type fasteners in the flat roof, so any leakage should be minimum. At 9' wide, I don't think much water will collect. Even in the heaviest rains, the water will run off before it gets even 1/2" deep.

I failed to mention that this is a temporary structure. I've promised Kathy that I'll tear down the lean-to and move the container after I get my shop built. When I move the container, I'll reinstall the flat roof and give it a 4" pitch by blocking it on one side to allow better water drainage. The roof will stay with the container only to keep the internal heat down. I'll paint the sides white.

If I had run the purlins all the way up and across the container, I'd have to have lumber over 22' long. I hauled all this lumber in my pickup because the longest was 14'. The same will be true for the metal. There's something to be said for being able to haul all your material in a pickup and not even fool with a trailer. I have a trailer, but why bother when I can flag my load and carry it easily?

The nice thing is that most of this will just unscrew and come apart without complete teardown. I can move 10' x 14' sections as a unit or completely disassemble them without too much difficulty. That said, I'd bet this will be just like I build it for at least 3 years. Things have a way of filling up and becoming "needed" space. I may have to alter my roofline slightly if it leaks too much or we decide to make it more permanent.

BTW: The cost of wood for this project is $350 and my metal will be about $750 or less. I'll know more later this afternoon. I could get custom metal, but there is a place nearby that sells precut galvalume panels and I've heard they are very reasonable. I may be pleasantly surprised. All the poles, fastener brakets, screws, and nails for my nailgun I've had for years and finally found a use for them.

 

[jinman]

BTW: The cost of wood for this project is $350 and my metal will be about $750 or less. I'll know more later this afternoon. I could get custom metal, but there is a place nearby that sells precut galvalume panels and I've heard they are very reasonable.

Hahahahaha! Who was I tryin' to kid? A neighbor gave me prices on metal from over 3 years ago. Guess what? The price has gone up. The metal for my project was $1400 ($2.90 per ft), about twice what I expected. Oh well. . . . I'm not the only one who has been shocked by steel prices lately.

 

[Redbug]

Jim, Eddie, Bjcsc, etc...

Another question...Have any of you moved one of those containers to another location on your property? How hard are they to move around? On a 40 footer, can you hook a chain thru the corners and drag it to another location? Does it require a dozer, or can a couple trucks/tractors pull one?

 

[jinman]

Dave, the 40' container weighs about 8300 lb as I remember. Eddie might be able to move it with his New Holland LBH, but it's not a job for a utility tractor. I moved a 20' container that was empty for my neighbor when I first bought my tractor (45 hp NH) and it was all my tractor could handle at half the weight of the 40 footer. I only moved the box about 15 feet. If I had to do it again, I'd jack it up and put it on telephone poles for rollers or use big pipe. They would have to be big or they would just sink into the dirt. I just think you could easily tear up a small tractor on one of these things. An industrial loader backhoe or dozer is my recommendation.

 

[EddieWalker]

Jim, Eddie, Bjcsc, etc...

Another question...Have any of you moved one of those containers to another location on your property? How hard are they to move around? On a 40 footer, can you hook a chain thru the corners and drag it to another location? Does it require a dozer, or can a couple trucks/tractors pull one?

I've only moved them a few feet to get them lined up, which was pretty simple with what I have. With my full sized backhoe and dozer, I don't think I'd try moving one very far.

They are heavy and I imagine you'd have to get it off of the ground somehow. Logs as rollers would work good for a small distance, but if I had to do it, I'd probably try to get one end in the air on an axle and drag it. Might even try welding an axle onto it and put a wheel on it to see if that works.

In the end, it might be cheaper to just hire it done.

Eddie

 

[bigballer]

interesting twist..

Emergency shelter or hunting cabin

 

[Willl]

I'm sorry, maybe it's because I've worked around these 'cans' most of my adult life, but I find them to be butt ugly.

Unless you can 'hide' the shape of it like Eddie or Jinman did, no thanks.

This is how many I see every day.

 

[philbuilt]

I think that I saw someone on extreme home in maine built his house with 8 containers. I tried to google it but could not find a picture.
Nice setup by the way. Hey could you bury it into a hill? How long would it last? Then it wouldn"t be butt ugly anymore.
Phil

 

[WilliamBos]

Looks great!! Keep us posted as you progress along.

 

[jinman]

In the end, it might be cheaper to just hire it done.

Truer words were never spoken. At $150 for delivery, I'm sure I could pay that much or slightly more for them to come and move my container and be dollars ahead in grief and costs. Hiring someone with the right equipment is easily the best choice.

Willl: That picture you posted looks like an aerial view of an Arkansas apartment complex. . . Just kiddin'.

 

[Timber]

I deal with containers all the time. I do it on the trucking side and not from a Bridge Crane but I do understand. I could not look at 1 of those on my property but I can understand the value of 1 if I needed a portable building. They are rather indestructible.

 

[jinman]

I posted earlier in this thread about a container lean-to I was building. I've just about completed the construciton for now with the constant great help from my wife. Here's a link to my first post for pictures and I've attached some pictures to this post to show the finished lean-to. I've got some molding work to do and later I will put a wood crib on the other side of the container. This will have to do for now because we have to clean all our stuff out of our second house before closing on the 10th of November.

Framing the lean-to

In the pictures below, you can see that we put a flat roof on the container. Even if that flat roof leaks a little, it will be okay. There's about a 6" overlap of the sloped metal on the lean-to. If we have a problem with leaks, I'll go back with some caulk under the metal to seal it. Since our weather comes from the west, it will blow against the front of the container and I doubt the roof will leak much if any. However, if we get a little snow, I may see some leaks as it begins to melt. We don't usually get more than one snow each year with any accumulation of over 4", so I'm not really worried.

Oops! I almost forgot to mention that the container used to get so hot you could not stand to be inside it for more than a few minutes at a time. In the hottest part of summer, it was unbearable. Now, it's as cool as can be. The roof and lean-to on the south side really did the trick.

 

[Flatheadyoungin]

I love it, it's exactly what I need out there on my property!

 

[woodlandfarms]

I have been very intrigued about using containers in this fashion. If I was not married it is a method I would go with.

I love modern architecture, and have followed the container craze for a while. It made more sense 10 years ago when steel prices were down (not to say that 2K for a container is a bad deal, they just used to be a LOT cheaper).

So, here are some of my favorite links if you want to see these bad boys in action.

10 Cargo and Shipping Container Homes and Offices | WebUrbanist

Bob Villa talks about construction

Converting Steel Shipping Containers to Housing Video, Building with Steel Shipping Containers, Strong, Affordable Storm-Ready Housing, Bob Vila, Bob on TV, BobVila.com

I love this artist. Some of his work is, well, just amazing. He traveled around the world with his work, and displayed it in a massive shipping container built building. It was temporary, he rented local containers and only kept ones to keep his work in while traveling. Truly impressive. Mindblowing

New York Architecture Images- Chelsea- The Nomadic Museum

 

[jinman]

Carl, thanks for the links. I think that artist has gone out of his way to make a B-I-G statement. At night, his museum is surely hard to miss. It may be just me, but the thing I have the hardest time with is that the containers are all different colors. It might have been impossible, but if they were all from one company, the repetition of design would have added a pattern to the building. Hmm. . .

I plan to put a door in the back of my container that opens to the lean-to. I want to incorporate the corrugated side metal into the door. If I can cut it neatly enough and put hinges on it, the only thing needed would be a seal around the edges. That shouldn't be too hard. I might have to weld angle on the door edges to keep it rigid though.

 

[EddieWalker]

Jim,

It looks great. The shelves look a littel lonely, but I'm sure that will change quickly enough.

I'm trying to figure out where it's at on your land? I keep thinking that you built it where my dad parked his RV. Is that it?

Eddie

 

[woodlandfarms]

Carl, thanks for the links. I think that artist has gone out of his way to make a B-I-G statement. At night, his museum is surely hard to miss. It may be just me, but the thing I have the hardest time with is that the containers are all different colors. It might have been impossible, but if they were all from one company, the repetition of design would have added a pattern to the building. Hmm. . .

That repetition was the New York show. The LA show I saw it was all red. Someone said the Pac NW Show was Red White and Blue.....

I think for a person who doesn't look at architecture this design would be lost on them, but for me it was, well, just amazing. The fact he gapped the trailers (staggered them) then filled in the open spaces. And just the sheer size. Almost, shall I say, Arkish?

And his photography. well worth the trip if it ever comes back to the US.

Maybe you should build something like this;-) I am sure the wife would not complain.

BTW Jim, I really like your design. Nice, simple functional. Going to show it to the wife.

 

[jinman]

I'm trying to figure out where it's at on your land? I keep thinking that you built it where my dad parked his RV. Is that it?

Yep! You have it located, Eddie (see photo). I added to the size of that pad and cut drainage around it. I'm going to tear down that little crooked barn that was here when I bought the land and build a shop (40' x 60') there soon. As you know, you can't "find" a level spot on our land. You have to make it.

BTW: I built 172 sq ft of shelving in the lean-to and will probably add more later. I don't think you can ever have too much shelf space. By this weekend, these shelves will be full.

 

[firefighter9208]

Check out this use for a shipping container: FLASHOVER SIMULATOR,SCBA SIMULATORS,AIRCRAFT SIMULATORS,MULTI-TRAINER . I don't know the prices, but this seems like a pretty good use for old shipping containers.

Chris

 

[jinman]

Check out this use for a shipping container: FLASHOVER SIMULATOR,SCBA SIMULATORS,AIRCRAFT SIMULATORS,MULTI-TRAINER . I don't know the prices, but this seems like a pretty good use for old shipping containers.

Chris

I have had up-close experience with what we call FACTS trainers. The company I recently retired from has over 30 full-motion flight simulators in Dallas and we lease space to the group of FACTS trainers in the link below.

Emergency Aircrew Training Simulators

I affectionately call these machines "bump and jump" because they simulate a rough landing and then the aircrew practices evacuation. I don't see why containers could not be used for this except they are pretty heavy to be shaking and jumping around like the current FACTS trainers do. However, for the firefighting simulators as in your link, the containers seem to be ideal.