Shipping Containers Blog

Posts Tagged ‘20ft’

There has been a rise in the number of people that use shipping containers to make houses and other community buildings.   Architects have started designing more projects that rely on shipping container conversions for prestigious sites.

But why should you choose a shipping container as the basis for your building?

1. Shipping Containers are readily available with over a million being released by shipping lines each year
2. They are ecologically friendly - you would be giving something that is essentially an industrial waste product a new lease of life
3. Shipping containers are weather resistant being made out of corten steel and having water resistant seams and 27mm marine plywood floors
4. They can be quickly assembled on site
5. 20ft and 40ft shipping containers can be combined to make larger units quickly and easily
6. They are structurally very strong - shipping containers are used to support concrete bridges in states such as Utah
7. Shipping Container conversions can used other recycled materials such as windows and doors
8. The containers have a good fire resistance rating
9. The fact that containers are designed for transportation means that they are easy to get onto most sites
10. On average a shipping container home is 20-50% cheaper than a conventional construction project

In our next post we will look at some shipping container building projects to see just how well containers can be converted and how visually appealing they can be.

Second hand 10ft refrigerated container

If you are considering buying a 10ft refrigerated container the following facts may be useful:-

INTERIOR

    Length        245cm    Width         224cm    Height        222cm

    Cubic Capacity 13 cu m

    Door opening width 224cm      Door opening height 218cm

    Tare weight 1500kgs     Max gross weight 15000kgs

    Pallet capacity 5 to 6 depending on type

 EXTERIOR

    Length  300cm      Width  243cm      Height 259cm

The downside of 10ft containers is that they are normally more expensive than the more widely available 20ft and 40ft containers as they are not built in such numbers and do not have such a demand in the commercial marketplace.

This shipping container conversion project was to consist of 7 second hand 20ft containers joined together to make a large “community centre” in Chiswick.

It is perhaps easiest to think of shipping containers as pieces of lego that can have sides removed and be welded together in order to make a larger building.   When planning this there are several points to bear in mind, not least of which is to balance up using new shipping containers over used containers.   Whilst second hand containers have the advantage of being more ecologically friendly, it is often more difficult and therefore more expensive, to find a large number have the same specifcation.  Essentially what this actually means is that they are built so that the top rails and floor bearers match and so can be married up successfully so that there are no obvious joins.  In new containers, this is not a problem because they tend to be all shipped together in a batch and therefore have identical build specification.

multi-container-build

Here at CS Shippng Containers we have been missing the Olympics. Susan, who handles the logistics side of the business has, in particular, been missing the swimming. So, at coffee we got talking about the recent posts we have filed about shipping containers being converted into all sorts of amazing things and linked it to the upcoming 2012 Olympics in London.

Apart from her talents in keeping calm and organising everybody so your cargo containers get to where they are meant to, on time and in the right conditition, Susan is an amazing artist. It didn’t take her long to come up with these 3 simple and fun ideas.

OK. We admit none of this is very likely, but it does make the point that, as our previous posts show, 20ft or 40ft containers are very versatile - not only as a source of inspiration for Susan!

North Sea Oil Rigs had been using shipping containers for offshore accommodation for sometime when, shortly after the Falklands War, the British Army decided to rent what became known as the Coastel.  This in effect comprised of shipping containers that had been installed onto barges to provide floating accommodation - in this case in Stanley Harbour.

But there have been other examples of how shipping containers - or iso containers as they are known in the Army - have been used in the operational field.  In the Gulf War when the Allied Forces arrived in Saudi Arabia accommodation was very limited.  In fact the only shelter available was in warehouse and the shipping containers that were already in the port.  The 20ft and 40ft containers were quickly put to use as secure containers to store arms and ammunition as well as stores.  Many were converted into temporary offices and living quarters.

In Bosnia and Kosovo shipping container conversions were delivered as living accommodation, bedrooms and bathrooms to nearly all the camps.  The US Army uses similar conversions throughout Iraq today and the Australian Army even has Medical Operating Theatres in shipping containers which they move to wherever they are needed.

Who says that shipping containers don’t get everywhere?

I am often being asked to give details of size and weight of shipping containers, so I thought it would be useful to attach a table giving the details.

These are the most common sizes of used shipping containers although there are, other more specialist containers such as flat racks etc that might be of interest to some of you and which we will feature on another occasion.

Recently there has been a change in the world of shipping containers.   The scarcity of 20ft second hand containers has meant that we are beginnng to see the price of 20ft containers being the same as, or sometimes more than, 40ft containers.  This will come as a surprise to many who think that the price of containers goes up the larger they are!

20ft used shipping container

These are made of numbers of shipping containers, either 20ft or 40ft, often piled up 5 or 6 high and used as either windbreaks, enclosures or even as giant advertising hoardings.

Recently, the film Gulliver’s Travels, which is being made at Pinewood Studios, used over 80 second hand shipping containers - both 20ft and 40ft - to form a backdrop.   Covered with green cloth, the shipping containers were cheaper to use, and quicker to assemble , than the more conventional scaffolding.  

The world of drama often uses shipping containers, indeed the second series of the highly popular drama “The Wire” as based around the freight port in Baltimore.  Closer to home “Dr Who” has used shipping containers.

We have also got used to seeing walls of containers used as advertising hoardings.  Companies all across the UK are using the walls to promote their profile - often using additional container doors set into the back of the wall of containers so that they can be used for traditional storage as well.

Today is the European Team Championships for the world of athletics.  The stadium in Leira, Portugal, although traditionally constructed, is brightly coloured and made me think of shipping containers.     With the approach of the 2012 olympics maybe we should consider using shipping containers to quickly form stadiums for our athletes to practice in.   Obviously this could be taken up to the ultimate level with shipping containers converted into actual stands of seating, but at their simplest  they would provide the ideal windbreak.

Shipping Container Walls maybe the most basic of  “conversions” but they certainly have their uses!

Shipping Containers provided the answer to much needed storage for PE kit for High View Primary Learning Centre in Barnsley.

20ft shipping container conversion

The school needed a storage container nearer to the school playing fields so that equipment was easily accessed.   In order to make sure that the children had no problems opening the doors, a personnel door was put in th centre of one of the sides and the double container doors sealed off for added security.   Inside the container was shelved so that there was plenty of storage space.

shipping container conversion close up

CS Shipping Containers is particularly keen to work with schools and can arrange for delivery before the school day starts if this makes it easier.  Do feel that if you have any specific requirements for your shipping container conversion that you can talk it through with us so that you can get exactly what you need.

“I’d recommend CS Shipping Containers to any school without hesitation.  All the staff, from sales through to delivery, provided a first rate service and ensured that the container met our exact specifications.”

Tim Marsh, Business Manager, High View Primary Learning Centre

Yesterday we discussed the process of ordering a shipping container conversion.  Today I promised that we would go through some of the options that you might want to consider when converting your container.

If the container is going to be used as an office, site accommodation or a classroom, the first thing is to insulate and line it.   The most common method of doing this is with a combination of rockwool and melamine faced board.   This produces nice smooth walls and ceilings - although you can choose to have wall paper or a painted finish if you require.   Flooring is generally placed over the existing wooden shipping container floor.  The most common is a hard wearing lino although carpet (and in particular carpet tiles) are another favourite.

10 ft office conversion

The next thing to consider is the number of windows required.   For a 20ft container the normal requirement is between 2 and 4 windows and for a 40ft 4 or 8 windows.   The windows can be double glazed and are normally 3ftx3ft with lockable steel shutters for security.  As far as access is concered it is quite common for the double shipping container doors to either be sealed off or replaced with a blank end and  personnel door put into the container - usually on one of the long sides.

Shipping containers are then ideally suited to be fitted with electrics, lighting and heating.   Specify the number of double or single sockets you require and, if possible, where they are to be located within the container.

shipping container conversion

Do remember too that it is perfectly possible to have containers joined together along the length to give additional width.   Bespoke Container Conversions are able to do this with up to 5 containers and then go up to 7 storeys high due to the strength of the corner posts of a genuine ISO shipping container.

These are just the basic alterations that you can have to a shipping container.   Plumbing, glass frontage, internal bulkheads and air conditioning are also possibilities - in fact most things are possible so don’t be afraid to ask.  And if you are looking for something temporary on a short term basis, don’t forget that standard offices and site accommodation are available on a hire basis as well.