Shipping Containers Blog

Posts Tagged ‘40ft’

Yesterday we were talking about container dimensions for the most commonly used shipping containers.  This prompted several of you to ask me about what other containers were used for transportation.  Today’s post therefore, features three of the specialist containers I mentioned yesterday.

Flat racks or platforms are ISO containers that do not have side walls and are used to transport heavy machinery. They often have collapsible ends for ease of transportation when not in use.  They are often very popular for over sized pallets as well.

• Open top containers are shaped like a box and can be loaded from the top or end. Their main purpose is to carry heavy, tall or hard-to-load materials such as coal or grain.  They  are basically steel containers that have a tilt at the bottom and a tarpaulin cover and can be seen quite commonly on trains.

• Finally tank containers  or bulktainers which are used to transport liquid or bulk materials. They are built to the same standard dimensions as other ISO containers but are cylindrical vessels mounted in a rectangular steel framework.

These then are some more of what seems to be an infinite variety of shipping containers that you might comonly see when travelling by road, sea or train.

When thinking about Shipping Container Sales (or even hire) there are quite a few things you should consider.   Here are 10 that you might want to keep in mind.

1. The cheapest  to buy are 20ft Shipping Containers or 40ft Shipping Containers.  This is because these are the most common sizes used by the Shipping Lines/Transport Companies etc and therefore the most readily available.   Sizes such as 10ft etc are often cut down from larger containers and, due to the labour involved, are often more expensive.
2. Your shipping Container should be made out of corten steel.   This is a highly rust resistant and strong material that is weather resistant.   If you are considering buying  second hand shipping container then it will probaby be painted in the colours of a Shipping Line Company.   There will probably be places where the paint has been scraped and a brown surface layer will have formed.   This is not rust!   Corten steel forms this patina to stop rust getting to the underneath layer.   Your steel container should last another 10-15 years.
3. You should check that your container comes with a wind and watertight guarantee.   When you take delivery of your shipping container walk inside it and look for any holes in the sides and don’t forget to look up and check the roof!   This should be easy in the daylight as the sunlight will show through any holes there might be.
4. The floor of a standard shipping container is made out of 27mm timber.   Check that there are no soft spots in the floor that might give way when the container is loaded.
5. Make sure that your shipping container is sited on level ground.   This means that the doors will open smoothly.   When the container is empty this potential problem is often not obvious as the doors will probably open easily.   However, once the container is loaded if the container is not sited on the level then things are about to get a whole lot worse!
6. If you are going to use your container for shipping then make sure it has a CSC certificate or plate.   This will ensure that your container is cargo worthy and that you have no problems when delivering it to the port for shipping.  Remember that a lot of people choose to buy their container rather than hire is so they can use it as a shipping container conversion once they get to their new country.
7. If you have any concerns about the security of your container have a lock cowl or lockbox put on at the depot before delivery.   This is a metal box that is welded on to the container doors to protect the padlock from illegal access and tampering from bolt croppers or angle grinders etc.
8. Some insurance companies offer a premium discount if you use an insurance approved heavy duty container padlock such as CISA.   It is worth asking the insurance company you use to insure your container’s contents whether they do.
9. If you are worried about condensation then it may be worth considering lining the container.   This can be carried out at the depot and can be done in a variety of ways.   The most common is done using ply either without or without the addition of rockwool behind.  You could also consider using a “thermal blanket” - the method used by a large number of the shipping lines themselves.  A cheaper alternative to the problem of condensation is a moisture trap.  These last for 4 months and suck up 2.5 litres of water.   They are extremely effective but you do have to keep replacing them.
10. Finally, make sure that when you arrange delivery of your container you take into account the access to your site.   If there are overhanging trees, low cables or the lorry has to cross a field then the lorry might not be able to deliver your container and you will be charged for wasted transport.   It is always worth checking at the time of purchasing your container and, if there are concerns, sending photographs of the site or arranging a site visit to make sure that your container can be delivered.

If you are planning on emigrating, there are two ways to move your home contents – by air or by sea.   If you choose to ship your items it will obviously take longer for them to arrive at their final destination although usually it will save you money.   When you are trying to decide which option to choose, look at both air and sea options in terms of cost and time and don’t forget to factor in any furnished rentals you may need to pay for in the interim.  You can undertake the whole move yourself, or pay an international mover to take care of it for you.   Much will depend on your budget but, even if this is comparatively small, it could be worth talking to a professional as there are various options available that mean you can take on some of the process yourself and keep the price down!
If you do decide to move by sea, you will probably use a shipping container.   These are available to buy or hire and are made of corten steel.  These steel containers are extremely rust resistant and strong and are able to be delivered to your home so that your belongings can be packed inside.  Remember that you can either load straight away if you do not have too much stuff, or you can have the container left for a few weeks whilst you pack at your leisure.
 If you do decide to buy your own shipping container – and many people do, finding it extremely useful to have as additional storage space or as the basis of a conversion once they have arrived in their new country – then you must make sure that your container is sea worthy.   The phrase CSC plated is often used to determine whether the shipping container is suitable for shipping.   CSC stands for “Container Safety Convention” and the plate is usually attached to the shipping container doors and acts as the equivalent of a passport for the container.  Second hand shipping containers over 5 years old, can be tested and awarded a certificate that needs to be presented to the shipping line that is moving your container.  Basically this ensures that your shipping container is strong enough to be lifted safely on and off the ship with your home contents inside.
But how do you decide which size of shipping container will take all the contents of your home?  The standard sizes are either 20ft or 40ft and the easiest way to judge the size is to imagine that a 20ft shipping container as the size of a single garage and a 40ft shipping container the size of a double garage.   Whilst there are other sizes of shipping containers available generally these would need to go as special cargo and therefore be more expensive to ship.     Shipping containers are normally loaded onto the boat as cargo and must fit into the boat’s schematic.   Therefore all the 20ft containers are usually stacked together and similarly all the 40fts.  
Once you have loaded your container, it should be collected and moved to the port by rail or road where it can be loaded onto the ship.   Once your goods have arrived in your new country, the container is then unloaded and must pass through customs.   International movers should be able to help you with all the necessary forms and are often responsible for clearing your goods.  Don’t forget that depending on which country you have moved to it may be possible to claim back the vat you will have paid on your container.
From there on in you are on the home straight (as it were)!  It is simply a matter of getting your shipping container to your new house and unpacking.  
Best of luck!

When you buy or hire a shipping container usually you do so by size.   The size you choose is normally to suit what space you have available or how much you need to store or ship.   In fact shipping was responsible for determining shipping container sizes.   For what you probably don’t realise as you choose is that the standard sizes of shipping container – either 20ft or 40ft long by 8ft wide and 8ft 6in tall – revolutionised the cost of shipping.
These standard sizes meant that the loading and unloading of shipping containers could be mechanised.  Only a few pieces of equipment are needed to move the containers rather than the considerable manpower and different types of machinery that had been needed to move the varying shapes of palletised goods that had up until then been the norm.  It also meant that large numbers of shipping containers could be organized on a single ship as they are easily arranged in large stacks.
Of course the standard 20ft and 40ft are not the only sizes of shipping containers available.   There is a 20ft and 40ft high cube available which is 9ft 6in tall and is particularly useful for putting taller machinery and equipment in.   Smaller sizes of shipping container are also available such as the 8ft and 10ft long containers although these often have to be shipped as “special cargo” rather than going on the main container decks.
But nowadays, shipping containers are not just used for shipping.   They are used for secure, dry storage.   As such, they can be altered to any length from 40ft downwards.  Frequently, people ask for an 8ft or 10ft container believing that they will be cheaper than the 20ft.   Yet because a 10ft or and 8ft is usually cut down from a 20ft container, the additional labour means that the 10ft or 8ft is as – if not more – expensive than the standard 20ft size.  So, if you have room for the larger size, it is often worth buying as you get more storage space for a similar amount of money.

Shipping Containers are often chosen as home storage containers over the more traditional wooden sheds. There are a variety of reasons for this other than the fact that shipping containers are generally cheaper and more easily transportable. Perhaps the most important is the fact that the steel containers offer an extremely secure method of storage for personal belongings.

Whether the reason for needing home storage containers is as a result of a delayed house move, a major rennovation project or clearing space in the garage or spare room, there has been an increasing need for additional storage. It has been argued that the recent credit crunch has meant that many people are down sizing or continuing to rent whilst waiting for housing prices fall further, and this has meant increased demand for such storage.

There are a number of advantages to using shipping containers as home storage containers. The containers are made of corten steel -which is extremely strong and weather proof, having been developed to withstand marine conditions. The strength of the iso specification is such that shipping containers can be used to support bridges and therefore this makes them extremely durable and long lasting. The doors are fastened with locking rods that, when coupled with a lock box and a heavy duty container padlock makes illegal access difficult.

Lock boxes are sometimes referred to as lock cowls, lock shrouds or padlock boxes. As far as home storage containers are concerned their function is to protect the padlock from angle grinders or bolt croppers adding to the security aspect.

Shipping containers come in a variety of sizes - both standard and adapted - making them idea for home storage containers. The basic width of a container is 8ft with the height being normally 8ft 6″- although 9ft 6″ high cube containers are available. The length can then be adapted and is usually anything from 8ft to 40ft. The industry standard lengths are 20ft and 40ft (making these the cheapest options) but these can be cut down to any other length to fit into the space available.

Finally, shipping containers are easily transportable. They are often delivered and offloaded by a lorry with a hi-ab crane which makes the placement of the container at your home extremely easy.

Home storage containers that are flexible in size, extremely secure and easily delivered to your home - shipping containers have to be an option worth considering.

There are many reasons for shipping container sales. Most second hand shipping containers are not, in fact, sold for shipping. The most common reason for the sale of containers is for storage. The sizes of shipping containers - which vary from 8ft long to 40ft long - make them extremely versatile at fitting in to a variety of spaces as storage containers. Add to this the fact that the corten steel construction, when coupled with a lock box and heavy duty container padlock, make shipping containers extremely secure, it is not surprising that so many of them are sold for storage.
But there are other reasons for shipping container sales. The block like structure of shipping containers make them very adaptable and ideal for container conversions. These conversions can take many forms. 20ft iso containers are often adapted to make offices, classrooms, workshops or site accommodation. The basic box is insulated and lined, fitted with electricity to provide electrical sockets, lighting and heating as well as having personnel doors, steel shuttered windows and suitable flooring. The result is an extremely flexible space that is easily transportable and, again by its very construction, secure.
Nowadays, however, developed techniques mean that the conversions that are undertaken are not just limited to one container. Shipping container sales often result in multiple containers being sold. They have been used for student accommodation at universities (many hundreds of containers!), community centres or youth centres (often consisting of sales of 4 or 5 containers) and work preparation areas (2 containers). And it does not stop there. Architects have been building attractive and affordable housing out of the containers, art centres and even state of the art coffee bars or tanks for surfing.
Shipping container sales are not longer limited to the shipping of goods. There are so many more uses to them than people wishing to transport their goods abroad when emigrating. These adaptable units provide a number of economic and adaptable solutions to everyday needs. Their flexibility not only saves money and - where major construction is concerned, time - these shipping container sales also carry a “green” seal of approval when what is an essentially industrial product is recycled for new use.

We mostly think of refrigerated containers as being purely commercial and of no interest to us cooking at home.   It is true, of course, that most of us will not have a 20ft or 40ft refrigerated shipping container sitting in our garden waiting for us to put our shopping in!   But in all likelihood many of the fresh ingredients that we buy have probably been in a refrigerated container before we ever get them home.

It isn’t fashionable now to admit that your ingredients have not all been sourced locally or been grown in your allotment or back garden.  Truth is most of the food we eat has travelled from various parts of the country or, indeed, various parts of the world.   Whether our lamb comes from our local farmer, or from Wales or New Zealand the truth is it has still probably been transported at some point in a refrigerated container.

These industrial containers  that we call refrigerated containers, work by keeping their contents at a different temperature than the surrounding environment.  Sometimes this involves the temperature being set at higher than that outside -which, if you think about it, means that calling them “refrigerated containers” could be inappropriate!    In fact the range that these so called refrigerated containers can be set at is between -20C and +20C.    This gives the opportunity to store a whole range of different products.   After all, different food stuffs will require different temperatures for storage.    Icecream, for example is going to need to be kept at a much lower temperature than lettuces!  Indeed the temperature controlled environment of the refrigerated shipping container means that everything can be kept fresh at the optimum temperature. 

So how is all this relevant to you at home and the stuff that you cook with everyday?   Shipping containers have bought the price of food down, and have made it possible for it to be transported from all over the world.   The majority of our food travels at some point by sea, road or train.   The standard size of a shipping container is 20ft or 40ft and it is these very sizes of  shipping containers, refrigerated or otherwise, which has brought down the price of transportation considerably.   The fact that standard shipping containers are either 20ft or 40ft  means that handling of all the containers could be done simply rather than using a variety of different machinery and lots of man power thus saving money.

So next time you are on the road travelling to the shops and pass a lorry taking food to the supermarket or to your local greengrocer you know exactly why that refrigerated container you have just overtaken has helped you with the meals you are planning to prepare.

If you are planning to buy a second hand shipping container for storage there are various factors that you should consider prior to purchase.

The most important is whether or not the ex shipping container is guaranteed to be wind and watertight.  Whilst in an ideal world it would be great to be able to inspect the container personally few of us actually have the time to travel to the nearest depot to look at used containers prior to purchase and so a guarantee is crucial.

If you are still concerned and you have an e-mail address it should be possible to get pictures sent so you can see how damaged or dented a shipping container is.  You should ask about the doors and the locking mechanism which vary in quality according to the make of container.

Some people are concerned about the colour of the cargo container, which varies according to the shipping line or manufacturer.  It is usually possible to get the container resprayed to a colour of your choice with dark green seeming to be the most popular colour.

I got quite a shock this morning when on BBC Breakfast they announced that they were going to be following the progress of a 40ft shipping container as it journeyed around the world! Not something I was expecting - and I am afraid that in my shock I spilt the milk going into my cornflakes - but what a great idea!

Not many people realise that because of shipping containers making transportation so much easier and cheaper, prices of all sorts of things from cars to toys, electrical equipment to clothes have been reduced. Prior to shipping containers items to be transported used to be of all different sizes and take up odd spaces on ships and require individual handling. The whole beauty of making all shipping containers the same size, or a derivative thereof, the equipment used to transport them - whether ships, lorries, cranes, trains etc can all be standardised. This makes the whole business of delivery cheaper by far and far less labour intensive. It has suddenly become more cost effective, for example, for a garage to order in cars as and when it needs them rather than keeping a whole lot in stock. This saves them a huge financial outlay in buying terms, let alone the costs of keeping the cars on site, and the price of the end product, in this case the car, to the consumer is cheaper as a result.

The box being followed by the BBC has just been sprayed and is setting off empty to Scotland where it will fill up with whiskey before being shipped to Shanghai. Declan Curry will be following its progress in a series which will have updates throughout the year when anything interesting happens.

We will, of course, keep you updated as to the shipping containers progress as well! Though, hopefully the next time it appears on the tv I won’t spill the milk going onto my cornflakes!!

Yesterday we talked about shipping containers being used to provide accommodation for the Olympics – and by this I mean housing for either the athletes or the influx of tourists that 2012 is bound to bring.

I have been asked just how shipping containers could provide an answer when they are effectively just boxes!?

The fact that the containers themselves are made for industrial use means that they are extremely strong structurally and are in building block size being typically 20ft or 40ft long, 8ft wide and 8ft 6inches high.

If you imagine them as rather like a child’s building set then you can start to see them either joined to one another to create a series of rooms or stacked on top of each other to create lofts and multi storied buildings.

Put these within a rigid framework like the Travelodge in Uxbridge and you have an extremely flexible system that, with the addition of electricity, plumbing and heating mean that all of our modern day needs can be catered for.

If the industrial look of shipping containers does not appeal, then they can be clad in a huge variety of materials ranging from wood to render to suit the location of the elements.  Add windows, doors and maybe even balconies and the shipping containers are totally transformed.

There are examples of completed projects throughout the world.  From Container City in London – right in the centre of London’s Docklands which might be of special interest to our Olympic organizers – to housing projects in Australia.

Given the speed with which they can be set up, the relatively low impact on the surrounding environment – not to mention the green credentials of re-using an industrial product, there is a lot going for shipping containers that have been converted for use as accommodation.