How To Build A Shipping Container Home

City of Phoenix Site Planning Department Conversation – Shipping Container Homes

If you are serious about exploring the concept of building a shipping Container home make sure to download, read, fill out, and submit your Design Review Checklist from the City of Phoenix. The site review staff is very friendly and will be extremely helpful in helping you find out what you need to do in order to pull this off in Phoenix.

City of Phoenix Plan Review Conversation – Shipping Container Homes

They are made from shipping containers that are no more being used.

These homes take advantage of construction materials are not expensive at all.

If you are interested in knowing how to build a shipping container home, follow the steps below.

Understand the Process Your City Uses (step 1)

For our example, we will focus on the City of Phoenix Planning Department Information. There will be similar guidelines in other cities across the US. Be sure to be aquainted in the city of your choice should you decide to build an alternative home.

Here is an overview of the City of Phoenix for the Residential building process.

Here is the fee schedule for residential building permits in Phoenix Arizona.

Creating a design.

It’s very important to make a plan or visualize the house you would like to live in.

The designing or planning stage allows you to know the number of shipping containers you need to build your house.

The design process is what makes a new home livable and attractive. Buying a new home allows the user to choose something that is already designed. Building a shipping container home opens the door to creativity and some reduced costs.

Having an idea about the sizes of the shipping containers you would need is important.

Large and small containers are available and they vary from 45 to 53feet long.

You can use the large containers for your living rooms, and the smaller for your kitchen and bath.

Hire Design Experts – Avoid Remorse

Get a professional architect like Clarisa to help create a plan and design for you.

She and her team are up to speed on alternative construction.

They know how to design in such a way that costly mistakes are avoided and beautiful results are achieved.

This is simply because they help determine aspects that are important to consider for your home plan.

They are experts in converting an old shipping container into a gorgeous house.

These experts don’t only know how to build a shipping container home but are able to design a perfect plan for your container home or you can see what designs are in or out of the trend.

After creating a design and a plan you need to get permission from the government.

It is simple you cannot build a container house wherever or however you want.

You will definitely need to also abide by the rules of constructing a container house.

To avoid future troubles and ensure safety, check construction codes in your locality and follow them.

Now, what about the land? Where will you build your new place? Let’s take a look at some land options in Greater Phoenix.

Here is one of my favorite YT videos. Why? Because it is a testimony to a dream come true.  This young couple had a dream and went for it. Look at the results! F A N T S T I C if you ask me!

When you have acquired land for the construction of your container, build a strong foundation.

Note that shipping containers require a rock-solid concrete foundation.

The building needs to be pinned down so that it won’t move during a windstorm.

It also prevents the build-up of moisture that will subsequently result in rusting once the metal protective coatings come off.

Therefore you need a foundation that will be able to handle the environment where you plan to build.

Experts who know how to build a shipping container home can advise you on the right steps that they are familiar within your city.

The next stage is building a strong skeleton.

The strong skeleton will prevent your home from easy destruction by bad weather or any natural disaster.

Also, you may need to modify the roof to provide to prevent destruction by snow if you reside in the cold country.

All these modifications can be made by a professional welder.

An expert will ensure that all cranes are joined correctly.

Alternatively, hire the services of trained and experienced experts who know how to build a shipping container home, to do the roofing for you.

🏠 Finishing

The last step is finishing, be sure to have these essential tools in your toolbox.

You may need to fashion out windows as you desire.

Do the plumbing and electrical work, and lay the flooring and any other work.

Coat the container to prevent exposure to moisture and rain.

Use insulating materials to prevent the interior from becoming very hot or very cold during extreme climatic conditions.

My city (Phoenix Arizona) has huge fluctuations in temperatures during winter months. You can wake up to 35º temps and see the afternoon temperatures more than double the am temps.

This causes expansion and contraction in the metal, so some products (like drywall) may pop and creek as the temps go up and down.

This should influence your material choices when you go to finish out the structure.

There is no one size fits all materials list.

What works really well in Oregon does not necessarily make for a good pick in Arizona.

So you’re uber-inspired, and the more you think about it the more you realize that this is only a dream for you if you actually have to undertake the construction. No problemo. There are some great options for you out there. Check out my pal Kristina Smallhorn’s outstanding video about buying a shipping container home on Amazon.

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