Here’s the deal: housing is in short supply, the construction industry is wasteful, and shipping containers are plentiful.
A used shipping container provides sturdy framing suitable for creative, affordable, and comfortable place to call home.
Imagine obtaining a shipping container that has reached the end of its useful life on the transporting goods across the ocean (single-trip containers are a common occurrence). Now consider the ease of constructing tiny-home interiors and exterior shell to provide the simplest and most practical roof over our heads.
The units can be pre-fabricated in a warehouse to minimize on-site construction waste, optimize the use of materials-tools-manpower, and energy-efficiency strategies can reduce the need for fossil fuel energy to heat and cool the space.
We need your help for:
Construction basics: This isn’t a new idea, but there are a lot of experts out there, yet there isn’t a single point of that we need to bring together to collaborate:
- Do you have experience with Shipping Container construction?
- Please post pictures, case studies, energy studies, tenant feedback, expenses, challenges, etc)
- Can we design something that is modular (assembled in pieces on site), scalable (home can grow as the family grows), easily moved (home can be easily transported)?
Building Envelope: The key to a sustainable design is a definitive thermal boundary and wind/rain tight layer. We would love your ideas for materials that are (recycled, natural, innovative):
- Insulation: strawbale insulation?
- Siding or Wind/Rain membrane: recycled plastic bottles turned into plastic sheets?
- Roofing:
- Windows & Doors: natural lighting, double walls like an Earthship?
Heating Ventilation Air Conditioning (HVAC): What are the available technologies that are small and provide the benefits of energy efficiency?
Heating System: sunlight harvesting
Cooling System: natural ventilation
Temperature Distribution: use the conductivity of the container to deliver heat & cool??
Hot Water Heating:
Plumbing and appliances:
- Hot Water Heater: instantaneous shower and sink hot water?
- Toilet: composting?
- Cooking: safe, low energy, non-fuel-burning cooking option?
- Electricity generation: Solar collector/harvester?
Interior furnishings:
- Floorplan & Layout
- Furnishing (couch, beds, tables, counters, shower, etc)
What else does our home need!?!?! Please feel free to contribute design ideas, existing precedents, and feedback on our challenge.
Pad: https://pad.oscedays.org/p/Denver_Challenge_4
Cloud: https://cloud.oscedays.org/index.php/s/c4MrxzizJjFj31Y
Happy Open Sourcing!!!
Dan, Team OSCE Denver
http://www.vocaoffgrid.com/osce-forum.html