Ten Years After (almost)

I have not updated the blog in quite a while.  People continue to ask about the house and how I like living there.  I walked around the house and took pictures for a full 360.   This post is to show how the house looks today.  I very much like the house and would love to build another (but have no reason to do so).  The only problem I have had with the house was a squirrel invasion.  I did not originally screen the porch (completely isolate the overhead area), and squirrels nested there.  Once they have babies, they are imprinted to come back.  I had to tear the soffits off twice and screen the porch with hardware cloth to keep them out. 

The last picture is of another container that is used as an outbuilding.  The porch is salvaged from the house trailer that was previously on the site.

Questions From Mike (planning to build container house)

I recently received questions from Mike about building a container house.  His questions and my answers follow:

1.  What was your estimated price per sq. foot total?  I estimate I spent $100-$120 per square foot.  The reason I do not know exactly is that I have never gone back and added it all back up.  I had a contractor who did the work.  If you contracted it yourself, you could possibly save some there.  My contractor was worth every penny though, because he knew things I did not.  Nevertheless, had I had the time, I believe I could have done some of it more cost effectively.

2.  How much did you pay for each 40' container?   Almost three years ago, I paid $2,500 per (45') container delivered to the site, but not including the crane to set them on the foundation.  I used three containers, side by side. Container prices vary with supply and demand and who you buy them from. 

3.  Roof Trusses, any problems?  Roof trusses were no issue.  The building supply place orders them to your specs, delivers to site, and never touches them.  You can see the original plan on the blog.  I had some extra corrugated Quonset hut material I planned to use, but the engineering was going to cost so much to get it to code, it was not worth using.  The combined cost of the trusses and the metal roof were less than the engineering necessary to make the salvage material work (see #4).  Also, I think I got a better roof with the truss and metal design.   The beauty of using the trusses is that I not only have insulation inside, but have blown in insulation in the attic space created by the trusses.  Better planning could have saved me some money.  For example, it cost appx $1k or more to get a crane to the site each time.  I brought one in to unload the containers off the truck and on to the foundation.  Had it been a slab foundation, I could have had the containers delivered on a roll off unit and avoided the crane.  I'm not sure how I could have done it, but if the trusses were there at the time the containers arrive, you could use the same crane to set both.  Again, it is a planning process, which I did not do nearly as well as I could have.

4.  Any budget costs you would mind sharing?  My goal starting out was to build a house for $50 per square foot.  It was the first time I had built a container house, and the first time the county building inspector had encountered one in our county.  An inspector may be, but is probably not an engineer.  There are regional building codes that many counties subscribe to.  If the inspector can find your design in the standard book, there is virtually no question of acceptance.  If he cannot find your concept in the book, he will require a professional engineer (PE) to submit the design and sign off on it.  That has liability implications for the engineer, so he will over design it, and he will charge you professional fees (like a lawyer or doctor) to certify your design.    The foundations was tremendously overdesigned.  I believe I could stack three containers high on the foundation I have, and be totally stable and safe.   Since the engineer did not have any experience with containers, he had no clue what cutting some of the walls out might do to the structural integrity of the container.  Therefore, he put a block foundation under every inch of every side of each container.  The foundation cost $6k.  I think a slab or piers would have been fine.  Either would have been cheaper, but the piers would get the containers up so HVAC, wiring and plumbing could be underneath (as my foundation did for my building).  All that would have to be put in or under a slab design.  The engineering for using the Quonset pieces was going to cost $6k and the material for tin and trusses was $5k.   

Another thing I really was enthusiastic about was re-using  as much building material as I could.  Habitat's Re-Store supplied my kitchen cabinets, toilets, bathroom sink, kitchen sink, all exterior doors, some interior doors, dishwasher, washing machines, etc. (new windows and tubs).  When you are using salvage material and using a contractor, you have to balance the figuring/thinking time of the contractor to adapt the used article, against the ease and familiarity of the contractor with installing new stuff with complete directions included. 

5. How many sq. ft heated/cooled?  There are 1,080 sq. ft. heated and cooled.  The porch is additional (16' wide and appx. 30' long).

Added comments: You did not ask, but I used an architect who was very interested in my project.  He was very flexible.  I could tell him my idea and he could translate it to working drawings quickly.  I could sit for an hour and try to figure out how to lay out the bathroom.  He could scratch it out in ten minutes and it would be exactly what I wanted.  If I were building again, I suspect I would put two containers side by side and stack two on top.  My house is 1,080 with three (45' not 40') containers.  Four 45' containers would give you 1,440 square feet and  four 40' containers would give you 1,280 square feet.  You would have to calculate the extra cost of the longer containers for the space gained.  I believe that if you have to have your foundation engineered, the smaller foundation footprint would pay.  Additionally, you do not need the porch foundation to be as substantial as the rest of the house.  Mine are all the same.  As much as I have complained about the cost, though, I think I could take a direct hurricane hit, and possibly a direct tornado hit and not lose the house (only the roof).  Since I did not let the contractor penetrate the top of the container, and sealed each container to the other, I could lose the roof and still not leak.  Also, no matter what, get the high-cube containers whether they are 40' or 45'.  The extra height allows you to frame it out and still have a roomy feel that height gives you.

Changing Colors

Progress is slow but it is progress.  I am painting the house with a light green paint to which I have added the silicon NASA beads.  http://www.hytechsales.com/  They are advertised as a similar product used on the space shuttle to coat the heat shield tiles.  The house is looking less and less like containers and more like a house.  One friend though, said this picture made it look like a mobile home.  I have framed all the windows with treated lumber and am waiting for them to age some before staining.  After a year, I am still pleased with the house, and would love to try another one.  At this point, I just do not have an excuse to build another house!

Living In A Container House



Living Porch



The container house has been home for four months now.  We are still working inside and things move slowly.  This week we got rid of the last of the construction debris.  Several weeks ago, we cleared the porch of building material.  I have been pleased with the power bills.  The tankless instant water heater works well as it has for me in another house. 

 



Bookshelf in Den

Entrance From Inside

Guest Bath With Mirror in Antique Frame

Moved In

Contruction was not finished, but we moved in December 11, 2010.  I noticed that date is 12.11.10.  I was curious and just looked back to see if we started on 11.10.09, but it was a few days earlier than that.  I noticed on Curt's container blog that he got too busy to post to the blog.  The same has happened to me.  Nevertheless, we are in and find the house comfortable.  I am finishing details as I go.  I have been working inside due to the weather and wanting to get moved out of the mobile home where I had been living.  The outside still looks like a construction site. 

Breakfast Bar and Lights

In a rush to make decisions in the kitchen, we moved the bar.  After the fact, we realized the light placements were no longer over the bar.  We built these fixtures from salvaged copper tubing and ceiling fan lamp holders.  They are missing the globes.




Coming To The End

11/25/10 Thanksgiving Day!  While not much has changed as far as a picture could show, lots of work has been going on.  The HVAC unit has been installed.  Insulation has been blown in the attic space. Toilets and sinks have been set.  Plastic placed under the house and secured to the foundation walls (non-ventilated foundation).  The old container floors have been sanded and urethene is being painted on this week.  As best I can tell, the floors are mahoghany plywood and have finished up nicely.  The kitchen is complete except for the gas range hich I am waiting to find on sale. We have received our final inspection and are waiting for the certificate of occupancy to arrive in the mail.  I plan to begin moving in next week (God willing and the creek don't rise).    This is about it unless someone has questions. john@marmacwire.com.

Bidet and toilet (both salvaged). Floor and toilet surrond marble.  I was shocked to find after purchsing the marble that it was "made in China".  Too late to take it back.

Mahogony Plywood Floors (gouges from freight being dragged out)

Salvage cabinets and sink from Habitat for Humanity ReStore. Dishwasher salavaged from relative's remodle.  Range hood new.  Countertops new from Lowe's delaminated during installation and got full credit.

Wainscoting and Sheetrock

9/23/10 Waincoting is from wood we had sawed roughly ten years ago.  It was from 125 year old, 125' tall pines.  It has been air drying since then.  We sawed it to length, planed it, and grooved each edge to provide for overlap.  My brother Thomas helped me do the planing and my wife Mary Jane helped me install it.  Smith Drywall is doing the sheetrock installation.  Smith has found the sheetrocking to be a little more difficult due to issues of extra height and it being a converted shipping container.  We still have to finish the ceilings of the porches, blow the isulation on top of the containers (1' in addition to the 4" inside), HVAC installation, floor sanding, install cabinets and kitchen, marble on bathroom floor, doors and trim inside, and probably more than I have thought of.

Moving Forward Again !!

9/23/10 It has been a while since I last posted.  We seemed to be stalled and there was really nothing to post.  Electrical and plumbing work is done mostly in the walls and under the floor and does not make for great pictures.  The tankless/instant water heater has been installed along with the propane tank.  I was adamant that we not pierce the roof of the containers any more than necessary, so we used through-the-wall, house-trailer bathroom vents.   Now that the wiring and pipes are in, the insulation and sheet rock could go up.  Progress is more visible as you can see in the pictures.  We continue to comply with Chesterfield County building codes and meet our regular inspections.  We hope to have a final inspection before the start date anniversary. 

Roof and Gable Coverings In Place

The metal roof is now in place.  This view shows the covered entry.  The space for the covered entry was made available due to extending one container eight feet beyond the other two.  This placement makes for a more interesting layout but increased the cost of the foundation and the truss placement.  There are a number of things I learned that have increased the cost that could be avoided in the future to reduce cost.  I will attempt to make a list of those items in a later post.

This view shows the opposite end of the house.  To the left is an open space under roof to be used as a carport.  Beyond this space is the screened porch.  To the right of the open space and to the left of the center container is a small private porch which is accessed from the master bedroom.    I do not plan to put any additional covering on the outside of the house.  It will be painted a consistent color to blend it all together. 

Change Of Plans

If you noticed that there was no plan for roof trusses in the original drawings, you have just seen evidence of the unstable process of building an unconventional building.  I had originally planned to use salvaged material intended for the walls of a metal quanset hut to form the porch roof.  It would have been so expensive to get it engineered to comply with code, that we made the decision to go with a conventional roofing system using new material.  The roof covering will be Galvalume 5V metal (tin), attched with screws.

Roof Trusses

The prefabricated roof trusses took very little time to install.  Mac Pfifer is the framing contractor and with his crew and the help of a boom truck, placed all trusses in one morning.  It took them the rest of the day and the following morning to tie it all down and tie it all together.  This view shows the vaulted ceiling shape of the screened porch.  The space from which the picture is taken will be the carport.

There is no real front or back to the house.  There is a primary entry on one corner, but the screened porch is designed to be a living area and is contiguous to the kitchen, dining area, and den.  The roof extends over the entry porch.  We plan to leave the container doors in place (second container to the right), to be closed for security when the house is locked.  When not in use, the container doors will be opened against the adjacent containers.  Storm/security shutters may be installed over the windows using the cutouts from the window holes.  This may happen later depending on money and schedule. 

Interior Framing and Screened Porch

The screened porch is approximately 16' x 24'.  It must accomodate a Pawley's Island Hammock and a picnic table.  It is supported by concrete piers on the outside and brackets welded to the container on the inside.  This view shows the the sliding glass door (salvage) to the den and the kitchen window which is over the sink. 

Interior framing has been installed.  We made the decision to frame out inside because sprayed urethene insulation was expensive, plus Johnny felt that the plumbing and electrical would be less expensive to install within the interior framing.    The rooms are all clearly defined now and one can get the feel of the layout.  The living room windows are shown from the inside.  The windows must still be sealed with foam from the inside and outside to connect the framing on the inside and to close the corrugations on the outside.  The windows must also be loosened and caulked between the window and the container.  One window will have to be replaced as it had been broken by vandals.

Progress Again

In order to make the unit as tight as possible, I chose not to penetrate the top of the containers.  Upright bolts are welded to receive two wood 2x4 anchor plates for the trusses.  You can see the corner block with holes used for lifting and locking the ocean going container.  The anchor plates will have to fitted around the corner block. The first of the 2x4 anchor plate is bolted down.  A second anchor plate will be attached to the first.  This run is along the front of the house.  Both anchor plates have been attached to the entire perimeter of the house.  Beams have been installed.  The beams were necessary to cover the porches, where there was no container to support the trusses.  Temporary posts are supporting the beams.  Hollow posts will replace the temporary posts, through which hurricane straps embedded in the foundation will tie the beams and roof trusses to the foundation.  Brackets had to be fabricated from 1/4" steel plate, and welded to the containers to receive the beams.  The brackets are approximately 3" wide x 11" high x 8" deep.  The same brackets were welded to the container to receive the support beams for the floors of the porches.  I feel sure there are standard manufactured brackets that can be purchased to avoid having to have them fabricated. 

Windows, doors, and other musings.

3/30/10 Things continue to move slowly for several reasons.  The rainy weather has caused delays.  The contractor is trying to juggle several jobs.  Since it is a new concept for the county building inspectors, everything must be engineered and stamped.  It is a new process for the engineer and he, too, is juggling jobs and doing research.  Since the last post, we have gotten all the windows and the sliding glass door installed.  Windows and doors are built to be installed against a flat surface, which must be created within a corrugated wall.  We tried two different ways of installing the windows.  One of the pictures shows how we have used 1/8" flat stock to bridge the low spots in the corrugation. Angle iron was used to true and stiffen the wall to receive the window.  The other was a full frame made of angle iron.  Another picture shows the concrete block bases for the support posts for the porch and carport roof. We hope to begin the framing next week which includes installing the roof trusses, building the decks and framing out the inside.  As to the inside framing, we determined that an exterior sprayed foam shell was too expensive and we would use conventional insulation within an interior wood frame.  Johnny felt this method would make electrical and plumbing installation more efficient.  We are planning to further insulate and increase retro-reflectivity by adding ceramic beads to the exterior paint (see NASA web site on ceramic paint).  We continue to shop at the Habitat for Humanity ReStores.  An eight foot entry door with side lights for $95 is hard to beat.  We also bought a full set of kitchen cabinets (no countertop) for $800.  If anyone has questions or comments or suggestions as to information sources, you can email me at john@marmacwire.com.

Slow Progress

1/22/09 Since the last post, Johnny and his crew have finished welding the containers together. Since the roof will not be installed until later, the containers had to be sealed where they joined. It took two tries but the second effort was tight.

Next the container walls were cut out where not needed. We now, more or less, have one big room. The next step will be to put in the interior divider walls that will define each room.

We are now debating whether it will be more cost effective to insulate with exterior spray foam or with interior conventional stud wall and insulation. We are trying to understand the pros and cons of "ceramic" paint, and whether to use inside, outside, both, or not at all.

We are also trying to understand the best and most efficient way to install exterior windows and doors.

Big Day: Container Placement !

12/30/09 Today is a big day. It was difficult to get everything coordinated exactly. There was some waiting by the rigger due to a delay in one of the container deliveries. Ashley Baucom and his son from Union Crane Service did a great job with the rigging and placement. As you can see from the pictures, there are some big trees close to the foundation. While we broke a few limbs, Ashley did a GREAT job of swinging the containers through the trees and onto the foundation. Although today was the first time we had seen the containers, they fit perfectly on the foundation Johnny and his crew had built. Johnny then welded the containers to the metal foundation plates.

Foundation Weld Plates

12/29/09 This series shows a completed foundation wall with anchor bolts protruding from the bond beam. Clint is cutting off the anchor bolts and burning holes in the steel plates to accept the anchor bolt stubs. Johnny is welding the steel plates to the anchor bolt stubs. Tomorrow we plan to set the containers in place and weld them to the foundation.

Observation

As I ride around South Carolina, and other states, too, I see benches, swings, and little “garden spots” that people have created in their yards. Most appear neglected and unused. I can only speculate as to why someone would take the time and trouble to create such a spot, only to ignore it. Maybe it is because we wish for a place and time to sit and contemplate some view, our yard, a flowerbed or garden. In a burst of energy, we create the place to sit, but fail to ever create the time to sit.

I think the same thing may be true of porches. You now see many houses with porches, but how often do you see a porch with one or more people sitting on it? I remember my grandparents’ porch in Cowpens, South Carolina. Whenever we visited, we would always end up on the porch. The porch faced a busy highway. It never failed that after we sat for a while, someone would stop to visit. Often we would end up with as many visitors as family members.

I remember my Grandmother’s porch in McBee, South Carolina. Her front porch was only a formal decoration on the front of the house, but her back porch was where she and I sat and rocked and discussed things of great and serious import. I suspect that many of us remember porches in association with a different time and place, and somehow believe that building a porch will recreate that old feeling.

Is it for the same reason we bring back souvenirs from vacation? Is it for the same reason we are inspired by the architecture or landscaping from a vacation destination? All of these considerations come to my mind as I am creating this space to live in. Do we build our spaces to support and affirm the lifestyle we have chosen, or do we build our spaces in a wish to be somewhere else?

Foundation Walls Almost Complete

The foundation is almost complete. Concrete must be poured into each cavity containing the rebar uprights and vermiculite insulation in all remaining cavities. All that is left to complete the foundation is to bend down the uprights, tie them to the bond beam rebar, and pour the bond beam.

Rain continues to delay the work. Trying to coordinate work around the weather, other work, and inspectors is no small task.

Digging the Foundation and Placing Rebar

This is obviously out of order as I thought I had made a post and it did not "take".