The 700 square foot retreat is constructed of two shipping containers, timber strips from old bunkers and weapons boxes and used railway sleepers. It is designed to embrace the views and climate of the surrounding environment, and create a place of relaxation and beauty while using already available resources.

Photos by Logan MacDougall Pope

By Christina Nellemann for the [Tiny House Blog]

The shipping container was chosen specifically for its bright color. Shipping containers are a readily available resource for building because they are usually abandoned by shipping companies. The architects mounted the container on recycled telephone poles, and the floor and walls were covered with bamboo. Sliding doors, windows, heating, air conditioning and an 8 foot by 4 foot bathroom with a composting toilet and red sheet metal walls were also added. A garden storage room was also added at the end of the container, which retains its original access doors. A patio with a cantilevered overhang was added to the front of the house and a rooftop garden with a drip system was installed by Madrone Landscape Architecture.

Poteet Architects is a 12-year-old firm based in San Antonio, Texas. Jim Poteet opened the office with the hope that the firm could further the sustainable revitalization of downtown San Antonio. The firm’s portfolio of completed work includes residential, commercial and institutional projects, but is perhaps best known for the sensitive adaptive reuse of existing buildings and a fresh, rigorous approach to modern interior design. The Container Guest House won a 2010 Design Award from AIA San Antonio.

Photos courtesy of Poteet Architects, LP

By Christina Nellemann for the [Tiny House Blog]

Are you looking to become an expat in Costa Rica? How about living in a shipping container? You can do both in one tidy package from Container Homes by Jimmy Lee. Lee designs and delivers surprisingly airy and open shipping container homes with a full kitchen, bedroom and a small bathroom.

Visit the video gallery

Jimmy Lee and his shipping container home

Each of his homes is earthquake, fire and hurricane proof. And since they do stay within Costa Rica, you probably don’t have to worry about heating the place. He is selling a 45 x 8 x 9 foot finished home for $17,000, and a land and home package for $60,000. You can also order the raw containers from his company and build your own house. A 20 x 8 x 8 foot container sells for $2,700 and a 40 x 8 x 8 foot container sells for $3,600 to $4,100. Transportation costs are extra, but he can have a home delivered to you in 3-5 weeks.

This might be the best time to purchase one of these home/land packages. Costa Rica is no longer an undiscovered paradise. When I visited the country about 10 years ago it was just starting to cater to travelers, and now it’s a refuge for American and European expatriates. Prices are only going to go up.

Before opening up his business, Jimmy worked as a Greenpeace team leader for six years in Washington, D.C. He left Greenpeace to study to become a chiropractor. Weeks after receiving his Doctorate he moved to Costa Rica where he has been established for ten years as a chiropractor in the town of San Ramon, Costa Rica. He is also a yoga instructor.

He believes that shipping container homes are the most environmentally sound form of home construction on the market. It’s been estimated that 85 percent of the building materials used in each shipping container home have been recycled. Also, the foundation design is less expensive, uses much less material and is faster to install. The infrastructure for transport already exists, so the container homes can be easily moved by ship, truck or train. This component reduces the amount of transport time. Everything is delivered in one trip. You don’t have to pay for multiple deliveries of separate construction materials. Additionally, no building permits are required. Because the unit is on its wheels, it is referred to as a “non-permanent” structure.

The 45 foot container home includes:

• The wheels. This unit is attached permanently to its base
• Total insulation on all walls and the ceiling, backed by fibrolite board
• All bathroom fixtures. Shower, toilet, sink, mirror, shelves and tile
• Kitchen counter, sink and faucet, shelves, breakfast bar with two benches
• Bedroom rug, shelves and bamboo curtain rod installed
• All windows and doors are equipped with metal bars
• Ceiling fan in master bedroom and lighting
• All electrical outlets and light switches
• Interior and exterior paint

The home does not include the following. However Jimmy’s company could supply the following for an additional cost:

• Furniture and appliances
• Second bedroom if requested
• Transportation to your destination
• Solar power
• Rainwater catchment system
• Hot water pump
• Bamboo roofing (the container naturally has its own roof, this would be on top of that)
• Deck

The first step to ordering from Jimmy is to visit the prototype and decide what changes you would like to make. If you cannot visit, and wish to place an order, you can do so and then as soon as the model home is picture ready he will send you the photos. A deposit of 50% is required to begin the building of your portable home. Estimated time to completion is between 3-6 weeks.

By Christina Nellemann

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Building houses from shipping containers is not new, but I think this might be the first company I have seen that builds smaller homes that are environmentally friendly and can be secured tight like a tiny little bunker.

Ecopods are built from recycled 8×20 steel shipping containers transformed into living, working and high end display spaces. The Ecopod is a transformed, designed built, multiple use, eco-friendly, building that promotes the best use of portability, off grid power supply capabilities and low environmental footprint.

The Toronto based company wanted to go even further with this ethos, so they incorporated rubber flooring recycled from shredded car tires into the design as well as an entire range of off-grid options including a solar-powered refrigerator, XM radio and 12V lighting and wall outlets powered from a roof-mounted solar panel. Even the composting toilet requires very little maintenance and costs a fraction of the traditional septic bed system. Download a PDF of the Ecopod brochure here.

Matthew Davies, the publicist for Ecopods.ca includes the following:

The ecopod started its life as a shipping container and traveled most likely half-way around the globe before being converted into the Ecopod. When the added hinged deck is raised the Ecopod maintains both the strength and proportions of its predecessor. It was our intention for the Ecopod to work ‘off grid’, although you can use it either way.

We first cut one twenty-foot side out of the shipping container and re-manufactured that steel wall into a deck that was then hinged back to the unit with six custom-designed offset hinges that allow the deck to lay flat and fit into its original position when closed. The deck is fairly heavy, so we engineered a 12V winch apparatus that has a lifting capacity of at least 4000lbs – its 12 volt battery takes its power from the solar panel. If you are leaving the Ecopod for an extended period of time, you can close the deck by flipping the electrical panel switch to supply the power to the 12 volt winch and the door closes by means of a handheld remote control. It takes about a minute to close and with the back doors locked, the pod is again returned to the form and strength of the original container.There is no conventionally-constructed building on the market that can compare to the strength and durability of the Ecopod.

Maintenance on the unit requires very little effort. The original steel walls and frame are made from a product called corten steel. Corten steel has a natural rust inhibitor that stops rust at the surface. The interior and exterior floor surfaces are covered with a product that looks very similar to cork flooring but is made from recycled car tires. This product has excellent interior and exterior performance qualities and is both impervious to water and easy to keep clean. The entire wall and ceiling cavities have been spray-foam insulated with the latest environmentally-friendly soya insulation available on the market today. It is a rigid ‘closed-cell’ insulation,’closed-cell’ meaning there is no moister transfer. All interior walls come clear-coat birch finished with a hidden fastening system and trimmed with aluminum. There are no visible mechanical fasteners in the wood finish. The front sliding glass doors and front glass side panels are double-glazed thermal pane units that allow you to enjoy all season weather conditions. We have equipped the pod with two electrical wall outlets that can supply power from the 12 volt battery through the inverter or are switchable to 120volts should you have access to either house or generator power. An 80 watt solar panel and 12 volt battery are included in the basic model.

Our intention was to give someone the option of enjoying a recreational property while creating a very low environmental footprint. The Ecopod can be used as a stand alone unit working off the grid or in conjunction with established building or cottage sites.

The Ecopod comes complete with all above-mentioned conveniences and finishes, all for a price of $26,650.00 CDN dollars.

What attracted me to the Ecopod was that it was not too expensive for a heavy duty self-contained space, and that you can completely close it up to protect it from animals, weather, vandalism and break-ins.

For Tiny House Blog readers who live in the Toronto area, you can view the Ecopod this month at the Green Living Show on April 24-26.

By Christina Nellemann

Photos by Ecopods

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Over the holiday weekend, I visited Portland and the tiny house of Walt Quade of Small Home Oregon. Walt builds and ships lovely 325 square foot homes anywhere within the state of Oregon. Walt has been a residential designer/builder since 1992 and is dedicated to building smaller homes. This tiny house is built on a foundation in his backyard.

“With a small home, you have to take the extra effort to create an efficient space,” he said.

His tiny house feels a lot larger than 325 square feet and contains all the amenities of a larger home including a full bath and bedroom. I was impressed with the architectural details of the curved ceiling, the beautiful lighting and the use of a Murphy-style bed in the bedroom. The small home can be built with a loft or just a ceiling storage area.

Walt has built two tiny houses for other people who use them as recreation homes. He offers five floorplans and several configurations, and he can customize the space to whatever the buyer wants. Each house can also be placed on any type of foundation, has a 55 lb snow load and can withstand 110 mile an hour winds.

“You can put them on the beach or in the desert. Basically, they can go anywhere.” he said.

Walt is an advocate for off-the-grid living as well, and encourages buyers of his homes and plans that they look into several off-grid options for power, sewer, water and heat. His tiny house now is heated by small wall heaters, but he said that they can be built to use radiant heat.

The buildings come with a 1 year warranty and have been inspected and approved by the state of Oregon. Right now, Walt is only shipping within Oregon. Each tiny house costs around $40,000 and will cost around $4,000 to ship. Plans cost $265 per set. Walt also builds custom teardrop trailers if you feel the need to travel away from your tiny house.

By Christina Nellemann

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