Build a house for less than $5000

Re:Build a house for less than $5000 by polshaw on Monday February 13, 2012 @04:59PM (#3587507)

Shipping containers are often used, which can be had for half this used. Usualy a much better idea IMO. Refrigeration units offer good insulation, often alongside partial burying of them. They can also look fairly like the western norm inside.

Heres an example built with 2; http://thechive.com/2011/07/26/unbelievable-home-built-out-o...

e: also, a more aspirational one.. obviously more expensive and more containers required; http://www.lowimpactliving.com/blog/2009/07/07/affordable-sh...

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Re:Build a house for less than $5000 by epikur on Monday February 13, 2012 @06:04PM (#3587732)

I have heard that most shipping containers, even refrigerated ones, have quite toxic linings that can be difficult and expensive to remove. I can't find a source for this at the moment, but it came up as a problem for shipping container living in a reddit thread a few months ago.

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Re:Build a house for less than $5000 by samstave on Monday February 13, 2012 @05:07PM (#3587539)

I love the idea of the shipping container home, especially when fixed up like this - though I lack the skills/patience to DIY like in that link you posted.

There was an amazing compund a guy in Texas built from shipping containers, shown on the show "Doomsday preppers" on TLC the other day.

http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/channel/doomsday-prepp...

This guy used NINE containers for his thing.

I like the idea of prepping, but it still takes a good deal of resources to be able to do stuff like that..

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Re:Build a house for less than $5000 by mc32 on Monday February 13, 2012 @07:13PM (#3587975)

Here's a mid-rise made from shipping containers: http://www.citycenterlofts.net/

And homes:

http://zerocabin.com/

Pretty impressive, given the basic template they're made from.

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Re:Build a house for less than $5000 by samstave on Monday February 13, 2012 @07:27PM (#3588018)

Looks like you'd still need a fair bit of structural steel to support that citycenterlofts building. I would say the engineering skill needed is fairly non-trivial, although straightforward -> i.e. not a low-cost DIY type of structure.

I'd be interested in seeing the construction costs of that though, as compared to a similar design not based on shipping containers.

I forgot about zerocabin - I had seen that site before. Thanks for the reminder.

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Re:Build a house for less than $5000 by mc32 on Wednesday February 15, 2012 @03:17PM (#3595856)

>Looks like you'd still need a fair bit of structural steel to support that citycenterlofts building

That's likely, to conform to building code. Still, they stack those things full of goods 7-8 high on shipping vessels.

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Re:Build a house for less than $5000 by prewett on Monday February 13, 2012 @09:33PM (#3588368)

It doesn't look like they used refrigeration units here, or any insulation either. Seems like these would be really cold in the winter?

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