Are Container Homes Ideal for Earthquakes and Hurricanes?

September 30, 2021 3:06 pm Published by Leave your thoughts

Shipping container homes are seeing rising popularity as younger people look for cheap housing with a more environmentally friendly focus. These homes have a much smaller carbon footprint, are easily customizable and cost a fraction of what one would currently expect to pay for a standard house on the market.

But there is one unexpected benefit that has also become a focus for people in particular regions of the country: the safety of shipping container homes in bad weather and natural disaster scenarios.

Homes that outlast hurricanes? Investigating shipping container houses

A recent article in The Weekly Journal focused on some of the work being done by Konti Design/Build Studio in Puerto Rico on shipping container homes.

The owner of the company, architect Carla Gautier Castro, is working to develop affordable shipping container homes that will be produced in Puerto Rico and shipped all over the world. She sees the increasing market for shipping container homes, and also sees the homes as a potential global solution to housing crises resulting from natural disasters and global migration and refugee patterns.

According to Castro, shipping container homes can be built to withstand both hurricanes and earthquakes. They’re able to hold up to winds of greater than 175 miles per hour.

They also do not have to be reliant on local power grids, which is particularly beneficial in the aftermath of disasters. A shipping container home can be fully off the grid, powered with its own solar panel system and using a rainwater collection tank and bio-garden septic tank system.

Some container homes, depending on their size and design, can even be portable, so people can pack up and move their home if there is a pending disaster.

With more people looking into moving into tiny homes, the shipping container home could become increasingly attractive, especially in regions of the continent where these disasters are common. For people who do not have the money to afford a more traditional house, a shipping container home gives them an opportunity for homeownership and some flexibility. For others, the idea of downsizing and living a simpler lifestyle holds a lot of appeal, regardless of the financial benefits.

There are still some hurdles to overcome when building a shipping container home. The container must be fully retrofitted with framing, insulation, drywall, ventilation, plumbing, electrical wiring and other features. There will need to be a foundation, and one must go through the proper permitting processes before getting started.

However, given the environmental and financial benefits as well as the safety offered by shopping container homes in bad weather and natural disaster scenarios, there is a good chance the expanding market for homes made out of shipping containers will only get larger in the very near future.

Want to learn more about the benefits and logistics associated with building and living in shipping container homes? Reach out to A Mobile Box today with any questions you have about the wide range of uses for mobile storage units and shipping containers.

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