Tiny Homes (Shipping Containers, etc)?

[Fenixgoon]

I'm single and live in a 1900sq ft home. It's definitely way more than I need. Part of me wants to just say F all this, buy some land up in the mountains, and get a container home. Anyone ever spent any time in any kind of tiny home, even if just for a week?

Like, I'm seeing land in the mountains (north carolina, tennessee) for anywhere from $10k for a small piece to $100k for something literally at the top of a mountain in the clouds (and damn that would be wild). even a bit of land that's $20-30k can have a super nice view.

and yes i know utility hookups are like $10-15k each for electrical, water/sewer. and then there's internet...how will I post on AT?

https://youtu.be/nPsi0hQlAq4?si=uAW0W2hc4ThK10LC

https://nestron.house/models/cube-two-x

 

[Greenman]

Container homes are a terrible idea. The interior walls and ceiling have to be furred out to allow for insulation and utility's. You net out around 90" of width. Most are just sitting on the dirt and in many places you can't have utilities connected because you can't pass a building inspection.

 

[Fenixgoon]

It also occurred to me that I'm pretty sure I made a similar thread like 5 years ago when I was initially looking at buying a home

 

[IronWing]

Tiny homes can be okay but I'd skip the container thing. For the price, you might as well buy a traditional manufactured home. The builders have had decades of experience to work things out.

 

[sdifox]

Plenty of container homes on youtube. You have to decide whether you are ok with the constraints.

Ask red to setup on his land and you'll buy him a container xd

 

[Greenman]

Tiny homes can be okay but I'd skip the container thing. For the price, you might as well buy a traditional manufactured home. The builders have had decades of experience to work things out.

I never even thought about a mobile home. It would be a far better choice. Container homes are a fad.

 

[balloonshark]

Tiny homes are cool, but like everything, they have drawbacks. I would watch some of the videos about their drawbacks first. Issues like not being able to secure a loan or get insurance. There can be moisture issues, zoning issues, odor issues (like cooking) in a small space, etc.

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=drawbacks+tiny+house

I really wanted to build a 24 foot tiny house but after the price increases that dream is all but shot. The only way I could build one now is if I gathered used materials but then I would have to have storage place as well as a place to build the home which would take many months.

 

[Greenman]

Plenty of container homes on youtube. You have to decide whether you are ok with the constraints.

Ask red to setup on his land and you'll buy him a container xd

The containers were cut up for a shell, then they threw buckets of money at it.

 

[sdifox]

The containers were cut up for a shell, then they threw buckets of money at it.

must still be less than a double wide no? Container home gets expensive if you wans to stack different than they are designed for.

 

[Greenman]

must still be less than a double wide no? Container home gets expensive if you wans to stack different than they are designed for.

It all depends on what you put in it. If you leave the interior as raw steel walls it's pretty cheap, though you'll die in there on a hot day.
The container is just a shell, you still need everything else that goes into a house. I'm sure it could be done on the cheap with the lowest quality material and cheap labor, but why bother? In many places when you stack them up the building department is going to want to see an engineered design.

Like I said, it's a fad.

 

[sdifox]

It all depends on what you put in it. If you leave the interior as raw steel walls it's pretty cheap, though you'll die in there on a hot day.
The container is just a shell, you still need everything else that goes into a house. I'm sure it could be done on the cheap with the lowest quality material and cheap labor, but why bother? In many places when you stack them up the building department is going to want to see an engineered design.

Like I said, it's a fad.

2 wide should be enough for one guy no? Or 3 in a U shape and just roof the centre area. Of course there are plenty of prefab options. I imagine used horizontal twistlock is easy to come by.

BH-A1 Horizontal Side Twistlock - ISO Ocean Shipping Container - Pacific Marine & Industrial

BH-A1 Horizontal Side Twistlock - ISO Ocean Shipping Container - Side to Side Connection or End to End Connection (Lower Corners Only).

www.pacificmarine.net

even new ones are not that expensive.

https://www.amazon.com/Mytee-Products-Double-Connecting-Container/dp/B0BH57DZWL?th=1

cover the gap and you got your wiring/piping space, you can even insulate.

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

2 wide should be enough for one guy no? Or 3 in a U shape and just roof the centre area. Of course there are plenty of prefab options. I imagine used horizontal twistlock is easy to come by.

BH-A1 Horizontal Side Twistlock - ISO Ocean Shipping Container - Pacific Marine & Industrial

BH-A1 Horizontal Side Twistlock - ISO Ocean Shipping Container - Side to Side Connection or End to End Connection (Lower Corners Only).

www.pacificmarine.net

even new ones are not that expensive.

https://www.amazon.com/Mytee-Products-Double-Connecting-Container/dp/B0BH57DZWL?th=1

cover the gap and you got your wiring/piping space, you can even insulate.

At a certain point, you're just paying a premium for a sub-optimal building material.

Price out a manufactured home or a mobile home, you'll probably make up the difference in cost with saving the headache of turning a bunch of metal boxes into an actual home.

 

[sdifox]

At a certain point, you're just paying a premium for a sub-optimal building material.

Price out a manufactured home or a mobile home, you'll probably make up the difference in cost with saving the headache of turning a bunch of metal boxes into an actual home.

Well op asked about containers :shrug: I imagine prefabs are a good option. Depends on where he is setting up I guess. Google says double wide is about 160k

 

[Red Squirrel]

Tiny homes are neat idea to get something fast to be up and running, but not really cheaper than building something bigger and better yourself. I'm in the process of doing something similar but building myself. Got my land cleared this year so have a small road going to a flat area now, so need to pay off the cost of doing that then next year I'll start to build. Might start on the foundation this year though. Probably just pour some cement footings. My ground is super rocky so I don't think I'll get much frost heave.

I wouldn't bother hooking up to utilities especially at that cost + the ongoing cost of paying the bills. You'll save lot of money if you just go off grid, it's not that hard now days, tons of products to help. Solar, water filtration system, septic solutions etc. Lot of people doing this now days so there's lot more options and products that are available.

 

[Fenixgoon]

Tiny homes are neat idea to get something fast to be up and running, but not really cheaper than building something bigger and better yourself. I'm in the process of doing something similar but building myself. Got my land cleared this year so have a small road going to a flat area now, so need to pay off the cost of doing that then next year I'll start to build. Might start on the foundation this year though. Probably just pour some cement footings. My ground is super rocky so I don't think I'll get much frost heave.

I wouldn't bother hooking up to utilities especially at that cost + the ongoing cost of paying the bills. You'll save lot of money if you just go off grid, it's not that hard now days, tons of products to help. Solar, water filtration system, septic solutions etc. Lot of people doing this now days so there's lot more options and products that are available.

Bigger is the problem. I have 1900sq ft / 176m2 now. That is too big.

And container homes aren't the only option of course. But they do have a very small, fixed, and easily movable footprint. That is what makes them attractive.

 

[sdifox]

Bigger is the problem. I have 1900sq ft / 176m2 now. That is too big.

And container homes aren't the only option of course. But they do have a very small, fixed, and easily movable footprint. That is what makes them attractive.

Amazon.ca

I have my doubts about the 5 dollar shipping...

Fertige 3 Schlafzimmer Fertighaus Fertighaus modulare Häuser erweiterbare Container haus winzige Häuser - AliExpress 15

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

www.aliexpress.com

Shipping breaks the deal lol

 

[Greenman]

Amazon.ca

I have my doubts about the 5 dollar shipping...

Fertige 3 Schlafzimmer Fertighaus Fertighaus modulare Häuser erweiterbare Container haus winzige Häuser - AliExpress 15

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

www.aliexpress.com

Shipping breaks the deal lol

$40 a square foot is an astonishingly low price.

 

[sdifox]

$40 a square foot is an astonishingly low price.

I have no idea if the manufacturer is legit or whatnot, I just googled.

 

[Greenman]

I have no idea if the manufacturer is legit or whatnot, I just googled.

Totally get it.
That price point just blows me away though. That's cheaper per square foot than a low end travel trailer.

 

[Fenixgoon]

Amazon.ca

I have my doubts about the 5 dollar shipping...

Fertige 3 Schlafzimmer Fertighaus Fertighaus modulare Häuser erweiterbare Container haus winzige Häuser - AliExpress 15

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

www.aliexpress.com

Shipping breaks the deal lol

Totally get it.
That price point just blows me away though. That's cheaper per square foot than a low end travel trailer.

i wonder if you can get an aliexpress-equivalent of amazon prime for free shipping?

 

[sdifox]

i wonder if you can get an aliexpress-equivalent of amazon prime for free shipping?

The 500k shipping can get you a few double wides.

 

[Greenman]

Amazon.ca

I have my doubts about the 5 dollar shipping...

Fertige 3 Schlafzimmer Fertighaus Fertighaus modulare Häuser erweiterbare Container haus winzige Häuser - AliExpress 15

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

www.aliexpress.com

Shipping breaks the deal lol

I read the 9 reviews on this thing, not all that good.

 

[sdifox]

Wonder when these will make it to NA market and whether they can handle NA weather.

 

[Fenixgoon]

Wonder when these will make it to NA market and whether they can handle NA weather.

i've been super interested in Nestron. They have a US office.

Cube Two X | Nestron

The interior design continues the usual futuristic sustainability style of the Cube series while adding more space to the design and emphasizing the functionality of the space and high-tech convenience furniture. Offering you a choice of one or two-bedroom styles to suit your needs. Learn more...

store.nestron.house

 

[sdifox]

i've been super interested in Nestron. They have a US office.

Cube Two X | Nestron

The interior design continues the usual futuristic sustainability style of the Cube series while adding more space to the design and emphasizing the functionality of the space and high-tech convenience furniture. Offering you a choice of one or two-bedroom styles to suit your needs. Learn more...

store.nestron.house

What kind of money are we talking about?