When you hear about the tiny house movement and people downsizing their homes, the words “sustainable” and “sustainability” are often bandied about. It’s the same when people mention building homes from shipping containers.
In this day and age of being ultra concerned for the environment and the state of the planet in general, it certainly has become a buzz word.
So are shipping container homes sustainable or eco-friendly?
What Exactly Does Sustainable Even Mean?
The most basic definition of sustainability is something that is not harmful to the environment. Eco-friendly is another term just as common as sustainability, along with environmentally-friendly.
If you build a home with sustainability in mind, it means you are incorporating ideas in the build that are kind to the planet.
This could include things like:
- A composting toilet
- Recycling rainwater for toilet flushing and laundry
- Recycling building materials
- Insulation to reduce energy consumption
- Installing solar power
- Efficient water fixtures to reduce water waste
- Growing your own fruit and vegetables
- Reusing grey water for gardens or toilets
- And more…
So how exactly do homes primarily built from shipping containers fit into the overall sustainability scheme of things?
It will really depend on home design, but we’ll start off with possibly the greatest contribution that container homes make to saving the planet.
Container Homes Are a Great Way To Recycle
It’s been estimated that there are currently 17 million shipping containers around the world, but only a small portion – around 6 million – are actually being used. That means that about two thirds of all the world’s cargo containers are either not in use, have been abandoned, or are ending up as metallic waste in landfill around the globe.
And remember, these are basically just estimates. That figure could potentially be much higher.
Even a small shipping container is a big item, made from solid and durable steel. To see all these containers go to waste is actually very tragic, and that’s why many people are deciding to reuse them by converting them for other purposes.
For anyone who wants to be kind to the environment and help save the planet and its resources, then recycling shipping containers is a major way of contributing to the cause.
If you choose to build a home out of containers, you might use one, two or even more of these disused containers in the construction.
Recycling shipping containers for other purposes doesn’t just include used containers either, as there are numerous brand new shipping containers out there currently doing nothing. So whether you decide to build with new or used containers, you are still contributing to recycling and sustainability.
Are Smaller Container Homes More Sustainable?
With regards to building a small shipping container home and sustainability, its a bit of a trade off. On the one hand you’re recycling less containers to get the build done, but on the other hand smaller homes use less resources, including things like electricity.
You won’t be running as many lights at night in a smaller home, and the less space you have, the less appliances you’ll be running too.
When you downsize you naturally tend to use less of just about everything, which will mean more money in your pocket and less of an impact on the environment around you.
Naturally a smaller house is also going to consume less resources to construct. Even though it might be a container home, timber and other resources like glass and aluminium will also be used in the build, so the less that’s needed, the better.
Much of the Build Is Done Off-Site
Whether you’re refitting one or several shipping containers for your home build, much of the modifications can be done off-site at the container modifier’s factory.
So how does this add to sustainability or help the planet?
It means you won’t need an army of construction workers travelling to your home site each day to get the work done. Less travel and less heavy machinery required means less fuel consumption and also less pollution going into the atmosphere.
It might sound like a really small thing, but every little bit helps.
There is also a lot less material waste when converting containers into liveable homes. Plus, because most of the structure is already in place in the form of the shipping container, there is less to actually build. It’s more about modifications rather than a full on construction job.
It’s Faster To Build a Shipping Container Home
It was just mentioned that much of the construction is already in place, with the walls, floor and ceiling on the shipping container forming a basic room or rooms as is. What this means is that the build time for your house is sped up in a big way.
This equates to less energy being used in the form of fuel or electricity to get the job accomplished. Naturally when things don’t take as long, less resources are used in the process.
You Can Build With Other Recycled Materials
The bulk of the build will be made up of recycled shipping containers, but if you want to truly get into sustainability, why not recycle some building materials for other parts of the construction as well?
One example might be buying a used kitchen instead of having a brand new one built. Homes are gutted and demolished on a daily basis, and not everything within them is run down. You might find some fantastic kitchen cabinets that’ll look as good as new with a few touch ups.
The kitchen idea is simply one example. If you really thought about it and can find the materials, potentially you could create the majority of your home from recycled resources.
The Takeaway
Shipping container homes are becoming increasingly more popular for many reasons, and sustainability is definitely high on that list. Not only will you help the planet by recycling these very large metal boxes, but if you really put your mind to the task, you’ll discover many ways that building a container home will make for a more sustainable future.
