The 24ft prefab shipping container homes from HyBrid Architecture
Built in a single 24ft container, this prefab shipping container home is designed as a remote retreat or self contained backyard cottage. Expansive openings allow the space to fully embrace its surroundings. Unit’s area is 192 sq ft with a bathroom, galley kitchen, built in storage, room for beds and flex space. In this version of the HyBrid prefab containers range, a pull out couch turns into a bed and a fold down wall unit becomes even more sleeping space. The kitchen and all of the furniture were sponsored by IKEA. The bathroom is a glass-walled area with sleek modern Duravit fixtures.
Doors and large windows open up onto a large external deck, which extends the inner living space. The cut out shipping container sides were used to create sliding exterior doors to close up the container home when not in use. A solar system mounted on the roof of the unit provides power for the kitchen stove, hot water heater, lighting and radiant heater.
This 24ft prefab shipping container home is a one of the c-series factory built modules made from recycled shipping containers that can be customized or combined as desired by the customer. The c-series range consists of five designs in cost from $29,500 to $189,500. Off-grid and green options are offered including composting toilets, solar panels, roofwater harvesting and “green machine” sewage treatment. The sprayed-in insulation creates R32 floors, R44 ceilings and R24 walls. The prefab container home can be placed in cold climate conditions as well as hot climates. The roof snow load is 60psf.
The 24ft prefab shipping container homes from HyBrid Architecture are shipped complete. A local builder will need to be arranged for foundation work as well as sewage and electrical hook-ups. In many local jurisdictions, if a project area is less than 200sf there is no full permitting process required. Compact, adaptable and relocatable, these prefab container homes can be used for guest rooms, backyard offices, extra living space or smart and sustainable housing. The modular units are completely built in a specialized factory then easily transported via truck for a quick one day installation on building site. HyBrid Architecture has completed commercial and residential prefab container projects in Washington, Oregon and California and has designed over 20 projects worldwide.
“You can essentially press a button and order a house shipped to you—within eight weeks,” said Joel Egan, principal architect at HyBrid.
HyBrid showed off its c192 Nomad model home at 2011 Pacific Coast Builders Conference in San Francisco. The Nomad can last 400 years, Egan said. The firm focuses on maximizing the efficiency of the cargo container space. The Nomad dwelling spans eight feet wide, 192 square feet in all, and the price for its design and manufacture starts at $59,500. Customized options include solar panels, composting toilets, water collection decks, and additional doors.
“This represents the beginning of a system that we’re offering,” Egan said. “It’s sort of predesigned, but it allows different containers, different sizes—homes and offices—to plug into each other, to stack essentially like Legos [sic] any way the client wants to do it.”
Aside from being combined to create larger spaces, this sustainable dwelling can be an addition in the back yard as a home office or a guesthouse that sleeps up to four people. It can also be used as a self-contained vacation retreat in the mountains.
“This [Nomad model] is the first we’ve actually built in a factory,” said Peter Secan, HyBrid project manager.
HyBrid is located in Seattle, Washington, and has built cargotecture in Washington, Oregon, and California. Besides homes, cargotecture also includes commercial space. HyBrid has designed a 3,600-square-foot office building, Secan said, as well as townhomes and ski lodges.
“They’re engineered to go twelve floors high,” said Secan, adding that the dwellings are seismic fitted as well. “They’re fully capable of being earthquake safe.”
HyBrid researches, designs, and arranges the construction of cargo container homes. In as little as eight weeks, a feasibility study can be completed, required permits can be obtained, and the dwelling can be built. The construction of the shipping container home itself takes three to four weeks, Secan said. The home is typically transported by truck from the factory to be installed at the designated site and can be relocated at any time.
The Nomad cargotecture home can function completely off the power grid. To be self-sustaining, the shipping container home can be designed with solar panels for electricity and water, roof water collection, propane, and an above-ground septic system.
“You can get satellite and Wi-Fi …,“ said Egan. “So at that point, you have no utility bill, no address to send it to … . You can relocate it around the world.”
