Container Housing - A Marriage of Great Architectural design and Sustainability

Innovative Use of Shipping Containers

Using shipping containers to build houses is such a genius idea that takes recycled materials and makes great use of them. For this shipping container home designed by Maria Jose Trejos in Costa Rica, eight shipping containers were used to create Casa Incubo which means Cube House. The home is surrounded by nature, and it also embraces nature as well by encircling a large cedar tree helping to keep the natural landscape intact. By using recycled materials, this project is very eco-friendly and sustainable, and the costs were able to remain fairly low, and it was able to be completed faster than a conventional building process. The impact on the environment will also be reduced thanks to the smaller footprint of the home. They were able to expand the space by creating another level making it double the height in space. There's also great ventilation throughout the space and lots of great windows which heat and illuminate the home with the sun's natural light. The old cedar tree that was already on the building site was integral to the layout of the space. They worked to build the home around the tree, and there's a view of this tree from every space within the home. With all of the gorgeous, clean lines and beautiful architecture, you'd hardly even know that this home used to be two shipping containers.

Sustainable Materials and Eco-Friendly Features

They also used some of the wood from the cedar tree on the site for the stairs and some other furniture in the house as well. The deck was made from certified sustainable wood from renewable sources, combined with recycled plastic. They also incorporated some concrete flooring and bamboo. The home also has a rainwater collection system for the toilets, they also plan to integrate solar panels at some point as well, and the hot water system is solar powered. Because the home has great cross ventilation, they don't need air conditioning, and the windows make it possible to not need any lights on during the day. This particular container home is not only used as a full-time residence for the owner, but it's also used as a workplace since the owner is a professional photographer. So the house also really lends itself well to that too by being a flexible space where the owner can balance work and home life easily. The first floor is dedicated to everyday life and socializing with the main living room including a photo gallery. There's also a beautiful dining room and a kitchen that is open to the patio with the cedar tree right outside. The kitchen is open to the dining area so as not to break the flow or sightline which keeps the space feeling airy and open.

Versatile and Comfortable Living Space

The living room on the main floor is a very versatile and open space with comfortable and colourful floor seating. Perfect for creating a relaxing and laid back atmosphere. On the second floor, they created a deck with a porch on the lower level, and there's even a fire pole that people can use to slide down to get to the lower level. Also on the second floor, there are the bedrooms and a studio. On the exterior of the building, they added some nice bamboo which helps to create screening as well as add some natural elements to the very linear and metal building. This is a wonderful example of just what can be done with shipping containers and how beautiful recycled materials can be in a project. It's really inspiring to see homes like this being built all around the world, being lived in by so many different people.