There have been many attempts made to convert shipping containers into livable homes, and it’s become a huge part of the recycling process that has become normal practice in a world where going ‘green’ is in vogue, and we are so desperate to reduce the carbon footprint and other forms of pollution to much more manageable levels. It becomes slightly more significant, and fits the eco brief a lot more closely, when the home can be developed in order to run off the grid. Walker Wilderness Enterprises have gone in this direction, and seem to have found success by reconfiguring a container and turning it into a home with basic create comforts. Of course, the tiny home simply can’t offer all of the facilities offered by a fully developed home, but it certainly meets the needs of its occupants in a satisfactory way.
Developed from a standard forty-foot container, the tiny house offers just enough space for it’s occupants. It has a good number of windows for maximum ventilation, even though the number of doors is limited to just one. With a total floor space of twenty-nine square meters, there is enough space to configure the container for human living space on a permanent basis, with perhaps the only downsize being the single door – although in other similar projects in the future, it may of course be possible to add more doors dependent on the floor plan.
One of the major challenges that arises with container-based architectural design is insulation – and habitation can obviously become very difficult, very quickly in a structure where temperatures can soar on a hot day, or drop excessively on a cold one. There is definitely a need for an enhanced ventilation design to be put in place, allowing for occupants to be able to stay inside regardless of the weather. In other words, the tiny house should be habitable in any of the four seasons, or in other words, throughout the entire year. Even though the tiny house structure generally consists of several windows, more work generally needs to be done so that the temperatures inside can be better regulated to allow more comfortable living quarters, and in the case, more than a little innovation has been necessary.
The problem of temperate regulation has been solved through insulation using cell spray foam, which can be up to four inches thick. Walker Wilderness Enterprises also had dry wall and a frame on the structure in order to prevent extreme heat and/or cold from penetrating the structure during either day or night. This approach has certainly paid off, and the container can now successfully be used as a tiny home, either on or off the grid – which is what allows the company to sell the tiny house to even the most discerning of buyers.
The tiny house also offers a shower and composting toilet, as well as a small utility room, bathroom, kitchen and dining room. There’s enough space for two bedrooms, and plumbing and fittings are provided, it can even be designed for connection to the power grid. On that note, energy saving lighting is provided through the utility of LED lighting, and a propane heather without a tank takes care of warm water. Other facilities that you can opt for include a generator, solar panel set up, stove that uses wood fuel, dishwasher and an oven. They say good things come in small packages, and this tiny home is certainly small but perfectly formed; you can get on with all the aspects of a normal home life such as cooking, carpet cleaning and cracking jokes.