fbpx

The idea of using shipping containers as a living space or structure is seen as “Green.” This idea is on the fact that creating a container home requires recycling or upcycling used containers. But, are container homes eco-friendly?

The container home movement has been around for an extended period. An idea that started with a man named Phillip Clark in 1987. He filed a patent with the concept of transforming used shipping containers into a habitable building. A laughable idea back then, container homes have grown popular. 

This popularity is as a result of several reasons. Some of these reasons are sustainability and environmentally friendly features.

Sustainable Choice

In their proper form, shipping containers are disposable items – wastes. Thanks to the high volume of importation in many countries, tons of shipping containers are lying around. 

Whether it’s a warehouse or shipyard, shipping containers are labeled as wastes. This is because it is cheaper to receive new containers than to send the old ones back empty.

Although going this route has financial savings benefits, it harms the environment and contributes to the global waste crisis. There is a need to repurpose these containers. Repurposed containers provide a sustainable option to living and a better future for the planet.

By purchasing these shipping containers at affordable prices, people can recycle them into container homes, hospitals, and other functions. This allows us to contribute to preserving the environment. 

Hence, the notion of eco-friendly container homes.

It is a common belief that living in container homes provide an eco-friendly alternative to traditional living. However, this is not always true. Although there are some eco-friendly container homes, most options out there don’t come environmentally friendly. 

So, how do you make your container home eco-friendly? Let’s take a look at some tips.

container home eco friendly

5 Effective Ways to Make Your Container Home Environmentally Friendly

A sustainable container home is not as typical as it is believed. However, there are effective ways to make your container homes environmentally friendly.

1. Lower Temperature

Reducing the temperature of your water and turning down your thermostat would do a lot of good. You’ll be able to reduce carbon emissions and reduce the cost of living. 

So, being smart about the overall temperature within your container home goes a long way. If you feel like keeping warm during the winter, a blanket is cheaper than your heating bill. 

2. Use Appliances Smartly 

You might be wondering how this contributes to better living. Well, research shows that about 10% of your residential electricity consumption is on standby devices. 

Hence, it’s time to be smart with electronic appliances. Living your devices o standby indeed creates a comfortable living. However, this leads to electricity wasted and a higher bill. By taking a little shift in how you operate appliances, you can easily save costs when these devices are not used. 

container gardening for tiny homes

3. Use Garden

If you want to be sustainable & environmentally conscious creating a container home garden is a fantastic idea! Another effective way to make shipping container homes eco-friendly is by creating compost using your trash. Once the scraps have rotted enough, you have enough compost to sprinkle on plants and trees in your garden.

You can achieve this by maximizing the space in your garden or using a compost pail or bin. Now, that’s container home green living.  

4. Eco-Friendly Insulation

The materials used to insulate your container home and the areas protected can make a difference.

There are several container home insulation options to choose from. However, when looking to create an eco-friendly container home, environment-friendly materials are the best. These materials include cotton, straws, and loops of hemp. However, the climate of your environment and the areas you want to insulate would affect your choice.

Although it is easy to insulate your walls, it is wrong since it creates limited heat transfer. This decision may directly impact your energy use. And as we know, a poor choice in energy consumption may negatively affect Eco-friendliness. 

So, if you’re going to insulate at all, we recommend protecting your walls, roof, and underneath the container. Although insulation can be expensive, it helps you cut back on heating and cooling costs depending on the climate.

5. Efficient Lighting 

You have most likely heard about energy-efficient bulbs and how they benefit your living. The first set of energy-efficient bulbs came years ago. Now, we have LED bulbs that offer more benefits and energy-saving features than fluorescent ones. 

Offering an energy saving of up to 85%, the use of energy-saving bulbs are cheaper and would last longer. This means you can forget about changing bulbs for a long time while saving on energy bills. These bulbs are very affordable and highly rated.

container home eco friendly

Environmentally Friendly Container Homes

Although not every container home is eco-friendly, some impressive structures are built with environmental safety as a priority. We have gathered some for your inspiration.

Here are some environmentally friendly container homes you can check out.

  • Shipping Container Homes by Sulex
  • Shipping container house by Ty Kelly
  • South Coast Container House by Matt Elkan
  • Shipping container homes by Alternative Living Spaces
  • Carroll House in Brooklyn by LOT-EK

You can check out more eco-friendly container homes and read more about these container homes here.

Conclusion

Container homes are repurposed or recycled shipping containers that are optimized to create living space for different purposes. Whether it’s a home, hospital, office space, or any other thing you can think of, container homes are here to stay. 

However, not every shipping container home you see around are eco-friendly. Although these new ways of living this new housing trend are generally environment friendly, some not-so-eco-friendly designs are out there. 

If you’re looking to create a more environmentally friendly space, the tips above will help you make your Container Home Eco-Friendly.

Enjoy this Article? You May Also Like: