Shipping Contaianers for storage

Has anyoue used a shipping container for storing things? The ones I have seen are around 8X8X20, or some even 40ft long. for some reason it is cheper for other countries to build new ones, rather than ship them back. Here on the west coast they are available for around 1,500.00 Stan

People around here use them fairly often. There is a guy that rents them out to people for storage. I use them for extra jobsite storage once in a while. 1500 sure beats paying rent at a storage place.

I pay $115 a month rental for a 40' model while waiting to build a barn. I've seen a couple used as garages for their tractors.

Try running the archives here: there was a fairly long thread 6 mos or so ago??, went into how to prevent or control inside condensation.

Fairly common around here too. I have 2 of the 20 footers with a "car port" built between them. They do get real hot during the summer-depending on where you live. Ventilators would be good. Be sure to inspect the ones you are going to buy. Some have severe salt water corrosion and or are banged around pretty good. On some the wood floors are treated with insecticides like chlordane, etc. with cooks out during the summer and could make you sick. But you don't have any bugs!!

Bought one that had only been used once(Brand new). 20' Paid $3600, but the older ones had an odor in them for $1500. We store feed in it, and have no problems. Even drive a 3 ton forklift in it with a 0ne ton pallet.Rented an older one once while building a care takers cabin. Great for keeping tools and lumber in.

If ya need a little less storage space a old school bus with the seats taken out gives a portable space about 25' by 7.5' by about 6' tall. They do have wheel wells, and only have man doors (large boxes or skids can be a problem) but often they are less than $1500, they don't sweat as bad as a steel building because they are insulated, and windows can be adjusted for ventilation. Just a thought.

Alf

I just start seeing some in this area for sale, didn't stop to ask how much, but they look durable and weather proof. Some of them must be the 40' and the others probably around 20'. Would a vehicle fit in them alright, suppose you would have to climb out the windows though. LOL., maybe that won't work for a garage for the wife car.

We use them on them around the farm and at work for storage. This last year we stored our cob corn in one with no ventilation, not good. We had rot on the sides. We fed it to our deer and they didn't seem to complain but I plan to do differently this next year. Some times 40ft trailers that are not that road worthy are about the same price. Containers if you plan to store for an extended period of time you need to watch the roof. A friend of mine had lot of rare mustang parts stored in one for several years, went in to look for some thing and a bunch of his parts had gone to ruin from a leak.
Ron

I have a 20 footer I bought out of chicago for 1200 bucks 2 years ago. I have my woodboiler inside it and it gives me storage of about a weeks worth of wood too. They are pretty air tight and get rather warm in the summer but otherwise cheap and easy storage.

(quoted from post at 20:31:09 03/02/09) Has anyoue used a shipping container for storing things? The ones I have seen are around 8X8X20, or some even 40ft long. for some reason it is cheper for other countries to build new ones, rather than ship them back. Here on the west coast they are available for around 1,500.00 Stan

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I have six 40 footers out behind my warehouse that I use to store bulky items or excess items in. They are real handy for that and we can drive our forklift truck right in at ground level. We shopped around pretty good when we bought these, they are in good shape and we paid $1500 each for them, delivered. Some we looked at were in poor shape with the floors shot or banged up and leaky roofs. We did paint these just so they would all be the same color and not be an eyesore. The other posters are correct, they sure get hot in the summer. They make good storage units and you can sell them if you don't need them anymore. Since they are temporary you don't have any codes/permit issues, at least we don't here.
We also have a large Bekins Moving trailer. This works OK but of course the floor is 4 foot or so off the ground and we had to built a ramp, dock to get into it. The trailers are not built near as sturdy as the containers and don't hold up as well. We have had to work on the roof and reinforce the floor in it.
A friend of mine bought two of the 40 foot containers for his small horse ranch, put them side by side with 12 feet between them. He them built a roof over the 12 foot space and keeps his tractor and equipment there. He uses the dry storage for hay, straw and etc. Works pretty good for him. He got a lot of secure dry storage and equipment shed for the money.

we have used them for years and never had troubles people here relate to. I have installed vents in some if the heat is an issue. now days lots of rip-offs out there. some outfit making a steel box that favors a storage container but a lot lighter. a true ocean container is like galvanized steel under the paint and the floors are treated wood with good seals and heavy sides.
we are lucky when a load of tractors comes in from Japan for years we were given the option of keeping the container for a grand or so. Have two sat down with 28ft bar joist in between makes a nice open shed with two lockable 8X40 blds. This has been nice at my farm for storage.

you cant,t beat it for storage if you can get into one for $1,200 to 1,400 delivred.

I would LOVE to find a container for $1500. Maybe it would be possible to get one that cheap that was in bad shape, but when I bought my 40' container about 5 or 6 years ago, I think I paid about $3500 delivered. It is in good shape, not very dented, with a good, solid floor, and so far, mouse proof. It does have an odd odor inside, so when we are working in there, we have had a box fan in operation, to try to ventilate the container. It is fairly secure, but if someone really wanted in there, I don't think it would be very hard to cut or break the single padlock I have on it. So far, no one has tried.

When my Mother In Law had to go into a nursing home, we put all her household goods in storage units in her town. It didn't take too long to figure out that at about $250/month it was costing way too much to store her stuff (which was mostly junk). So we bought the container and hauled everything over to our place in a big U-Haul and put it in the container in our yard. The container has saved my MIL lots of money over the years. I wouldn't store really valuable items in it, but for the stuff we put in there, it is more than adequate. It stays dry inside, and I have never noticed any condensation at all. It does get pretty hot at times in the Summer, but anything that might be damaged by heat is stored on the floor.

I would like to get another 40' container and set it on concrete railroad ties in my yard about 16' from the original container and exactly parallel to it. Then I would like to build a roof with roof trusses over both containers and the space between them. I think doing so would make a really strong and useful building for a lot less than building a conventional pole barn. I haven't talked it over with the county building codes people though...they might not like the idea at all. But putting a roof over the containers would eliminate most of the summer heat buildup problems. And as long as the roof was held down really well, I don't see why it wouldn't work OK.

Where can a guy get a $1500 container? I live near Spokane, if that helps. Thanks!