Finishing the outside of shipping containers

Hello everyone! Hope you're all feeling permalicious!

We are building our off-grid house out of 2 shipping containers, partially stacked as to form a shaded deck under the top one to assist the living room area of the bottom one.
We ran out of money to finish them on the outside (on top of that, we've been robbed out of about 12.000 euros in materials for the inside furnishings, more about that here: https://permies.com/t/189447/robbed-Crowdfunding#1564468) and we've been racking our brains to come up with a solution so that we can protect our house and help the inside insulation of roofmate, rockwool and plaster not have to work as hard )
Also we would like to have a more natural look to our mammoths sitting on the land )

We are looking for suggestions on how to coat the outside of the containers and so far we've thought of/been suggested to do:
- living walls with climbing plants (using chicken wire or wire mesh to help them climb)
- rammed straw, wedged between the container walls and some mesh and coated with cob
- mesh and coated with cob
- wallmate, mesh and cob
- simply wrap them in shade cloth

So, what do you think?
Do you have the perfect recipe for cob to withstand rainy weather?
What would your ideas be?

How can we top up the roof of the lower container so that it's sturdy enough for us to use it as a deck?

I cast my vote for:

Priscila said, "- living walls with climbing plants (using chicken wire or wire mesh to help them climb)

Because I like being incognito.

While my house isn't covered in vines it cannot be seen from any roadway.

There are other options for the deck, such as respecting the weight bearing points of the lower structure.  However, I would use posts independent of the lower structure to support the deck.  

John F Dean wrote:There are other options for the deck, such as respecting the weight bearing points of the lower structure.  However, I would use posts independent of the lower structure to support the deck.  

Do you mean posts laying down on top of the container to make like a wooden deck?

You could, if you respect the weight bearing points of the container.  But, I was speaking of independent posts sunk into the ground.

DECK ON CONTAINER TOP
I am a Civil Engineer and have worked with shipping containers.
John Dean is concerned any weight from a deck may load the roof or walls too much.
Particularly if you cut holes in the container.
At the end there are load points that are ok to create a fiving for the deck.
The lower container has a concrete block situated under its middle, I would bring posts up from that slab, [ bolted to the slab ] and up to the roof.
Then across those posts I would fit a beam. The posts would be drilled to the walls for lateral stability only.
Then any deck can be laid between the new beam and the end on a set of rails running the length of the proposed deck.
Another set of posts and the beam could be installed at the point the two containers meet also, coming from either the existing foundation or a new one.

how to coat the outside of the containers

Some important questions;
- what climate are you in?
- how hot does it get?
- will you fry in the containers in summer?
ALSO, WILL YOU HAVE ;
- solar electric panels
- solar hot water panels
- a need to insulated the containers

John C Daley wrote:DECK ON CONTAINER TOP
Particularly if you cut holes in the container.
(...)
Then any deck can be laid between the new beam and the end on a set of rails running the length of the proposed deck.
Another set of posts and the beam could be installed at the point the two containers meet also, coming from either the existing foundation or a new one.

Holes for windows/doors will be reinforced with  steel frames because that was a concern of mine, too, structural stability.
these frames are 8cm by 4cm (a little over 3" by almost 2" rectangular pipe)
then the windows will fit into them, and the "plate" that comes out of the hole will be the shutter with an appropriate steel reinforcement frame on side hinges.

On the inside of the containers we welded the same pipes/beams to keep the walls from caving in and the roof from sagging.
This reinforcement was just in the lower container, the upper one won't have any extra weight on its roof (just an occasional check-up)

I understand the deck suggestion idea, but how do I keep water from seeping under the deck and accumulating on the roof? I know Corten is a special kind of steel when it comes to rust, but still. I'm a little concerned.

John C Daley wrote:DECK ON CONTAINER TOP

how to coat the outside of the containers

Some important questions;
- what climate are you in?
- how hot does it get?
- will you fry in the containers in summer?
ALSO, WILL YOU HAVE ;
- solar electric panels
- solar hot water panels
- a need to insulated the containers

Our climate gets very hot in the summer and freezing in the winter, although I believe we have a microclimate on our land, as this summer we were roasting at our place and when we went to the land it was more bearable. In the winter time it was the same, much more bearable cold there than at home. (we live close by)

I wouldn't say we'd fry, but it gets very hot inside the containers. We're thermally insulating with expanding foam, rockwool, roofmate, floormate and drywall. As we're working inside the lower container, we do break a sweat from the stuffiness of the air. we haven't experienced winter in there yet.

We will have solar, yes. Water will come from a "ballerina", heated by wood and as an alternative, a gas fuelled water-heater.

the containers will be insulated from the inside, but we want to make the outside more discrete (and weather protected) and blend them into the environment and be able to lean onto them in the summer and not get scalded :))

Thank you for all suggestions and ideas.

Waterproofing
- good quality paint
- metal roof over container and under deck
COOLING
- Insulate container on the outside and cover with metal sheeting
- details I have described elsewhere on the site
- use solar p0wer to run a split system air conditioner.
- roof the containers for shade and catch water.
What is "Water will come from a "ballerina"" please?

John C Daley wrote:
What is "Water will come from a "ballerina"" please?

A ballerina is a water heater that runs on wood and I suppose there is a coil inside it.