Sue Cooper

Hi all,
I am fairly new to this site, and can I just say, wow! I feel like I found my people. Haha.  
Here’s where I’m at.  House rich, cash poor.  I would rather be debt free and house poor.  That said, While I would be happy to live in a trailer in  the woods solo, I have 4 children so (3 at home) so obviously I have some requirements that are necessary in my mind for their comfort and my sanity. That said, on my decent sized town lot, over the last 6-7 years, I have managed to grow upwards of 20 varieties of fruit as well as veggies in raised beds. But now, the market is amazing and I would like to cash out and buy 5 or so acres with the equity I draw from my house sale. Here’s the challenge; I can afford a nice little piece of land, but it will leave me with a (very) small build budget. So I started looking into some different building options (outside the box, if you will) I am considering a mobile (with the possibility of enclosing or surrounding it with a greenhouse. Well when I mention anything outside of a traditional build, I get some mighty strange looks.  I feel like we are behind the times here in a sense, and no one shares my vision. I posted re greenhouse idea and I got some incredible feed back, so I figure this is a good place to ask if anyone has experience in building a home out of shipping containers?? Are there “plans” for this somewhere? My thought was to add a dome style roof with the containers on the inner side and using the large open area as extra living space (clearly I would have to modify to add doors and windows etc.) Ideally, I would like to use the “open” area as additional living space (living/dining/kitchen combo, with the bed and bathrooms tucked into the shipping containers.  Eventually, I would like to use the area on top of the containers and below the dome as a deck.
Does anyone have first hand experience building a shipping container house? What are the disadvantages to this sort of build?
I expect building permit approval and occupancy certificates may be a sticking point.  It’s worth noting that I live in an area with a significant snow fall and occasional hurricane/tropical storm risk.

Mike Haasl wrote:It also depends on what type of greenhouse.  A hoop will act differently from a more substantial greenhouse.  The temperature swings in a greenhouse can be pretty severe and the summer could be a challenge.

I’d be looking at something more substantial than a hoop house.  I’m hoping with ventilation and good design, I can eliminate some of the potential issues before they arise.

Douglas Alpenstock wrote:Hi Sue. Welcome to Permies!

When you say "mobile" and "trailer" can you specify what you mean? It makes a big difference.

I love the idea of tucking a trailer on wheels inside a greenhouse because of the milder, windbreak-protected envelope in winter. However, ventilation and CO/CO2 come into it, and possibly fire safety as well. A greenhouse will be a very hot place in summer (that's the idea, right?). Not great as sleeping quarters.

I would also start asking questions of the municipalities you are looking at. Out this way, some are being impossible about allowing permanent structures without a house. I think it boils down to a revenue thing -- a house on an acreage is heavily taxed, vs. outbuildings that are not. So watch your back on that.

I was thinking a mobile. A permanent structure. But you make a compelling argument for a trailer.  You are definitely right about the taxes!! I hadn’t even considered. As you can probably tell, I’m very early in the process and I am aware that municipality may not approve the design...the area I was considering is rural and sort a mixed bag in terms of architecture. There are some shacks, some average houses and some higher end custom builds.

R Scott wrote:I have no idea why more people don't do it.

You have to watch for CO and humidity buildup.  

That makes sense. I would want a greenhouse with vents. Funny, CO2 never even occurred to me! I was thinking of vents that open and a dehumidifier for moisture control and air circulation. Thanks for the tip!

I am looking to downsize and dump my mortgage payments.  I should be able to pull enough cash out of the sale of my house to purchase a small piece of land and place a mobile on it.  I want to place a large greenhouse over the trailer to extend my growing season and create a micro climate to help reduce very high heating bills. What I was wondering is does anyone have experience with this?  I know it’s been done in Sweden, Norway and the arctic but don’t see much in reference to Canada.  I have been growing fruit trees and Veggies and such on my small lot for the last 5 or so years.  But I live in a climate that experiences fairly long winters and I would love to expand my living space into a greenhouse where it’s protected from rain and snow year round