Designed under the guidance of Ecosa Design Studio, this recycled shipping container home in Flagstaff, Arizona, is constructed from six shipping containers, and has very green credentials. The 2,000-square-foot single family residence includes 2 lofted sleeping areas, 2 baths, an office, studio, storage room, and a small green house.
Completed March 2011, this house was oriented due south for direct solar exposure as well as a better fit on the narrow urban infill lot. Because this area is a designated flood plain, federal regulations required that the house be 3 1/2 feet above ground level. The foundation consists of forty concrete piers. The containers were purchased and partially fabricated in Phoenix, then shipped to Flagstaff on trailers, lifted with cranes onto the piers, and welded in place.
The interior is furred with steel lumber in the walls and wood lumber in the ceilings. Plumbing and electric are inside the furred walls just like traditional construction.
Inside, the walls and floor are insulated with closed-cell foam, and the ceilings with recycled denim, providing R values of 20-24. The exterior is coated withSuperTherm ceramic coating, which reflects heat and cold, helps prevent condensation, and provides a durable custom-color finish. The roofs were sprayed with foam and covered with an impermeable membrane and sand finish. The windows and glass doors are thermally broken aluminum dual pane. Kalwall insulated fiberglass walls allow additional daylight into the main atrium space.
The upper story collects both water and solar power for residential use.
A water harvesting system, designed by TBKA Landscape Architects and installed by Northern Arizona Pump, employs gutters on the upper story to direct water into two large tanks and can be pumped to landscape areas. The rest of the water from the site, including the lower roofs, is directed via the grading plan to landscaping areas, which will feature indigenous, low water use plantings. Planting areas are defined by recycled broken concrete or urbanite, collected from this and other neighborhood construction sites.
A 3.6 kW on-grid solar system designed and installed by AEA Inc. is expected to meet the household’s total electric needs.
This very green container home also received an award from the Coconino County Sustainable Building Program in 2010.
Courtesy Of: Container House Flagstaff
Why can’t we find homes in NJ like this???