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Living container - thoughts about minimalist living in small container houses

Living containers - thoughts about minimalist living in container houses.

Want to find out more about working and living in container homes? Then you've come to the right place! The attention for the climate changethe biggest environmental problem of our time, has reached the heart of society. A glance at the supermarket shelves, the shopping streets of city centers or social media shows that more and more people are striving for a sustainable lifestyle and that's a good thing. Hot summers, flood disasters, forest fires: the consequences of global warming have long been visible - and not just in the news, but also right on our doorstep.

Domestic flights, meat consumption, Fast FashionAll these climate-damaging and destructive issues have finally become the focus of social debate. But so far, there has been little talk about how we can live sustainably.

Here I would like to conduct a little thought experiment about this and make it clear why living in minimalist living containers offers unexpected opportunities. Let's go!

How much do buildings contribute to global CO2 emissions?

Unimaginable amounts of concrete, more and more single apartments in the cities and an explosion of new developments in the suburbs - it is logical that buildings make a decisive contribution to a country's overall emissions. A quick search at the sustainable search engine Ecosia but shows amazing things: Around 40 percent of global emissions come from buildings.₁ It is clear: Buildings have a huge impact on the CO2 balance. Reason enough for me to take a look at current housing and the alternatives.

How do we want to live in the future?

A large house, ideally free-standing, with a blooming garden and a cozy garden house - this is probably still the dream of many people in Germany today. The trend towards single apartments is also extremely space-intensive. From young students to single pensioners - more and more people are living alone. They heat for themselves, cook for themselves, use the fridge for themselves. I think you can see where this idea is going. So are there ecological alternatives that make living more environmentally friendly?

My thought experiment about the container house

Living container from inside

Less is more. What leads to fewer greenhouse gases in consumption could also work for living. Is it possible not to live in the large, detached house, but also in the small garden house in front of it, which requires less energy and takes up less time?

Tiny houses are already a big issue in the USA. In Germany, bureaucracy still makes life a little difficult in small spaces. But what could everyday life look like on 13 square meters, for example?

Let's forget all the government regulations and get to the core issue - each federal state and each municipality has its own regulations anyway.

Is it possible to live in an environmentally friendly way in a small space?

One principle for lower emissions is "re-use". With the Reuse The production of existing objects logically produces less CO2 than the production of new things.

Does this also work for living spaces? The surprisingly simple answer: Yes! For example, decommissioned shipping containers are refurbished, insulated and cleverly equipped so that they can be used as living containers. Such a Container house may still sound a little crazy to many of us, but it could make an important contribution to a lower personal carbon footprint. ecological footprint afford. In the living containers you will find everything you need for everyday life: A kitchen, a bathroom with shower and toilet, as well as space for a bed and a table - just compact on 13.2 m². In the spirit of the minimalist lifestyle.

Thanks to its standardized dimensions, the container house offers you a further advantage: Any truck can transport the living container. So if you want to move to a new city or out into the countryside, the container house is your flexible companion. As I said, we still have to leave rigid building regulations out of these considerations. However, we are slowly seeing a change and an openness to the topic in individual municipalities. So we could soon be using the container home. like with a snail shell - move from one stage of life to the next.

What foundation needs a container house?

The flexibility and compactness are therefore key advantages of a container house. In addition, old material is reused. But what does the small house actually stand on? Even if the container house is basically mobile, it should still be stably and securely mounted on a pitch can be used.

So will massive concrete foundations be needed again? As in many other areas, a lot has happened with foundations in recent years. There are now many sustainable alternatives, especially for garden sheds and small buildings. The LogFoot™ foundation for garden shed and lightweight building, for example, consists of a simple but stable wooden frame - ideal for a container house.

As mobile as the living container is finally also the Screw foundation. The wooden frame is anchored to the ground with metal rods. So if you move your container house, you can simply transport the foundation together with the container house to the new location and reposition it there. I find the idea of living flexibly and in an environmentally friendly way with a small container house and a simple foundation for garden sheds really fascinating.

Where to get a living container?

Living container from Hansagarten24

There are many ways to get a container home. From rusty containers directly from the logistics companies, to refurbished models for self-construction, to ready-made living containers with kitchen and bathroom, everything is possible. If you want something simple and modern, you can find it at Garden house dealers such as Hansagarten24 already offer a selection of different container houses. Anyone looking for a project to live out their own fantasies and build their own container house will find what they are looking for at Shipping companies, Logistics groups or Container dealers Find ways to secure the basis for his future container home.

Notice: If you are fitting out the container yourself, you should make absolutely sure that the container of your choice is untouched and that no parts have been cut out. Either way, a discussion with a structural engineer is highly recommended.

Living containers - a minimalist living model with a future

So there are alternatives that allow individuals to significantly reduce their personal emissions. Even if the bureaucratic rules in Germany remain a hurdle for the time being, I find the alternative concept of container houses exciting. The flexibility and simplicity thanks to simple transportation by truck and mobile foundations are particularly promising. The minimalist basic idea definitely makes our coexistence more environmentally friendly.

At the same time, the small space with the large windows makes you feel more connected to nature at home. Whether you can and want to live in 13.2 m² in the long term is certainly a matter of type. A single container house is also not a solution for families with children and therefore not an alternative to a dream home with a garden. This leaves room for more ideas from creative minds. Spontaneously cooking, washing up and sleeping in an allotment garden is already possible without any problems with these living containers.

Do you have any questions, tips or your own experiences with container homes that you would like to share? Then I look forward to your comment!

Stay sustainable,

Christoph from CareElite - Plastic-free living

PS: An ecologically sensible alternative for family planning is also the sustainable house construction. You can find out how it works in the linked article. Have fun!

References:
₁ Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction; United Nations: 2020 Global Status Report for Buildings and Construction, available at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1k2X0oASPl-RUsi90RdKLMkrBfalv29yW/view. [20.01.2022].

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Christoph Schulz

Christoph Schulz

I'm Christoph, an environmental scientist and author - and here at CareElite I'm campaigning against plastic waste in the environment, climate change and all the other major environmental problems of our time. Together with other environmentally conscious bloggers, I want to give you tips & tricks for a naturally healthy, sustainable life as well as your personal development.

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