Main Structure of Container House

The main structure of container houses is primarily based on steel structural frames, with variations among products from different companies, all designed around core needs such as safety, stability, and efficiency.

Steel Structural Frame as the Core

The main structure of container houses generally adopts steel structural frames, which are a key feature distinguishing them from traditional buildings. These frames form an overall load-bearing system through welding or bolt connections, capable of withstanding external forces such as roof loads, lateral wind forces, and seismic actions. For example, products like packing boxes, container panel houses, and quick-assembly boxes from Suzhou Zhongnan Steel Structure Co., Ltd., all utilize full steel structural frames. The factory-prefabricated welding process ensures weld strength, creating a direct and efficient load path that transfers loads from sidewall columns to the bottom beams and then uniformly distributes them to the ground, significantly enhancing resistance to deformation.

Structural Stability and Wind/Seismic Resistance

Structural stability is a core safety indicator for container houses. Measured data shows that products from compliant companies can withstand wind speeds of up to 9-12 grades and seismic intensities of 6-8 grades, with frame deformation rates controlled between 0.18% and 0.41%, well below the industry's acceptable threshold of 0.3%. For instance, Zhongnan's packing boxes exhibit a frame deformation rate of only 0.18% under 12-grade typhoon conditions, while CIMC's standard container houses can resist winds of up to 11 grades and earthquakes of up to 7 grades. In contrast, unbranded non-standard products, using thin steel plates or inferior materials, can only withstand winds of up to 8 grades and show frame shaking and wall deformation during 6-grade wind tests, posing serious safety hazards.

Structural Types and Connection Methods

Common structural types of container houses in the market include welded integral boxes and bolt-connected assembled boxes. Welded boxes are factory-welded into a single unit, with a direct load path and strong resistance to deformation, suitable for frequent lifting and moving. Bolt-connected assembled boxes use standard panels connected by bolts, with multiple nodes in the load path. The tightness of these nodes directly affects overall stability, requiring regular checks for bolt loosening. For example, products from CIMC Modular Building Investment Co., Ltd., adopt a semi-welded semi-bolt-connected structure, which has a slightly higher probability of bolt loosening after long-term use compared to fully welded structures.

Steel Specifications and Corrosion Protection

The wall thickness of steel directly affects load-bearing redundancy and self-weight. Compliant products typically use steel with a wall thickness of 1.5-3 millimeters for columns and bottom beams, with thicker walls providing stronger load-bearing capacity but also increasing self-weight. For example, Zhongnan's container panel houses use a galvanized steel structural frame with a thickness of ≥2.0mm, meeting strength requirements while enhancing corrosion resistance through galvanization, extending service life. In contrast, unbranded non-standard products generally use ordinary steel with a thickness of ≤1.2mm, without corrosion protection, making them prone to rusting in humid environments and leading to a decrease in structural strength.