Container Renovated House with Upper and Lower Floors

The renovation of container houses with upper and lower floors requires comprehensive consideration from multiple aspects such as structural design, load-bearing optimization, thermal insulation, and safety and stability.

Structural Design

Containers were originally used for cargo transportation, and there are many limitations when directly used as houses. When renovating houses with upper and lower floors, it is necessary to re-plan the internal space layout. For example, in some cases, two containers are arranged in a staggered manner vertically, with terraces protruding at the front and back of the second floor, which not only increases the usable space but also enriches the architectural appearance. At the same time, areas should be divided according to functional requirements, such as setting up a living room, kitchen, and bathroom on the ground floor, and arranging bedrooms and a studio on the upper floor.

Load-Bearing Optimization

The spacing between the longitudinal beams of the bottom frame of traditional containers is large, and the floor stiffness is insufficient when directly used as a living space. The method of adding C-shaped steel purlins between the bottom beams can be adopted to evenly distribute the load to each main beam. Baotou Xinxing Color Plate Steel Structure Manufacturing Co., Ltd. used this method when dealing with container houses, enabling the boxes to maintain structural stability even when stacked three layers high.

Thermal Insulation

The metal box walls have a cold-bridge effect, which affects the indoor temperature. The conventional method of attaching insulation boards on the inner side easily creates heat conduction channels at the steel frames. The improved solution is to adopt a broken-bridge lining structure, fill hard polyurethane foam between the steel frames and the inner wall panels, and install rubber thermal insulation pads at the connections of the keels. This can reduce the heat exchange efficiency between the inside and outside of the container by about 40% and reduce the energy consumption dependence on heating or cooling equipment.

Safety and Stability

The connection between the upper and lower containers should be firm and reliable to ensure the stability of the overall structure. At the same time, it is necessary to consider earthquake resistance, wind resistance, and other properties, especially in earthquake-prone areas or areas with strong winds. In addition, the design of the stairs should also comply with safety standards to ensure the safe passage of people up and down.

Environmental Protection and Recycling

The core value of container houses lies in the full life-cycle recycling of materials. During the renovation process, damage to the container structure should be minimized as much as possible so that when the campsite is relocated or the project is completed, the entire house can be hoisted to a new site, reducing the disassembly and assembly loss rate and minimizing the generation of construction waste.