Greetings from Costa Rica! 🙂
I went from Oklahoma to Missouri to … Costa Rica? You didn’t think I was only going to stay state side did you? Not a chance 🙂 There are so many beautiful shipping container homes out there; I want to find them all!
What initially began as a project between an architect and his clients to show that you don’t need deep pockets to build a shipping container home, quickly turned into exposing the importance of design as a tool to provide beauty and comfort with a very low budget in the 21st century. From the beginning this project began to spark a great deal of interest. Many felt it could solve the issue of the disposal of discarded shipping containers in developing countries. It could also close a very large gap that first time home buyers encounter when purchasing a home.
So with a budget of $40,000, the architect, Benjamin Garcia Saxe, used two 40 foot shipping containers to create this cozy 1,000 square feet living space. Located in San Jose, Costa Rica, this house really proves that anything is possible. Composed only with two shipping containers, these two are set together with a raised midsection and clerestory windows.
“It was important for me to provide them with the sunrise, the sunset, the spectacular views, and overall try and create a feeling of comfort and home. A roof between the two containers, made from the scrap pieces of metal taken to make the windows, not only creates an internal sensation of openness but also provides a cross ventilation which is surprisingly sufficient enough to never have to turn the air conditioning on. Whilst using creativity to not only redefine a scrap material such a disused shipping container, but perhaps to even show that there are viable, low cost, passive alternatives of temperature control to adapt to a very intense tropical climate.” – Benjamin Garcia Saxe
The final cost of the house was indeed $40,000 and it turns out to be lower than the cost of social housing provided for the poor in Costa Rica.
Photos by: Andres Garcia Lachner
I believe the clients chose to call the house Containers of Hope with the simple reason that if we think outside the box, helping the community is within our reach. I enjoy spreading the word of great things others have done. 🙂
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