Fire Training Grounds

Fire Training Grounds

Fire departments around the country look for useful, safe, cost-effective ways to practice fire training.  One good, reusable option – containers.  The containers provide a steel structure that can easily be modified to recreate real life situations and the containers can be burned over and over again.  Fire departments can add on more containers over time to expand their training grounds.

Fire Training Building

One department that has been working on creating a safe way to practice is the Sylva Fire Department in Sylva, NC.  Sylva FD purchased two 20’s and two 40’ containers last summer and have created a training ground.  They have plans to expand these training grounds as funds and time permits, but in the meantime, they are off to a great start.  They shared these pictures with me so I could share them with other fire departments thinking of doing the same thing.

Fire training containers

Getting ready for another phase of fire training grounds

Containers – the perfect temporary building

Eco-Restaurant Greenhouse by Joost

Containers provide a secure, easy way to install a temporary building just about anywhere.  They are easy to modify to personalize to your needs.  Some uses include:

• Temporary, ground-level offices
• Cabin
• Hunting lodge
• Restaurant (see here)
• Portable retail space
• Temporary housing
  

  Quick, easy building

• Hotels
• Workshop
• Tool Crib
• Artist studio
• Any time you need a roof over your head – quickly.

Container buildings can be as fancy or as basic as you want.  Currently they are a popular, green building material in the architectural world.  But they can also be as basic is throwing a door and window on a container and calling it the office.

A couple of things to think about while you plan

Large shop made with containers stacked 2-high to accomodate trucks and containers

1)      Do you need an architect or engineer? If this is housing and you are removing large portions of the container or you are stacking modified containers, then YES.  Don’t risk it, make sure your plan will work once you pull that wall off the container and avoid disaster.  If you are living in the container, you will still need electricity, plumbing and all the other features you expect from a tradition building.  That takes some know-how.

2)      To insulate or buy insulated? As a general rule of thumb, only get an insulated container if you are using it to keep something at a steady temperature.  If you are modifying it, get a non-insulated container.  Insulated containers are expensive and very hard to modify.  Save your wallet and a headache by modifying a standard container and insulating once that is done.  Don’t forget to insulate the flooring and roof!

Inside the shop

3)      Modify yourself or have someone else do it? If you can weld, doing some easy modifications yourself is a great way to save money.  Use container modification kits to add doors, windows, skylights, AC/Heat or other basic additions.  If you have more complicated modifications – taking out container walls and adding in extra support, adding in industrial flooring, etc – bring in the pros.  These are headaches or possible structural problems you don’t want to handle on your own.  Have a container shop take care of doing that for you.

You are only limited by your imagination – and the laws of physics – in coming up with the container building of your dreams.

48′ Domestic Container Sale

48' containers are longer than standard containers

I don’t normally do blatant advertising in this forum, but given the scarcity of containers these days, it is just fun to have a lot of containers to sell.  So please indulge me.

48′ Domestic containers are containers that are only used within the United States by rail and truck.  They are not used for international shipping.  Currently, we have a large number of 48′ long units available in Chicago, IL.  As you can see from the pictures, these are in great condition.

Containers this size do not come up on the market in this kind of quantity very often, so it is a great time to take advantage of a nice, secure, extra-large container!  Perfect for on-site storage, extra inventory, shop for inclement weather, and much more!  Call today for more details.

48' interior - in good condition

Just a few of the 48's we have available

Sample plate for this series

More interior shots

Call today to find out more about these containers – 877.374.5452.

The Latest Celebrity – Containers

Disney's TRON home

Containers are making a splash in movies lately.  Sure, they have always been a great backdrop for dangerous encounters “down at the docks” for that renegade cop who is solving the latest mystery.  But lately, containers are coming more into their own.  The latest cameo is in TRON: Legacy.

Interior of Disney's TRON home

In TRON: Legacy, Sam Flynn, son of the creator of TRON, lives in a home made from containers.  Disney went with a distressed-industrial look for the home which opens up for a spectacular view of Vancouver for a critical conversation in the movie.  According to Jetson Green :

“The shipping container house style was chosen because [director Joseph Kosinski] and our production designer, Darren Gilford, couldn’t find a house for Sam Flynn in Vancouver with suitable architecture and as designers both were interested in retro-fitted shipping containers as living spaces”

20th Century Fox's A Team

It is nice to see container architecture getting a nod.  They are a great green option for unique building materials.

Containers were almost extras in 20^th Century Fox’s A-Team. After hijacking a container delivery, the team has to prove their innocence.  The finale is at the LA Port where the A Team uses containers in order to prove their innocence, but not before many containers are destroyed.

20th Century Fox's A Team

Even the small screen is getting in on the action.  On TNT’s Leverage, one episode was centered on tracking a container full of cash. (See link below)  Despite being safe storage options, particularly with the lockbox on the containers in this clip, Super Cubes does not recommend storing large quantities of cash in containers.

TNTs Leverage The Homecoming Job

Containers long have been a backdrop for movies, but it is nice to see they are finally getting their close-up.  I wonder how they would show up in a fluffy romantic comedy–maybe a couple on the run from the law will hide in a container used for farm storage or spend a weekend in a container home on the beach. When that happens, you’ll be sure to read about it here.

Shrimp Farm in the Desert

Super Cubes is excited to be assisting with a prototype of a shrimp farm in Las Vegas.  While the brand name of the company is still being figured out, Super Cubes has provided specially modified containers to the farm location.  After 8 years of engineering, the farm is close to becoming a reality.

This week we went to see what a shrimp farm in the desert looks like!  Enjoy the pictures.

If you have a large project that involves modifications, we can help you too!

Containers make up the tanks

Getting the tanks ready

The great team that is making the farm happen!

Hunting Containers – For the hunter who has everything!

Camouflage your container

The weather is starting to change and hunters’ thoughts turn to opening day.  But what does the hunter who has everything really need?  More storage!  From basic storage for hunting gear and ATV’s to complete cabins, containers offer a wide variety of solutions.

A lockbox and tab are welded to the doors of your container for additional security.

Containers all-steel construction makes them a wind- and water-tight, insect- and rodent-proof, secure solution for storage.  Your ATV’s, boats, snowmobiles, hunting gear and other supplies will be dry and safe in a container.  Your stuff will be safe from pests large and small since insects, rodents, menacing teenagers and potential thieves can’t get past the steel, water-tight construction.  For additional security from potential intruders, add a lockbox for additional protection.  They protect your padlock from being cut off.

Make your container into a cabin

Take things one step further by modifying your container to act as a cabin.  Doors, windows, skylights, AC/heating units can all be added either before it is delivered or by you.  You can turn your container into your perfect hunting getaway.  You can go rustic with just the basics, or frame it in with electricity to make a snug retreat for all weather.  If you keep adding containers and/or kits, your container cabin can grow over time as well.

Skip over building or assembling a shed or cabin.  Have a container delivered right to your property and start using it right away.

Container Construction 101

You have a great idea.  You are going to transform a cargo container into your workshop, cabin or home.  You can visualize what it will look like.  But before you start cutting up a container, here is some information on how containers are made to make sure you are making the most out of your container.

Exploded view of container

Basic Frame

Design - Containers are designed to filled, then stacked on ships, then removed.  Containers hold all their weight in the floor of the container and the four corner posts.  Those corner posts are what the cranes connect to when moving full containers around.  These corner posts are slightly higher than the roof and slightly lower than the floor of the container.

What this means for you – When you stack containers, make sure that you always have corner posts resting on corner posts.  If you can’t do this, make sure those corner posts have extra support.  Also, do not remove these corner posts unless you have designed to support the container in another way.

Corrugated walls and roof

Walls and Roofs

Design – Containers are made of corrugated steel.  The walls and roofs are made of the same material.  The walls support the roof of the container.

What this means for you – You can cut holes for doors and windows in the side of containers.  But just make sure you don’t remove the whole side of a container without providing support for the roof.  Also, the roof is not strong enough to handle heavy loads.  If you are planning on burying the container or making a balcony on top of a container, make sure you create a platform that distributes the weight back to the four corner posts.

Container doors

Doors

Design – Container doors are attached to corner posts.

What this means to you – They work well they way they are designed.  If you want a different type of entry, add extra doors on the other 3 sides of the container.

Insulation

Design – Standard containers are made of corten steel and are not insulated.  Refrigerator containers are steel containers with insulation and an interior wall added onto the container.  The insulation used is loose between the walls.  Also, refrigerated/insulated containers are generally sold with cooling units still included.

Inside refrigerated container

What this means to you – If you are looking for a container that is insulated, the first big question to ask yourself is if you are going to modify the container further.  If you are, the standard containers will be much easier to work with.  Once you cut into an insulated container, you will have a mess on your hands and the insulation will be reduced.  Instead, go with a standard container, make your modifications to suit your needs and then frame the container like you would a traditional home.  You will lose the same amount of container width as you would with a refrigerated container, but will skip a large headache.

For more questions on do-it-yourself modifications, please call us!

5 Reasons Steel Containers Make Great Toolboxes

The snow is melting, the ground is greening up, and you’re raring to get going on your construction projects, even after adjusting for tougher economic realities. You need to keep a lid on costs and you want to be smart about storing your tools and materials. You may have noticed that steel storage containers are being used more and more on construction sites—not just by the general contractors, but by subs as well.  That’s because they make great toolboxes, and here’s why:

1.  Reliable Security. Containers are far and away the most secure way to store tools and materials on a job site. Constructed of heavy-duty steel, they’re indestructible. Add a lockbox and only a plasma cutter could have a chance (not a common tool for the common thief).

2.  Storage Where You Need It. You can have your materials delivered directly to the job site, saving you money and hauling headaches over the long run. Everything will be kept safe and dry from Day 1 to the end of construction.

3.  Time Savings. Your workers won’t have to go back and forth from your location with company trucks or wait for co-workers to show up with the tool that got put in another guy’s truck.  Everything they need will be right on site and ready to go every morning, rain or shine.

4.  Added Work Space. On bad-weather days, you and your team can use the container as a dry workshop right on site.

5.  Mobility. When the job is done, you can move the container to your next job site … with the tools right in it. (For this, we recommend the 20’ container, easily movable by tow trucks).

Your tools will be safe, secure, and right where you need them. The cost savings will add up. And as a bonus you can paint your container with your logo and company colors—an instant on-site billboard, great for your business and a productivity booster for your team.