Can a sea container be adapted into a house?

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Can a sea container be adapted into a house? Just a few decades ago, living in a sea container for the vast majority of people seemed completely meaningless and devoid of any logic. Is a house made of a sea container really an affront to human dignity? Or is it an ecological and very convenient way to have your own place? What formalities should not be forgotten when deciding on a house made of a sea container?

A house made of a sea container – a way to get a cheap apartment?

We are all well aware of the current situation on the housing market, not only in Poland, but also around the world. Renting apartments is extremely expensive, and almost no one can afford to buy an apartment for cash. In turn, a bank loan for an apartment is taken out for so many years that many people have great, justified concerns about reaching for this form of financing. It is therefore not surprising that the popularity of alternatives to traditional housing is growing all the time. sea containers as a house, they are an increasingly popular solution for people who, for various reasons, cannot afford to buy a new, classic apartment. Domestic sea containers are not the only solutions used by people around the world. Equally popular are Finnish houses, houses on the water or microhouses. Their popularity is conditioned not only by very high prices of flats, but also by the ever-increasing public awareness of the benefits of leading an ecological, environment-friendly lifestyle. Although a sea container house may still seem like a huge misunderstanding to many people, it must be admitted that a sea container house is not such a bad idea as some people think.

Houses made of sea containers at the very beginning were created on a large scale in Scandinavian countries and in the United States. Just a few years ago, it was believed that container houses were only inventions of wealthy people who wanted to buy another “toy”. At the moment, the situation has changed significantly. You can easily find various companies on the Polish market that offer houses made of sea containers at relatively low prices. In many cases, these types of houses are offered to clients as part of a turnkey offer, in which the client receives a ready-to-live-in house from a sea container. In such a prepared house, there is even a pre-prepared insulation system. The price for such a house from a sea container is much lower than the price for a new apartment in a popular housing estate, that is why so many people choose sea containers as a home. It is really a very beneficial solution for everyone who would like to be able to live in their own “four corners” at a low price.

Polish law and sea containers as a home

Is it very simple and devoid of any formalities to build a house from a sea container? Unfortunately, we do not have good news in this regard. It is worth knowing that building houses using sea containers is quite difficult due to various legal restrictions. What is it actually about? Such objects, despite their growing popularity, are little known in our country, which is why they are constructed in various ways. This, in turn, contributes to the emergence of many problems during the completion of all necessary formalities at the municipal office.

Does a container building for a house require a building permit from the municipality? The building law in article number 29.1 says that buildings that are permanently attached to the ground (they are equipped with foundations) must have a building permit. Sea containers, as you know, do not have foundations. According to these regulations, if we want our house from a sea container to be considered a residential building, we must build foundations in front of it. Before that, you also need to obtain a building permit from the municipal office.On the other hand, if we are building a facility that is not permanently connected to the ground (read: there are no foundations) and we want to use it for a period longer than 120 days, then the notification will be definitely insufficient. In this case, the formalities at the municipal office will be even longer. It is worth calling your office and asking officials about the current requirements for houses made of sea containers, because as you know, Polish law can change at a rapid pace.

Houses made of sea containers in Poland

In our country, building houses from sea containers is associated primarily in a pejorative way for the vast majority of people. When thinking “sea containers home”, many people imagine dingy, ugly-looking housing for construction site workers or housing for families evicted due to huge rent arrears. Perhaps in a few years social awareness will change so that no one will be surprised by houses made of sea containers.