apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

sorta an eye sore...but i guess its better than cardboard box towns. my only question is, if this thing sleeps 4-6 peeps...where is an ounce of storage in this place. and i'm assuming the bathroom is the dirt pile in the back yard? classy

:\ Sad, but a touching idea for affordable housing that isn't a shack.

The bathroom is on the floorplan, but storage would be an issue. Its a good idea, and I think if there were a bunch of these painted in bright colors it could give the community an interesting visual effect if not the individual homes.

hmmm, if they had windows and a bathroom it wouldn't be that bad at all. It's definately better than nothing that's for sure!

I needs alot more windows and a nice wide porch - it's gonna get hot inside a steel box under the Mexico sun...

With the recent down turn of the American economy perhaps we should judge. Sadly this could be the new American Dream.

There is a bathroom in the floorplan - it's that room in the middle of the house with a toilet in it.

And if you read the description, it's outfitted with air conditioning and hot water.

Creating this standard as safe and affordable housing for full time workers overseas is how all of those Fortune 500 companies grew so big, so quickly.

Yes, I read the specs including the HVAC - but buying electricity to power the AC and electric lights to keep a steel box cool and lit is not a smart solution, particularly for the folks of modest means that this is geared for.

Better to include a several windows and some outdoor shade so that the cross-breezes can be captured to help keep the place cool for free most of the time, and that the electric lights don't have to be turned on in the middle of the day.

If you Google "shipping container homes", there are some amazing designs out there that use these containers. They're not necessarily less expensive than new builds when you get into the fancy-schmancy designs but they do reuse some very sturdy materials.

maybe an additional roof could provide both shade and storage. and this definitely is a lot better than cardboard ...

Let me just say - Storage for what? Clearly none of you has ever been to juarez... the poverty there is severe. Most familes have some clothes, pans, and tools - thats about it. This would be an amazing upgrade from the millions of cardboard shack and mud huts that are down there.

http://www.greaterworks.us/images/communityJuarez_001.JPG

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_I8HiM8Weppk/RhQn4xYioVI/AAAAAAAAAYU/c7TVeoXONUA/trip2mexico 128.jpg

These seem like an idea except there is no electricity to be had in most shanty towns in Mexico. AC doesn't really factor in. These would be mini-ovens during the summer time.

the part I liked most is that it offers them safety and security. a key and a lock. living in a box, or a lean-to built of scraps of aluminum or whatever, must lead to a bad night's sleep. these are not a solution to the greater problem- but an option for families left victims of american greed.

I'm guessing people who used to live in shacks made of cardboard aren't that concerned about storage space.

a fantastic idea, it is better then what many live in now. people in those situations are gratefull for that. we don't have we want but if we get what we need , we should be gratefull. i am from el paso, texas border town , so i know of some of the situations, and i have seen even worse.

if you read what was written, it says these things are $8k...for people working in manufacturing plants along the U.S. border. I'm sure if these cats are living in cardboard boxes they aren't gonna drop $8k for one of these. That's why I asked where the storage was....the guy was inspired by the Juarez housing situation...but he's not helping them and giving them out there for free...this is for US citizens that need affordable housing. That's why I asked...where is the storage? Maybe some of you should learn to read the article before you lay the hammer down on me for not thinking poor peeps in Mexico don't need storage. judas.

btw if you peeps are concerned so strongly about the Mexico housing situation or poverty as a whole...take out your pockets and donate to the several worthy causes out there...instead your posting on a blog about designing your crib. oh the irony.

I've always liked the idea of repurposing these containers. Especially when several of them are connected to form bigger and more interesting spaces.

I know a lot of homes in Mexico are built out of mud, plaster, leaves, etc. These are very rustic structures but they are cheap and stay cool. I wonder if these would be a better option? It just takes skilled people to construct them. Or should I say, skilled people who want to construct them.

You certainly couldn't put these in tornado alley. All this is is another take on the mobile home. You know, though, if it wasn't aluminum and cast-off metal bits, it would be mud huts...if not mud huts then it would be animal skin teepees...if not animal skin teepees, then it would be caves. Not everyone needs or wants to live like Americans do..or the French or the English or the Spanish or...

Why are we pushing our ideals, our "American dream" onto other countries? I'm sure Mexican citizens were perfectly happy with their homes 200 years ago, before air conditioning even existed. Maybe they don't want the same things we do! And I wish our own citizens would stop blaming supposed "American greed" on another countries situation. Talk to the Mexican government...not America. It is not our responsibility to make sure every one of the world's citizens has luxuries like a/c and prepackaged foods. The way I look at, if our founding fathers were smart enough to develop our country to be one of the most affluent and powerful in the world after only 250 years, then these other countries need to stop looking for handouts, pull up their bootstraps, and get to work, just like our forefathers did! Besides, there are people we need to take care of HERE first, instead of worrying about people on the other side of the U.S. border! No where was it stated that these were for Americans...

Ok, LittleRock, before you get snippy, maybe you should click on the link in the story to find out about the PFNC, the creator of these homes (prototypes). These homes are not for Americans:
PFNC stands for "Por Fin Nuestra Casa." Translated in English this simply means "Finally, a home of our own." These words are the foundation of PFNC, whose goal is to provide housing to those who most desperately need it around the globe.

I don't think it's a bad idea. There are probably people in Mexico who would want to live in these. And if they don't want to live in one they don't have to buy one. The place is no smaller than the room I have in college and I live pretty comfortably. Of course, I'm not living with 3 other people, just one other.

This is the size of my apartment in Tokyo. It has a few windows, but there are a lot of units located centrally in buildings in Tokyo which only have a few windows at one end because they're flanked on either side by other units.

We only think they're not good because of cultural orientation. Even in a wealthy country, people live no better than this (or at least little different) by choice.

Stop blaming America for Mexico's money problems---blame the Mexican governments greed and their big companies who cheat the small people. Some Mexican people live like kings and queens!!!
By the way this is starting to happen in the USA also!
Or should I say is happening and growing in speed faster then we all would like to think!

I think it needs insulation from the heat and preventing cool air loss, even if it has A/C it will get hot inside because of the constant sunlight and the cool air will get hot when it reaches the walls and ceiling. It needs also more windows for ventilation and sunlight, and a skylight. Storage is an issue, but there seems to be space enough for people to put some storage solutions around. The 6 people living in is tough, but I guess that is a personal choice. Maybe 8k$ is a lot, but maybe this is the faster and quikest way to solve these problems, besides repurposing a big object such as a container. And I guess is a better shelter than carboard or pallette houses, so I welcome this idea.

do you really think all of the people living at the border in the middle of the desert live there by choice? they live there to work in factories to produce AMERICAN goods that people here in the states buy in nice air-conditioned mega-stores for prices that they complain about.

on the same line of thinking, the people living in ramshackle dwellings don't live there because they re-purposing ripped tarps, re-claimed dented sheet metal, recycled cardboard. it is not a choice. go visit one of these communities, talk to the people, and really find out what kind of life they have, especially in a country where the government is totally corrupt. (not america BTW, though we are slowly declining- maybe these are for americans who can't afford their mortgage!)

I don't need to go visit mexico to see slums. I can drive 20 minutes and see plenty.

Well I live in Sao Paulo which is surrounded by favelas and have visited similar many ones in Mumbai. I think that it is a great idea, given that there are thousands of containers which can be converted to homes too. They are stackable and can be placed in such a way as to form windbreaks and mini comunities/family units. As for possesions it is true that appart from what they wear or what they eat in they have nothing. 'Things' for things sake is not in there culture. As for electricty when you need it you find it, legal or not. Here in SP no one in the favelas pays for it and does anyone care? No. Any project that leads the eyes of the public to the poor condition anywhere in the world is definitely a good thing. Bravo. Stephanie

I had an office made out of a shipping container under the south west sun about 20 years ago. It had a bathroom and oddly a shower. It stayed relatively cool in the summer and warm in the winter. It was insulated and the utility bill was reasonable. I don't know how the utility bill would relate to someone who is financial depressed but, it made a nice office.

It's a blessing for this people. Thanks to you good hearted Americans!

I wouldn't want to live in one but, hey, it would be great for the homeless. I say one homeless person per unit though.

I think for those in need of it, it's okay.
I'm surprised by the amount of people it's said to accommodate --- to sleep 4-6 people?! NO WAY! 6 people (even 2 parents and 4 children) could not comfortably share that space! Not as designed anyway. If you removed the bunk beds and had hinged beds that could be folded into the wall to free up the floor space I could see it working. To be practical, all of the walls should be lined with shelves for stuff. Even if each person is necessarily a minimalist, the renderings show no storage - even in the kitchen. The most important feature missing are windows. A windowless small place for 4-6 people would be unhealthy and morally depressing. Moreover, you would want lots of outdoor recreation space. This space would be ideal for short term stints but not as a home.

Lol!

Palate - "the roof of the mouth in humans and vertebrate animals" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palate)

Pallet - "a flat transport structure that supports goods in a stable fashion while being lifted by a forklift, pallet jack, or other jacking device" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pallet)