Nomadic LAND Craft..!
Modular 20' Container Home Concept
Click for Larger Image
Copyright 2012 Michael Kasten
Updated
5 April 2012
Sustaining the Nomadic Life
As has been described in greater detail at my
Nomadic Watercraft page, Nomadic
Peoples are defined as being those who move from one place
to another rather than settling permanently in one location, usually for
the purpose of hunting, herding, or to offer skills in trade. Here we
have explored a somewhat more modern version... a larger image of which
can be found here in PDF
format. Much of what follows will reiterate what has
been written in my Nomadic Watercraft article, but even so what follows remains
entirely relevant.
As with the sea-going pelagic nomad, the land-based nomad requires a certain degree of
autonomy. From the Greek autonomia, the word autonomy literally
means "self-law" or the capacity of a rational individual to make an
informed un-coerced decision. This is not to imply anarchy, but rather
a self-imposed order and sovereignty, as opposed to an externally imposed
order or rule.
Autonomy in this context infers an independence of function
with regard to self-determination, as opposed to there being an
overabundance of external support or control. In other words,
independence from externally imposed red-tape.
The requirements of our land-based nomadic life are the same as those of the
Nomadic Watercraft I've described
elsewhere. Similarly then, as humans our essential needs are to have sufficient food and water, and to have
adequate shelter. A core function of any nomadic
land craft is first to provide shelter, but to also provide
a certain amount of mobility. Mobility is both necessary and
sufficient in order to satisfy the meaning of actually being
nomadic in the first place. So in order to create a more or less
autonomous nomadic land craft we
find several essential characteristics
which
must be inherent in the design:
- A sense of the familiar and the feeling of being 'at home'
- Simplicity for the sake of ease of construction and economy of ownership
- Ruggedness and strength in keeping with a simple structure
- Quality for the sake of safety, freedom from maintenance, and a long
lasting structure
- Economy for the sake of maximum independence from the banking system,
compound interest, and endless payments
- Portability for the sake of remaining independent of the requirements of
local building codes
- Ease of moving from one place to another without too much fuss and
bother
Rather than viewing such a structure merely as a roof
over one's head, I view any dwelling place as being one's
habitat. My use of the word
habitat here is quite intentional,
for if the structure has been successfully designed, one will feel very much 'at home' while
living there. A place where you feel at ease and that will always invoke good feelings.
In other words, you will want to live there because you like
being there.
The Shipping Container as a Dwelling
My main interest in creating the
Quad Container Home concept is
that shipping containers are inexpensive, strong, and portable.
I wanted to end up with the as-built structure of the containers intact
so you can close the doors, fold up the gazebo / deck and put the whole thing on
a flat bed or on a ship.
Since such a structure is 'temporary' and portable, but does not have wheels,
it doesn't fall under either the transportation / road / vehicle rules, nor
usually one's local building codes - even in the US...
This goes a long way toward keeping the government and
the banking system out of your pocket.
Location
I’m assuming the container array would be parked at a site of at least one acre that had
an RV pad, electricity, well, and septic.
Most rural counties allows this, and do not require a building permit to
accompany it (at least the last
time I looked, which admittedly was a WHILE ago…).
Or maybe you prefer to buy an already ‘improved’ lot with some or all of those
amenities already present. But since
the whole shebang is portable, you could also rent / lease the space for the container
array where there is already an RV pad.
If / when that spot were to become untenable, you can simply move it all to another
suitable spot.
It is certain to be cheaper to just buy an old airstream or similar.
But trailers are much smaller, and their license and tires and chassis need to
be paid up and maintained or you can’t really claim it to be portable.
However… since the kitchen / head container / pod is the most
complex and expensive unit to build, certainly an older airstream or the like
would make an excellent kitchen / head module for the container array,
eliminating that complexity.
Or the airstream could be used as an intermediate step while you build
the gazebo and the other ‘pods’.
Appearance
The exterior I have imagined looking more or less like an orderly array of
containers, painted white or nearly so if in the desert, or painted a pleasant
flat dark red-brown-rust color if in
a cooler location.
The Gazebo is a primary feature of the "look" of the whole affair.
The containers would be raised up off the ground, resting on those big
concrete traffic separators you see along the freeway.
They are quite portable and in all likelihood inexpensive.
One of those at each end of each container.
Then the Gazebo would be an independent free standing deck at the
height of the container floor.
Stairs would lead up to each of the gazebo’s open facets.
If not seeking code approval for the Gazebo, it would have an awning
/ tent-like roof. Being ‘temporary’
such an awning is not usually regulated by rural building codes.
In most counties that have implemented the US Uniform Building Code, a deck structure that is 30 inches or less off the
ground also is not regulated and does not require a permit.
If built per code, the Gazebo could be higher off the ground, and
would have a fixed octagonal insulated metal roof with a low to medium pitch,
extending a few feet beyond the deck and ending just above the height of the
container tops at the eaves. The
metal roof would be color coordinated with the containers.
Click Image for Larger View
Other Views:
Eye Level
Perspective |
Top Perspective
| Entry
Perspective
Structure
Since it is not structurally friendly to cut into the "web" of a
beam beyond the middle third of its height, and since the container sides are
essentially the web of a beam, the windows in the sides would be varying sizes
of round ports. The largest round
port would then ideally be limited to 1/3 of the height of the container, or 2'
8" diameter.
In other words, in order to obey the laws of structure, any holes or
interruptions in the structure in any direction should not extend beyond the
middle third of the panel as measured in its shortest dimension (in this case
the height) and such openings should be aligned on the lengthwise centerline of
the panel.
This means a series of round “porthole-like” windows aligned on the neutral
axis of the structure, i.e. half the height of the sides.
That is easy to accomplish in steel.
It preserves the integrity of the entire container’s “beam” design and
would be very cool looking, with locations according to the requirements of the
interior layout.
But actually you could make a round port up to 4 feet in diameter if the
window opening were encircled by a flange of steel flat bar welded to the
container sidewalls. This would
recover the integrity of the “beam” lost to the opening.
Those large ports could be placed as close as three feet in between them
or from either end.
The end wall of the container is not restricted in the same way, but I would still
limit the windows there to 4 feet in diameter.
The objective in retaining the containers’ structural integrity is so that
they can be quickly and easily moved by the usual means: truck, ship, etc. and
would be secure in transit.
The Setting
Basically the "look" would be an array of containers with round ports of
varying sizes as windows, placed as needed for the interior, with all of the
containers nuzzled
up to a roofed Gazebo having big sliding doors over the entirety of each open
facet. With strategic landscaping, this could be pretty nice.
One of the potential hurdles for extreme climates is that, while the
containers can be insulated well, the whole collection will have quite a lot of
surface area for the amount of volume contained.
Best therefore in a fairly mild climate...
If in the tropics, then at at a mild elevation, etc.
Options...
Below is a second concept which makes use of one 40' shipping container,
plus three 20' containers. More or less it is the same, except that
the living room is included in the "kitchen pod" and a "studio pod" has been
added.
Larger Modular Container Home Concept
Click Image for Larger View
Or Click HERE for a
Large PDF
What About a House Boat...?
Though not exactly a nomadic land craft, a House Boat can indeed be viewed as
being a semi-land based dwelling. Ordinarily a House Boat is tied to a
dock so that you can simply walk to the front door from land. I think it
qualifies...! For inland
waters the house boat still embodies the essence of allowing a nomadic life on the water,
but with ready access to shore...
An example of such a nomadic structure is the House Boat design, the 36' Drifter...
Selections
I have selected the above examples primarily on
the basis of relative simplicity and
the consequent economy of ownership. Naturally the word 'economy'
means different things to different people, however in this context I am
referring to a structure that is affordable and easy to take care of, for which
you do not need to borrow money. In that
sense, the above
designs are structures that
I would personally consider owning.
Simple in this sense does not at
all imply 'crude' in any way. In fact, with simplicity comes an inherent
elegance of form. Given a simple design to start
with,
building such a structure is not at all difficult, though it
does require patience... As with boats, except for the immutable necessities imposed by physics, there are no hard and fast rules
when creating a new structure design except for a perceived duty to translate
our concepts into a viable
enclosure having the
essential
characteristics articulated above.
All design choices come down to
being a matter of preference. By this I mean that one design or
another is not inherently "wrong"
and another inherently "right." Instead each different type
of structure simply represents a differentexpressions
of an individual's preferred style.
This is not to imply that "style" supersedes function... However
it is very much to say this: "In the sense that any dwelling
place will be one's habitat,
the creation of a certain kind of lifestyle very much *is* its
function." Such lifestyle implying that the structure be affordable, that it be
easy to keep, comfortable, safe, friendly, etc.
These are the feelings we
usually wish to invoke when we use the term, "home."
Focus
If attention has been paid
to the
essential characteristics outlined above, we will end up with a strong, safe,
comfortable, and elegant habitat for
humans during these
very troubled times... a unique habitat that does
not require brokers, banks, or government meddling.
Although creating a Nomadic
Land Craft does not require
a great deal of wealth, it does require no small amount of
individual determination and resourcefulness..!
Wot to do,
An how to do it,
An if so,
Wy..?
- Krazy Kat, 1930's
Why?
This is the essential question... In order to
answer that question we must begin by re-stating our original goal:
"To achieve a
certain degree of autonomy - a
self-imposed order and sovereignty - wherein there lies potential for a true
wealth of
being."
Though it is unusual for me to provide a link to off-site content, in
order to more thoroughly explore the question of "Why..?" it will
possibly be
instructive to review an article that describes the concept
of
Autarchy.
The word Autarchy is derived from the Greek word
"autarchia"
which literally means "the state of
self rule." In other words rule by oneself, the essence of autonomy. As a defining concept, it
should be noted that Autarchy is the opposite of
Anarchy... which means rule by no-one, implying chaos.
Autarchy is also the opposite of Autocracy... which
means rule by one and is
synonymous with Monarchy or Dictatorship...
By contrast,
Autarchy implies that each person assumes full
responsibility for himself, exercises authority over himself, controls
himself, supports himself, takes initiative on his own, joins with others - or not
- as he so pleases, does not in any way seek to impose his will by
force upon any other person, and seeks to remain unmolested by any
external agent of
coercion.
"The man of virtuous soul commands not, nor obeys."
- Percy Bysshe Shelley
To the question, "Why?" we must
answer, "Why not...?"
How?
This becomes the next question. In other words,
how shall we create our own unique and autonomous habitat...?
It starts with finding or creating a good design - one that will satisfy
our unique requirements. If an existing design is not found,
then a new design can easily be created.
If you would like to discuss these concepts further, please
inquire.
Michael Kasten's Professional Memberships
 |
|
 |
 |
 |
Member
Royal Institution
of Naval Architects
|
Member
Society of Naval Architects
and Marine Engineers |
Member
Society of Boat
and Yacht Designers |
Member
Metal Boat
Society |
Member
American Boat
and Yacht Council |
