Containers
Last year when we started Kechara Forest Retreat, we had nothing on our land except for two slabs of cement on the ground. I wanted to live in KFR to personally oversee the construction work, so I decided to live in a container as it can be brought over to the land quickly and it’s cheap! The container home I had in KFR was perfect for me, I really loved living in it and felt very safe. When I’m alone and not teaching my students, I do not need much space and like my room equipped with minimal things, so there was always ample space in my tiny container.
The idea of living in a container started from there, and in less than a year, we built Dukkar Apartments where my students and guests live during their visit to KFR. I wouldn’t say that we’re the first community to live in container homes in Malaysia, but I think we’re the first Dharma community to live comfortably in these containers… I am glad that many of my students too have developed a taste and liking of minimalist living and are happy living in Dukkar Apartments.
After we built Dukkar Apartments, I thought we were really creative with our container arrangements. Then I saw many articles on building out of containers just like this so I knew I wasn’t alone in my thinking and we still have room for further improvement for our next container home project. I’m glad that container homes are becoming more and more popular because they are creative, flexible and affordable. You can make them as big or small as you like by joining up the containers or stacking them on top of one another. You can even decorate the interior of your container and have them fully equipped just like traditional brick and mortar houses.
Below are some container homes that I found online which I thought was very well planned, creative and beautiful. I’m sharing it here with everyone so that you can see the beauty of living with simplicity in the midst of the mountains, an environment that I have longed for so many years and wish it to materialize quickly in KFR. Imagine living in a simple container home, looking out into the mountains while you recite your mantra during retreat… wouldn’t that be wonderful? These containers would be wonderful for our future Kechara Village, a living environment for senior and committed students. Here are some ideas for them.
Tsem Rinpoche
Me in my first cabin in Kechara Forest Retreat
I Can’t Believe What They Did With These Shipping Containers, Especially The Last One!
(Source: http://www.lifebuzz.com/shipping-containers/)
#1. Six Oaks by David Fenster of Modulus is a 1200 square foot home in the Santa Cruz mountains of California.
I would love to live in a house like this that is surrounded by trees. Plenty of places for me to feed birds! Even better if there is a view of the mountains but this is good too, to be surrounded by trees.
I don’t really like wooden floors unless it is natural wood because it can be quite hard to maintain.
The skylight lets in the natural sunlight is very nice. And the wire floor becomes a wire ceiling for the ground floor, so the sunlight can go through to the whole house, smart!
#2. Price Street Projects was commissioned to build this studio home in Savannah, Georgia.
Beautiful home. The trees are so lush and green. Couldn’t you just imagine sitting outside and doing your sadhana? I also like the floor-to-ceiling windows which lets in a lot of natural sunlight. I love being able to see the trees and greenery all the time.
As you can see, this home is made from old shipping containers. They are very strong and stable, because they are used to tough weather conditions.
#3. There are four 40-foot shipping containers that make up this home located in El Tiemblo, Spain. It was designed by James & Mau Arquitectura and built by Infinski.
I love rooms like this!!! The floor-to-ceiling windows all around the house are so wonderful. It makes the room feel bigger and makes me feel like I’m in the forest again.
As you can see, shipping containers can be stacked on top of each other to create two-story homes. It’s a very practical building material because after the container has outlived its use, it can be repurposed to become homes.
#4. Ectotech Design built this beautiful 2,300 square foot shipping container residence in the Mojave Desert.
This is a wonderful idea. Imagine building something like this as your office!! As you can see, this particular design is in the Mojave Desert. Container homes are good for any kind of terrain and environment. They are also very flexible. This particular one I can see also uses steel bars and cement.
#5. Poteet Architects created this San Antonio guest house. It’s just 360 square feet, and has a living room, study area, bathroom and patio.
This container home must be somewhere warm because I can see an air-conditioner! I can also see neighbours, which I prefer not to have because of privacy and also for retreat purposes, you need to be somewhere quiet and with less distractions.
I LOVE this room!! Even though this container home is so small (only 360 sq ft), it is enough for me to do retreats. And the glass walls don’t make the container home feel small. But if I did my retreats, maybe it won’t be in something so colorful LOL
#6. The design team from Studio H:T added 2 storage containers to the outsides of a pre-existing structure in this Colorado home.
#7. Benjamin Garcia Saxe created this home using two 40 ft shipping containers. This home is located in San Jose, Costa Rica and was constructed with a $40,000 budget.
Imagine if this home had been made from normal brick and mortar. The cost would’ve been much more, it would take much more time to construct and also the finished product would not look so good. It is incredible how two containers can be converted into such a beautiful building.
WOW!!! Look at the fantastic view!
#8. This shipping container home in Flagstaff, Arizona was built by Ecosa Design Studio. It was made from 6 containers and offers concrete floors, glass, walnut wood and even a rooftop terrace.
Container homes can be as elaborate or as simple as you want them to be. Once you’re inside, you can’t tell that you’re inside a shipping container!
This view isn’t nice but as you can see, the home was built in the middle of an urban area. Container homes are becoming more and more accepted.
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![Underprivileged residents of two PPRs in Kuala Lumpur recently received a total of 427kg from our longterm surplus produce sponsor, Lotuss Stores (formerly Tesco Stores). The 65 families are our regular beneficiaries, and are grateful to receive fresh vegetables on a consistent basis right at their doorstep. One of our recipients, Rajeswari, 52, single mother of 2 children, shared that she stopped receiving welfare aid due to unforeseen circumstances. Her words: "Saya cakap untuk Kechara [Soup Kitchen] banyak terima kasih sebab kasi makanan. Dan lebih mau tolong orang lain yang susah seperti saya". Our heartfelt thank-you goes to Lotuss Stores for being a dependable source of food aid and for #helpingthepoor with us. #kecharafoodbank #makingadifference #kitajagakita #charity #foodbank #bantuan #ngomalaysia #givingback #strongertogether - Vivian @ Kechara Soup Kitchen](https://www.tsemrinpoche.com/wp-content/gallery/user-pictures/tblogpics-2trta8739v.jpg)
These containers home are so modern and creative. Never thought a home in a container can be so nice and cozy too, just like a normal brick house. I guess when we think outside of the box, a lot of things can be materialised. I like the design no 3, simple and has lots of sunlight.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this article.
Wonderful idea to use containers to build houses. Never thought containers can be transformed in to such beautiful designs. Similar to Kechara Forest Retreat. Very innovative of Rinpoche to use this idea for KFR.
My favourite home of the ones above is #4, designed by Ectotech Design. Why? Not so much for the aethestics but because it clearly shows that the container concept can match hot weather, and the inhabitants can occupy the space comfortably despite the fluctuating temperatures of the Mojave Desert (super hot in the day, and cold at night).
What I’ve noticed about Rinpoche’s taste in architecture is that it is always about bringing the outside, inside as much as possible. Big, large windows and wooden floors, with clean lines. It doesn’t have to be fancy or shiny or expensive. It just has to be built well using good materials that withstand the test of time, and with as little maintenance as possible. All of these elements match perfectly with the characteristics of a container home.
Rinpoche’s requirements for a home matches Dharma principles perfectly. I remember Rinpoche saying once that we have so much work to do, and so little time to do it in since the moment of our death is uncertain. So why waste our precious human life on chores like polishing wooden floors or just generally fussing about the house? These activities will get us nowhere and do nothing for us at the moment of our death. The same thinking can be applied to every other aspect of our lives that require so much maintenance but are, on an ultimate level, without purpose.
I am truly taken aback at how just a few retired shipping containers can be made in to one’s living quarters with a makeover of the whole container and some touch up’s here and there.
What the above designers have done is going beyond living in just a container but also extending portions of and even combining 2 or 3 containers together to make a 2 storey container home.
The designs are absolutely unbelievable and I just can’t take in to heart how talented the people who designed the container homes above are.
It really shows in this case that less really is more.
Besides the ideas the pictures above show, I am also very proud of Kechara Forest Retreat’s very own container style apartment, That itself is also a very superb Idea by Rinpoche to have such a way of getting the most out of the space that it was built on.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this interesting article!
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing the wonderful and creative container home.
We visited the container where Rinpoche lived during recent KFR tour. Pastor Adeline explained the history of the container to us. We are lucky that we entered the container to offer khata, made wishes and circumambulated the container.
The container also reminded us of the hardship that Rinpoche and Kecharians endured during the construction of KFR. We were told that the roads were muddy, there was neither water nor electricity and everyone worked extremely hard to pull the electrical cables to KFR.
Thank you Rinpoche and Kecharians. We are grateful to all your effort in Kechara to benefit others. Thank you Rinpoche for conceptualized the KFR so that we can do retreat, enjoy the nature environment as well as learn our spiritual practices at KFR
Very insightful by His Eminence Tsem Rinpoche. Containers are strong and very durable.
Modern Designed second hand Container homes is a very wise Idea.
Economically, Eco friendly, Toughness and time saving as well.
This methought has been accepted in many country and it might become a revolutionary housing as well. Most Importantly it will clean the ship
yard’s abandoned containers and comfort for people’s living.
Even in Borobudur Java. Indonesia. already existed inside “Padma Samwava” complex. All the new ideas and design I saw on Rinpoche’s web sites has gave me much more excitement.
Thank you.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing the container homes with multiple designs that can serve for many purposes. The Dukkar Apartment is a good construction and brings many benefits to the retreat participants as well as those who work in Kechara Forest Retreat.
Brilliant creativity and recycling of materials. Container homes are affordable, fast, and durable. They’re also really versatile in that you can ID it to whatever suits your style too and it can be a very comfortable premise/residence/office.
More and more people are adopting the idea of container homes. There’s a hotel smack in the middle of Kuala Lumpur that uses containers as accomodation as well. Check it out here:
http://www.containerhotel.com.my/
I didn’t know that containers could be used as homes, until Rinpoche brought it up one evening when a few of us were having a meeting at Rinpoche’s residence in KL, about 2 years plus ago, when we had initial discussions and plans for Kechara Forest Retreat. Rinpoche shared many pictures of container homes with us. I was then researching on the fabrication of such containers and companies in KL that were specialising in it.
Not long after, I got to stay in my very first container when a few of us from the Ladrang stayed on site with Rinpoche at KFR whilst overseeing the initial constructions of KFR as Rinpoche mentioned above. It was comfortable, space saving and was one of the best and most memorable period of time I’ve experienced.
When Dukkar Apartments was built with containers, as Rinpoche conceptualised, I was flabbergasted at its’ splendour, simplicity, chic-ness and beauty.
This amazing look all these containers houses they look so neat and well decorated. I think this is a brilliant idea because it saved a lot of cost of building a house and not very environmental friendly if we keep building new houses.Thank you Rinpoche for sharing all these photo with us.
I remember when KFR had their first containers. I found it really cozy and nice to stay in 🙂 and the pictures above about the different ideas and designs are so creative. I think we can really learn from that and furture improve the containers at KFR. Thank you for sharing Rinpoche.
Found this online while researching more about hybrid houses in Malaysia against conventional housing. Thought I’d share with everyone.
1. Value for Money – Luxury finishes at low cost. Cost per square area is less than conventional construction.
2. Mobility – Houses are mobile and can be relocated to a place of your choice at a minimal cost.
3. Fast Delivery – Delivery within 30-90 days depending on the design and type.
4. Ready Made – Pre-designed Houses ready to be purchased. Special Offers.
5. No Red Tape – No regulatory or Municipal Council approval required.
6. Minimal Investment in Land – Can be built in an extent less than 5 perches of owned or leased land.
7. Modern Styles – Range of designs to suit your lifestyle. Flexibility of adding units.
8. Safety & Comforts – Temperature Controlled, No lightning or Tsunami risk. Termite and Corrosion free.
9. Life & Warranty – Built as per ISO Standards. Lifetime warranty backed by maintenance.
10. Eco Friendly – Manufactured from recyclable materials. Options to integrate solar power and natural water.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing these beautiful pictures of the container homes. I didn’t know that the container can be made in such creative and beautiful ,it’s look so clean,cozy and comfortable… really as goos as real home!!!
I have seen shipping containers being used as offices at construction sites but it was not until Dukkar Apartments was completed that I liked the idea of such living quarters.
Add to it some stylish ideas and creative use of space and the results are as those shown above.
Dukkar Apartments in Kechara Forest Retreat was the first type of container development that I have ever seen and I was totally impressed by it. It was so modern and stylish. It was even more special cause it was situated amidst the forest. The interior is chic and simple and more importantly very practical.
The other examples shared in this blog post is beautiful too. Seems like lots can be done with these container homes.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing.
Thanks for Rinpoche’sharing. The design really beautiful and advanced, it makes us can’t felt that the house is built by containers.
Wow!!! I didn’t know that the container can be made in such beautiful with design inside, and it looks so cozy and comfortable to live in.
Thank You Rinpoche for posting so many beautiful pictures of container. I like those container homes.
I wish one day, I am able to build my home using container like the above ideas. Hehehe….
Thanks Rinpoche for sharing… It is truly amazing!!!
Recycle-able yet stylish, Rinpoche always bring us the Best Ideas to let all Kecharian have a stylish, cozy, and unique accommodation especially in Kechara Forest Retreat…
Wow! Thank You for the information Rinpoche, I never knew containers could turn into such comfortable living space, not that our DA is not beautiful of course, it’s nice as well, is just the containers in the images are very unique and they look cozy. Living in containers is a very good concept, it saves up a lot of space as well.
Dear Rinpoche, I would choose to live in containers because it’s convenient and it is also much more cheaper. But wouldn’t the containers be full of mosquitoes because they didn’t even put up any nets. They must have a lots of plans for repelling mosquitoes. By the way, Rinpoche. The containers that Rinpoche shared on the above is super awesome!!!
was talking to my wife today suggesting glamping in japan is a good thing to do
what do you think?
People are getting very creative with the container houses. Building materials and labour cost are getting more and more expensive nowaday. If we can recycle the container to build houses, it can cut down on the cost of the house and the time and resources needed for building it. We are also doing a good deed towards our mother nature by reducing wastage.
KFR has shown a good example for Malaysian to start building houses with container. More people should visit KFR to see the beauty of container apartment.
I remember when KFR were just a few containers when they were still building… These houses are so creative and i would LOVE to like in one, they are small (don’t need too much space), nice inside and cosy. The scenery is so beautiful too i like the mountain and forest scenery. Thank you for sharing Rinpoche.
It’s amazing how architects and designers have cultivated the idea of container homes that suits the needs of modern people nowadays. Besides the container home, there’s another modular homes called pod homes which it serves the mobility, withstand extreme weathers, durable and stackable just like containers. Modular homes like pod and containers can even stack on top of existing building. How convenient. This type of plug and play building is very suitable for KFR as it’s ready-made, durable, less maintenance, eco-friendly and most of all, it doesn’t require much conventional building work that it’s time & cost consuming. Thanks for sharing this, Rinpoche.
Innovative container usage for homes and work space:
http://www.trendhunter.com/trends/container-guest-house
I love the concept. And best of all, these containers are recycled! Thank you for another fantastic post with beautiful photos.
This container concept is perfect for Kechara Village. It can be designed according to the needs and is fast to construct. It is versatile as it can be dismantled and moved or modified easily. Looking at the photos, you can’t tell from the interior that it is container homes. Love the design and the creativity to make the container homes so inviting and cozy yet practical, durable and easy to maintain.
Thank you, Rinpoche, for your research and sharing this information with us.
Using containers as rooms jives with the minimalist living concept. Minimalism is a way to put a stop to excessive-ness to the world around us. If we think deeply about it, we will realize we need very little to survive. Minimalist living helps free us from material attachment.
Thank You Rinpoche for sharing. _/|\_
I’ve always favoured minimalist designs, not having much material possessions to worry about and a easier way to have things cleaned and well maintained. Bringing in the container designs to KFR I thought was a brilliant idea as I believe its cost effective and quick to build. These pictures that Rinpoche share are just great! I love new innovative ideas/designs and it strongly illustrates how versatile container buildings can be. There are a couple more pictures of other container home designs that I found:
1.) http://www.buzzfeed.com/kristinchirico/surprisingly-gorgeous-homes-made-from-shipping-containers
2.) http://www.containerhomesforsale.net/cheap-container-homes/
3.) http://www.popularmechanics.com/home/shipping-container-homes-460309#slide-1
Building with containers to create cosy homes and rooms or even halls has the great advantage of less masonry work which includes messy cement, bricks and the normal heavy structures.
I remember how KFR team got Dukkar Apartments and the Dining Room up at KFR, so much less concrete and cements except for the base foundation.
For further extension of construction at KFR, we will definitely think of this swift and cleaner and greener method of building.
The photos give us lovely concepts to consider for the future of KFR eco village and accommodation.
Thank you, Rinpoche.
These containers which look so modern, clean and comfortable with furnishings as good as a real home. It looks more impressive than an average hotel room, and many will not hesitate or prefer to stay in them long term! Simular to Dukkar Appartments of KFR, they are better than some real home designs. Many thanks to Rinpoche for sharing these beautiful images of modern containers.15
These containers are really inviting. They are all simple, spacious, bright, clean and blend in very well with nature. The new containers come in handy and ready to be moved in, also can be modified easily. They are made durable for harsh weather, in some ways more reliable than a newly built building.
In Kechara Forest Retreat, we have a Dukkar Apartment that is built by containers for guests and staff to stay over. Guests come to stay during Kechara events and when they join our programmes. Here’s a video of the beautiful Dukkar Apartment for you to enjoy http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Een1E5OWDO0. Hope to see you there in the very near future!
感恩尊贵的仁波切您的分享
这是如此地优美宏观
祈愿我们克切拉佛教中心与禅修林能够与如此优美的设计结合，宛如把佛法融入现代化并与我们的生活结合一起
感恩仁波切，祈愿您常住在世，常转法轮
Dear Rinpoche,
The container homes really look good. Especially the interior is furnished to look not like a container house.
The designs of Dukkar Apartments in Kechara Forest Retreat is comparable to what Rinpoche has shown; and instead of a roof patio, we have a huge living area space for community sharing.
Apart from container homes, there are also container malls:
1- Re:Start [http://www.restart.org.nz/about-christchurch-central-restart.php]
2 – Container Park [http://downtowncontainerpark.com/]
and container hotels [similar to home concepts]:
1 – Container Hotel [http://www.containerhotel.com.my/]
This is in KL, Malaysia.
2- Hive-Inn Hotel [http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2611063/A-giant-game-Jenga-No-hotel-design-shipping-containers-rearranged-WITHOUT-falling-over.html]
Pretty impressive concept, and still in the making.
3- Sleeping Around [http://www.sleepingaround.eu/]
4 – Mill Junction [http://www.citiqstudents.co.za/accommodation/mill-junction/]
This is more residential using silos and containers
Just to name a few…
People are getting more “eco-friendly” now, hence more container structures coming up, also due to what Rinpoche mentioned – fast, sturdy and cheap to implement.
These are EVEN BETTER THAN REAL HOME DESIGNS!
I think when I first heard and saw how creatively exciting container homes can be is when we first started discussing the many options of building a temporary Ladrang for Rinpoche in Janda Baik area where there is lush trees and nature. That is when a small group of us started researching and looking at container homes and we stumbled upon all these amazing creativity of what people can do with these shipping containers and from then on the idea for containers grew affectionately and in the end manifested in to Dukkar Apartments.
Container homes are totally sustainable, versatile and with some creativity, it can look stylish and luxurious like all the above pictures shown and our Dukkar Apartments. It’s eco-friendly as we’re recycling, affordable for many who cannot afford the mortgages for common housing these days and totally durable unlike modern housing these days where there are so many issues with leaks, bad foundation, termites etc. Seems like this is the way to go and the future!
Totally love this style of living and doing retreats in it, especially when we manifest this in Kechara Village in KFR. I think yes we would be the first Buddhist centre to adopt the innovative container style hermitage for retreatants – SUPER AWESOME!
I think this is really cool,awesome!A beautiful and ingenious work and architecture.
These containers are durable,sustainable and will be great for Kechara Village.
I would totally live in all of these.
Thank you for sharing these delightful post,Rinpoche.
Thank you for sharing the beautiful pictures of the container homes. it’s very eco friendly. Using container as a home, apartments, offices or buildings is one of the greenest concept to save the world. It is portable, it require minimum to none construction material, fast, safe, easy to maintain, release heat fast, cooling, light and recyclable.
I love staying in Dukkar Apartment. I think it’s cool and cooling. We don’t switch on air-conditional at night as the container gets cold fast at night due to the container’s material. it’s easy to design into creative design according to our needs.
It is amazing to see how containers can be so beautiful and comfortable to live in. I have stayed in the containers that are now called Dukkar Apartments. They are extremely wonderful and it is so hard to believe that they are just shipping containers.
Wow, the creativity put into making the containers beautiful, functional and sturdy is amazing. Yes, we can learn so much from these designs for the next phase of Kechara Forest Retreat.
What is most impressionable is the interior. I would not have guessed that these were rooms inside container homes. Especially the bathroom…there was even a design with a bath tub!
It has been very comfortable and cozy living in my container at Dukkar Apartment. Being simple and minimalist is actually very healthy for the mind as we don’s have the “space” to accumulate things that we don’t really need and, that will eventually become clusters of mess we get too attached to to throw away.
Anyway, thank you for sharing these beautiful images and I hope we will effectively apply suitable elements from them into Kechara Forest Retreat.
Thank you Rinpoche for the sharing.The container apartments at KFR are very practical and beautifully design .As I remember it took a very short took a short time to construct after the foundation was laid.
Sometime using recycle containers would be a practical way to solve housing issue for the less fortunate as the cost of building it could be reduced tremendously ,yet durable.
The versatility of constructing the cabin houses are only limited to the creativity of the designers.May we see more of these structures in the future for a better cause to accommodate anyone in need of shelter…
The container concept is ideal for Kechara Forest Retreat land because of the nature of its surroundings. Metal containers are suitable to use in a forest environment against termite infestation. Rust is kept to a minimum with overhead roof sheltering from rain. Containers are versatile and can be used for different designs as seen in the pictures shown here, kindly researched by Rinpoche. The main disadvantage is heat from sun light, especially setting sun, unless containers are shielded with grown trees around containers area.
Dear Rinpoche,
Thank you for sharing the pics on container homes. Containers are very versatile and durable at the same time. Durability is especially important in tropical countries like Malaysia because humidity can be a major concern with general wear and tear.
The design from using containers is also very attractive and modern. It has a rustic look and yet stylish. It is also eco-friendly in a sense that we can recycle shipping containers for building homes.
I look forward to Kechara Village being a village of containers.
Regards,
JP
Wowwww!!!!This containers homes are so beautiful, cozy, comfortable, unique, I like it very much. Like what we have in Kechara Forest Retreat, Dukkar Apartment, simple but yet very practical.
I believed that many people especially city man will like this kind of container homes very much. The reason it is easy to take care, have own privacy, and even can more varieties choose or design too.
Nice!!!
I love it too. What a wonderful idea for recycling and transforming it into something beautiful and useful. I love it. A good idea for business too. 🙂
Thank you,
Andre