In 1987, Philip Clark filed for a U.S. Patent for his method of turning shipping containers into buildings and now you can find these structures all over the world. They’re used to build houses, stores, artist studios, emergency shelters, school, hotels, labs, apartment buildings, and just about anything else you can imagine. The fact is that there are millions of them around the world and they’re only used for shipping for about 20 years before they’re retired. That means they’re a plentiful resource – plus, they’re inherently durable, relatively inexpensive, and eco-friendly (since you’re reclaiming steel boxes instead of using new resources).

Are you curious about using one as a home? Here are some of the pros and cons and details you should consider.

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Featured photo courtesy Angel Schatz via Flickr CC by 2.0.