Do Shipping Containers Work Well As Converted Bunkers? The Answer May Surprise You!

  • We have all seen the stories of how some people are utilizing old shipping containers as bunkers for off the grid homes or for backup housing for when SHTF.

    These designs are awesome and I give a ton of kudos to anyone who can take a blank canvas such as an empty storage container and make it into something liveable! It's all quite impressive actually. But does it really work.

    On one hand obviously, in SOME manner of speaking the shipping containers shield you from the elements but let's look a little further into it and see why this creative housing may not be the best option for you.

    We have included some interesting points of view for you that we feel you should know before deciding on what sort of SHTF safety housing you are going to build. 

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    16 Comments

    1. Brandon Franklin said:

      I’ve seen a lot of things regarding burying shipping containers. The general consensus is “don’t do it”, at least without expensive reinforcement. I’m not sure but I’d be willing to bet you could have a lead lined concrete bunker installed for just a little bit more than what it’d cost to reinforce a container. If you are a skilled DIYer then it could probably be done on the cheep.

    2. Jim Dyson said:

      Not buried with out some kind of support around it. They stack which is nice but once weight is spread across the tops they collapse.

    3. Jilliane Clark said:

      I seen some they have been in the ground for awhile and the sides have caved in. Not what I want.

    4. Raymond Dowd said:

      If you bury it you must reinforce it, seal it against leaks. Plus cut holes for intake air . Plus plumbing water and toliet plus septic system. Wire it for electrical. Best to build it above ground and cover it to camouflage it with under growth like brambles and kudzu.

    5. Laura Brown said:

      You have to make sure you support the sides. You can’t bury them without doing that, they are meant to hold weight from top to bottom but not from the sides so they will collapse without reinforcement.

    6. Derek Wheeler said:

      Metal rusts… Not anything I’d use above ground, let alone as a buried bunker.

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