How to Clad a Shipping Container

Cladding a Shipping Container

Regardless of whether you purchase a new or used container, cladding for shipping containers can be a great way to disguise that your storage unit was ever built to transport goods at sea.

21st April 2021

Whether you want to transform your container into a container home, garden-office, pop-up bar or even a modular classroom, container cladding can be a perfect solution to transform your unit entirely.

Why is cladding a shipping container a good idea?

Unless you are intending to use your container for storing or shipping cargo, you may want to rejuvenate the exterior of your shipping container. Whilst paint can also be a great option to transform your container's appearance, if you are building a bar, garden office or even a container home, you may want to use container cladding to mask the corrugated metal on the external walls of your project.

Used containers usually display more signs of wear in comparison to new (one-trip) containers. However, they can cost, on average £1,000 - £2,000 less than a new container, depending on the size and damage visible.

Therefore, container cladding can be a useful method of hiding dents and damage on a used unit if you are wanting to keep the cost of purchasing containers down.

What is shipping container cladding?

Shipping container cladding is simply a layer of material, such as timber or steel, added to the external surface of a shipping container.

Cladding can be useful for many reasons, such as adding another level of insulation on the exterior walls. However, it is mainly used to alter the aesthetic appearance of a shipping container.

How does cladding a shipping container work?

The process of container cladding usually involves attaching wooden batons horizontally across the exterior walls of a container; whatever cladding you choose to surround your container will then be applied vertically.

The cladding will be applied in sections, attached to the wooden batons until your full container has been externally cladded. A steel angle should be welded to the external panels of the container first, this is to avoid piercing the shell when attaching the batons.

This process would change depending on your container cladding ideas and plans. For example, cladding in timber would be a slightly different process to cladding in steel.

How much does shipping container cladding cost?

The price of cladding is extremely varied; this usually depends on a number of reasons, for example, the size of the container you want to clad will vary the cost drastically.

Standard containers come in a variety of sizes, ranging from 10ft - 40ft. Cladding a container that's 20ft, for instance, will be considerably less expensive to revamp than a 40ft container.

The type of material you want to clad your container will also heighten the costs of cladding, as some finishes may cost more than others.

I want to know more!

Overall, container cladding can be a great way to completely disguise the fact your project was ever converted from a shipping container. This, combined with the added benefit of creating extra insulation, means that often cladding a shipping container can be a great addition to your build.

If you're interested in cladding for shipping containers, or you just want to know more, contact us today for more information.