Maintenance
The maintenance of shipping containers and shipping container homes is very minimal.
There are a few things to pay attention to when monitoring your shipping container home over the years. Special attention is required if you live near the ocean and the salt air becomes a concern. Those living near the ocean must inspect their container homes a few times a year and in some cases may be required to remove rust and paint more often. This is, of course, dependent upon how well the paint was applied and the types of preservation used to protect the home.
The primary point of concern for shipping container maintenance is the roof. There are usually many dents on the roof due to the loading of other standard ISO shipping containers on top. When these containers are being shipped overseas they are traditionally stacked a high as nine units. The process of stacking containers frequently causes dents in the corners of most units. These dents hold rainwater and begin to corrode. On most shipping container roofs there seems to be a natural sloping in some areas also caused by dents and damage in the loading and unloading of the containers. These slopes can also retain rainwater. These slopes are much easier to bang out and repair than are the corners. The banging out of dents on the shipping containers should be done in the beginning of construction. The next step is to examine any new rust spots and treat them with rust and corrosion prevention paint. Examine the shipping container doors and door handles to determine if they need to be lubricated. Then examine all the holes that have been made to accommodate electrical cables and water hook ups. These holes should have been sprayed with expansive insulated foam. It is a good idea to have an extra bottle of the foam in storage just in case leaks develop in these areas.