2020: the year of the Shipping Container Man Cave

Man Cave (noun)

A room or other part of a home used by a man as a place to relax and pursue hobbies away from the rest of the family.

January is a time for fresh starts, spring cleaning and new projects.  It’s the time when husbands across the country are told to sort out their stuff and stop cluttering the house.  If you are running out of space indoors, where can you put everything?  The garage is full of everyone else’s junk, a shed isn’t secure enough for your hoard of treasures and quite frankly, you need your own space!  Somewhere to escape the mayhem of the home and get on with the things you like doing.  What’s the answer?  Budget Shipping Containers has it – We are declaring 2020 the year of the Man Cave….

The Shipping Container Man Cave

Shipping Containers make excellent Man Caves, and here’s why:

No planning permission

You can usually place a shipping container man cave on your property without having to apply for planning permission.  Shipping containers do not require foundations which should mean that they are classed as temporary structures and therefore exempt from planning permission.  There are exceptions to every rule, so we always recommend that you check with your own local authority.  Planning may be required if you are to fit electrics or plumbing to any unit, so please check with your local planning authority in advance if there is any doubt.  The opinion of even one planning officer could affect your application so never assume that you won’t need permission for your shipping container cave.

High Security
Man Caves can contain some pretty valuable items: collections, tools, gaming stations, even bars!  The last thing you want to worry about is security, which is why shipping containers are a perfect choice.  Container doors are built to protect, and they will take some force to penetrate.  But if you want to make your man cave extra secure, there are additional options available.

We offer a great range of high-security, multi-locking personnel doors that can be easily fitted into any of the sides or the front end of a shipping container. See our full range of container doors.

In our extensive experience, a container fitted with a Lock Box (padlock cover) and a heavy-duty padlock would be extremely difficult to break into – even for a professional.  Without specialist equipment, time and privacy, a thief would struggle to cut through either a padlock cover or the sides and roof of your container.  This is security that a standard shed or a home garage would struggle to provide.

Very customisable

Shipping containers are ideal for conversions.  A container is basically an empty shell that can be converted into your ideal Man Cave, and we are always happy to help you with your project.  Instead of buying an off the shelf design from a garden office manufacturer or similar, you can put all of your fittings and fixtures exactly where you want them.

Containers can be cut to any length that you require, and internally modified to your specifications.  We can work from your own specific design or provide inspiration with some of our previous container conversion projects.

Our container modification options include insulation, ply-lining, electrics, security windows and doors, along with a range of storage solutions from our very popular range of racking, workstations and tool storage.

If you are concerned about getting grief for sticking a giant steel box in your garden we can help with options for re-modelling the exterior of your container, such as painting to a colour of your choosing or timber cladding to give the appearance of a wooden outbuilding.

For more information on our container conversion options, click here.

A few customising options available from Budget Shipping Containers

Here’s a starter for ten of the custom options we can offer for your container man cave:

• Personnel doors can be fitted anywhere you want, they can be left or right hinged, they can open inwards or outwards, and we have options for push bar fire exit style opening, kickboards, vision panels, door-mounted vents, and even fire-rated door-mounted vents as required.
• Window units can be fitted wherever you want them, they can be single, double or triple glazed, and can come with or without anti-vandal security shutters.
• You can specify the type of external wood cladding you want for your man cave.
• You can specify the type of internal paneling that you want. Plywood and OSB board are cheaper options, or we can use wipe-clean melamine, plasterboard, or pretty much any other paneling material you ask us for.
• The number of and physical locations of plug sockets, lights, light switches, and even any trucking can be specified by you as required.
• You can choose the size of container we work with, and we can alter the size of a container to a non-standard length very easily if required.

 Delivery and Installation

No messy building site in your garden, no tricky Swedish instructions and no need to hire a removal van.  We can deliver your shipping container man cave to pretty much any address in the UK, providing our delivery trucks are able to safely access the property and their cranes can maneuver your container to where you want it.  Our general rule of thumb for delivery is to tell us absolutely everything we need to know about the delivery location beforehand so that we can make an informed decision and give an accurate quote for the job.  If you fail to mention something vital, like overhead power cables or a property that is difficult to access then we might have to abort the delivery or add on extra charges (whether we are able to deliver or not) so tell us the whole story beforehand.  Other than this, you just need to give us your postcode and we will provide a quote for delivery as well as your container price!  More information on our delivery options can be found here – and in our Frequently Asked Questions section.

The installation of your container man cave could not be simpler. Once it is lifted from our truck it will be placed where you need it – which is generally alongside the delivery truck (we may be able to lift it over an average height fence or hedge but we cannot typically lift over trees or buildings) and it is pretty much ready to go.  Our main note of caution on the location of your container is that it must be placed onto level ground.  In very basic terms; if the shipping container is not level it can add a twisting force to the container itself. This can leave you trying to fit square doors into a hole that isn’t square i.e. your doors will jam open. We send out a guide with every invoice detailing how to accept delivery and position your container on-site for best use and life span.

Point of note: If we supply you with a container with electrics, you will need a qualified electrician to install the unit on your site. 

So many possibilities!

There is almost no end to what kind of man cave you can create with a humble shipping container, and our expert team has seen most of them.  Here are a few popular ideas for container man caves…

1. Man cave workshops where you can work on your pet projects in peace, with space to store your precious tools, used mugs of tea and carefully drawn plans
2. Man cave bars for when you can’t be bothered to fight for space at the bar or your other half won’t let you go out to the pub. Hang some optics, build a sturdy bar and a few stools, even a TV to watch the match and invite a few mates – who needs a local when you have one in your garden?
3. Man cave storage for your motorbike, racing bike, gardening equipment, equestrian equipment, antiques, or your 30-year collection of Panini stickers – a container will keep them safe, dry and away from critical eyes. Note: for information on the anti-condensation treatments we offer please click here.
4. A man cave office where you can escape the house and still work from home. Your commute will be all the way from your back door to your custom-design container office.  Here are a few potential office projects that we have available.
5. Man cave jacuzzi hut – yes that’s right! We recently released our first (of many) customised converted container jacuzzi cabin.  Timber cladded with a separate and secure changing area fitted electrics and made to order for your external hot tub.
6. A man cave office and storage container combined! You can kill two problems in one with our 50:50 containers which are often in stock at our depots and perfect for conversion and modification.

Because we build everything to order, the only limit to what we can do is your imagination (and perhaps your budget – but we’ll do our best to work with you on that, too).

Years of experience at our fingertips.

Here at budget containers, we love a good conversion project. If you’ve brought your shipping container from us, and you are stuck on any aspect of your build we have a wealth of help and resources available.

You can use our online guides with helpful hints and tips for anyone who may want to convert a shipping container.

And if you’ve purchased your container from us, we would be very happy to give you occasionally over the phone help and advice where we can.  We would also love to get some photos in for any of our containers that have been converted, and we may also offer you a write up on our website with social media shout outs as well.

How to order your shipping container man cave

Our friendly and very knowledgeable team of Shipping Container experts have worked on numerous container man cave projects.  Once you know what you are aiming to achieve, have a browse of our website for some inspiration.  We also regularly share ideas and projects on our Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest or LinkedIn pages.  Get in touch and we would be very happy to help you bring your man cave to life

Budgetshippingcontainers.co.uk offer the UK’s largest online range of shipping containers for sale with a nationwide network of storage and conversion yards and crane equipped delivery vehicles.

If you need a shipping container feel free to browse our online range of shipping containers for sale. You can also call us on freephone 0808 1234 215 any time 9am – 5pm weekdays and our team will be happy to discuss your requirements. Alternatively, you can use our online shipping container quote form or request a telephone callback. In both cases we aim to get back to you within 1-2 working hours (may take longer for more detailed quotes).

Image credit: Tool shed container, Adobe Stock, Ben R