Thanks for your detailed comment. As one of the folks that has gone through the entire process of permitting and building your experience is very valuable. Of special interest are the “key words and phrases” that folks should avoid or use with working with the county to make getting permits less painful. It is interesting that there are homes and structures that are being built by using shipping containers as structural components elsewhere but there are little to no rules on this in the building code.
As far as I have been able to determine the plans would have to have full engineering calculations to support the use of the container as a building component. Then there is the aesthetics issue. Over history and throughout the world shelter has been built from the available materials that best met the local needs. In Ocotillo Wells just getting a container delivered is often a great cost.
Near my parcel is an adobe house built from local clay and lath that has withstood 50 years of earthquakes yet would likely not be able to be built under today’s codes. The sand on my parcel is clean enough to use (94% sand) in concrete without other cleaning. I am investigating using dry stacking cinder blocks as a building method and using the site sand and cement as grout filler where required.
Does anyone know of a low cost septic engineer they can recommend?
I believe the planning and land use dept. bases there limit on square footage of these and any other detached buildings collectively on the size(zoning)of your lot.We have permits for 2 40 footers on a 5 acre parcel in addition to our 1200 square foot garage.
I do believe though the county has just set up new visual rules reguarding the issue of new permits.These would include:not visable from the approaching street,painted to blend in,or disguised with a fence(this would require a 8′ +fence which would have to meet engineering and require a permit in itself),or hidden properly by the existing structures.I’ve also heard that certain people in the dept. are still saying they can only be installed temporarily.I would still insist these can be legally used as part of the detached building square footage/storage structure.do not refer to them as workshop though(they don’t like that)
Thanks for your detailed comment. As one of the folks that has gone through the entire process of permitting and building your experience is very valuable. Of special interest are the “key words and phrases” that folks should avoid or use with working with the county to make getting permits less painful. It is interesting that there are homes and structures that are being built by using shipping containers as structural components elsewhere but there are little to no rules on this in the building code.
As far as I have been able to determine the plans would have to have full engineering calculations to support the use of the container as a building component. Then there is the aesthetics issue. Over history and throughout the world shelter has been built from the available materials that best met the local needs. In Ocotillo Wells just getting a container delivered is often a great cost.
Near my parcel is an adobe house built from local clay and lath that has withstood 50 years of earthquakes yet would likely not be able to be built under today’s codes. The sand on my parcel is clean enough to use (94% sand) in concrete without other cleaning. I am investigating using dry stacking cinder blocks as a building method and using the site sand and cement as grout filler where required.
Does anyone know of a low cost septic engineer they can recommend?
I believe the planning and land use dept. bases there limit on square footage of these and any other detached buildings collectively on the size(zoning)of your lot.We have permits for 2 40 footers on a 5 acre parcel in addition to our 1200 square foot garage.
I do believe though the county has just set up new visual rules reguarding the issue of new permits.These would include:not visable from the approaching street,painted to blend in,or disguised with a fence(this would require a 8′ +fence which would have to meet engineering and require a permit in itself),or hidden properly by the existing structures.I’ve also heard that certain people in the dept. are still saying they can only be installed temporarily.I would still insist these can be legally used as part of the detached building square footage/storage structure.do not refer to them as workshop though(they don’t like that)
I thin S.D. county has a limit of one container per parcel.