New shipping containers, or “one trip” shipping containers as they’re called in the industry, have only sailed once with goods from the Pacific Rim to the United States. This compares to used shipping containers which have been in circulation with shipping lines for typically 10-12 years. 

Due to exposure to the weather and ocean travel, used shipping containers have surface rust and minor dents. They also sometimes have patches where they have been professionally repaired if a crane or forklift accidentally punctured it at the port. The used shipping containers that we sell are wind and water-tight. 

New “one trip” shipping containers, on the other hand, are in much more pristine condition. While they may have small dings or scuffs from having traveled once overseas on barges and being handled in ports, they do not have surface rust and dents like used shipping containers do. The doors also open and close quite easily on new shipping containers, whereas used shipping containers typically take a little more muscle to open and close. 

Because we are able to buy new shipping containers at great prices in bulk, the price difference between a new and used shipping container is currently only around $1500. We believe you get a lot more value to your dollar if you buy a new shipping container.  On the other hand, if you want to save some money then a used shipping container will keep your storage dry just fine. You can also refurbish a used shipping container. Our sister company Affordable Portable Housing Hawaii has a very informative article about how to treat rust on a shipping container. 

A standard height shipping container is 8’6” tall on the exterior and 8’ tall on the interior.  A high cube shipping container is 9’6” tall on the exterior and 9’ tall on the interior. 

Almost all our customers buy 40' high cube shipping containers instead of standard height because they're the same price. The only reason to buy a 40' standard height shipping container is if for some reason the delivery location could not accomodate a 9'6" tall shipping container. 

On the other hand, almost all our customers purchase standard height 20' shipping containers. The factories stopped making 20' high cube shipping containers during the COVID-19 pandemic so they are difficult to find and, when found, the cost is prohibitive for most people. 

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It typically takes 1-2 weeks from the time of order until your shipping container is delivered, although it’s possible it can be sooner depending on the availability of the trucking company. We help you coordinate the delivery to make the process of buying a shipping container as easy as possible for you.

We deliver shipping containers on the Big Island with a truck called a hammer lift or sidelifter. The hammer lift loads and unloads shipping containers using a pair of hydraulic powered cranes at each end of the truck bed. The truck pulls up parallel to where you want the shipping container and scissor-like arms lift the shipping container off the truck and sets it down on the ground or on your foundation pad or blocks. 

The area required for the hammer lift to deliver a shipping container is 20’ wide by 80’ long so that the hammer lift is able to drive parallel to where you want the shipping container and offload it to the side of the truck. There also needs to be 16’ of height clearance in the area the shipping container is being dropped. The other consideration is that the truck is long so may have difficulty making tight turns. Any concerns about delivery can be discussed in advance with the trucking company.

Your shipping container should be placed on a dry and level surface. The surface can be a concrete pad, asphalt, a bed of gravel, or concrete blocks that you can buy from HPM or Home Depot.  The blocks will keep the container off wet ground that could cause the bottom of the shipping container to rust. 

If you are setting the container on concrete blocks, you can put one or two blocks under each corner. Sometimes people put an additional set of blocks in the center of the long sides of a 40’ shipping container. It’s a good idea to put compacted gravel pads under each block. This will help prevent the blocks from sinking if the ground gets really wet.

It’s important that the shipping container be level, otherwise the doors can be difficult to open and close. You can use a string level or a laser level to check if your blocks are level. If the blocks are not level, you can put compacted gravel pads under each block and adjust the amount of gravel under each block to lower or raise it. Another way to adjust the height of the blocks is to add shims on top of the blocks that are lower. 

Examples of items you can use as shims are concrete pavers, metal plates, or even cut pieces of hard plastic cutting boards. Wood shims aren’t the best because they will deteriorate over time. If for any reason after the container is delivered you realize your blocks weren’t level, you can use a bottle jack to lift the container to make adjustments. Make sure you use a jack that is rated to hold the weight of the container, including any items you may have put in it. A standard height 20 foot shipping container weighs around 4,400 lbs. A 40 foot high cube shipping container weighs around 8,775 lbs.

And of course the approach to the area you want the shipping container placed, and the area itself, must be cleared of all obstacles, including low hanging branches, etc.

Please keep in mind that the truck cannot drive on soft or wet ground to deliver your shipping container. If it’s been raining in your area, the delivery will need to be postponed until the ground is dry or the truck could get stuck. 

We offer discounts for bulk shipping container purchases. 

We invoice through Quickbooks which allows you to pay online via ACH, essentially an e-check from your bank.  You can also mail us a check, or deposit directly into our bank account.  We accept credit cards but need to charge a 2.9% processing fee (we don’t build this fee into our prices).

Anyone can own a shipping container. You don’t need to register it. Shipping containers don’t have titles like vehicles.