ARQtainer: liray house, chile

‘liray house’ by ARQtainer, santiago, chileall images courtesy of ARQtainer

the ‘liray house’ in santiago, proves that you can achieve an aesthetically pleasing structure at a low cost with minimal construction time.the 115 m2 residence designed by chilean practice ARQtainer is composed of corten steel shipping containers. using the modularity of the largecrates, the home is organized on two perpendicular axes, the shorter one containing the social spaces and services – living room, kitchen, dining area, laundry and two exterior balconies – the longer containing the private bedrooms organized linearly along the north face with a corridor to the south. the entire building was built offsite and transported into place, sparing noise pollution and construction impact on site.the five containers that make up the dwelling site 50 centimeters off the ground on a system of stilts that allow the necessary space to conceal the plumbing. the interior is covered in plasterboard panels, filled with cellulose insulation to combat the intense heat gain the metal volumesare prone to, and add considerable mass that also improves the otherwise hollow acoustics.

sitting on a field with views to the andes mountains

containers are fitted together with voids taken out of the masses to create balconies and windows

balcony at the end of the private area

front elevation

shading louvers wrap the roof of the structure

exterior walkways bring people to the house and up to the rooftop terrace

living room

long hallway connecting the social spaces to the private bedrooms

(left) restroom(right) exterior balcony

large deck

(left) kitchen and long hallway(right) entrance ramp

bird’s eye view

floor plan / level 0

section

section

elevation

elevation

elevation

elevation

concept sketch

project info:

architecture and construction: project arqtainer 
architect: ruben rivera peede 
engineer: julio oyarzun flores 

location: fundo liray, subdivision la copa, colina – santiago 
country: chile 
surface area: 6775 m2 
project area: 115.01 m2 
project year: 2010 
construction year: 2010main building material: corten steel shipping containers, steel frame, thermal pane window, internal coating plasterboard and projected cellulose insulation.