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Small Scale Engineering offers you the following services:

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The Latest From the Container House Project

- Shipping Container Windows Dilemma
  14th Aug 2019UncategorisedIt has been a slow week. There has been a lot of rain. Kevin has been sick in bed with “man flu”. So nothing much has happened on the house. But, the downtime did give us a lot of time to consider our current dilemma; how best to install the shipping container windows. We have mentioned before that our choice in windows is aluminium. But, how do you install the straight edges of an aluminium window in the corrugated sides of a steel shipping container? We need to ensure that no wind or rain can get between the cladding and the container in order to prevent rust and rot. We therefore need some kind of interface between the window and the container that can be completely sealed. But what is the best material to use? The material that we use is also going to have to be able to withstand everything that the weather can throw at it; from the harsh summer sun to the lingering winter rain and all the wind in between. What are our options for the interface frame material? How do we attach this aluminium window frame to this steel shipping container? Steel Obviously, the first option is steel and within the category of steel there are several options: Mild steel: Easy to weld to the container and from there we can bolt in the windows. However, mild steel rusts extremely quickly. We don’t think that this is the best option, especially as rain and dew might sit in the corners. Corten steel: Corten steel is the type of steel that shipping containers are made out of. It is an excellent choice in that we can easily weld it to the original shipping container structure. It is also slow to rust. However, corten steel is extremely difficult (if not impossible) to purchase here in South Africa. Stainless steel: This would be Kevin’s first choice as it has excellent anti-corrosion properties as well as being good to weld. However, the expense of this material puts it out of the budget. The window is straight, but the side panels of the shipping container are not. Aluminium Aluminium is not an option because one cannot weld aluminium to steel. The interface frame would have to be riveted to the container, which will leave gaps for wind and water spaces to enter. It is also a similar price to stainless steel. Therefore, out of the two options, stainless steel would be the better choice because it can be welded. Wood That leaves us with wood. It cannot be welded, but there are several other ways to attach a wooden frame to the steel of the shipping container. Yes there would be gaps between the wood and steel, but this will be easily sealed with silicon or a similar product. Wood will be susceptible to the elements, but this can be kept at bay with the correct paint and maintenance (something that would have to be considered with any of the above materials). It will also be less susceptible if we had the correct wood – something of good quality. And we do! We have a stack of old meranti floor boards that were removed from an old house. Because the wood is older, it is denser and better quality than modern meranti. It is perfect and can be re-purposed to make the interface frames. This is meranti Shipping Container Windows Installation Dilemma Solved! So, you guessed it! We’re using wood for the interface frame in order to help with the installation of the shipping container windows. How exactly are we going to do that? We’ll let you know when we’ve installed our first window....
- Lattice Girder Installation
  7th Aug 2019Main Structure and RoofWhat do you do when your structural engineer asks you to put in another supporting beam after the roof has been installed? Well, you install one, of course! Our next step, therefore, was to work on the lattice girder installation. A lattice girder would be lighter and cheaper than an I-beam and just as strong. Background If this is the first time you’re reading our blog, you might wish to know why we are installing a lattice girder. Our K-Span roof installers voiced their concerns regarding the structural stability of the design. They were surprised to discover the roof arcs were dipping on installation. We had limitations in regard to the height of the building as per the regulations as set out by Swartland Municipality. Therefore, for this installation, it is true that the machine and roof arcs were pushed to their limits. A few adjustments to the roof corrected the level, but our structural engineer asked us to install a beam as a backup. I-Beam Versus Lattice Girder A more obvious choice as a roof beam is a steel I-beam. The I-beam that we would have had to install would have weighed over four tonnes. That’s a huge weight to lift and install under a roof that is already in place. Kevin had a better plan and set about designing a lattice girder. John Moll (our structural engineer) double checked and adjusted the required dimensions for the lattice girder. Whatever we install needs to be able to take the weight of the entire roof, should every bolt fail and we have a freak snow storm. So, obviously, the lattice girder is quite a monster, but it’s better than the I-beam option because: It is lighter. Kevin estimates its weight to be somewhere under 400kgsIt is prettier, so we can make it a feature in our new houseIt would be much easier to install (mostly because it is lighter) The lattice girder is exceptionally strong because of the forces of tension and compression. One evening, Kevin tried to explain it to me while we were washing the dinner dishes. Here’s a brief summary of what I understood: Manufacture The first step was to order all the material and have the tubes laser cut for ease of welding. Once all the pieces arrived, Kevin had to decide where to make the girder. He needed somewhere flat to lay out the pieces. It also needed to be an area big enough to take the full size of the girder. He had the option of building it in one of the shipping containers. Building it in a shipping container would have resulted in one big disadvantage. It would have been difficult to move it to the correct place for installation. Finally, Kevin decided that the best option would be to build it half way up the scaffolding with each end resting on the containers that make the East and West sides of our house. He used the scaffold jacks to level the scaffolding. This ensured that the girder poles were in the right place before he began welding so that the girder would be straight. It has an intentional, but very slight, bow in it which will straighten as it takes the weight of the settling roof. Half way through the welding of the lattice girder (which is still upside down) He began by welding the girder upside down. When he had completed all the welding that he could reach, he then flipped it around, using a block and tackle, in order to reach the other points. It was also then in the correct orientation for installation. Lattice Girder Installation The installation of the rather impressive lattice girder filled me with much anxiety. I had to keep reminding myself that it was light and the weight is only that of about five adults (as opposed to five hatchbacks). How in the world was Kevin going to get this rather large and bulky girder the full six metres up in the air? Operating the block and tackle Just before the real work began, the guys had a work break with tea and chocolate. (They needed the energy for a 25 hour day!) They discussed the plan until everyone knew exactly what they were doing. In the end, all it took was the scaffolding, a block and tackle, a bit of leverage and lots of watchful eyes. The guys attached the block and tackle to the middle of the bottom pole of the girder, so that the girder could swing up and down like a see-saw. Everyone was sure to watch carefully to make sure it did not hook on anything. At the same time, as the girder rose, the team clipped in extra scaffolding poles under it as a safety measure. This way, if the block and tackle gave way, the girder would only have a short distance to fall. Close up of the block and tackle system attached to the girder Once they had the girder as high up as they could get it, they swung the west side up and hooked it onto the post where it will sit for the rest of its life. Once the first side was up, the girder was secured tightly to the scaffolding and the block and tackle was moved to the other end. The team then lifted the second side as high as they could. From there, it was a matter of levering the girder up the last few centimetres while the second post was gently persuaded (with a four pound hammer) into the correct position under the girder. Everyone else held the girder and post in place while Kevin quickly completed the welding. Preparing to hook the west side of the lattice girder into its position on top of the post Finishing Up Kevin welded in a few additional braces into place and the girder was up! By then, it was late and dark, so no more work was to be completed that day. However, everything was safe to leave as it was, and Kevin did the last of the welding and bracing a few days later. A lick of paint and it was done! The scaffolding was removed ready to return to Scaffolding Solutions. Our roof is safe! Excellent teamwork guys and our thanks once again! And it’s up!...

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Latest Posts

Shipping Container Windows Dilemma

7:30 am 14 Aug 2019

Lattice Girder Installation

7:30 am 07 Aug 2019

How We Levelled the K-Span Roof

7:30 am 31 Jul 2019

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