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What should I use for footings....

Printed From: Unofficial Allis
Category: Other Topics
Forum Name: Shops, Barns, Varmints, and Trucks
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URL: https://www.allischalmers.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=158678
Printed Date: 05 Jun 2025 at 4:29am
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Topic: What should I use for footings....
Posted By: Scott B
Subject: What should I use for footings....
Date Posted: 02 Mar 2019 at 6:22pm
Think I'm going to buy 2 of those 20' shipping containers for storage. Going to place them 16' apart and span a roof across for boat covered storage. Then add 8' open lean-to's off each end.
My big question is what to place under the containers for a footing? Been thinking of 24" perimeter concrete, around 12" thick. Add rock, gravel, etc in the center.
Ultimately I want to get a skid steer and use one of the containers to lock it up...that would be the heaviest item that would go in. What have you all done?

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D17 Series 1
Allis B- 1939
Allis B- 1945



Replies:
Posted By: jaybmiller
Date Posted: 02 Mar 2019 at 6:31pm
Unless your footings go down BELOW the frost line( 4 ft up here..) just remove all top soil, pack the bejeebers out of the subsoil, then keep adding crusher run(or whatever 'compactable fill is called)  6" at a time and whack the bejeebers out of each lift. I do under the cans AND the 'boat storage area'. Done right ,it'll outlive you and me.
As for the roof, consider where the rain and snow will pile up ! Maybe use Google to see what others hve done in using seacans.
I wish I could use them but city says building permits ($$$) are required !!!



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3 D-14s,A-C forklift, B-112
Kubota BX23S lil' TOOT( The Other Orange Tractor)

Never burn your bridges, unless you can walk on water


Posted By: Thad in AR.
Date Posted: 02 Mar 2019 at 8:57pm
12 to 16” footers down to the frost line.
Will you span the roof to the outside of each container?
Wondering if you could find some cheap chicken house trusses for the roof.


Posted By: LeonR2013
Date Posted: 02 Mar 2019 at 8:58pm
Scott put your footing  in the light of the moon as suggested by the Farmers Almanac. Believe it or not they will not sink and everything stays level.Clap


Posted By: shameless dude
Date Posted: 02 Mar 2019 at 10:33pm
everyone around here just lays crush rock down about a foot thick and sets the containers on it. myself, i'd prolly put some concrete pillars down too.


Posted By: Scott B
Date Posted: 02 Mar 2019 at 10:41pm
[QUOTE=Thad in AR.] 12 to 16” footers down to the frost line.
Will you span the roof to the outside of each container?
Wondering if you could find some cheap chicken house trusses for the roof. [/QUOTE ]
I've seen those chicken trusses down your way. They'd sure work if I could find some but probably would need to travel a ways to get them. I am spanning to the outside.

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D17 Series 1
Allis B- 1939
Allis B- 1945


Posted By: Thad in AR.
Date Posted: 03 Mar 2019 at 6:08am
Originally posted by Scott B Scott B wrote:

[QUOTE=Thad in AR.] 12 to 16” footers down to the frost line.
Will you span the roof to the outside of each container?
Wondering if you could find some cheap chicken house trusses for the roof. [/QUOTE ]
I've seen those chicken trusses down your way. They'd sure work if I could find some but probably would need to travel a ways to get them. I am spanning to the outside.

Just curious how wide one of these containers is?
I’ve been seeing lots of 32 and 40’ trusses for sale.
Where your biggest span is 16’ between the containers I would just frame it up.


Posted By: jaybmiller
Date Posted: 03 Mar 2019 at 6:16am
regular seacans are 20 long, 8 wide, 8 1/2 tall
so...
seacan....boat....seacan
8..16..8
32' wide overall

friend used one to store Ford3000 in one end,kinda tight( 7'6" +- inside) and watch your head when getting onto the tractor !!


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3 D-14s,A-C forklift, B-112
Kubota BX23S lil' TOOT( The Other Orange Tractor)

Never burn your bridges, unless you can walk on water


Posted By: jaybmiller
Date Posted: 03 Mar 2019 at 6:22am

not mine, found on google.....


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3 D-14s,A-C forklift, B-112
Kubota BX23S lil' TOOT( The Other Orange Tractor)

Never burn your bridges, unless you can walk on water


Posted By: DanWi
Date Posted: 03 Mar 2019 at 12:48pm
Just an idea, if you had a a 48ft  truss you would already have your 8ft lean-to's on each side and you would have one continues roof over it all.You may have to do a little reinforcing on the truss depending on how it is designed because the truss would be sitting on the bottom chord on top of the containers. I would even go 10 or 12 ft wide on the lean-to for a little extra space. Trusses on top would give you full container height in the lean-to. If you had a backhoe to dig a trench and equipment to handle them use 2x2x6 or 2x2x3 jumbo cement blocks for footings they can be got fairly cheap, we helped a neighbor put a post in an old wood shed on his farm and used a 3ft block to set the post on all involved thought that was a good idea in that case.


Posted By: Ray54
Date Posted: 03 Mar 2019 at 7:43pm
Here the 40 footers are the most common. But they have been advertizing even longer ones the year or two.

The one I used for vineyard supplies and chemicals just sits on a railroad tie on each end. Been there close to 20 years now. Used a tie in front of the door as ramp to drive the ATV in on.


Posted By: Alberta Phil
Date Posted: 03 Mar 2019 at 8:03pm
I've got two 40 footers and a 53 foot all on either good railway ties or treated timber 6x6s.

One timber across at each end.. been that way for years and haven't moved even thru our freeze/thaw cycles every year.


Posted By: Scott B
Date Posted: 03 Mar 2019 at 9:16pm
Originally posted by jaybmiller jaybmiller wrote:


not mine, found on google.....

That’s what I’m aiming for Jay. Except want more pitch on the roof and then another 8’ on each end

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D17 Series 1
Allis B- 1939
Allis B- 1945


Posted By: Scott B
Date Posted: 03 Mar 2019 at 9:19pm
Originally posted by DanWi DanWi wrote:

Just an idea, if you had a a 48ft  truss you would already have your 8ft lean-to's on each side and you would have one continues roof over it all.You may have to do a little reinforcing on the truss depending on how it is designed because the truss would be sitting on the bottom chord on top of the containers. I would even go 10 or 12 ft wide on the lean-to for a little extra space. Trusses on top would give you full container height in the lean-to. If you had a backhoe to dig a trench and equipment to handle them use 2x2x6 or 2x2x3 jumbo cement blocks for footings they can be got fairly cheap, we helped a neighbor put a post in an old wood shed on his farm and used a 3ft block to set the post on all involved thought that was a good idea in that case.

I was thinking that for a bit. But think I’ll anchor in the span with shorter trusses and have them a bit higher than the containers. Then lower down a bit in the lean to’s

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D17 Series 1
Allis B- 1939
Allis B- 1945


Posted By: steve(ill)
Date Posted: 03 Mar 2019 at 10:05pm
YEA, I would make 16 ft trusses to set on edge of the connex and span to the other... then I would use 16 ft rafters to span 8 ft over the connex, then 8 ft out for the lean to. You don't have to make it one complete 48 ft truss.... Easier to work with 16 ft sections.

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Like them all, but love the "B"s.


Posted By: thendrix
Date Posted: 04 Mar 2019 at 6:17am
Watch those chicken house trusses. A lot of them that have been up for 20 to 30 years, especially in the older houses that stayed wet inside, will be warped and twisted and they're hard to use. We can buy them new here for $175 for a 40 ft or $225 for a 50 ft. They have a 5/12 top pitch and 3/12 bottom pitch

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"Farming is a business that makes a Las Vegas craps table look like a regular paycheck" Ronald Reagan


Posted By: Dakota Dave
Date Posted: 04 Mar 2019 at 7:11am
We used them in the desert in the military all we did was build up a area a few feet bigger than we wanted and placed them directly on the packed sand. as long as you had a slop away from them you never had a problem. in the desert we just spanned a flat roof over the containers 20 ' between and left both ends open. when it rains in the desert if you don't have drainage you really regret it. we put carpets and furniture on the packed sand. with the ends open and the air space between the container tops it stayed bearable. Our containers had side doors cut into the walls.   


Posted By: Scott B
Date Posted: 04 Mar 2019 at 10:27am
Originally posted by thendrix thendrix wrote:

Watch those chicken house trusses. A lot of them that have been up for 20 to 30 years, especially in the older houses that stayed wet inside, will be warped and twisted and they're hard to use. We can buy them new here for $175 for a 40 ft or $225 for a 50 ft. They have a 5/12 top pitch and 3/12 bottom pitch
Are those wood I assume at that price?  Most takedowns I've seen have been steel.....
I might stop by a Truss Mfg. and see what they'd costs......Thinking 4 would easily cover my needs.


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D17 Series 1
Allis B- 1939
Allis B- 1945


Posted By: thendrix
Date Posted: 04 Mar 2019 at 10:47am
Yes these are wood. They're chicken house trusses. They're are 2x6 top and bottom cord. For chicken houses they're set on 4 ft centers

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"Farming is a business that makes a Las Vegas craps table look like a regular paycheck" Ronald Reagan


Posted By: NomoreJohnDeere
Date Posted: 04 Mar 2019 at 12:48pm
There is a guy on Arkansas cl that sells chicken house take downs 
Metal trusses if I remember 
sells in 40 ft sections, no sides



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HD3


Posted By: john(MI)
Date Posted: 04 Mar 2019 at 10:50pm
You are gonna need both of them level and level with each other.  They normally sit on the four corners.  I would get sona tube and put in eight piers.  If you come up a little above grade it should be easy to level them.  A laser level would be easiest.  Then you need to get them squared up, probably use sticks and strings and the 3-4-5 method on the corners.  If you could get them set so the corner sits in the center of each pier I don't think they would ever move.

You will also probably need to cover the under side of the trusses so you don't get white spots all over your boat!


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D14, D17, 5020, 612H, CASE 446


Posted By: shameless dude
Date Posted: 04 Mar 2019 at 10:51pm
could check with "perka buildings" out of st joe MO.


Posted By: Calvin Schmidt
Date Posted: 05 Mar 2019 at 5:46am
If you are using crushed rock and have good drainage, you don't have to be concerned about frost.

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Nothing is impossible if it is properly financed



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