If you have a large family, and frequent picnics have long become a tradition, you can order a spacious and inexpensive country house from us. container house. You can get a fairly spacious house if you combine two or three containers at once. You can place two containers in the shape of the letter “L” or “T”, or stack them on top of each other. Standard 40-foot containers are ideal for installation in a summer cottage - these modules are very reliable, functional, resistant to weather conditions, and their cost is recouped by a long service life. The height of the High Cube container is approximately 2.9 m - this is quite enough to arrange your living space as comfortably as possible. Container house projects, prices and photos you look at our website. Usually they choose a small one-story option, a two-story one, and often make a hacienda.
Complex of works with containers for building construction
Construction of a house from containers always consists of a whole complex of works. This includes welding, painting, finishing work, installation of insulation, installation of electrical wiring, heating and plumbing. From an ordinary cargo container you can make a garage for a car or a living space for workers at a construction site. Tell us your vision of the project, they will give you advice and help you realize your plans.
Modular building from block containers and its application
Most people associate building from containers with inexpensive, small-sized housing, but this is not entirely true. Modern technologies make it possible to turn an ordinary shipping container into a hotel, a luxury multi-story building, or convert it into an office space. Containers are designed for harsh operating conditions, withstanding harsh winters and hot summers; such buildings are even suitable for permanent residence. This use of cargo containers is very popular in America and Europe, and recently container conversion services are increasingly being ordered in Russia. On our website you can find projects of container houses with photos and prices.
Project of 4 twenties
Properties of containers in relation to container houses
The container is convenient because it has a durable metal frame in its design, which can be used as the basis for a summer house or any living space.
The side walls are easy to modernize; windows are usually installed; the walls are sheathed with basalt-based mineral wool, which provides excellent thermal and sound insulation.
If you want to quickly and cost-effectively solve your housing problem, we recommend that you think about building a house from shipping containers. A few decades ago, no one could have imagined that a sea container could be used as temporary or even permanent housing, but technology does not stand still, and today, in light of the lightning-fast rise in housing prices, using a sea container for a house no longer seems unnatural . Despite the fact that in Russia, due to the insufficient distribution of container construction, you are unlikely to be able to find ready-made projects for houses made of containers, the demand for such houses abroad is beyond doubt and is due to the reliability and practicality of the buildings. According to experts, the low popularity of container construction in Russia is due to insufficient awareness of the population about the advantages of buildings built using this technology, as well as insufficient coverage of this issue on the Internet. To correct this, in this article we will, in a sense, try to promote the popularity of houses made from sea containers in Russia and consider the issues of their construction and arrangement.
Residential buildings made from containers: a new era in construction
Despite the fact that the popularity of container construction in Russia has not yet reached its peak, experts rightfully consider it a technology of the future, which will soon gain its loyal fans. This is confirmed by the demand for container construction in European countries, where this technology has contributed to the emergence of a new independent and profitable business sector, the basis of which is the design and production of container “semi-finished houses”. A semi-finished product means a base model made in a factory, the structure of which consists of walls and subfloors. It already has a heating system and electrical wiring installed, windows and doors are installed. Having purchased the required number of blanks provided for by the project, they are delivered to the construction site, where they are combined into a single building. The production of such blanks can significantly reduce the construction time of container houses, which is their most important advantage.
Advantages and disadvantages of houses made from shipping containers
Advantages of houses made from shipping containers:
- Houses made from shipping containers are recognized as one of the most seismically resistant buildings, and therefore they are often built in areas where natural disasters are common - earthquakes, hurricanes and others;
- Container buildings are not much different from permanent houses: the outside can be finished with clapboard, the inside with plasterboard;
- If you live in a home built using shipping containers, you may not be afraid of rodents and insects;
- Houses made from shipping containers can be built in any climatic conditions, but despite this versatility, it is important to remember the need for high-quality thermal insulation;
- The total cost of construction from sea containers is several times lower than the cost of permanent houses;
- If you decide to build a house from shipping containers, remember that they are advantageously combined with various building modules, including brick, reinforced concrete, etc.;
- The construction of a residential building from sea containers takes no more than two to three months, and if you minimize finishing activities and limit yourself to simple finishing, two to three weeks will be enough to complete construction activities;
- Due to the small load that container buildings carry, they do not require the installation of a solid foundation and can even be installed on carefully compacted earth;
- Sea containers can be used not only for the construction of residential buildings, but also commercial facilities. In addition, they can be used to build an outbuilding to an existing building;
- The installation of container buildings on frozen ground is in widespread demand, and therefore, it is often practiced from sea containers, mainly those intended for sea transportation, to build entire housing bases in the far north and Antarctica;
- If your construction project does not involve creating stained glass windows on the entire wall, it will protect you as much as possible from outside intrusion;
- Buildings made from shipping containers can be successfully erected in areas with a large slope.
Disadvantages of houses made from shipping containers:
- Often, special paints and highly toxic compounds are used to treat the walls and floors of shipping containers to protect them from atmospheric influences. In this regard, before using such containers for building a house, take care to remove these compounds;
- In the summer, a shipping container home gets very hot, while in the winter it cools down. Taking this into account, take care of organizing an effective thermal insulation layer;
- To avoid the appearance of rust on the surface of the building, it is necessary to organize careful observation and care of it;
- One of the disadvantages characteristic of container buildings is low ceilings (if the floor and ceiling are insulated, the height of the latter will be about 2.35 m).
Houses made from sea containers: projects, drawings, construction basics
A house made from shipping containers is a design solution that has become popular in Europe and America thanks to the famous architect Adam Culkin. It was he who became the author of the first container house in history, which became his creative experiment. Three shipping containers were used for its construction. As it turned out, purchasing sea containers did not cause any difficulties, and the financial side of the issue only pleased the author of this know-how. Over time, buildings made from sea containers began to be used not only as residential buildings, but also as hotel complexes, restaurants and retail premises, and their high seismic resistance and mobility made them especially popular in areas with frequent natural disasters.
For the construction of a residential building, mainly standard 40-foot cargo containers are used, which are characterized by the following internal dimensions:
- height - about 2.4 m;
- length - 12 m;
- width - 2.35 m.
If from one 40-foot container you can build a spacious extension or utility room, as well as equip a storage room or workshop, then from two or three building blocks you can build a house with an area of 60-120 square meters. meters. For example, two 40-foot containers installed opposite each other can be connected with stained glass windows and subsequently covered with a common roof.
Important! A distinctive feature of sea containers is their high strength. Initially, sea containers are manufactured in such a way that they can subsequently be installed on the sea deck on top of each other in the amount of 8-10 pieces. Considering this feature, it can be assumed that sea containers can be used for the construction of two- and three-story buildings. However, to increase the reliability of the container structure, they must be secured by welding.
Important! For the construction of residential buildings, you can use two, three or more shipping containers. If more than two containers were used to make the house, the space between the separated containers, which remains free, must be equipped as an additional room, using maximum glazing.
The construction of houses from sea containers, the price of which is on average 30% lower than capital buildings, begins with the development of a project and the acquisition of building blocks - cargo containers. You can find a large number of designs for houses made from shipping containers freely available online, amazing in their diversity. The most common designs involve the use of two containers that are placed side by side or at an angle to each other in an "L" or "T" shape. It is also possible to install containers on top of each other.
By moving the containers relative to each other, you will complicate the façade of your home, while at the same time making it more original. On the contrary, by moving the containers apart, you will create additional free space that can be used as a spacious living room with maximum glazing.
The next project is a container house, consisting of two blocks, which are united by a pitched roof. In one of the blocks there are two bedrooms, in the other - a bathroom and a kitchen. A living room is set up in the free space between the blocks, in the area of which the ceiling height will be greater due to the roof slopes.
Craftsmen with experience in building container houses recommend entrusting specialists with the creation of house projects from sea containers; in this case, there will be no problems with the drawing, since they will work out everything down to the smallest detail.
Residential building made from sea containers: stages of construction
If you decide to build a house from shipping containers yourself, without involving a contractor, keep in mind that construction will take longer and will also require the use of special equipment and welding skills. Before you begin construction, you need to purchase containers. To build a full-fledged residential building, experts recommend purchasing at least two containers, which on average (including delivery) will cost about 100 thousand rubles.
Important! Once the containers are delivered to the construction site, they must be tested for radiation. No matter how strange it may sound, it is in such containers that residual radiation often accumulates. As for the norm for background radiation, for our latitudes, it is 35 microroentgens per hour.
Foundation arrangement
The first and one of the most important stages of construction from containers is laying out the foundation. If you place the house directly on the ground, without a foundation, then the soil under the building will sag, and the building itself will freeze. The choice of foundation design for a container house is made taking into account its size and terrain characteristics. If you are planning to build an ordinary shed for spending time in the warm season, you can use several foundation blocks as the foundation. However, if we are talking about a two-story residential building created according to the author’s design, it requires preliminary preparation of the foundation. In most cases, it is recommended to give preference to a reinforced strip foundation.
To do this, a pit is dug, the dimensions and depth of which correspond to the requirements of the project. This will require calling specialized equipment - an excavator and trucks for removing soil. As for the most preferable foundation designs, in most cases experts recommend giving preference to a strip foundation, but sometimes you cannot do without piles. The latter is relevant for regions with weak, marshy soil.
Considering the large weight of a container building (especially if we are talking about a two-story house made of shipping containers), there is often a need to prepare a reliable foundation, the function of which can only be performed by a monolithic foundation. To fill it you will need grade 400 cement, sand and water. To increase its service life, special hardeners and other additives are often added to the solution.
Concrete work, which is an integral stage of foundation construction, can be simplified by ordering ready-mixed concrete. In this case, preparation of the foundation will consist of installing a reinforcement frame in accordance with the drawings, installing formwork and pouring mortar. Be sure to compact the concrete using special deep-well vibrating tools.
Constructive stage - installation of containers
You can start it only after the final maturation of the concrete, which will take at least 22 days from the moment the foundation is poured.
Important! While the concrete is maturing, treat the containers with anti-corrosion treatment. To do this, paint them with iron and then lead. Only then cover them with paint that is resistant to high temperatures.
After the final ripening of the concrete and anti-corrosion treatment of the containers, proceed to the next stage - installing the containers on the foundation. If we are talking about building a house from a 40-foot sea container, you cannot do without using special equipment, namely a truck crane. After you have installed the modules, they need to be tied and welded, fastened to the foundation and to each other. Next, install internal interior partitions. The easiest way to install partitions is from plasterboard sheets, which can be easily installed by yourself. However, in practice, a different technique is more often used. It involves removing and cutting the corrugated sheet from which the walls of the container are made, which will end up inside the building and are not provided for by the project. This is done immediately before their installation on the foundation. At this stage it is also necessary to cut through the doors and windows.
Important! If 20-foot containers are used in addition to 40-foot containers for the construction of a residential building, it is necessary to take into account the difference in their sizes. Combining containers of different sizes allows you to create a building with an unusual, original design.
Roof installation: main stages
Stage 1. To make the attic frame, a beam with a section of 10x10 cm can be used. To attach the beams to the container, use self-tapping screws, and to fasten them together, use plumbing bolts.
Stage 2. Having prepared the attic frame, install the rafters for the roof. The dimensions of the rafter boards are selected in accordance with the project, so that later they do not have to be spliced together. The rafters are connected using self-tapping screws.
Stage 3. Having installed the rafters, proceed with the installation of the sheathing, on top of which you need to lay sheets of galvanized steel. At the same time, it is important not to forget about arranging a vapor barrier, which can be done using two options:
- You can lay a vapor barrier film between the steel sheets and the sheathing;
- On the two sides of the house, under the roof itself, three 40-centimeter pipes with a diameter of 10 cm can be installed, which will ensure effective ventilation of the under-roof space. Holes for installing pipes must be made in advance. Considering the fact that the attic is used mainly in the summer, these pipes will not be closed for the winter.
Obviously, the first method is the simplest.
Important! When giving preference to a steel roof, remember that during strong winds and rain it will make a lot of noise. In this regard, despite the fact that steel roofing is an economical option, experts recommend abandoning it and choosing soft materials, for example, ondulin.
Insulating a house from shipping containers
Thermal insulation is an integral stage in the construction of any residential premises. When building a house from shipping containers, this is especially important, and since the metal from which the containers are made is a good conductor of sounds, it is important to provide not only heat but also sound insulation. The following materials can be used to insulate a house made from sea containers:
- Mineral wool;
- Polyurethane foam;
- Styrofoam.
The service life of mineral wool does not exceed 10 years, after which it loses its original characteristics. Polystyrene foam and polyurethane foam, unlike the previous material, due to their dense structure, are installed very quickly, and their service life is an order of magnitude longer and is about 20 years. They have not only heat but also sound insulation functions, which is not typical for mineral wool. Fastening of any of the listed materials is carried out using special glue or plastic pins. If you prefer pins, they must be screwed into the walls of the container in advance. A plastic film is laid on top of the materials.
Interior and exterior decoration of a house made from shipping containers
After you have completed the insulation, install a sheathing made of wood or metal on the surface of the building, onto which plywood or OSB sheets will subsequently be mounted for subsequent finishing.
The following materials can be used for the exterior decoration of the building:
- Siding;
- Block house;
- Decorative plaster;
- Natural or artificial stone;
- Plastic.
Plastic, block house and siding are attached to a wooden sheathing, previously protected with varnish. Decorative and natural stone - on a primed surface using concrete or special adhesives. The plaster is applied to a flat surface using spatulas of various sizes.
The interior decoration is practically no different from the exterior - insulation is mounted on the sheathing beams, which is covered with sheets of plywood or OSB. In this case, the space between the sheets of plywood should be at least 1.5 cm. Subsequently, they are filled with polyurethane foam, which will prevent dust from entering the house.
When producing interior decoration, plywood and OSB can be replaced with plasterboard, which can subsequently be lined with paint, plaster, wallpaper and other available materials.
When finishing the ceiling, you must remember that its height does not exceed 2.4 meters, and, as a result, abandon multi-level ceiling structures. Experts recommend choosing a regular ceiling, finished with plasterboard, or installing suspended ceilings.
Dacha plots are quite often located in places that are significantly removed from the city. Therefore, it is reasonable to place small buildings on them in which one could relax, and in some cases even spend the entire season. Given these features and difficulties with the delivery of materials, country houses made from containers have become especially popular.
Advantages and disadvantages of such designs
To begin with, it is worth saying that you need to understand that metal containers have a fairly high cost and it is not very profitable to make houses from new structures. However, you can always find products that have certain defects or are written off by their expiration date. In this case, the main thing is that the main structural elements and frame are not damaged.
Advantages
- First of all, it is worth noting that block containers for summer cottages are very practical and, in addition to their large volume, are highly durable. This allows you to create spacious rooms and even build structures on two floors.
- Simplicity of installation makes it possible to complete all work that requires the use of special equipment in just one day. Therefore, it can be rented immediately with tractors for delivering containers.
- With the right approach to installation, the finished structure can be completed in literally a month, even taking into account the interior finishing.
- The strength and reliability of the final product is quite high and can even compete with brick structures.
- Special attention should be paid to the fact that the price of such a building will be several times less than a building made of bricks or blocks.
Advice! Professional craftsmen advise using containers that have been used at various sites or during transportation across the country. The fact is that products that have been on sea trips are highly susceptible to corrosion and sometimes only hold on thanks to layers of paint.
Flaws
- All structures of this type need insulation, since they are hot in summer and cold in winter. Therefore, additional protection must be thought out in advance.
- All metal containers for summer cottages are installed on foundations with a plinth. This is done so that during rain water does not penetrate inside and corrode the material.
- When working on installation, you will need skills in using a metal circular saw and a welding machine. Therefore, it is advisable to have access to the electrical network at the site.
- The service life of such structures is several times lower than that of a brick building.
Advice! The more durable the container you purchase, the longer it will last. However, it is worth remembering that high-quality preparation and preventative maintenance can significantly increase the service life.
Step by step process
It is important to mention that before starting work, it is necessary to create an accurate design for the location of all containers on the site. At the same time, it should indicate the methods of their connection and fixation. You should also know that a country house from modular containers is created by welding and cutting out parts of metal, which means that you need to correctly calculate the location of all technological holes so that they do not weaken the structure.
Base
Homes made from shipping containers are gaining popularity. The average cost of a 40-foot container (12m x 2.5m x 2.9m) is $2000-3000 anywhere in the world. They are extremely durable and can withstand a lot of weight. In seaports, such containers are stacked several on top of each other, and even this does not lead to their deformation. It is precisely because of their strength and durability, as well as their relative cheapness, that cargo containers have gained popularity among those who want to acquire housing in a short time.
The author tells in detail how he built a house from containers in California. His “house” consists of 3 container rooms. Each container serves its purpose and replaces a full-fledged home and even an office. In addition, the territory includes a guest house with a bathroom, into which a 20-foot container, 6 m long, will be converted.
In the first part of this article, you will learn how to prepare a site for building a house from containers, build a strip foundation and equip the house with window and door openings.
Materials:
- two 40-foot and one 20-foot cargo container;
- square profile metal pipe for the manufacture of window frames;
- metal corner for making door frames;
- metal plate 100 and 150 mm wide;
- ready-made concrete for pouring the foundation or cement, sand and filler;
- reinforcement for foundation reinforcement;
- doors, windows;
- pipes and fittings for water supply and sewerage.
Tools:
- Bulgarian;
- welding machine;
- solar battery and generator to ensure the operation of power tools in the absence of central power supply;
- drill;
- screwdriver;
- grinder, wheels and attachments for working with metal;
- vices, clamps;
- concrete mixer, if the concrete is made independently.
Step one: preparing the construction site
In this project, the site on which the yard will be located must be perfectly flat. To do this, a bulldozer was used, after which the site was leveled manually, using water to compact the soil and hand tools.
The engineers involved in the project strongly recommended the construction of a continuous monolithic foundation. However, in order to save money and time, we settled on the option with a strip foundation with a low fill in the center.
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Step two: pouring the foundation and installing containers
After digging a trench under the foundation, formwork was installed above ground level. For strength, we used reinforcement from which a reinforced belt was made without welding.
The central part was covered with plastic film and sprinkled with sand to fix it. This area was also reinforced with a reinforcement cage, installed on small cement blocks.
Before we started pouring the foundation, we installed a sewer and water supply through the foundation.
The trench and the center of the foundation were filled with ready-made concrete, and the surface was carefully leveled with trowels.
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Step Three: Installing Containers
A couple of days after the foundation was poured, the formwork was removed. It took time for the concrete to gain the necessary strength. After this, the containers were installed in a permanent place.
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Step four: first stage of floor insulation
The bottom of the cargo container is usually lined with treated plywood. It can be used instead of a subfloor, but first you need to install all water and sewer lines. Therefore, the plywood was temporarily dismantled. In addition, a ventilation pipe was installed in the ceiling.
The space under the plywood was covered with heat-insulating mats and the plywood was returned to its place, having previously filled all the cracks with polyurethane foam. This is the first stage of floor insulation work.
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Step Five: Window Boxes and Window Installation
Openings for windows and doors were cut with a grinder. The markings were made with a cardboard pattern so that the marking line would not be interrupted.
The window frames were made from a square metal pipe. A wooden frame and clamps were used for fixation during welding. The paint on the outside of the container was cleaned off at the weld seam.
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Step Six: Doorways for Modular Doors
The door frames are also made of metal pipe. To provide temporary rigidity to the frame, a corner is welded at the bottom, which will be removed after installation.
The doorways are deliberately designed to be wide and set opposite each other for the illusion of spaciousness. Modular doors will be installed here that can be opened fully if necessary.
AurumV group of construction companies specializes in turnkey construction and finishing
Therefore, the main needs of our clients are quality, .
AurumV is a symbol of impeccability for several generations of Customers. We have been working since 1983 in Austria and since 1990 in Moscow. We simply cannot build low-quality, economy-class houses.
Miracles do not happen and we are unlikely to ever be able to offer our Customers a house for pennies. No matter what technology it was built using.
Is a container house a “mess from an axe”?
And the price of building houses made of stone. For example:, ), starts from 25,000 rubles per 1 m2. This is a box (foundation, walls, ceilings, roofing, facade and glazing).
So is it worth it to “fence the garden” and “cook porridge from an ax, that is, a container?
If you have the opportunity to get metal containers for free, then go ahead!
Our company does not have the right to produce (build) houses from used (“used”) containers!
As a result, we will not be able to guarantee reliability and environmental safety. And the guarantee is a mandatory condition, the policy of our company. You can build these yourself, at your own risk.
Cottages and houses made from containers
The foreign fashion for container houses has reached us. Houses from containers began to be built in port cities, where a used sea container (6 or 12 meters long, i.e. 20 and 40 feet) could be found on sale for pennies (or even for nothing).
Such housing could be built in a hurry, especially if the climate is warm.
The cost of a modular building made from containers very much depends on the price of the containers themselves - the main building material.
That is, its area is 28.2 meters. This is generally not bad, just very narrow. A standard 20-foot container has a width of 2,350 m, a length of only 5,895 m. But the height of a “standard container” inside is only 2,392 m (that’s claustrophobia!), the area of a regular container is 13.85 m2.
So, consider that from 10 large containers you can build a house of 282 m2, and from 10 ordinary ones - 138.5 m2.
DIY container construction
How to make a cottage out of containers? They need to be disassembled, that is, remove the side walls and connect them with sidewalls.
As a result, you get a floor with a span of 6 meters (or even 12 meters if the container is 40 feet) and of any length. The outer (outer) walls do not need to be removed.
But the question is, how to insulate the container?
Common sense and physics dictate that residential containers be placed outside. But then we are deprived of durable and moisture-resistant facades. And the roof is made of corrugated sheets from which the container is made.
But inside, it’s better to sheathe the walls and ceiling with plywood, OSB, glass-magnesium sheet or directly laminated MDF.
If you insulate from the inside, then just one layer of any insulation (for the Moscow region at least 10 cm) will eat up both the width by 20 cm, and most importantly the height! By the way, the ceiling and floor need at least 15 cm of insulation.
Pay attention to the insulated and tiled facade of the first floor. The container is not visible. Imagine a house for “hobbits” with a ceiling height of 2 meters! No, this is not why we all want to go live outside the city! And so tired of 2.5 meter ceilings in panel two-room apartments and three-room apartments.
Therefore, if you use 20-foot containers, you need to try and find tall ones or HC (High Cube) - these also exist, but rarely.
As a result, the containers still need to be disassembled down to the frame, to the frame. Then the frame is insulated from the outside. And sheathe the inside with OSB or other flat sheets with subsequent finishing.
It will not be easy to attach the walls of the container and the roof back on top of the insulation. But it is imperative to use them as building materials. To save money.
Windows and an entrance door must be provided in the external walls. Two doors are even better - it’s safer in case of fire.
The advantage of containers is that they require virtually no storage. Especially if you make a one-story house out of them. You just need to level the site and provide drainage so that the house does not stand in water.
The floor of the house is almost at ground level - this is “cool” from a design point of view. Unity with nature, the lawn is an extension of the house, etc., but it is very inconvenient in winter when there is a lot of snow.
It will have to be cleaned often and a lot (as happens with garage doors in winter). Therefore, it is better to put this on screw piles, or on road slabs, or on FBS.
How much does it cost to make a house out of containers?
Depends on size and goals.
For permanent residence of a family of 4 people (husband, wife, two children of different sexes or a child and grandmother), a minimum of 3 bedrooms is needed.
Each of which can be just the size of a standard container of 13.85 m2. You need a living room (from 20 m2), a kitchen from 10 m2, a bathroom from 4 m2 and a toilet from 1.5 m2. And plus storage rooms, a vestibule at the entrance (so that heat does not escape in winter and coolness in summer), etc.
We don’t count a garage - it can be separate, or just a carport. In total, we have at least 7 standard containers or almost 97 m2.
But you also need to take into account the thickness of the internal partitions. Therefore, depending on the layout of the cottage, you need from 7 to 8 standard containers. Or better yet, 4 large and tall 40-foot ones (take the tall ones - High Cube).
If you are lucky and buy 4 pieces of 40 feet HC for 70,000 rubles, then you will be happy! Then the costs will be 280,000 rubles. But this is “raw material”, so to speak. There is still a lot of work to be done with the containers to make it look like in the photo.
In the photo: the interior of a two-story house made of containers in the USA.
Sometimes container houses don't hide their origins. But this is in America, it’s warm there and you almost need thermal insulation.
These are the types of container buildings they build in America.
Photos of container houses
In the photo below, container houses were built abroad, mainly in the USA. Local architects and contractors. The climate there is warmer, so they are not as insulated as needed for the Moscow climate.
