Elwood House

The owner of this dark, sleek home in an older Boise neighborhood had a decade-long dream of designing and building her home using shipping containers. Unfortunately, those plans changed during the 2020 lockdowns just as she was beginning the construction of her home in Idaho. Between traveling from another state to oversee the project and the challenges she faced obtaining permits for a special build, buying materials and struggling with labor shortages, the owner was forced to give up her dream of building a shipping container home.

However, this owner did not give up her dream of building a home. What you see today is a home reimagined. A home not constructed of shipping containers, but one that resembles the large steel boxes she had hoped to repurpose one day. Also, what the owner incorporated into her new home from the original plans was the concept of a lighter footprint.

This began with a small floor plan for the main house which is under 1300 sf. The walls are 6 inches thick to help insulate during the cold Idaho winters and to minimize the use of natural gas. The plans called for concrete floors in order to keep the home cooler in the summer thus using little to no AC, as well as on-demand water heaters to save energy. The home design also included a second dwelling on the property. By adding an ADU, the owner would help to alleviate the problems with an ever-growing rental shortage in Boise.

Both the main house and ADU have xeriscaped gardens. Instead of planting a lawn which is common in Idaho, she used pea gravel in her landscape. The garden is filled with drought-tolerant plants such as Lavender and Salvia. The 32” raised containers by Vego supply the owner with food from the vegetable and herb garden during the summer and fall months. With a drip system, the garden requires minimal water usage.

The large glass roll-up door is a beautiful feature that not only adds to the feeling of indoor and outdoor living, it also helps to cool the house in the summer, warms the living room and kitchen during the morning sun and adds natural light all day long.