10ft Shipping Containers
Side access is pinched, the setback leaves nothing to manoeuvre in, or all that is needed is a lockable spot for the mower, an air compressor and a wall of hand tools.
Grades
Which grade of container the job actually needs
Three grades cover nearly everything we move. The money between the top and the bottom of that range is usually larger than the gap between two yards quoting on the same grade, so settle the grade first and treat it as the only fair basis for comparing anybody's price.
- Grades sold
- New, cargo-worthy, as-is
- Checked watertight
- New and cargo-worthy
- Not sold watertight
- As-is
Every enquiry answered within one business day.You hear back from a person, not an autoresponder. Enquiries that land on a weekend are answered the next business day.
New (single-trip)
Manufactured, packed once, sailed once, then stripped out at this end. Walls still true, floor unmarked, paint the original factory colour, rubbers that have seen almost no weather. Where the container will be on show — a shopfront, a display, the front of an acreage block — start here.
Right for: Buy it when the container will be looked at, when it is going to be modified or fitted out, or when it has to last decades without an argument.
Wrong for: Think again if it is going behind a shed to hold tools, where nobody will ever see it and the extra money buys you paint.
Watertight: yes — this grade is checked wind and watertight before it is released.
Cargo-worthy used
Still certified fit to carry freight at sea, which is the entire point of the grade. Scuffs, patches of surface rust and faded shipping-line livery come with it. Inspected wind and watertight before release. This is what most buyers should be looking at, and it is the bulk of what leaves the Cornubia yard.
Right for: Buy it for almost everything: storage that has to stay dry, site use, machinery, stock, records, hire fleets and anything you want to resell later without explaining.
Wrong for: Think again only if the contents genuinely do not care about weather, in which case the cheaper grade does the same job.
Watertight: yes — this grade is checked wind and watertight before it is released.
As-is
Finished with sea service and priced on its faults. Cheapest by a distance, and perfectly serviceable for plenty of jobs — a locked store under an existing roof, a bund, the shell of a site office, the base of a build. Not sold watertight. The faults on the individual unit get described plainly and photographed on request before it goes anywhere near a truck.
Right for: Buy it for a shell under an existing roof, a bund, a barrier, a base for a build, a dry-ish tool lock-up or anything being cut up anyway.
Wrong for: Think again the moment the words "keep it dry" enter the conversation. This grade carries no watertight claim and it should not be talked into one.
Watertight: no. This grade carries no watertight claim and is not sold as one.
Grade matters more than anything else in a container quote. Grade is what decides whether the box keeps water out. Anything sold as cargo-worthy is inspected wind and watertight before release, and new single-trip units — one loaded voyage, unmarked paint, rubbers that have barely weathered — are sealed as well. As-is is the cheap end and carries no watertight claim at all: expect a previous repair, a floor section that has gone soft, or a gasket that no longer pulls up hard against the frame. We list those faults and photograph them on request, before delivery, so nothing turns up as a surprise when the truck does. If what goes inside has to stay dry, start at cargo-worthy.
Side by side
The three grades on one page
Prices move with the individual unit and which yard it is released from. Grade is the first thing to settle and the only fair basis for comparing anybody's quote.
| Grade | Sold watertight | What it looks like | What you accept |
|---|---|---|---|
| New (single-trip) | Yes, checked before release | Factory paint, true walls, clean floor, unweathered seals | The top of the price range, and paint you may not need |
| Cargo-worthy used | Yes, checked before release | Sound and certified, with dents, surface rust and old shipping line livery | Cosmetics, and no two units looking alike |
| As-is | No — not sold watertight | Retired from sea service, faults described and photographed on request | A repair, a soft floor section or a seal that no longer seats — you are buying the fault with the container |
Whatever the grade, the individual unit is what you are buying. The inspection page sets out what to check and which photographs to ask for.
Worth understanding
Grade is a standard, not a description of how it looks
Cargo-worthy is a survey outcome. It says the structure is sound, the floor is solid, the doors seal and the unit could go back to sea carrying freight. It says nothing whatsoever about paint, and that is why two units that both hold the grade can sit side by side looking like they came from different decades.
Age is a weaker signal than people expect as well. Where a container has spent its life and what it carried tell you far more than its build year — dry freight and hardstand age a box slowly, salt spray and leaking cargo do not. That is the whole reason we photograph the actual unit on request before delivery rather than sending a picture of the grade.
Choosing
Start from what is going inside it
If it has to stay dry, start at cargo-worthy
Records, stock, tools, furniture, feed, anything with electronics in it or a warranty attached to it. Cargo-worthy is the floor of that conversation and new single-trip is the ceiling. There is no version of this where the cheap grade is a clever saving, because a container that lets water in has cost you the contents long before it has saved you the difference.
If it is being seen, or being modified, go new
Shopfronts, display units, anything at the front of an acreage block, and anything destined to be cut, lined, insulated or fitted out. Straight walls and unmarked steel make modification work faster and cheaper, and paint that has not been through fifteen years of sun holds a new colour properly. High cube is usually the right pick alongside it — the reasons are on the dimensions page.
If the contents genuinely do not care, as-is earns its keep
A shell under an existing roof, a bund wall, a barrier on a boundary, the base of a build, a store for steel or timber that lives outside anyway. As-is is not sold watertight and should never be talked into being watertight, but where that does not matter it is comfortably the best value in the yard — and the faults on the specific unit get described plainly and photographed on request before delivery.
If it is temporary, grade matters less than the term
For a job lasting months rather than years, hiring often works out better than buying at any grade, and the unit that arrives is whatever suits the site rather than whatever you committed to. Have a look at container hire before settling on a purchase.
Pricing
Priced on the grade, the unit and the run
New single-trip and cargo-worthy used are priced on the size and the grade. As-is moves with the individual fault. Every figure is quoted with delivery to your address — ring and we will tell you what is standing on the ground this week.
20ft Shipping Containers
There is about seven metres of straight, reasonably level ground for it to sit on, and you would rather not discover in half a year that the bigger box was the answer.
40ft Shipping Containers
You have the space, the approach is genuinely open, and the aim is the largest amount of storage per dollar spent that anybody sells.
Prices are quoted with the container and the delivery together, so the figure you get is the whole cost to your address rather than a headline that grows later. Ring 1300 467 776 or send the form and you will have a price for the exact unit within one business day.
Common questions
Grades, condition and what they are worth
Which grade should most buyers be looking at?
Cargo-worthy used, and it is not close. It is a container still certified fit to carry freight at sea, which means the structure, the floor and the doors have to be sound, and every one we release is checked wind and watertight first. What you accept in return is cosmetic: dents, patches of surface rust, faded livery from whichever line ran it and paint in three colours. For storage, for site use and for hire that is the sensible place to spend money.
What does as-is actually mean in practice?
That the container has finished its working life at sea and is being sold on its faults rather than despite them. It might have a previous repair, a section of floor that has gone soft, a seal that no longer pulls up hard, or a hole. As-is is not sold watertight, and no honest supplier will tell you otherwise. What you should get with it is a plain description of what is wrong with that individual unit and photographs of the faults on request, before delivery, so you are buying with your eyes open.
Is a single-trip container really new?
As new as a container gets in this country. It is built overseas, loaded once, sailed here and stripped out — one laden voyage. Nobody manufactures shipping containers in Australia at any scale, so single-trip is what the word new means on every price list in the market. Expect true walls, unmarked flooring, factory paint and seals that have barely weathered.
Why does grade move the price more than size does?
Because grade is the whole condition of the unit and size is just how much of it there is. The distance between an as-is 20ft and a new single-trip 20ft is wider than the distance between a used 20ft and a used 40ft, which surprises people every week. It is also the single most common reason one quote looks sharper than another — before comparing two numbers, check they are describing the same grade, because otherwise you are not comparing anything.
Are all your containers sold watertight?
No, and treat any supplier who claims that as a warning. Cargo-worthy used and new single-trip units are checked wind and watertight before release. As-is units are explicitly not sold watertight — that is precisely why they cost what they cost. Which grade you need is decided by what is going inside, not by the budget you started with.
Can two containers of the same grade be very different?
Yes, and expecting otherwise is how people end up disappointed. Cargo-worthy is a survey standard, not a description of appearance, so two units that both pass can look nothing alike — one straight and evenly faded, the other dented down one side with three patches of primer. Both are sound. If appearance matters to you, say so at the enquiry, because the difference is often free to accommodate and impossible to fix afterwards.
Does an older container mean a worse container?
Not by itself. How it was stored and what it carried matter far more than the build date. A unit that has lived on hardstand and carried dry freight will beat a younger one that spent its life on a wet wharf with cargo that leaked. Age is a rough guide at best; grade, the floor and the door end tell you the truth.
Do you sell refurbished containers?
Yes — a cargo-worthy unit that has been prepared and repainted, which is a middle option between used and new when the container is going somewhere it will be seen but a new one is more than the job warrants. It is condition work rather than a separate sea-going standard, so ask what has been done to the individual unit rather than assuming it is uniform across a row of them.
Get a price
Tell us what is going inside
That one answer decides the grade, and it is a faster conversation than reading a price list. Ring 1300 467 776 or send it through. Every enquiry answered within one business day.
Or skip the form and ring us — 1300 467 776, Mon-Fri 7:30am-5pm, Sat 8am-12pm