Used
Used 40ft Shipping Containers
Standard-height used 40ft containers — 67.7 m³ of secure volume, and the cheapest covered storage per cubic metre available without a building.
A used 40ft container is the most cost-effective covered, secure volume you can put on a site without planning a building. 67.7 m³ arrives on one vehicle, needs no foundation beyond four level bearing points, and can be moved again later.
Standard-height units are a shrinking share of the second-hand market as High Cube dominates newbuild. That works in the buyer's favour on price and against them on availability, so check both against used 40ft High Cube before deciding.
Access is the constraint, not the container
The single most common reason a 40ft delivery fails is site access. Plan for roughly 30 m of straight, firm approach and remember the vehicle and container together are around 16 m long. Soft ground stops more deliveries than tight corners.
Where access is doubtful, two used 20ft containers give the same volume, arrive on two smaller vehicles and can be shifted with a forklift afterwards. It costs a little more and removes the risk entirely.
What to check on a used 40ft specifically
Everything that applies to a 20ft applies here, plus one thing: length makes racking more likely. A 12 m frame that has been lifted badly or stored on uneven ground twists more easily than a 6 m one, and the symptom is doors that will not align.
Check the doors first on any used 40ft. If they close cleanly, the frame is probably square. If they need forcing, walk away or price the repair.
Technical specifications
| Property | 40ft Standard42G1 |
|---|---|
| External dimensions | |
| Length | 12 192 mm40 ft |
| Width | 2 438 mm8 ft |
| Height | 2 591 mm8 ft 6.0 in |
| Internal dimensions | |
| Length | 12 032 mm39 ft 5.7 in |
| Width | 2 352 mm7 ft 8.6 in |
| Height | 2 393 mm7 ft 10.2 in |
| Door opening | |
| Width | 2 340 mm7 ft 8.1 in |
| Height | 2 280 mm7 ft 5.8 in |
| Weights | |
| Tare weight | 3 750 kg8 270 lb |
| Maximum gross mass | 30 480 kg67 200 lb |
| Payload | 26 730 kg58 930 lb |
| Capacity | |
| Cubic capacity | 67.7 m³2 390 cu ft |