Rathnam’s company, Modpools essentially converts single-use shipping containers into backyard pools that could be installed underground, aboveground, or anywhere between.
Over the course of this pandemic, we’ve seen everything from prefabricated backyard tiny offices to an outdoor mobile bar and kitchen designed for summer BBQs. With so much of our focus on the environment and the potential of our own backyards, designers are getting creative with sustainability and how they construct these at-home retreats. After transforming disused shipping containers into self-contained home offices, Paul Rathnam, seasoned pandemic backyard renovator, returns to shipping containers, only this time he’s turning them into pools.
Dubbing them “the world’s cardboard boxes,” Rathnam felt inspired to build the pools as a means of giving the discarded shipping containers new purpose and new life to backyards. The shipping containers are purchased by Rathnam after goods are shipped to North America from China since they would otherwise just be discarded and not reused for shipping purposes. Depending on your backyard and its building parameters, Modpools can be customized to fit.
No matter where you live, Modpools can be integrated into your home’s environment. Aware that prospective buyers might mistake the recycled shipping containers for emptied garbage dumpsters, Rathnam says, “The uphill battle with containers is that it looks like a dumpster.” Homeowners can rest assured, however, knowing their new backyard pool wasn’t a public dumpster yesterday. Maintaining a clean and dent-free look, Rathnam’s Modpools are formed from single-use containers that only ship goods such as cellphones, computers, and clothes.
Customizable for your own backyard and its parameters, Modpools can be configured in different geometric shapes to fit the size of your garden or patio, or whatever your configuration may need – indoor or outdoor. The shipping containers can be cut down from their 20-40’ lengths to fit any size or shape needed for your particular backyard configuration.
The temperature of Modpools can be raised to 104-degrees Fahrenheit for colder environments. The Modpools are adjusted and welded about an hour east of Vancouver in Rathnam’s factory so that all the construction happens off-site prior to the pool’s installation. The good news is on-site installation can be finished in a matter of only a day.
Designer: Modpools
Glass windows can be installed to the side of Modpools for underwater viewing.
Modpools can be installed underground, aboveground, or anywhere in-between.
Modpools can also be cut down in length to fit indoors, shrinking down from a length of 40-feet to 20-feet.
Aboveground Modpools would be a great addition to the heat of the backyard during the summer months, lasting over 30 years.
