Shopping around for portable storage containers can often lead you to have more questions than answers if you’re not working with the right company. Luckily for you, we’ve got the complete resources you need to prepare for your shipping container rental. We’ll run you through everything you need to know about shipping container weight and will give you the tools you need to be educated about rental storage containers. 

 

Storage Container Weight: What You Need to Know

Before you fill your storage container with tons of items (especially if you intend to use it for moving purposes), it’s important to ask “How heavy is a shipping container?”.  Storage container weights have been standardized from state to state, but some can be different than others. 

 

On top of this, knowing the weight of your storage container is extremely important for safety – having overloaded shipping containers or unbalanced shipping containers can put you and those using the storage container at risk. 

 

Before we discuss the weight of different sizes of storage containers, let’s first differentiate between the types of weight measurements out there. If you’re using your storage container for moving or shipping purposes, many businesses will require a Verified Gross Mass (VGM) to load the container. This weight helps them prevent injury or accidents from overloaded containers. 

 

As we mentioned, there are multiple types of weight that are used to judge empty storage containers. 

 

One of these types of weight is ‘payload weight’. This type of weight refers to the maximum amount of weight you can put into an empty storage container.

 

The ‘gross weight’ is the weight of the container plus the maximum contents it can hold. 

 

The last type of weight is the ‘tare weight’. The term ‘tare weight’ refers to empty shipping container weight. This type is calculated by subtracting the payload weight from maximum gross weight.

 

How Much Does a 20ft Shipping Container Weigh? 

Now that we know more about the types of weight there are, let’s get into the specific weights of the sizes of storage containers out there. 

 

The tare weight of a 20ft shipping container is around 5,071lbs. The payload weight of a 20ft shipping container is 50,055lbs, and the gross weight is 55,126lbs. This means that a 20ft empty shipping container weighs 5,071 lbs by itself, and can hold over 50,000 lbs. 

 

As you can see, these storage containers hold a huge amount of weight, especially in comparison to the weight of the containers themselves. This makes them extremely durable and extremely sturdy. 

 

How Much Does a 40ft Shipping Container Weigh? 

As you can imagine, 40ft storage containers weigh and can hold even more than their smaller counterparts. 

 

The tare weight of a 40ft shipping container is 8,554 lbs. The payload weight of a 40ft storage container is 58,642 lbs, and the maximum gross weight is 67,196 lbs. This container’s size and its capability to hold a large amount of cargo makes it a very popular choice for personal and commercial use alike. 

 

When you use Odyssey Storage Rental for your storage container needs, you’ll receive the highest quality and most affordable storage containers for your money. You’ll also receive the best quality customer service for your money, and will receive the best containers possible. 

 

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