Conex box
for sale.

CONEX is short for container express. The term comes out of the United States Army, which in the 1950s standardized reusable steel shipping boxes so freight could move from a depot to a ship to a truck without being unpacked and repacked at every step. The name stuck to the boxes, then stuck to the people who handled them, and two generations later anybody who spent time around a motor pool still calls a steel shipping container a conex. That is the safe, true version of the story, and it is the reason the search term is still alive today.

Here is the short answer for anyone comparing listings: there is no difference. Conex box, sea can, cargo container, intermodal container, ISO container, and shipping container all describe the same object. Which word a seller uses tells you where they learned the business, not what they are selling. Military background gets you conex. Marine and port background gets you sea can. Freight and logistics gets you intermodal or ISO. The yard down the road just says container.

So do not spend time hunting for a conex specifically. Compare the things that actually vary: size, height, condition, door configuration, and whether the seller has a yard you can walk or a phone bank in another state. Ours is at 14155 Cocoa Ave in Reno, and the inventory page lists what is standing on the ground right now.

The reason a container from any factory in the world fits any ship, any chassis, and any crane is a set of ISO standards written around the corner castings. Those eight steel blocks at the corners carry the whole load and take the twist locks, and their spacing is fixed. That is also why a container is strong exactly where you want to support it and why a level base under those four corners is the only thing the box really asks of your property.

The walls and roof are corrugated Corten weathering steel, which develops a tight surface oxide layer and then largely stops. That is why surface rust on a used conex is cosmetic and why the box does not need paint to survive. The floor is marine grade plywood over steel cross members, usually an inch and an eighth thick, rated to hold a loaded forklift. The doors close on full height lock rods with cam keepers at top and bottom, and new units carry a lock box welded over the rods.

Almost always, one of four things. They want secure storage on a property and a steel box is the fastest way to get it. They want a job site box that locks and moves to the next project. They have acreage, livestock, or equipment and need something rodent proof and dry. Or they are tired of a monthly storage bill and would rather own the box outright. Any of those is a conex purchase, and the advice is the same: buy the size that fits your site, buy used unless appearance matters, and get the base level before the truck comes.

All starting prices, plus tax

Container prices follow the steel and shipping markets, so we confirm your exact number the day you order rather than quoting something that has gone stale. Send the form or call the yard. Financing available, ask when you request a quote.

Three things separate a good purchase from a regret. First, condition that someone actually inspected: every used container we sell is certified cargo-worthy, which means the floor is solid, the doors seal, and there is no daylight inside with the doors shut. Second, delivery you understand before it happens: a 20ft needs roughly 60 feet of straight clear approach and a 40 needs about 100, with 12 feet of width and 14 feet of overhead, and we check your access before anything is scheduled. Third, a level base under the corners, which is your job and the one that decides whether the doors still swing easily in five years.

The rest is straightforward. Pick a size, pick a condition, tell us the address. Our own drivers deliver on our own tilt-bed trucks and set the box where you want it. Read the site prep guide first, then send us the details and we will price the container and the delivery together.