One way to use pallets in the design and construction of a house — even prefab houses — is to re-purpose the materials. In other words, to use the wood that was once part of the pallet as wood that is siding, countertops, or other parts of the house build. But — it’s been done — you can actually build a house entirely of pallets.
This is more something to think about, and maybe do if you really think it’s a good idea for your circumstances, but obviously we can’t recommend building a house of pallets for everyone (at least until we see a few more pallet house designs that work).
This particular pallet house was built by two students at the University of Vienna, and it won them a GAUDI European Student Competition for sustainable architecture.
Because building like this would really save building costs, it has been recommended as a method for low-income housing. Another possible use: housing in developing countries. After all, one of the challenges in many regions of the world is a scarcity of building materials for housing. Another option is modular housing or prefab homes like we often feature here.
The student who built this pallet house afterwards went to South Africa to develop a low-cost unit for larger-scale production that would cost around $11 per foot. For more on pallets in house construction, (click here).
