What Hobart buyers put in a container
The work in Hobart is a mix of trades, small farms and water. Builders and renovators in the older suburbs use a 20 ft as a lockable site shed for tools and materials. Orchardists and smallholders in the Huon Valley and the Coal River Valley use them for machinery, bins, frost covers and spray. Marine and aquaculture businesses around the Derwent and Prince of Wales Bay use them for gear that has to be out of the weather. Households on tight blocks use a 10 ft or 20 ft to clear a shed or garage before a renovation.
Most of what we send south is used stock in wind and watertight grade: sound floor, straight doors, seals that keep the rain out but a finish that has already done a voyage. If the container is going to sit in full view next to a house, a one-trip or new unit is worth the difference. The grade guide sets out what each one actually means.
How a container gets to Hobart
There is no road bridge, so freight to Tasmania goes by sea. Our containers are loaded at the Melbourne yard and trucked to the terminal at Geelong, cross Bass Strait on the Devonport ship — about nine to eleven hours on the water — and are landed at Devonport. From there it is 280 km down the Midland Highway through Launceston and Oatlands to Hobart, roughly three hours and a quarter of driving before you allow for the truck's stops.
That is why the Tasmanian window is longer than the mainland capitals: 7–15 business days after dispatch, and the Bass Strait crossing is the reason. Weather can hold a sailing, and we will tell you if it does rather than let you guess. Launceston and the north of the state sit at the front of that window; the Huon, the Channel and the east coast sit at the back of it.
Site access on the slopes
Hobart is built around a mountain. Suburbs like West Hobart, South Hobart, Mount Stuart, Lenah Valley and Tolmans Hill climb the slopes of kunanyi / Mount Wellington, and the streets up there are narrow, steep and often have a hairpin or a low powerline on the approach. A container truck needs somewhere to stand while it unloads, not just somewhere to stop.
Two things decide whether a site works:
- Room to unload. A tilt-tray wants roughly twice the container's length in straight clear space in front of the drop point. A side-loader wants a clear strip beside the container, wide enough to set it down without swinging into a fence or a parked car.
- Firm, level ground. A loaded container is heavy and will not sit true on a slope. On a graded block the pad usually needs cutting in, or bearers under the corners to keep it level and off the wet ground.
If the street is too narrow or too steep for the truck, the usual answer is to drop at the nearest point the truck can reach and move it on site, or to arrange a crane. Send us a photo of the access and the drop point before you order — it is a two-minute check that saves a failed delivery. This piece explains the two trucks in detail.
Containers on residential land also need a look at council requirements, which vary with zone and how long the unit stays. Council approval for a shipping container covers what Hobart owners are usually asked about.
Down the Huon and around the Channel
Rural blocks south of Hobart usually have the opposite problem to the city: plenty of room and a long gravel driveway. Orchard and packing-shed sites at Huonville, Cygnet, Franklin and Geeveston are typically easy drops, but check the approach for load limits on timber bridges and for soft ground after rain. A container placed on a wet paddock in July will sink and lean; hardstand or a gravel pad with drainage is the safer base.
The other southern Tasmanian issue is moisture. Cool, wet winters and damp air off the Southern Ocean mean condensation inside a steel box is the main thing that damages stored gear, not heat. Ventilation, a raised floor and how you stack against the walls matter more here than in Queensland. Stopping container condensation in an Australian climate goes through it properly, and we can supply vents and shelving from the accessories range.
Free delivery, and what that means for a Tasmanian address
Delivery is free to any address in Australia, and that includes every Hobart suburb and every southern Tasmanian postcode — the freight is already in the listed price, Bass Strait included. Nothing is added to the invoice for the crossing, the highway or a regional run. The only things that can change the job are site conditions that need a crane or a different truck, and we quote those before you commit, not after.
If you would rather collect, the Melbourne yard is free to collect from, but for Tasmania the delivered price is almost always the sensible option once you weigh the crossing and the drive.
Every listing shows real photos of the actual unit and a GST-inclusive AUD price. Nothing is charged on the site: you check out or ask for a quote, we email an invoice, and you pay by EFT, PayID or a card link. Dispatch follows 2–5 business days after payment clears. Start with the used containers in stock, or go straight to 20 ft, 40 ft or 10 ft if you already know the size.
Which size suits the job
A 20 ft holds the contents of a decent shed or a small flat and fits on a suburban block without dominating it — it is the default for trades and household storage in Hobart. A 40 ft doubles the floor and suits orchard machinery, a packing operation or a business storing pallets, but it needs a long straight run for the truck and a block with room to turn. A 10 ft is the one for a tight West Hobart driveway or a small gear store behind a workshop. Sizes are sold in feet, as the trade does; a standard unit is 2.44 m wide and 2.59 m high.
If you are weighing the two big ones, 20 ft vs 40 ft sets them side by side, and the container guide covers sizing and site prep from the ground up. For produce that needs to stay cold, look at refrigerated containers instead.
