Used site cabins for sale
Construction-spec units that expect to be lifted, moved and knocked about. Sourced to your requirement and delivered on our own Hiab.
Second hand site cabins in the usual sizes — 10, 12, 16, 20, 24 and 32ft — open plan, split or fitted out. Ex-hire and ex-site units both pass through, and we will tell you which one you are looking at.
What you are buying
Built to be moved, not just to stand still
A site cabin earns its keep by surviving. It gets lifted onto a lorry, dropped on uneven ground, filled with wet coats and muddy boots, and then moved again eighteen months later. The units worth buying are the ones built with that in mind.
The visible signs are a full steel outer skin, corner castings or welded lifting eyes that have not been distorted, and a chassis that has taken forklift knocks without twisting. Cosmetics matter far less. A scruffy cabin with a straight frame is a better buy than a smart one that has been badly lifted.
We check the frame and the lifting points on everything we take in, because a unit that cannot be lifted safely is one we cannot sell on to you or move again ourselves.
Configurations
How site cabins are usually laid out
| Configuration | Usual size | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Open plan | 16ft – 32ft | Most flexible and easiest to repurpose. Partitions can be added later. |
| Office and store split | 20ft – 24ft | Separate lockable store at one end, often with its own external door. |
| Canteen with servery | 20ft – 32ft | Worktop, sink and sockets along one wall. Water needs plumbing in. |
| Drying room | 12ft – 20ft | Racking and heating. Heavy condensation load, so insulation matters. |
| Combination welfare | 24ft – 32ft | Canteen, drying and WC in one unit. See welfare units. |
Before you commit
Five things we would check ourselves
Lift it, or watch it lifted
How a cabin behaves in the air tells you more than an hour walking round it. Doors that stick after landing mean a frame that flexes.
Look at the roof from above
Take a ladder. Ponding, patched felt and rust round the roof edge are the difference between a cheap unit and an expensive one.
Open and close everything
Every door, every shutter, every window. These are the parts that get used a hundred times a day and they are what your operatives will complain about.
Ask what test certification exists
For the electrical installation in particular. Everything we sell is tested and certified with the paperwork to match; anywhere else, working and certified are different things and remedial work is a real number.
Think about the second move
You will move it eventually. A unit with sound lifting points holds value; one without becomes a disposal cost.
Check it fits your access
Measure the gate, the turning circle and any overhead cables before you agree a delivery date, not on the morning.
No catalogue — a conversation
Tell us what you are looking for
Used stock turns over too fast for a price list to be honest for long. Give us the shape of what you need and we will tell you what we can put our hands on, what condition it is in and what it costs, with the transport priced separately.
If you have a unit to trade in against it, tick the box — part exchange usually improves the number in both directions.
- We will say if we cannot source it, rather than string you along
- Cabin and transport priced separately, so you can see both figures
- Refurbishment to your spec is usually possible before delivery
Questions about used site cabins
What is the difference between a site cabin and a portable cabin?
In everyday use the terms overlap, but a site cabin usually means a unit built specifically for construction work: heavier chassis, steel skin, proper lifting eyes and fittings that expect to be knocked about. A general portable cabin may be lighter and intended to be sited once and left.
How many times can a site cabin be moved?
A well-built unit that has been lifted correctly can be moved many times over its life. What ends that life is usually poor lifting — chains at the wrong angle, or lifting from the wrong points — which racks the frame and stops doors and windows closing properly.
Are ex-hire site cabins a good buy?
Often, yes. Hire fleets are maintained on a schedule and repaired between hires, so an ex-hire unit has usually had more attention than one that has sat on a single site for eight years. They can be cosmetically tired while being structurally sound, which is the combination you want.
Can you deliver to a live construction site?
Yes, and it is most of what we do. Tell us about access, overhead cables, ground conditions and whether there is a banksman available. Site deliveries go wrong far more often through access than through anything to do with the cabin.
Clearing site cabins off a finished contract?
We buy fleets as well as single units, and we can plan the transport around a phased handover so the compound clears in the right order.