Quick Answer
A shipping container with a roll-up door is a steel box with an overhead coiling door framed into its side or end wall. Van Blanc sells them outright: 10ft units with the door already hung, or 20ft and 40ft boxes fitted with 8 or 10 foot doors. They ship Ontario-wide from our 4 Brantford yards by tilt-deck.
Roll-Up Door Containers for Sale in Ontario
A shipping container with a roll-up door for sale from Van Blanc starts as a graded box in our rows. It leaves as a unit with a coiling door framed into it, priced as one number. The buyer picks the container first. That is usually a 20ft standard for a driveway workshop or a self-storage bay, or a 40ft standard or High Cube for a yard with two bays. Then comes the door: 8 or 10 feet wide, in galvanized steel slats or an insulated panel. It goes into the long side at any position, or into the end wall opposite the cargo doors. The shop at 90 Morton Avenue East does the cutting, the welded steel frame and header, the door, the slide bolts and the weather seal. All of it happens before the truck loads, so the unit lands ready to open with one hand. The roll-up door retrofit guide covers the how; this page is the what and the how much.
The cargo doors stay. Van Blanc adds the roll-up alongside them unless a buyer asks for the end wall cut and the swing doors welded shut. Almost nobody does, because the factory doors remain the most weather-tight and secure opening on the box and cost nothing to keep. What buyers get is a second way in. It is a wide, fast opening for the tools, the mower or the pallet jack that goes in and out fifty times a day. The sealed cargo doors look after the long-term end of the container. Two roll-ups on a 40ft, one per 20 foot half with a partition between them, make a pair of independent storage bays. A small self-storage operator or a two-trade contractor yard can lock each bay separately.
“The roll-up is the first thing a workshop buyer asks for after a week with the cargo doors, because the swing doors take a minute and six feet of clearance and the roll-up takes fifteen seconds and none. I tell them two things before we cut. Keep the cargo doors; you will want that seal in January. And measure the widest thing going through, then add fourteen inches, because an eight foot door and a lawn tractor with a deck on it is a call I have taken more than once.”
Christian LeBlanc, second-generation operator, Van Blanc Ent. Inc.
Roll-Up Door Width, Height, Slat and Position
Four choices set the door, and the container sets the limits on two of them. Width is the buyer’s call between 8 feet and 10 feet. Height is mostly the container’s, because the door coil has to sit above the opening inside the box. That leaves roughly 7 feet of clear height on a standard 8 foot 6 inch container and close to 8 feet on a High Cube. The 8 foot against 10 foot width decision comes down to what drives through it. An ATV, a mower, a pallet jack and a motorcycle clear an 8 foot door with room to spare. A side-by-side, a compact tractor with a deck, or two people carrying a sheet of drywall want the 10. Slat material is galvanized steel for a jobsite or a yard, or an insulated panel where the container will be heated. The insulated roll-up on a heated container explains where that premium earns its keep.
Height is the tight dimension because of the coil. Trac-Rite’s label sits on the header of one of our recent 10ft units. For the coil on its Model 944 door, Trac-Rite lists 15″ to 18″ of headroom (381 to 457 mm), depending on door height. Width has more room. ISO 668 sets the outside width of every series 1 freight container at 2,438 mm (8 ft). Standard boxes stand 2,591 mm (8 ft 6 in) tall, and a High Cube stands 2,896 mm (9 ft 6 in). So a roll-up in the end wall of a 10ft sea can fills most of that end. The side wall of a 20ft or a 40ft has the length for a full 10 foot door.
| Option | Standard 20ft or 40ft | 40ft High Cube | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Door width | 8 ft or 10 ft | 8 ft or 10 ft | Measure the widest item and add 14 inches |
| Clear door height | About 7 ft | About 8 ft | The coil sits above the opening inside the box |
| Position | Side wall, any station, or end wall | Side wall or end wall | Cargo doors stay unless you ask otherwise |
| Slat material | Galvanized steel or insulated panel | Galvanized steel or insulated panel | Insulated where the box is heated |
| Frame | Welded steel frame and header | Welded steel frame and header | Restores the stiffness the cut removes |
| Locking | Slide bolts, padlock, optional lockbox | Slide bolts, padlock, optional lockbox | Interior bolts on a workshop unit |
| Doors per container | One on a 20ft, one or two on a 40ft | One or two | Two doors plus a partition make two bays |
Position matters more than most buyers expect. A door cut into the long side puts the opening where the yard is, so a forklift or a truck pulls up square. It also leaves both ends of the box intact. A door in the end wall opposite the cargo doors makes a drive-through, which is what a car storage or a wash-bay conversion wants. On a 40ft with two roll-ups, the doors sit at the quarter points of the side so each bay gets its own opening. The partition, shelving and lighting that turn two openings into two rooms are quoted on the same sheet.
10ft Roll-Up Units from Recent Stock
Two recent units at Van Blanc show a finished roll-up build on a 10ft box. One is light grey and one is charcoal. Each has a white roll-up door in the end wall and a steel sill plate across the threshold. Stock rotates across our 4 Brantford yards, and either unit may be sold by the time you read this. Call 519-754-6844 for what is standing in the rows this week. For the rest of the size, including factory true 10s and cut-downs, see the full 10ft container range.
| Recent unit | Door and frame | Inside | Seen in the photos |
|---|---|---|---|
| Light grey 10ft | White roll-up in the end wall, flat steel plate framing the whole end, Trac-Rite label on the header | Painted grey walls, dark floor | Repainted outside, resting on a wood block |
| Charcoal 10ft | White roll-up in the end wall under a strip of the original corrugated end panel | White-painted walls, plywood floor | On timbers over gravel, beside a charcoal box with cargo doors |
The sill plate is a steel strip laid across the bottom of the opening, one of the small container add-ons that earn their keep on a door opened daily. The curtain comes down onto it, and a hand truck or a mower deck crosses steel instead of the cut edge of the floor. On a unit that is opened every morning, that edge is where the wear would otherwise show.
A roll-up in the end of a 10ft has to fit inside the box’s end frame. A published 10 ft spec sheet lists a standard 10ft at 2,350 mm (about 7 ft 8 in) wide and 2,393 mm (about 7 ft 10 in) high inside. Its cargo door opening is 2,342 x 2,280 mm. The coil takes its share of that height above the opening. So before you plan around a machine that is close to the limit, ask Van Blanc for the measured clear opening on the specific unit. For anything shorter than a ten, our 5ft to 9ft boxes and minis have their own page.
The light grey unit’s door carries a Trac-Rite label. Trac-Rite’s spec page for its Model 944 lists a curtain roll-formed from 26-gauge, Grade 80 galvanized steel, in 16 standard colours. Its exterior latch takes two padlocks. The label names only the maker, so ask which model and gauge a given unit carries. For a jobsite, a welded steel lockbox over the latch keeps bolt cutters off the padlock.
Roll-Up Container Uses: Workshops, Bays, Kiosks
The workshop is the first. The usual build is a 20ft with a 10 foot roll-up in the side and a man door at the end. Inside go a bench along the closed wall and a light on a switch. It is the most common conversion that leaves our yards, and the container workshop guide for Ontario is the long version of what goes in it. Second is the storage bay. Self-storage operators and property managers buy 40ft units with two roll-ups and a partition, set them in a row, and rent the bays out as lockers. That business starts with a purchase from Van Blanc, which sells outright and never rents. Third is the small-engine and equipment fleet: a landscaper’s mowers, a contractor’s compressors, a farm’s ATVs. A 15 second door beats a 60 second one every morning of the season. Fourth is the retail and food unit: a roll-up serving window cut at counter height turns a 20ft into a kiosk that locks in a second at closing.
A 10ft with a roll-up in the end does the same jobs on a smaller footprint. A lawn-care crew’s mower and trimmer box fits it, and so does pool gear beside the deck or a tool crib squeezed in next to a garage. The charcoal unit is painted white inside over a plywood floor, and wall-mounted shelving screwed to the steel goes up on day one.
The buyer it does not suit is the one who wants the box for sealed long-term storage and nothing else. A roll-up is a coil-spring door with a brush seal. However well it is fitted, it lacks the gasket and four locking bars of the factory cargo door. For a container opened twice a year that holds something that must stay dry, the cargo doors alone are the better product. The roll-up against cargo door comparison says so in detail. We sell both and will tell you which you are.
Choosing the Grade Under the Cut
A roll-up cut is a structural job, and the container under it decides how well it lasts. A new (one-trip) box has straight corrugations, an unmarked floor and factory paint. The frame welds in square, the door tracks true, and the paint around the cut matches. It is the grade Van Blanc recommends for a workshop, a kiosk or anything customers will see. A cargo worthy unit takes the cut well too, with a valid plate and a sound floor. It is the working default for a yard bay or a tool crib where appearance is not the point. A wind and watertight box can be cut if the wall at the cut station is sound. We check the panel and the rails before we quote it, because a rusted bottom rail under a new door frame is a door that sags inside a year. The grade guide for every unit we sell sets out the four grades; on a roll-up build, cargo worthy is where we usually start.
Roll-Up Door Container Price Drivers
Two numbers make the quote: the container and the door. The container moves with grade and size, a used cargo worthy 20ft at the bottom of the ladder and a one-trip 40ft High Cube at the top. The door moves with width, since a 10 foot door costs more than an 8 foot. Insulated panels cost more than galvanized steel. An end-wall cut is more work than a side cut, and every extra door adds to the sheet. A finished 10ft from recent stock is quoted as it stands, door and all. Delivery from Brantford is quoted per kilometre on top, and the steel and freight markets shift the whole ladder by the month. Van Blanc does not post a list price, because a list price for a container plus a door in a size you have not chosen yet would be a guess. How the grade ladder prices every container covers the box. The door is quoted with it, in writing, usually the same day you send the size, the door and your postal code.
Lead Time and Shop Time
The 20ft and 40ft standard units are in the rows at Brantford and deliver in 1 to 3 days on their own. A roll-up adds shop time, because the cut, the frame, the door hang and the paint happen before the truck loads. That time is quoted with the option list. A single door on an in-stock box is the shortest build we do; two doors with a partition and paint take longer. A 10ft from recent stock with the door already hung skips the shop and ships like a plain box. Every quote carries a real date. Buyers who want to see the door hung before they pay can walk the rows or watch it on a video call. Then they take delivery on the standard Ontario window once the unit is finished. Payment is on delivery, never a deposit, on a modified unit as on a plain one.
Roll-Up Container Delivery and Site Prep
The truck is the same tilt-deck that delivers every other container, and the drop is the same. It needs a level, drained pad, blocks under the corner castings, and a straight run in front of the drop spot for the truck to pull out. What changes is orientation. The driver sets the box so the roll-up faces the yard or the driveway, and the cargo doors face the way you told us. Decide before delivery day which way the openings point; which way the doors face on delivery is the five-minute conversation to have when you order. Give the roll-up side a firm apron. A door that opens onto soft ground gets driven over by whatever it was cut for. A gravel pad carried a metre past the door line keeps the threshold clean. The charcoal 10ft below rests on timbers over gravel with its roll-up facing open ground. Permits are managed by your municipality, so check with your local building or planning department before you order.
Winter Care for the Coil and Seal
A roll-up is the one part of a container that has moving parts, and it wants a few minutes of attention a season. The coil spring carries the door’s weight and loses tension over years of cycles. Adjusting the spring tension is a ten-minute job with the right bar and the wrong job to guess at. The bottom brush seal and the side guides collect grit and ice; replacing the weather seal is the fix when daylight shows at the sill. Keep snow cleared off the threshold so the door is not lifted into a frozen ridge. Lubricate the guides in the fall. On a workshop unit, lock the slide bolts from inside so the door cannot be lifted from outside. Do those and the door outlives the truck that delivered it.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does a shipping container with a roll-up door cost?
The container plus the door, quoted as one number. The container moves with grade and size; the door moves with width (8 or 10 feet), slat material (galvanized steel or insulated), position and count. Delivery from Brantford is quoted per kilometre on top. Send the size, the door spec and your postal code and the written, all-in figure comes back, usually the same day.
Can you put a roll-up door on a 20ft container?
Yes, and it is the most common roll-up build we do. An 8 or 10 foot door goes into the long side, or into the end wall opposite the cargo doors, with a welded frame and header. Clear height is about 7 feet on a standard 20ft because the coil sits inside above the opening; a 20ft High Cube gives close to 8 feet.
Do the cargo doors stay when a roll-up is added?
Yes, unless you ask for the end wall cut and the swing doors sealed. The factory cargo doors are the most weather-tight and secure opening on the container. Nearly every buyer keeps them for the long-term end of the box and uses the roll-up for daily access.
Is a roll-up door as secure and weather-tight as cargo doors?
No. A roll-up is a coil-spring door with a brush seal and slide bolts; cargo doors are gasketed steel panels with four locking bars. A well-fitted roll-up is secure and dry enough for a workshop, a storage bay or a kiosk, and a lockbox or interior bolts close the gap for a jobsite. For a box that must stay sealed for months, use the cargo doors alone.
How long does it take to get a container with a roll-up door?
The container is in stock and delivers in 1 to 3 days on its own. The door adds shop time at our Brantford yards, quoted with the option list as a real date rather than a hope. A single door on an in-stock box is the shortest build, two doors with a partition and paint the longest. Payment is on delivery when the finished unit lands.
Can I buy a roll-up door kit and install it myself?
Kits exist, and the retrofit guide on this site walks through what the job involves. The reason most buyers have us do it is the cut. A roll-up opening removes a section of load-bearing wall, and the welded frame and header that restore the stiffness are the part a kit cannot supply. If you want the kit route, ask, and we will tell you plainly whether your container and your welder are up to it.
Can a 40ft container have two roll-up doors?
Yes. Two doors at the quarter points of the long side with a partition between them make two independent storage bays, each with its own lock. That is the configuration self-storage operators and two-trade contractor yards order. Both doors, the partition, and any shelving or lighting are built at the yard and quoted with the container.
What is a roller door on a shipping container?
A roller door is the same thing as a roll-up door. Warehouses call the larger versions coiling doors or rolling steel doors. The curtain is a set of horizontal steel slats that rolls up into a drum above the opening, so nothing swings out. On a container it is framed into the side or end wall, and it needs no clearance in front to open.
What size roll-up door fits a shipping container?
Van Blanc fits 8 and 10 foot widths on 20ft and 40ft boxes, and on a 10ft the door fills most of the end wall. Height is the tight side. ISO 668 sets a standard container at 2,591 mm (8 ft 6 in) tall and a High Cube at 2,896 mm (9 ft 6 in). The coil needs headroom above the opening. A 12 by 14 foot warehouse door is taller than any standard container.
Can I buy a 20 foot container with side doors?
Yes. A 20ft with one or two roll-up doors cut into the long side is a standard build at Van Blanc, and the factory cargo doors stay on the end. For a long wall that opens along its whole length, Van Blanc also sells factory-built open side containers with bi-fold doors down the side.
Do they make shipping containers with doors on both ends?
Yes. Double door containers, sometimes called tunnel containers, are built with cargo doors at each end. A roll-up cut into the end wall opposite the cargo doors gives a standard box the same drive-through, which suits car storage and wash-bay builds. Tell us which end faces the driveway when you order so the truck sets it the right way round.
Sources
- International Organization for Standardization. ISO 668:2020, Series 1 freight containers: classification, dimensions and ratings, clause 4. ISO 668:2020 Series 1 freight containers (iTeh preview), checked September 2026.
- Trac-Rite Door. Model 944 roll-up door: sizes, curtain, space requirements and latch. Trac-Rite Roll Up Door 944, checked September 2026.
- Published 10 ft spec sheet. 10′ DC ISO shipping container, technical details. 10′ DC ISO shipping container, checked September 2026.
Roll-Up Quotes and Yard Visits in Brantford
The LeBlanc family has run Van Blanc from Brantford since 1995. Van Blanc Ent. Inc., 90 Morton Ave. East, Unit 1-B, Brantford, ON N3R 7J7. Cell 519-754-6844. Open Monday to Thursday 9:30 to 5 and Friday 9:30 to 4. Send the container size, the door width and your postal code for a written quote, or walk the rows first and pick the box before the door goes in.