A bid to raise funds for a San Francisco pop-up spa made of shipping containers has failed, after less than a tenth of the funds were secured via crowd-sourcing website Kickstarter.

Wellness entrepreneur Nell Waters attracted just $26,508 of the US$240,000 (£146,000 €173,862) target to fund the SOAK urban bathhouse concept designed by Frisco-based Rebar.

The plans centred around a courtyard idea, where stacked containers housed a lounge, sauna, hot tubs and a roof deck, along with changing rooms and toilets.

The site’s developers believed SOAK would have sought to create an anti-spa ethos, with the centre’s focus on making the use of its facilities more of a social practice.

Rainwater was to be used to provide around 50 per cent of the spa’s required water, while recycled greywater would be used to irrigate a garden on the rear patio of the site.

To heat the water used by SOAK, solar-powered water heaters were to be used in combination with photovoltaic panels installed on the roof.