Storage Yard

upstech76 wrote:
I recently upgraded from a popup to a 28' Puma. It is difficult but not impossible to store it at my home and am thinking about using mini storage place that allows outdoor storage for rv's. Do you feel these are relatively secure? Do you remove your battery or propane before storing them (to prevent theft)? Do you lock your doors and passthrough while stored? Sorry for all the questions but one of these storage places is 0.5 miles from the campground we usually camp and my house is about 30 miles away. So storing it here would be a great convienence but I don't want to deal with repairing and replacing things from theft.

I store mine at a local RV park. I find that there is really more security that way. I always take my battery home so that I can keep it on the charger. I don't bother with the propane and so far (3 years) have not had a problem. I get a flat monthly rate for storage of $50. The park is maybe 10 miles from home. Good solution for me.

I use 2 different places. One in the Summer and one in the Fall. Both are fenced. Have coded security gates, not padlocked. Those that use padlocks often don't get the keys back when someone leaves giving them permanent access to a place they don't belong in. Both have someone living on the property, security lights and are VERY neat and clean. The absence of junk tells me they are occupied by people that can afford to be there and are less likely to go "shopping". One is in a very small rural town. The other is in a rural area outside a large metro area. That one also has cameras, motion detectors, sirens and specific only daytime hours they are open. I leave most everything in my trailer. I keep the doors all locked. It is probably safer there than on my driveway and I do keep it insured just in case.

B.O.

The single best thing that can be done to keep a trailer new is covered storage .
A carport , 3 sided shed , and the covered open type of RV storage normally available all work better than the fabric RV covers .
The solar heating ( expansion ) during the daytime and then the cooling ( contraction ) at nightime work to create leaks at the panel joints and various accessory openings .
There are breakins at every RV storage facility over time .
Some are worse than others .
That is just part of the risk of owning an RV .
If you need to store your RV elsewhere than home then that is what you have to do .
RV insurance is the cheapest item by far on my premium .
They charge me 3 times the amount on my boat .

I have been storing my trailer at a storage yard for over 10 years. The lot is fenced and secured. I have never had a problem (knock on wood). I don't take anything out of it. I pull the main fuse lock the doors and leave it. There are $150,000+ Prevost's, expensive 5th wheels, very nice boats, construction equipment and a whole host of things in the lot. It is more secure there than it would be at my house. To each his own, but I don't know how anyone that has never stored their RV at a lot can tell you it is less safe than if it was stored at home. Pure speculation. I can speculate that if you store your trailer at home, then when the trailer's gone there's nobody home. Making all the valuables in your house less secure. Stuff happens, at home, on the road, in an RV lot, in a parking lot, wherever. That's why I have insurance.

I would find covered storage for the trailer. The sun does a lot of damage. If you plan on trading every few years this is not as big of a problem. If you go to the same campground a lot they might have seasonal sites that may not cost a lot more then storage. This still gives you the option of taking the camper on a trip.

Ask neighbors or friends if they know of anybody that has a bit of land that would let you store it for a small fee .

Leave your insurance to cover theft and vandalize.
Remove everything valuable from the trailer ,lock doors ,compartments,wheels,hitch...
Remove Batteries to a warm dry place and leave a trickle charger.
Remove all food trace and vacuum the food shelves.
Visit the trailer from time to time.

If you're satisfied with the security features of the storage facility, I wouldn't think your trailer would be at any greater risk for break in than storing it at your home. I have been using an RV and boat only storage facility for 5 years, located 12 miles from my home and have had absolutely no problem. The owners have every reasonable security measure they can employ on the property and I maintain insurance coverage on my trailer. About as much as anyone can do.

I will say my insurance premium is slightly higher because the trailer is not stored at my home. Yes, even though locks on an RV are flimsy at best and can be easily defeated with not much more than a screwdriver, you should lock everything and pull your battery, not so much for security but if you don't have power available in storage to run a charger on the battery, you could do so at home.

I store it at an rv dealership that has about 300 spots, with the camers and locked gates. I would love to store it at home but unlike a lot of lucky people on this forum my community doesn't allow rv storage on personal property. I have to call the police and get an ok to have it for 1 night before a trip.

I have a Puma 25RS that I store here at home. It takes up part of the driveway but we work around it. If there is anyway, I would store it at home. We use ours for a storage area anyway, need something that isn't in the kitchen, out to the trailer to get the other one. Good luck on your decision.