Storx Posted October 14, 2015 Report Share Posted October 14, 2015 I was curious what are the drawbacks of owning an RV that is 40+ feet long, i ask this because i have been reading into RV's because im looking into possibly getting into travel nursing full time and along the way i got recommended by many people to get a HDT over a traditional pickup if i plan to travel more than 2 times a year across the country with a 5th wheel trailer.... so today i had an idea pop in my head, when i was deployed in the military, the equipment we used for our radar system was all mounted inside of a 45ft refrigerated semi trailer... this trailer was 45ft long and it had enough room for a shower/toilet, 2 bunk beds, and a separate room where we had all the monitors mounted to the wall with server rack in the corner for the computers... a manning of 4 slept and stayed in these trailers as we kept 2 people on duty 24/7 for the mission... My question is asking about the size, because i am very handy when it comes to construction work because i remodeled my current home all by myself to include bathrooms and electrical work... i could easily take a semi trailer and some custom plans and section it out to build an RV out of it to my likes, instead of buying an RV that is prefabbed to the layout and dated materials of the past because many of the trailers i have looked at this week all looks very dated or weird setups that i disliked... another idea running around in my head is buying a 40ft shipping container and build an RV out of it, then stack the shipping container onto of a semi flatbed for hauling.. but i think rebuilding an semi refer trailer into an RV would be far cheaper due to flat beds weighing a ton more in weight and typically hold their value Here is a photo of an shipping container home available prefabbed and ready to pickup for $27,500 if i was to go the shipping container home idea or save the money and do it myself..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
remoandiris Posted October 14, 2015 Report Share Posted October 14, 2015 Only drawback I ever encounter/ed is many national parks, state parks and older commercial rv parks are not built to accommodate those long rigs. Plenty of commercial parks can accommodate them, so it hasn't been a real issue for me. You just have to check ahead of time for planning purposes. As far as using a shipping container or other for a homebuilt RV, you should do some price comparisons to make sure it is finaincially viable. Also research what you need to register and license it. Plus, depending on total weight, you may need to pull it with an HDT. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Storx Posted October 14, 2015 Author Report Share Posted October 14, 2015 Only drawback I ever encounter/ed is many national parks, state parks and older commercial rv parks are not built to accommodate those long rigs. Plenty of commercial parks can accommodate them, so it hasn't been a real issue for me. You just have to check ahead of time for planning purposes. As far as using a shipping container or other for a homebuilt RV, you should do some price comparisons to make sure it is finaincially viable. Also research what you need to register and license it. Plus, depending on total weight, you may need to pull it with an HDT. The whole shipping container stored ontop of a flatbed trailer idea comes from the TV shows ive seen on DIY network, they are extremely durable due to the walls multiple inches of metal and they are plentiful and cheap to acquire, the other reason the shipping container idea popped into my head being used on a trailer is the ability to move it off a trailer and onto a peace of property later if i decide to turn it into a vacation home or whatnot somewhere instead of having to build a whole new stick home, for example i own 18 acres just outside of Colorado Springs, CO due to extremely cheap prices back when i was stationed there with ideas of building an house on it one day... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrSeas Posted October 14, 2015 Report Share Posted October 14, 2015 Something to keep in mind.....some RV parks are not "user friendly" to rigs that do not fit the "norm". A shipping container on a flat bed type trailer or a "refer" style semi trailer may fit that profile. I have seen some very nicely home built rigs get turned away at the door for looking more "utility" than livable. .....Its all in the "first" impression! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dougdogs Posted October 14, 2015 Report Share Posted October 14, 2015 Is this setup going to work while you are traveling?? What I mean is, what kind of holding tanks/plumbing does a setup like this have? 2005 Charleston 400TS Diesel PusherRV there yet? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
horizon36 Posted October 14, 2015 Report Share Posted October 14, 2015 Is this setup going to work while you are traveling?? What I mean is, what kind of holding tanks/plumbing does a setup like this have? My thoughts as well. I can imagine slinging the fresh, grey and black tanks under the rig along with a number of storage compartments and your electrical compartment. If the siding is done well on the trailer underside compartments the whole unit could look pretty nice. Full time since August 2010 2002 Itasca Horizon One fur kid - a Shih-Tsu rescue Jeep Grand Cherokee Ltd Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Storx Posted October 14, 2015 Author Report Share Posted October 14, 2015 Is this setup going to work while you are traveling?? What I mean is, what kind of holding tanks/plumbing does a setup like this have? I actually was just thinking about that, since the shipping container home i posted above is planned so all the clean, grey, and black water pipes run to the end with the doors, then cut outs in the bottom of the container are used to connect it to the in ground plumbing on site, then the pipe are sealed up to prevent anything from outside the trailer to enter the holes cut out in the bottom of the container... With the shipping container mounted ontop of the flatbed trailer, the tanks can be installed under the trailer and holes cut into the one end of the trailer to extend the pipework down to the tanks with probably a flexible connection to prevent any micromovements from damaging the pipe connection between the tanks and the home.. the shipping container would in theory live its life on the trailer just like an rv lives ontop of the rv trailer frame... it just seems different in thought because we are thinking of the 2 as separate things instead of one complete item once the container home is mounted ontop... here are some container homes/offices i found that are built on RV trailer frames This one is using a 30ft shipping container as the basis of the build with stained exterior using commercial available store front glass walling This one uses a 20ft shipping container on a 5th wheel RV trailer, the front has an added box welded to the side of the shipping container as the bed loft location. This is another 30ft container home built by the same builder as above with white cedar exterior using commercial available store front glass walling This is a 40ft shipping container home, using bamboo as exterior siding, the end has overlapping bamboo hiding the last 4ft utility closet using a pull up door off a semi trailer as the access door to the utility closet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ms60ocb Posted October 14, 2015 Report Share Posted October 14, 2015 The whole shipping container stored ontop of a flatbed trailer idea comes from the TV shows ive seen on DIY network, they are extremely durable due to the walls multiple inches of metal and they are plentiful and cheap to acquire, the other reason the shipping container idea popped into my head being used on a trailer is the ability to move it off a trailer The Flatbed Trailer sounds good for future home consideration but wouldn't the ride be a little rough. Wouldn't a moving van be better on the ride plus multi doors for access and excess? Plus the Moving van is lower to the street. My suggestion is buy an older RV of your choice and flip it. Being done more and more. Clay Clay & Marcie Too old to play in the snow Diesel pusher and previously 2 FW and small Class C Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Star Dreamer Posted October 15, 2015 Report Share Posted October 15, 2015 Storx, we have a 44' fifth wheel and we do a lot of research to make sure we can get into a RV park & site. The places are out there but you do have to look. Some other considerations if using a semi or container for an RV: Insulation, containers are typically not insulated. Heating and a/c locations. Your plans do not show a place for them. You need a crane to remove the container from the flat bed, which can get costly if doing it multiple times. You will need a set of stairs that will have to have a spot when traveling to another location. Some of those designs look like they are using side door containers which are harder to find and more expensive. Also you may look too commercial and may be subject to DOT checks and may need to get a CDL and follow those rules. A used RV that you refurbish may be cheaper than going the route you suggest. 2005 Freightliner Century S/T, Singled, Air ride ET Jr. hitch 2019 46'+ Dune Sport Man Cave custom 5th wheel toy hauler Owner of the 1978 Custom Van "Star Dreamer" which might be seen at a local car show near you! Check out http://www.hhrvresource.com/ for much more info on HDT's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Storx Posted October 16, 2015 Author Report Share Posted October 16, 2015 Storx, we have a 44' fifth wheel and we do a lot of research to make sure we can get into a RV park & site. The places are out there but you do have to look. Some other considerations if using a semi or container for an RV: Insulation, containers are typically not insulated. Heating and a/c locations. Your plans do not show a place for them. You need a crane to remove the container from the flat bed, which can get costly if doing it multiple times. You will need a set of stairs that will have to have a spot when traveling to another location. Some of those designs look like they are using side door containers which are harder to find and more expensive. Also you may look too commercial and may be subject to DOT checks and may need to get a CDL and follow those rules. A used RV that you refurbish may be cheaper than going the route you suggest. I see some of your points, the one part i think you missed is the container home would live ON the flatbed trailer, the container home would just be bolted to the trailer and the storage tanks for water and such would be mounted under the flatbed trailer since they are wide open... The more and more i think about it, going with an RV right off the start seems like a more logical idea to get away from headaches of unknown like will it be accepted at parks and such if i was to pursue it... the reason i was thinking container home idea was because i could build it to my own wants straight from the start and use commercially available parts instead of RV parts for most appliances and accessories as in the toilet and such.. plus im not someone who needs a lot of kitchen space or a dining table... if i was to build it i would have a really nice computer desk area to house my desktop computer, which would also double as my TV since i currently do that already in the apartment im living in now... i have an 42 inch 4k resolution TV, i dont even have cable due to the fact that nearly every channel now is available online through some sort of service for far cheaper.. idk i feel like the RV's ive looked at so far place more into the kitchen than anything else in the trailer... which kinda bugs me.. Another benefit that just occurred to me.. is the fact that you can get full 45ft shipping containers apparently now since trailer sizes have defaulted from 40ft to 45ft over the years... with a 45ft trailer i could turn the first 15-16ft of it into a car trailer for shipping if i felt i could spare the room since my current car the corvette i own is only 14ft 3inches... and that would give me 30ft to build a house out of.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest THE TRAILERKING Posted October 16, 2015 Report Share Posted October 16, 2015 Those are designed as "Park Models" not travel trailers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Star Dreamer Posted October 16, 2015 Report Share Posted October 16, 2015 Understand on putting the container on a flat bed. I did not think they made corvettes that short but I will tell you from experience you will want 12" behind the car and at least 24" and better to have 36" at the front to be able to tie it down. Also vettes are usually very low to the ground and you will need at least 16' of ramps to get it up high enough to go into a container on a regular flat bed. You may want to look at a moving van trailer as they have the lower step van style. If you do not need much kitchen, look into a used race car hauler like ours with living quarters. There is not much kitchen space in them! May be hard to full time in one, we have done about 3 weeks maximum in ours and it was starting to feel confining with only 20' of living space (8' of which is the gooseneck bed area). Have fun with your project. 2005 Freightliner Century S/T, Singled, Air ride ET Jr. hitch 2019 46'+ Dune Sport Man Cave custom 5th wheel toy hauler Owner of the 1978 Custom Van "Star Dreamer" which might be seen at a local car show near you! Check out http://www.hhrvresource.com/ for much more info on HDT's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dgorila1 Posted October 19, 2015 Report Share Posted October 19, 2015 Storx, I have had the same idea as you in using either a commercial trailer or a shipping container bolted to a flatbed to build a custom, durable trailer. I think if it is done properly it can be made to look like a "normal" custom high end RV and be accepted in most parks. I have also considered using a moving trailer due to the low deck height, high interior ceiling which might allow for 2 levels and raised flooring in some sections where needed, and the multiple side door openings which could be easily framed in and used for windows or doors. Biggest thing with the moving trailers is the overall height and length, but it might be ok for full timing. I like the shipping container idea because they are pretty much indestructible and would make an excellent watertight, bulletproof shell with a wood floor already installed. For any of these you'll need to buy an HDT for towing but they are for sale on this site all the time and most are already titled as RV's, which is a huge plus. I've tried to get my RN wife to do the travel nurse thing to no avail :-) Let us know what route you decide to take. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Storx Posted October 19, 2015 Author Report Share Posted October 19, 2015 Storx, I have had the same idea as you in using either a commercial trailer or a shipping container bolted to a flatbed to build a custom, durable trailer. I think if it is done properly it can be made to look like a "normal" custom high end RV and be accepted in most parks. I have also considered using a moving trailer due to the low deck height, high interior ceiling which might allow for 2 levels and raised flooring in some sections where needed, and the multiple side door openings which could be easily framed in and used for windows or doors. Biggest thing with the moving trailers is the overall height and length, but it might be ok for full timing. I like the shipping container idea because they are pretty much indestructible and would make an excellent watertight, bulletproof shell with a wood floor already installed. For any of these you'll need to buy an HDT for towing but they are for sale on this site all the time and most are already titled as RV's, which is a huge plus. I've tried to get my RN wife to do the travel nurse thing to no avail :-) Let us know what route you decide to take. Thanks. Thanks man, i am still doing my research.. im not wanting to jump into it with my pants caught down around my ankles..LOL, the biggest and most complained about issue with travel nursing is the constant packing and unpacking, a lot of sites tell you that you will make 100k+ a year doing it, but that is truly not the case.. i have learned over the last few weeks that the ones that make the 100K+ money are the ones that do the 12 week and less assignments and keep changing assignments 3-4 during the year, the ones that do the 6 month assignment typically only make 1.5x the perm staff salary from what i have been told on another forum, so if you normally make 60k/yr as perm staff you should expect to make 90k/yr as an bi-annual travel nurse and roughly 120k/yr if you accept the short term 12wk assignments.. so in regards to salary you could easily double your income if your willing to travel a lot as a travel nurse is what im basically being told.. Nearly all of the short term nurses ive talk to don't accept the housing money and just have their agents rent them fully furnished apartments at each assignment and just drive to them with their personal vehicles, most short term nurses drive trucks with bed covers and basically keep all of their stuff in plastic storage containers that fit under the bed cover and just move all of them into their apartment and basically live out of 9 storage containers... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Storx Posted October 19, 2015 Author Report Share Posted October 19, 2015 Also, i really like the idea of building an RV out of a commercial trailer or shipping container due to the fact that it would be stupid durable and easy to build if you know anything about welding, ive been reading about all the hunting guys that build living quarters out of them for hunting season, but they typically build them to hold like 2-4 ATV's and other hunting stuff with very minimal living quarters.. but they typically build everything out of cheap square tube and sheet steal or aluminum and just welding all of the framing to the walls instead of having to bolt stuff to it or what not... many of the hunting rigs i seen where very nicely done with just minimal welding skills, some use auto vinyl wrap to wrap the walls and such to the colors they desire... many of these guys use NON-Commercial trailers for moving around their shipping containers.. so the use of a commercial semi trailer is really not needed and could be avoided... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dgorila1 Posted October 20, 2015 Report Share Posted October 20, 2015 My thoughts with doing the shipping container are similar to the picture you show with the trailer frame just like that shown. I would use 3 heavy duty axles though due to the weight of the container, and look at commercial style air ride or other heavy duty suspension so the whole setup would be overbuilt to handle the weight, bad roads and regular moving. Still plenty of room to mount tanks underneath. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gjhunter01 Posted October 21, 2015 Report Share Posted October 21, 2015 I used to haul these empty 40' containers on a flat bed trailer behind my chevy 3500 dually, as a Hot Shot owner/operator. Even empty it was all my truck could handle load wise, they weigh about 16k lbs and have no aerodynamics. What is your motive for this adventure, save money (bad idea), be unique (good way to go), but you will spend way more $$ than just buying a used travel trailer with some market value at the end your use. Greg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dollytrolley Posted October 21, 2015 Report Share Posted October 21, 2015 Storx, Something to ponder............. Ya might consider the purchase of a "Shell-RV"............this is a used RV that has the basic 'Bones" that you desire but you are free to rip out the interior and remodel to your hearts content........... We bought a fairly new 30 ft toyhauler that was bought for a handicapped young lady but she did not stay in it too long.... but just long enough that the doors were made larger for her wheelchair and the bath and front bedroom were made handicap ready as well......... The handicap rework made the unit into a basic two room toybox and we had a blast just remodeling as we desired.......... We built a removable "horse-module" that installs in about 5 minutes and has it's own fiberglass / rubber mat tub floor that slides out after the wifes horse (Dolly) trots down the back ramp and then after the module is removed........no one knows that we ever had a horse in our living room......... The used toyhauler was cheap and even with hi-grade components our total investment is insanely low AND we have exactly what we want. The basic RV systems are all ready in place and during the remodel it is almost fun to rewire and re-plumb with the best materials and fix shoddy routing of systems........ We now have a one-horse-living-quarter trailer that is far better than many +$100k factory units at a fraction of the cost....and we are delighted with our custom features..... The best part is that from the exterior it appears to just be a run-of-the mill toyhauler so no RV parks give us any problems at all ( we do choose RV parks that allow horses when Dolly is with us)............. Something to consider ...............once you rip-out the cheap RV systems it's fun and easy to install the quality systems and get what you really want without the hassle of a bogus 'factory-options-list"........... Try it ......you might like it..... Drive on...........(Custom RV is.........custom.....) 97 Freightshaker Century Cummins M11-370 / 1350 /10 spd / 3:08 /tandem/ 20ft Garage/ 30 ft Curtis Dune toybox with a removable horse-haul-module to transport Dolly-The-Painthorse to horse camps and trail heads all over the Western U S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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