Designing RV Storage Buildings

[Jim]

Need help, gang. I'll be developing some enclosed RV storage buildings. Steel buildings with concrete floors, wide and deep enough for a Class A to fit comfortable with room to walk around. Rollup doors on front access and metered 50amp service at each one.

I have never rented one of these myself, so I'm not sure what I need to incorporate into the design. Any suggestions?

EDIT: These are rentals/storage units. Not for resale!

Thank you in advance!

 

[redbaron]

Are you doing interior walls to separate the spaces? Wouldn’t want customers having access to other coaches.

Insulation?

Ridge vent?

Drain for A/C condensation? Individual floor slopes to center drain per stall.

Is sewer available? If so adding a dump inside is valuable.

Fresh water?

Man door entrance per stall an option?

 

[redbaron]

Regarding construction, I am doing some rv garages now. Mine are 30x60x15 and 60x60x15. Red steel welded using pre engineered designs.

26gauge steel, insulated with spray foam, 14x14 doors (3 on front) and a man door.

These are not commercial: rental units, so I am not doing interior separation.

These are setup with heated floors and ridge vents allowing for full time usage of the Rv inside.

 

[Jim]

Are you doing interior walls to separate the spaces? Wouldn’t want customers having access to other coaches. Yes

Insulation? Wasn't going to as it's not climate controlled

Ridge vent? Absolutely

Drain for A/C condensation? Individual floor slopes to center drain per stall. Had not considered this, but it seem like a grand idea!

Is sewer available? If so adding a dump inside is valuable. No.

Fresh water? Yes, but not individual spigots

Man door entrance per stall an option? Won't work with this design, but it's a reasonable enough request that I'll make changes to accommodate it

 

[MemoriesByTheMile]

14x14 door
Walk in /people door
Min depth - 50', but 60' is better. We have 50' and it works, but we don't have a front slide gen
Min width - 20', we have 18' right now and when we open a 5' basement/bay door, it can bump a wall if we are not EXACTLY centered.
Wall height -16', with roof slope allowing for some ability to move around on roof for maintenance
Consider floor surface carefully, to avoid anything that is slippery

As you know from the campground, outside the building you will also need adequate room to maneuver. And not just maneuver space, but slope/angle can also effective height of the back of a coach as it enters/exits the door. Our 13'6" gets within a couple inches of our 14'door.

Problem with ridge vents they can let in a ton of dirt/dust. Consider the types of vent and if they allow large items through.

 

[redbaron]

Your man door can be on the sides towards front for 2 of them. The center one will be the challenge. Rear entry might work but potentially creates a security risk, depending on location.

 

[BGMAC]

Before you get into what to have for a storage building, I would try and figure out what customer base your targeting. The more nice to have things will drive the rental price up and possibly out of the market.

Then look at possible customer’s negligence. Leaving water on, drains not cleaned, etc.

Metal buildings with insulation and venting are pretty standard. I would forgo the 50 amp to maybe 20 amp service so users can maintain batteries, but not enough power to run their ac’s in the building.

If you want to have water and sewer drain, I put a dump station and water supply outside.

You want to have as little hands on management as possible.

Just my $0.02.

 

[Underboss]

I own an industrial condo. When the development was built the sellers could not sell in that economy. I told them to install 50 amp service and target rvers and hobbyists. They added 50 amp to all the units. They were 50 deep by 30 wide. 14 x 14 door and walk through door.
The ridge runs the length of the unit so I can easily get on my roof and do any work while inside. All LED lighting.
The units sold out quickly after that. 14 units in total, 8 sold to rvers, 2 to car guys and 4 owned among the other 9 as rentals. I was the first buyer.
As a builder, I would go 55' deep and 32' wide minimum. I would make sure I have 50 amp rv plug with a minimum of 100 amp service panel. Ceiling height a minimum of 17' as one can still work on the rv roof. Sewer and water located in the proper area. Definitely insulate. HAVC can be added by the buyer or for a renter as I did.
I now own a house with an rv garage and rent the shop out. It was a great investment. A friend and I are also looking at nearby properties to develop either rentals or industrial condos near our location. We will add all the amenities I mentioned but the units will all have 200 amp panels

 

[Jim]

Before you get into what to have for a storage building, I would try and figure out what customer base your targeting. The more nice to have things will drive the rental price up and possibly out of the market.

Then look at possible customer’s negligence. Leaving water on, drains not cleaned, etc.

Metal buildings with insulation and venting are pretty standard. I would forgo the 50 amp to maybe 20 amp service so users can maintain batteries, but not enough power to run their ac’s in the building. This was actually my first thought. But dealing with the public has shown me that no matter what I do, they always want something else. So I figured I'd go straight to 50 amp vs listening to the whining and gnashing of teeth later on.

If you want to have water and sewer drain, I put a dump station and water supply outside. Extremely good idea, but the added complexity is worth noting.

You want to have as little hands on management as possible.

Just my $0.02.

Your man door can be on the sides towards front for 2 of them. The center one will be the challenge. Rear entry might work but potentially creates a security risk, depending on location.

Agreed, putting the man doors on the two outside units will work fine. I’d rather not add one in the back, although that might end up being the only option in some cases. I went with these “sets of three” because they’re relatively simple to build and easy to replicate as demand grows. But a man door in the rear definitely opens up a security concern, someone could be back there doing nefarious things and stay completely hidden between two buildings. So yeah, some design tweaks are going to be necessary.

But hey, that's why I brought it up for the experts!

 

[Headhunter]

Just an FYI...... I pay $175 a month for winter storage. The garage is heated and has 50 amp service for my coach. I guess my biggest wants would be 50 amp service and heat. Even 30 amp would work, all it is doing is charging the batteries.

HH

 

[Jim]

I own an industrial condo. When the development was built the sellers could not sell in that economy. I told them to install 50 amp service and target rvers and hobbyists. They added 50 amp to all the units. They were 50 deep by 30 wide. 14 x 14 door and walk through door.
The ridge runs the length of the unit so I can easily get on my roof and do any work while inside. All LED lighting.
The units sold out quickly after that. 14 units in total, 8 sold to rvers, 2 to car guys and 4 owned among the other 9 as rentals. I was the first buyer.
As a builder, I would go 55' deep and 32' wide minimum. I would make sure I have 50 amp rv plug with a minimum of 100 amp service panel. Ceiling height a minimum of 17' as one can still work on the rv roof. Sewer and water located in the proper area. Definitely insulate. HAVC can be added by the buyer or for a renter as I did.
I now own a house with an rv garage and rent the shop out. It was a great investment. A friend and I are also looking at nearby properties to develop either rentals or industrial condos near our location. We will add all the amenities I mentioned but the units will all have 200 amp panels

Thank you, Underboss. I went back and edited my opening post. These will be "Rentals", and not for resell. I own a couple of acres that I had hoped would be picked up by Dollar General, which didn't happen. So I've been toying with ideas for the property.

Add the decision to start getting rid of our residential rentals, and this seemed to go in the right direction while I try to find ways to simplify my life.

 

[Jim]

Just an FYI...... I pay $175 a month for winter storage. The garage is heated and has 50 amp service for my coach. I guess my biggest wants would be 50 amp service and heat. Even 30 amp would work, all it is doing is charging the batteries.

HH

In my area, even an open pole barn setup is renting for more than that. Enclosed storage, even without insulation, is renting for over $350. It's a targeted niche, but one that already exists and is currently underserved.

 

[Jim]

14x14 door
Walk in /people door
Min depth - 50', but 60' is better. We have 50' and it works, but we don't have a front slide gen
Min width - 20', we have 18' right now and when we open a 5' basement/bay door, it can bump a wall if we are not EXACTLY centered.

Is this something that you are renting?

 

[Jim]

Regarding construction, I am doing some rv garages now. Mine are 30x60x15 and 60x60x15. Red steel welded using pre engineered designs.

26gauge steel, insulated with spray foam, 14x14 doors (3 on front) and a man door.

These are not commercial: rental units, so I am not doing interior separation.

Sounds like on heck of a man-cave. How are you heating the floors?

 

[redbaron]

we are using a water based pex pipe set in grids. We made 6 separate grids or zones. These are going to be circulated with the water heater when enabled and a valve to control when water is flowing.

I had the idea to use my pool chiller/heat pump for this but wanted to experiment with that on a house that will have a pool.

The chiller mode should give the same effect. So far that is just theory.

 

[GlampDaddy]

A nice feature would be exhaust vents for engine, generator and Oasis.

 

[redbaron]

A nice feature would be exhaust vents for engine, generator and Oasis.

That would be fairly easy with a dryer vent setup and a small exhaust fan to draw

 

[Jim]

we are using a water based pex pipe set in grids. We made 6 separate grids or zones. These are going to be circulated with the water heater when enabled and a valve to control when water is flowing.

I had the idea to use my pool chiller/heat pump for this but wanted to experiment with that on a house that will have a pool.

The chiller mode should give the same effect. So far that is just theory.

Cool, you will like it!

I have an outdoor boiler that heats 380 gallons of water to 185*, and then that water is pumped through the pex in the cement floors of our house. All controlled by thermostats in the different rooms. Very efficient systems and we use the wood from the property to fuel the outdoor boiler.

 

[Jim]

A nice feature would be exhaust vents for engine, generator and Oasis.

I wonder how many people could stand the sound of these big ol diesel engines in such a confined area?

 

[Alan_Hepburn]

In an ideal world I would include a pit in the center of each spot for easy access to the undercarriage - for lube jobs, oil changes, etc. - but I fear the logistics of that, along with the liability, would be horrendous!