Uncovered vs covered storage?

[qwerty11]

I have access to free uncovered storage, or $165 a month for covered outdoor storage. What are everyones' opinion on what I should do?

[RocknRoll]

Originally Posted by qwerty11

I have access to free uncovered storage, or $165 a month for covered outdoor storage. What are everyones' opinion on what I should do?

Generally speaking, you haven't shared any details for anyone to surmise what's best. That's probably more a personal preference dependent on your own financial situation, size/cost of your rig, geographical location, access, etc... I mean, does it snow where you are?

Help us to help you

[be happy]

Like RocknRoll said you have not given much to go on. Where you live in relation to winter weather, are you able to go check on your unit those kind of things.
So with that said I am a fan of just letting the unit sit. I have been in snow areas, heat areas, hail etc and my units have never been damaged. The 165 per month will buy alot of gas in summer. My thought process is look at all the units sitting outside at dealers across the country.

Good Luck

[Morich]

What part of the country is a big thing as the sun is what I find does the most damage here in Central Texas. I moved here from Misouri where I had never been concerned about the sun and found leavingmy towed car in the drive was making the rubberparts on the left side go bad in a hurry, so I starter parking it "backwards" to even the damage.
When storing the Rv here at the house the sunny side decals all went bad!
Sun and UV tend to eat anything rubbber, like tires, slide seals, wiper blades and the interior items like seat covers and dash.
If the RV is worth more than $50-60,000 and the storage is in the budget, it will pay in the end if it is stored inside around here! Simple wiper blades of the right size are in the $30 range and that seal on a slide is lots more! I'm not sure what a new dash would cost but the curtains to close and keep it off was near a $100.

[Marine359]

If you’re not in an intense sunlight environment like Morich, you can safely store your TT uncovered. However, you will need to regularly perform (once every 1-2 years) roof maintenance. Removing loose or shrunk sealant, then re-sealing with whatever is recommended by your manufacturer. A TPM roof should last at least 10 years exposed to elements if well maintained.

[Morich]

If you look at cars from the South, do a quick check of the small things like headlights to get an idea of what the sun does. You can do this in your local area, as you can do a check of the license plate and then check for dull headlights on cars that have a few years experience! Then look at the rubber seals on things like the door glass to see if there are cracks and chips beginning to show.
What you see on these items is also likely to be happening on all the other parts exposed to the sun but in different types and degrees of damage.
The first thoughts on the roof are obvious but then it also is working on the awning, vent covers and skylights, decals, headlights any light covers and the window treatments.
You can reduce and somewhat hide some of the damage with good cleaning and treament of the roof and some things but after a few years, there are still many things that can't be protected when outside as when they are inside.
I find it is an expensive thing to keep an RV and it can come down to whether you want to pay for treating/cleaning and some expense to replace the things that go bad or do we want to pay upfront for storage inside to avoid some of the maintenance and keep the RV better overall for a longer time.

No one size fits all, just another one of those things that we have to see what feels right for each of us.

We don't like to deal with the problems of remote stored RV but we know that stored outside here at the house is doing damage. Our solution seems to fit us as we go into each RV purchase with the idea of keeping it for a somewhat limited time and trading away those maintenance things that most people overlook if they are not too bad!

[creativepart]

Qwerty11 appears to live in Iowa. So, I'd say covered for $165 a month sounds like a bargain during the winter.

However, he's posted in the Travel Trailer forum, so it depends on what TT he has. I stored my Arctic Fox TTs outside when we lived in Wyoming and never had any issues during the LONGGGGGG winter there.

[macnut]

It probably also depends on the relative value of the RV to the cost of storage. It makes more financial sense, for instance to pay $2K per year to store a $200K coach than a $20K trailer. In the case of the trailer, in ten years your storage costs would equal the cost of the RV. In that case, spending a little extra on maintenance may make more sense than covered storage. Not sure how this works out for the OP, but worth considering.

[Jos 56]

Looking at the dealerships in Ontario, Quebec, and British Columbia, Canada, the RVs sit outside in all kinds of weather. One dealer I know is located next to a major highway and they would get salt spray in the winter. Maybe the rigs don't stay there year-long but there aren't many sales between November and March. It also depends on how long you want to keep it and if you expect any resale value from it.

[Shedboy]

Lots of critters to deal with if stored outside, the RV is generally warmer than surroundings and offers lots of shelter. Mice/rats/squirrels? pulled the firewall insulation out of mine, I suppose to make nests. Wasps fit through the exterior screens for the heater and make mud nests in the heat exchanger.


Crows red-shafted flickers and Magpies look for things to eat under the tree leaves that accumulate on the roof.

[Winnie14]

Covered vs. uncovered--Has anyone used a fabric RV cover, and has it helped alleviate some of the damage caused by weather? We have used an RV cover, and it definitely helped. The most difficult part was getting it on the RV. We have built a garage for the RV, which is great, but it costs!

[Lowdie24]

As pointed out by Jos 56 here in BC excessive sunshine is not our primary concern during storage. While we get our fair amount of sunshine through spring, summer and fall months, unless going south for the winter months our biggest nemisis is the never ending rain. Last week was an aberation for sure (we've had approx 250 mm of rain in November - that's 10 inches!) The entire Province is under a State of Emergency, with most of the interior of the Province flooded).
While here on the coast we get very little snow, I would love to have covered storage. I do have a cover for the unit but it is a real pain to put on and remove.
As others have said, of course your decision must be based on the value of your rig, but for me for $165 a month I'd take the covered storage

[just curious]

Something to think about and ask your insurance agent. I live in Ormond Beach Florida one mile from the beach. I received a discount on my RV insurance because I went with covered storage. I received another discount because this storage is in a fenced and gated secure lot. It's lighted and has electrical available and roving security at night and weekends. The insurance company loved that.

[billtsunova]

As several have stated, I think it depends on the value of your unit and where you live. We live in a northern state and get a fair amount of snow besides the issue of sun beating on your unit’s roof and tires. From personal experience, we have stored our MotorHome in covered storage for the eight years since we bought it new. Our roof still looks like new!