Cover or Not to Cover?

[lostagain]

Don't cover it if you are in a windy area, it will scuff the finish.

[Mac99]

There is a company in Mt. Joy, PA, just southeast of Harrisburg that
has indoor storage. It is Garber Self Storage, 717 653 1988. This would
be in the 100-125 mile range from DC. Call for availability and cost.
I've used them for the past two years, takes away all your worries.

[ImagineIF]

Originally Posted by macadnphyl

There is a company in Mt. Joy, PA, just southeast of Harrisburg that
has indoor storage. It is Garber Self Storage, 717 653 1988. This would
be in the 100-125 mile range from DC. Call for availability and cost.
I've used them for the past two years, takes away all your worries.

Tried them, all booked for the winter. I moved my coach to FL for the winter. This may be better anyway as it affords us a winter get away.

Thank,

[Voyager35L]

I cover my 35 footer, and it works well. The first year had some poke throughs from sharp areas, but they are padded now. I am learning. What does a steel building cost installed? or a carport type building?

[akadeadeye]

Originally Posted by Voyager35L

I cover my 35 footer, and it works well. The first year had some poke throughs from sharp areas, but they are padded now. I am learning. What does a steel building cost installed? or a carport type building?

Friends of ours recently had a nice metal bldg. built. Steel frame metal on three sides and roof, gravel floor, 50' by 18'. It cost about $22,000. There are less expensive options but this one is well constructed and they are not going to have to worry about strong winds.

Don

[NLOVNIT]

Our RV port, 51x18x14 cost just over $5000 installed on our levelled pad.

L-

[DriVer]

My opinion; If you have a cover that fits properly and it's tightly secured, you should be OK! I would love to get a hard building but we're waiting to see if it makes sense for us to make the investment. I would like my RV port to match the finish on the house if possible.

[High Plains]

Our steel building cost around $9000. It is 18x40 and has has a 14' door. There were some issues within the company so we ended up getting a discount on it.

[Ed & Karen]

NLOVNIT what is the company name of your port? Thanks

[Rocket728]

Thanks for the feedback everyone! I am hearing that many of you have covered with no issue, and the 'poll' numbers are running in favor of covering.

Looks like I'll keep the cover - now I just have to get my "winter-lazy" rear end (complete with extra weight from the Holidays) out there to cover the darn thing..............

[leeso]

So, judging from the comments thus far from the experienced cover users, this will be my strategy for my Florida summer cover up. Comments please!

1. Obtain and Adco cover made from Tyvec (@450 dollars!)
2. My RV is 36 feet so make sure the cover is not too big to avoid excess unused material
3. Install extra padding where the cover 'fits' around sharp objects ie slide toppers, awnings etc.
4. Install extra all round straps to reduce billowing and movement.
5. Leave RV safe in the knowledge that the Sun isnt fading my paint, degrading my rubber seals and the summer rain isnt being driven into every orafice by the summer wind. JOB DONE.

Now for my next worry. Just how am I going to deal with the moisture trapped in the coach for the long, humid summer??

Trays of cat litter everywhere perhaps?

[Luckiest Dreamer]

I used a cover for 4 years, 1 in California and 3 in Iowa's winters. I feel the cover will protect moisture from entering small cracks, expanding and doing a lot of damage. It will also reduce damage from the sun. I believe the sun may actually do more damage to the paint than the snow and ice.
Having said that, I think it is nearly impossible to cover without some damage from rubbing. I would pad the troublesome areas only to find a different one the following year. I added straps because of billowing, still not a complete answer.
I do believe, the RV looked better because of the extra care it received due to the cover and would still do it if I had not found a building.
I now pay rent for a building. In order to make sure I have total access to it I need to pay for that building every month, even if the RV is in Florida for the winter paying lot rent or sitting in a wonderful summer getaway for weeks at a time. Paying double for storage during that time does get old! Guess that's the cost of the mobile lifestyle. Maybe I should buy a condo in each corner of the world and pay the association fees instead!

[elainee]

Originally Posted by leeso

I have the same dilema bit with different objectives. I am contemplating a cover to protect the RV from the ravages of a Florida Summer ie, heat, wind and rain. (I need to store it there this summer). I am wondering if several extra straps around the unit to keep the cover close to the body would reduce the chances of wind rub?

save your money...Check out the hindreds of MH's stored outside at dealer lots all over southwest Florida from Lazydays,near Tampa, Northtrails, Camping World,ect,ect..some have been there for over 2-3 years and they still look new, even from the hostile Florida sun and heat...

i live in sw Florida...covering a MH to protect it from the Florida summer ie,heat wind and rain would not be feasable or practable for in my case where i trekk 18,000 -25,000 miles a year
i have many times driven thru sleet,rain,snow,icy slush,dust storms on W- I10-and the unprectable weather parked at Quartzite,Az.in January..
my solution to maintain a sharp MH is to give it a wash and wax job 2-4 times a year...great cardio exercise and a sharp looking MH..
if i lived and parked in the northern climes i would consider covering the mh if it were to be parked for any lenght of time (3-5 months) during the winter months

[azloafer]

Outdoor parking in the RV storage lot near us runs $93 per month for outdoor parking and $225 plus tax for indoor. I'm outdoor and there are no coaches with covers in the entire place. These are secured lots with high fences, cameras, gate codes, etc. I was offered some less expensive parking on a large property owned by a friend, but the whole place is overrun with rodents and I am afraid to park there after reading about problems with them. There is a full service RV storage Lot about 40 miles from us with valets to park the coaches indoors. You can imagine what that would cost. Our HOA regulation allowed 90 minutes of street parking for loading and unloading. It was just changed to 48 hours so that makes it a lot easier. Happy Travels, Joe