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Share a storage unit or no?


triscadek

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I currently moved into a new house about 30 minutes from where I used to live which leaves the boat at a storage unit I have used for a while that in now 40 miles away. We have a channel about 5 minutes from us that is perfect for boarding, no traffic except maybe two fellow tow boats. I found a storage unit about 5 minutes away from the house here that is pretty nice. He has two units open, one is a unit that is self contained and another would be shared with 2 other tenants. Ill attach a video of the shared one. The house we are currently in for this year has NO room for me to work on the boat in. I have a long list of stuff to do. The self contained unit is a PAIN to back in to and has less walk around room etc. It is 12' tall, 12' wide and 30' long. I backed into them both, you can see where the previous tenant bumped the side of his boat on the siding a couple times. The only self contained ones are in the ends of the building where the fence is pretty close. The shared unit has about 80-100 feet to line up to the door with, other is 50 MAYBE and takes 5-6 shots to get in.

My question is how much should I worry about the other tenants in the big unit stealing something from my boat? No wetsounds, yet. I have cheaper stuff wired up for now but I still have other stuff in my boat to be concerned about. I also have a GPS unit mounted in the boat to where I can set a fence around the unit and if It is moved 20 feet, or whatever I set it to, I will get text and email notifications instantly and be able to track it... Even though it concerns me, I do like all the room id have to be able to work on the boat. New hoses, cables, filters, tower speakers, perfect pass, trailer bearings and brakes are all on the way and will be put on by spring.

http://vid302.photobucket.com/albums/nn102/SS3157/Boat/9777B063-46E4-409B-878A-DB79B51A577C_3.mp4

EDIT: I asked the owner if he knew the tenants very well and he said unfortunately he did not and that he has never had any problems from anyone at his units. He has 150 units and every 4 units are shared. I am kinda concerned that he gave me the codes to go look at the space only knowing my first name and never meeting face to face.

Edited by triscadek
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I'm in a shared storage unit and it's the first time I've ever stored my boat outside of my own garage. Our unit is split between 2 tenants. The units are for motor homes so lots of space and we stick 2 boats in our half. I recently moved from one unit to another in the same facility due to the neighboring tenant.

The neighboring tenant in my original spot had a bunch of junk in it from a family cottage they plan to sell. For the first 3 months no issues. Then I was called by the storage facility manager to ask if I could move my boats so the other tenant could access some things at the back of their space. I have locks on the couplers and wheels so no one can move the boats with out some serious effort or we have come to do it. I asked to talk to the other tenant and they are selling a lot of the stuff in their part of the unit in preparation for the cottage to go up for sale this summer. I didn't like the fact this guy would literally be having a garage sale with my boats right next to his stuff and called the facility manager back. He offered me a differ unit next to an actual motor home owned by a retired army general, who wanted to talk to me before I moved in next to him. After talking we agreed we are the perfect match for a shared unit and I moved our boats.

So my advice is to look at what is being stored with you. Our facility they escorted us to see the units until we signed a contract and paid. If the tenants you share a unit with all have nice boats there is a good chance they are as particular as you are and you are all set. If it looks like potential candidate from the show Horder is in there look for a different unit.

In the end this is a test for me. I was planning on getting a temporary storage structure to put at our house from Shelter Logic but gave this a go to see how much of a hassle it is or is not. If I keep the same neighbor I'll probably go another year or see if some of the smaller single tenant units open up (they just expanded the facility and their new large single units would be a tighter fit but no "neighbors".

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Good to know. I may ask to speak with the other tenants. As you can see in the video, the boat directly behind me is a Starcraft or something just kinda bland. The full pull through to the side of me looks to be owned by one person. The door is locked on both ends and he said they are occupied so I'm guessing a motor home or something that is out on the road. There is not a box to be found anywhere. Just the boat behind me and an extension cord. I'm not so much worried about the boat getting stolen, in actually okay with that haha. Insurance will pay me several grand more than what I have in it and I can get a newer one lol. I'm just worried about rummagers. I have a long enough list for the boat that I should be there quite a bit working on the boat or just getting away from the kids for a bit haha. Might just need a mini fridge, cot and tool box. Perhaps a flat screen lol.

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Don't storage units have rules about working on stuff in them?

I told the guy I had a couple cables to replace and some other maintenance stuff to do, he said he was cool with it. Obviously I wont do anything that will involve fluids staining the concrete or anything that would look to be remotely tacky. Not my style.

Edited by triscadek
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I think it kinda depends on where it is. I stored my boat with 4 wet sounds and 2 amps in a covered but open spot with at least 400 other RVs and stuff...I never had a problem in 5 years. But prior to that, it was in a smaller storage area outside the city and I had all my stereo equipment stolen within a few months, Ask others around you if they have had problems.

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Would putting a front receiver on the truck to park the boat make it any easier to maneuver in to the self-contained unit? Maybe I'm bad a backing up, but I know that when I used the front receiver on my old truck to put the boat away it made it very simple because the small corrections with the steering wheel immediately translated in to movement of the trailer tongue. I did have to run a power lead off the battery to turn the brakes off...

I'd like to put a front receiver on my new truck, but there isn't a kit that blends in/hides well available yet.

The ~$500 it takes to put a front receiver on the truck could pay dividends for your peace of mind with the self-contained unit.

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Very true. Maybe I have just found justification for the wife to put the $1,200 ranch hand bumper I want for my truck haha.

That aside, I've been backing trailers up since I was about 12 on the farm and still do daily. That's not the problem. It's the angle backing in leaves you with less room being that trailer is angled as it comes through the door rather than backing it straight in. Plus, at the angle, I cannot see the passenger side of the boat trailer and how close it is. I'd be rather upset if I folded in my fender, back step or have to replace his siding.

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Very true. Maybe I have just found justification for the wife to put the $1,200 ranch hand bumper I want for my truck haha.

That aside, I've been backing trailers up since I was about 12 on the farm and still do daily. That's not the problem. It's the angle backing in leaves you with less room being that trailer is angled as it comes through the door rather than backing it straight in. Plus, at the angle, I cannot see the passenger side of the boat trailer and how close it is. I'd be rather upset if I folded in my fender, back step or have to replace his siding.

$1200 goes a ways towards just building an extra garage ;)

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We took the shared unit. Turns out we have two other tenants. One tenant rents the whole 60' space to the side of us and is typically absent. He also is the president and CEO of one of the two biggest hospitals here in town. Enough said in my book. He has been a tenant for over 10years. The other rents the spot directly behind us and has also rented the spot for 10 or more years according to the owner. Says he's never had any trouble for either. In my eyes that speaks well enough.

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Keep us updated! Hope it all works out but I could never sleep well knowing strangers had access to my stuff.

Just don't leave any beer in your boat and you should be fine.

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