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I have a class A diesel pusher for sale. Now where near $200,000.00

Years ago, we would get enough claims to easily keep us on site for a month or more. Now, they throw so many adjusters at a storm that you are lucky (a lot of times) to get enough to last a couple of weeks. I spent $15,000 for motels in 2004 working Neb, Denver and FL. When I got back home 11 months later I went on EBay and bought a motor home. 2005 and 2006 were spent in FL mostly as branch assist (didn't move around) which was great but I had to make sure I ran the motor home on a regular basis and I had to pull a car (which saved on gas mileage working the claims I had outside over a truck). When I had it at home, I still had to run it regularly but it sat more than it was driven which was bad for it mechanically. I then went to a 36' 5th wheel and diesel dually in Houston right after Ike where I did clean-up and appraisal work for months. The 5th wheel is great for space but I dropped to about 15mpg using the truck rather than the 30+mpg with the car which really hurts.

More importantly (MH or Trl) you have to look at the expense of getting there. RV sites are running around $30-35 a night, cheaper by the month if you think you will be in one place that long. When you add in the extra cost of driving there over the car you have to be somewhere more than a month to make up for the per night cost in a motel and in some areas RV parks are few and far between and may mean a long commute to where your claims are.

So, at this point, the 5thwheel is parked here at home, I dirve the truck occasionally around town as needed but when I can't be certain of a lot of claims they both stay here at home and I take the car (in 2010 I never took them out). On major events like a hurricane I would take it (but there again, you really need a generator and most trailers don't come with one). The major problem with the truck (crew cab extended, full size bed, dually) is that it is really hard to find a parking spot in a lot of residential areas. I had a lot of claims in NJ and NY this past year where I had a hard time getting down (or parking in) the narrow streets with even my Pontiac. If I had taken the dually, I would have been walking a LONG way to get to those losses.

KLS

It's the only way to travel for us....I HATE taking my stuff in and out of motels!!! Plus, we travel with two dogs and sometimes a six year old, so finding the right motel is always a challenge. Add in bed bugs, not being able to cook your own meals, pet restrictions, maids in and out of your room.....the list of cons goes on and on.

I currently have a two slide 31 foot travel trailer -- upgrading to a 42' toyhauler at the end of the month.

We don't use a Class A due to the mechanical breakdown issue.
If it does break down on the way to a storm, there sits my house and all my gear on the side of the road.

Waiting for a rv tech is like watching paint dry in the wintertime, but worse.

If my one ton, on the other hand gets in trouble, there is a Chevy shop every fifty miles - I can usually be back on the road within 24 hours.

Or, I have been known to just buy a new truck and sell the old one when it gets fixed. :)

There is two sides to this method of staying somewhere.

I found this last year that Motels w/ plenty of room for one or two people are Pretty competitive. It doesn't take long and you find the motels the other adjusters have located and many times they are the same guys on your team. This is very beneficial in many ways. You find out in short order what the other folks are running into out there in the field. You find out the best eating places and you also find out where the best and most economical and clean Motels are.  I stayed in a very nice motel for $180 a week. That included a full size frig, Stove laundramat.satellite TV. good air conditioning and it also had the internet hi-speed hook up. Bed was always clean and made up there was a safe in the room for valuables. All for under $26 dollars per day. That was in Dallas and it was less than a mile from the storm office. there was every kind of restaurant you could ask for .Buffets , Tex Mex,steak houses.

Also were Dr. clinics Walmart, grocery stores. ETc. Etc. This particular motel also had 24/7 security and I never heard of anyone having a bit of problems.

  i have friends that have rvs and their biggest expense is fuel going to and from the storms, finding rv parks close to the claims and the claim office. Then most of them have to pay $60-$70 per month just on the hughes net sattelite.    Then there is always costs for some of the amenities at the rv parks also. Not to mention I don't like the close quarters of rv's after just a short period of time. But that is up to the individual.

So far, I cannot make the math work on a trvl trlr. Like Jerry, I don't need a luxury hotel, and $26-$30 will get you a kitchenette and a clean bed. If my family came with me, I'm sure I would feel different. When my wife travels to see me, we will sometimes spring for a nice hotel during her stay. I have some friends with nice diesel pushers. One thing they all have in common is a constant relationship with the RV mechanic. The trvl trlr also comes with storage fees unless you have room to park it at your place. I'm sticking with the economical car and cheap hotels for now.

JWG

Jerry I agree with your post.  My biggest concern is the cost to reach a site then be able to perform at any reasonable level, especially following a massive storm impact that nearly levels everything.  Carriers expect an IA to show up at the site, the day following a Cat 5 impact ready to work. Katrina  I was on site in 5 days  lived with an aunt in Mobile, otherwise there were no rooms within 200 miles in any direction. No power, No water, Nothin open, Gas limited, No internet   Katrina took out US Hwy 90 and several connecting bridges making access a bitch  It was eerie just being on the beach and hear nothing. No birds, No planes, No boats, No people.

Now in 2011 we are almost guaranteed the price of gasoline will hit $4.00 / gallon for regular by August  I do not know about you but that impacts my bottom line.  I would not want to own a RV holding 50 gallons for $4/gal  WOW $200.00 and an RV gets what 4-6 miles per gallone  OUCH  even a vehicle 20 gals is $80.00  You could pay that every day just to access losses and could easily pay that for a month or more before you see the first check on top of the hotel bill and eats + incidentals    the RV will need a tow behind vehicle to work an area  so you can add that $80.00 to the $200.00 MORE OUCH   

Like all of you we live to work the "storm" but it will be a cost challenge for all of us 

 

Once you add in the costs of an Rv park and the additional fuel it takes to get to a storm, I still come in at less than $800 a month for using my rv -- it is pretty much a fixed cost for us, since we live in it lots of months anyway, so storage isn't often an issue.
When we do use storage it is $40 a month.

Plus, I can put 88 gallons (main and an aux. tank) in my truck and get over 1,000 miles range while pulling my trailer.

It also gives me extra capacity when fuel isn't available, after the trailer is dropped off.

My trailer holds another 50 gallons of gasoline for the generator (along with 162 gallons of fresh water).

Staying in a motel with no water or power is no fun.

Three months deployment in a year is a break even for my motor home vs hotel. Probably two and a half months for a decent fith wheel. The motor home breaks down, I load what I need in the truck and I only loose a few hours. The motor home is repaired, I drive back and pick it up.

Everything I need for work is in the motor home and only takes a few minutes to have it up and running. The view out of the window can be spectacular. The bugs are the worse problem. The dog loves the Motor home and the wife likes having her own home and kitchen to come home too.

Thanks everyone for your replies! Great advise and wisdom from all!