My FEMA trailer thread

HomeGrown · 07-26-2011, 06:53 PM

Thought I would start this thread to document our (my wife and I) experience with our recently purchased FEMA travel trailer. Our primary reason for buying this is not for camping, but for full-time living (it's a long story, but it seemed to be the best option at the moment). After looking briefly at trailers and not knowing what to look for, we pulled the trigger and bought this 32' Gulf Stream Cavalier advertised on Craigslist for $4500. We picked it up for $3700. Seemed like a great deal, as it was one of those trailers that was never actually lived in. The guy we bought it from owned it since 2008, and it never left his yard (his wife was ill, and eventually passed away, so they/he never used the trailer).

Here's the pic from the CL ad:

I pulled it home with my Toyota Tacoma, which was a bit small for the task, but we made the 2 hr. trip back to Georgetown, KY. where we parked it at a new RV park that just opened earlier this year.

My primary task for full-time living in it was to convert it to all electric. Since my wife and I don't really use the oven, that was the first thing to go. We need the countertop and storage space more than the stove/oven. We have a nice Cuisinart toaster oven and a hotplate that suits our needs.
I am also replacing the hot water tank with a Rheem 9kw tankless water heater, which will require hooking up to the 50 amp 220v service.

Although unused, the trailer had water damage to the floor and roof. Since we are in the middle of moving out of our leased townhouse, I don't have anywhere to work on it so I contracted a local trailer repair business to fully replace the floor and roof with treated plywood. When I got the quote for just under $6k, I decided to move forward with it rather than sell it and buy something else (potentially no better than what I started with). Because of the extensive modifications I'm doing, i really didn't want to buy something new.

Thanks for looking, continued below:

HomeGrown · 07-26-2011, 06:54 PM

Here's the progress, with the inside pretty much gutted:

We should have the trailer back in about a week, and really looking forward to many modifications and improvements. Part of which will include expanding the bathroom area and putting in a Splendide combo washer/dryer, which I picked up on CL lightly used for $400.

I will keep this thread updated as I get more pics and eventually get moved into it.

j2detroit · 07-26-2011, 07:22 PM

sounds like you are really going to do some neat things with your rig hope you enjoy for many years to come

HomeGrown · 07-26-2011, 07:25 PM

Thank you J2, it should be a worthwhile distraction for awhile.

**bikendan** · 07-26-2011, 07:44 PM

boy, you've got more guts than me, pulling a 32' TT with a Tacoma!!!

good luck on your repairs.

HomeGrown · 07-26-2011, 08:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bikendan

boy, you've got more guts than me, pulling a 32' TT with a Tacoma!!!

good luck on your repairs.

Yeah, tell me about it! If my truck were a access or double cab with a V6 it would be within the 6500 lb rating, but my reg cab 4 cyl. is only rated to tow 3500. But towing will be rarely and minimal. Believe me, if I had seen the future I would have ordered a Tundra instead of a Taco!

11XLITE28BH · 07-26-2011, 09:06 PM

I know you said you won't be towing alot, but I'm simply amazed you pulled that 32' TT with a 4 cylinder small truck. Your probably lucky the hitch didn't rip right off the truck with that heavy trailer. Good luck with your repairs.

The_Stuff · 07-27-2011, 11:08 AM

ill be watching this thread!!

HomeGrown · 07-27-2011, 12:09 PM

Hey The_Stuff, when you gonna make it down to Kentucky? I see you've almost made it here.

The_Stuff · 07-27-2011, 05:15 PM

lol ive almost made it down there once. this weekend im going up though!

HomeGrown · 07-27-2011, 06:47 PM

Visited the shop doing the work today, and discussed a different bathroom layout. The original layout had the toilet right beside the tub (full size residential toilet) and away from the wall about 4", so it was really a struggle for my wife (she's handicapped) to get in & out of the tub. Hell, it was difficult for me too! The new layout has the bunk beds gone, so in the pic, the room behind the kitchen area (fridge temporarily stashed there) will be entirely bathroom/laundry room. The tub will be in the original location, with the toilet next to it along the back wall, and the vanity in the other corner of the back wall. The washer/dryer will be where the vanity was, just behind the kitchen wall. I will try to find a pic showing the original layout.

msbuddymom · 07-28-2011, 08:42 AM

Please be careful, there should have been something given to you that states no permanent living in the FEMA trailers. Maybe all the mod's you are doing will help or at least negate the formaldehyde issue with them. That's why the MEMA cottages came into plat in MS.

RubenZ · 07-28-2011, 08:47 AM

Are you sure that whole Formaldehyde issue is not BS? I read about that, but I believe almost all TT use that formaldehyde.

MikeInColo · 07-28-2011, 02:19 PM

Are you thinking of adding more windows? It looks like there aren't too many windows in that huge camper!

Seems odd that a camper that size has very few windows--I think I counted four?

RubenZ · 07-28-2011, 02:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MikeInColo

Are you thinking of adding more windows? It looks like there aren't too many windows in that huge camper!

Seems odd that a camper that size has very few windows--I think I counted four?

Those Trailers were contracted for FEMA. They were for Katrina and needed to be pushed out the assembly line ASAP. Added Windows would slow production down

Timex · 07-28-2011, 05:01 PM

I wish you well HomeGrown. Ah, the memories I have of post Katrina. If my memory serves me correct, the ole girl blew in on August 29,2005. The FEMA trailers started rolling to south Mississippi not long after. It would not be uncommon to see 20-30 of them traveling in an hour's drive. The hired drivers would pull them 75-80 mph down the interstate only to turn around to get another to bring down. Some of them wouldn't even have a latch for the door, only a wire tied to the door frame to hold it closed. Our great govt bureacra(z)y bought tens of thousands of these little darlings more than was needed. This prompted a need to store them since (WE) bought too many in the first place.

I live very near just 1 of these storage facilities that kept at least 10,000 of them. Most were never used because I would ride by occasionally and see huge ant beds and weeds growing up around the units. The land owner was paid by the govt(it was reported) $1,000,000 a month for use of his property. Complete with fences and armed guards. They finally cleared them all out last year. Add it up, that's at least 5 years. For sure, I hope you got one of the nicer ones but from my perspective, .....well I've probably said too much already. At least you get to modify it the way you like!

Sorry to be a Negative Nancy. I really do hope things work out in your favor!

msbuddymom · 07-28-2011, 08:10 PM

I was just letting you know in case you had no idea. When I was in New York we had no idea what was happening with the fema trailers till I came down. Thanks Timex, I have gone to look at some of the trailers and MEMA cottages and there are still hundreds or more of both of them.

HomeGrown · 07-28-2011, 08:57 PM

Thanks so much for the comments and concerns guys, I appreciate the interest and input.
I will have a bit more $$ than I'd care to in this, but I still feel I'm not over-invented in it, and it will be a very solid trailer when I'm done, customized to our specific needs. Any other new or used trailer would have required the same mods, so I decided to go in cheap. If I had it to do over, I would probably still look for a FEMA trailer, but one without water leak damage. Ahh, hindsight. There was no discernable formaldahyde smell in the trailer at all. LOL, believe me, I know the smell! The first summer my wife and I were married, we went to several dealers on a few occasions to look at mobile homes, and I remember the really strong smell in all the trailers. I remember how it burned my throat after being in a trailer for a few minutes.

Katrina must have been a Godsend for Elkhart, Indiana.

jimh · 07-28-2011, 11:19 PM

Rita hit SW Louisiana abt 1 month later. i was on a ride out crew at a local refinery. abt a week or less after Rita, we received a couple hundred or more trailers to house us and some of the workers brought in to help us with repair.
as the streets were cleared and electricity restored, some of those made it to individual residence while their home was being repaired. the trailers were assigned to the one that took them.
the couple hundred, the workers lived in, were not abused.
less than a month later, there was a large trailer park constructed and filled with trailers. there was a guard at the gate and a fence around the park. that park stayed occupied until abt 2 yrs ago. i believe early this year, that park was completely dismantled. never found out what the land owner was paid for the use of that property.
i was impressed at how quickly trailers arrived after the hurricane. was told we got trailers because the company provided a place for them, brought in portable power, piped sewer and water to each. more than likely these had been staged for Katrina and reassigned to us.
we also supplied fuel, at no charge, to the emergency workers for weeks.

the first FEMA trailers i saw advertised (on the internet) had been well used. couldn't believe people would remove microwave or stove. some required enough repairs to make them rival a new one.

HomeGrown · 07-29-2011, 07:21 PM

Interesting stuff! Jim, Timex posted above that one land owner was reportedly paid $1m per month where 10,000+ trailers were stored. Wow, it really makes you wonder what the total pricetag was. I sure hope they helped a lot of people, but there was an incredible amount of waste.

Here's something interesting I found in the paperwork that came with the trailer: it's a receipt from Terminix, who were contracted to ONLY do a visual inspection on trailers parked at a FEMA facility in Madison, IN. So, Terminix invoiced FEMA to do a visual inspection that took 2 minutes (2:00 in/2:02 out as recorded on the invoice). The invoice reported "no activity". Big surprise, it was mid-November in Indiana. Not gonna be much bug activity, and the trailer was only 6 months old at that time.

I think I originally misinterpreted the invoice to be $1010 for the inspection, but it may only be $5.00 per unit, and the balance incremented up $5.00 per unit inspected (looking at the "Prior Balance" on the invoice).

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