I am buying a 5x8 enclosed trailer for the purpose of consolidating my bugout/survival gear into one portable place. I wanted to see if the mastermind here already know of someone whose done this and if they can share any tips and tricks.

Any info is appreciated.

Awhile back I made a camper out of a 6x14 cargo trailer. Posted a thread about it. We still have it and still use it. But, that’s a bit different from what it sounds like you are doing.

What capabilities do you want the trailer to have? How do you plan to use it?

I would suggest taking it out and using it to simulate the scenario.

Are you think of setting it up with living quarters or just carrying things like food, water, ammo, etc?

Unless you plan to load it and just let it sit I'd install whatever tie down/cargo management system(s) you like, find some stackable storage boxes you like and put your gear in the boxes.  It allows you to use the trailer as a normal trailer, which is far, far more likely to be the case, then if need be you can quickly load and secure your gear inside.  Just take into account your actual weight and get an appropriately sprung trailer; rolling a loaded toolbox, cases of canned food, a bunch of ammo, etc. into a trailer adds up quickly.  

Whatever you get, I'd upgrade the locks if needed, add a rooftop vent if it doesn't have one, add LED lighting and make sure you have a spare tire (bonus points if you get hubs that match your tow vehicle's pattern so that you can swap tires if needed).  If you plan to sleep in it, I'd add insulation (I'd actually do that anyways), the vent would be powered such as a Fantastic and I'd add some red LEDs to preserve my night vision.  I'd add an awning on at least one side to provide a work/rest area and a fold down or attachable sideboard to work/cook on.

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I hope this helps.

Thanks for the responses everyone.

I am looking for purely cargo hauling when it comes to my supplies. I would like to keep everything I have in one mobile location so if/when the time comes I can just hitch up and be on the way with everything I have deemed worth carrying.

I was thinking of getting a 4x6 cargo trailer and storing two 55 gallon drums of water, containers of food and various other supplies along with using it as my ammo storage location.

When I had a truck I had a custom front bumper which, among other features, had a hitch receiver on it. It was to attach recovery equipment and to attach a trailer when parked overnight. Sticking it to the front bumper makes the entire package slightly more difficult to steal. For the price it was a nice option to have in the bag of tricks.

I don’t like the idea of primary storage of supplies in a easily portable thing like a trailer. Doesn’t take much for a thief to hook up and all your emergency supplies disappear down the road. Trailers are VERY easy to retitle in many states so a stolen trailer can usually easily disappear. The VIN on most manufactured trailers is just a sticker so easily peeled off. The majority of stolen vehicles are recovered but the majority of stolen trailers are not. So, if you do decide to use a trailer for supply storage, make sure it’s secure with multiple layers of security. Hitch locks are good but most can be broken off fairly quickly. Chains are good but the better chains are hardened (and more expensive) so they can’t be cut with typical bolt cutters....although they can still be cut with a cordless cut off tool. Plastic coated cables are good but can also be cut through given enough time. A removable hitch is a good security feature as well.

Locking your trailer inside a garage or shop is probably the best security feature.

Then, you might look into GPS trackers for your trailer just in case it gets stolen. The negative is they have to be kept charged.

If it is only for this gear, where will you be storing it?  In a climate controlled environment so humidity and temperature changes will not effect stored supplies?




Trailer is getting smaller...  I would suggest the biggest trailer you can afford and the biggest for the storage location you have.  

110 Gallons of water will weigh almost 1000 pounds.  Then adding in the weight of other gear will be maxing out the axles for a small trailer.  

Plus, having a trailer for only one purpose would be costly... to buy it, fill it and store it for a what-if scenario and not use it for anything else?


The Security Comments above are great.  What is your storage location and what security is there?
A friend in Nevada said a Cargo Trailer was stolen from the yard  he has his stored at.  
His has motion sensors, cameras and multiple chains/cables to prevent slow down someone who wants it.

Bill

I would take a full inventory of what you intend to store and haul in your trailer.  Then figure out how much it all weighs.  Then add an additional 250-500 pds to your final figure.  Once you have that down, you can select the type of trailer you will need.  I would suggest that you go with a double axle trailer.  Your towing stability will be better and if you have a flat you can at least travel to a safe spot to pull over and change your tire.   Go with the best tires you can afford and up the load rating.  Do not cheap out on tires.

Load your trailer with at least 60% of the weight in the front portion of your trailer.  Trailer whip is a real thing and will get your heart rate up real quick!!

I was thinking that 110 gallons of water might be a bit excessive until I realized that he was in Nevada.   Once I understood that then I realized that it may actually be reasonable......

But yes, he will need to size the trailer and axles appropriately.

Yes, Nevada, not even thinking about that.  Maybe 110 gallons is too little?

A 4x6 trailer is probably going to have a 2000 axle and about a 1750 lb payload capacity.  Along with the water and depending on how much ammo you're talking about, you could easily exceed the capacity of the trailer.  Not a good plan, especially if you plan to move on your typical NV gravel roads and trails.

Whatever trailer you get, I'd make sure it came with 3500 lb axles at the minimum.

Good luck!

All good points above.  Enclosed trailers get musty and the wood will rot eventually.  I got an old race hauler cheap because the PO was too lazy/dumb to seal the roof and most of the floor ended up rotting.  Moisture is going to be your enemy here if you're storing anything of real value.  I wouldn't keep ammo in a hot trailer if not completely necessary.

If you really wish to do this, I would highly recommend building something if at all possible.  Most trailers are built like absolute garbage, and I do not know if I would trust my life to one in a bug out situation.  There are some exceptions with those off-road focused campers, but that's not what we're talking about here.

Personally, I'd look for something with boxed beams and cross members.  Even with a single axle, electric brakes are almost mandatory in my eyes.  Something like a 7500 lb. Dexter axle (mae in USA) with enough clearance to run a wheel/tire combo that can serve as a spare for your main vehicle.  A pintle hitch would not only be better offroad and provide a level of "security" in that it is not as common and thus potentially less likely to get stolen.

That said, in a true SHTF event, a trailer might not only bring unwanted attention, but severely limit your mobility.  Like anything else, there are tradeoffs.

Something like this? It is a work in progress. Front cabinets hold gear without a shelf life and electronics. Rest of our camping/SHTF stuff is in tubs kept in my shop. If the need arises we can inflate a queen mattress inside with room to spare.

Brought used,  completely gutted, re sealed the top,  insulated, re wired, new tires. Leaving the exterior as is - rather like having it look like the 10s of thousands already on the road.

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Looks good, simple and can be utilized for multiple scenarios.

Camping? ?
Hauling? ?
Bugging Out? ?
Work? ?
House fire or flooded and need to sleep close by? ?

Bill

There are some good points here, especially if you live in Michigan.   You did see that he lives in Nevada, right?  

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honestly doesn't seem worth it to me. My bug out gear is often mixed with my bug in gear, as it would be useful at home should a situation arise like needing to filter water, start fires at home, etc.

You are also tying up some money and a lot of space for what will hopefully never be used. I would think keeping stuff in tubs to grab quickly and pack makes more sense as you can use the trailer for trailer stuff in the mean time.

I could grab enough stuff in pre-packed buckets that I could make a reasonable "escape" in under 20 minutes. I could leave right now with the clothing on my back and already have a good supply of gear because it's stashed in the truck already. Especially since when I'm out in the world I always have my truck but don't always have the packed buckets or whatever.

I would make sure you keep it stored in a garage or barn. Locked out of sight and out of criminal minds is important. I would also have the doors secured in the garage or barn, plus a tire lock and hitch lock. Make them earn it if they attempt to steal it.

Mine is behind a locked gate,  but need to get a hitch lock of some sort.  There are a bunch online,  but does anyone have a favorite?

Yes.  Maybe I'm projecting here, but if I am putting something together for TEOTWAWKI, it needs to be something that will work in more than one climate.

As for trailer locks, Proven Industries is up there.

Given enough time, any lock setup can be circumvented.  With the proliferation of cheap cordless angle grinders and Ramsets, it's only a matter of time before you can defeat almost any lock.

You can always disable the trailer or otherwise render it immovable by placing objects in its way (cars, etc.) and/or removing the wheels, but this also limits your ability to get rolling in short order.

Their video was cool.  Youtube Video





I would like them to send a set of locks to a lock picking expert to video how long it takes to open without a key.

Bill

Ask and ye shall receive:



He still attacks the lock itself, but speaks about a way to defeat it.  Honestly I'd think you would have to cut through this thing which would be a giant PITA, take a lot of time, create a lot of noise, and likely eat through more than a few discs.  Considering a ramset is essentially a .22 round, I couldn't imagine that being much more stealthy.