Storing Horse Tack in Shipping Containers

Secure and good quality storage of horse tack and equipment is essential for all yards, large or small. In this guide we detail the pros and cons of storing horse tack in shipping containers, and we try and answer a lot of the common problems and worries concerned about or interested in storing horse tack in shipping containers.

What makes shipping containers so good for secure horse tack room storage?

Shipping Containers offer excellent quality secure, weatherproof storage. Firstly, they are very anonymous, there’s no clear idea to the average opportunist if a shipping container contains valuables or just feed. They are built from thick steel panels which at their thinnest, cannot be cut through without some form of heavy cutting gear or heavy power tools.

When secured with one of our high security lock boxes and an insurance rated padlock, this firstly means it will take someone with heavy cutting gear to break into your container, but it also means that the contents of any shipping container can likely be added to the insurance policy covering the contents of the site as a whole.

We can also very easily add basic customisations to a shipping container to make it ideal for storing horse tack. We can very easily weld on supports and bars to make up saddle racks and bridle hooks (this will cost a little extra over a basic container price, but these can also be built to custom sizes and we can mount them exactly where you want them!)

Very finally containers are very versatile and storing horse tack in shipping containers can offer superb value. Shipping containers are unfortunately a commodity that changes in price over time so it’s difficult to give you exact costs in an article like this. However, a new shipping container will cost in the region of £2000 and after 10 years it’s still likely to be worth well over £1000 and still have decades of life left in it. (assuming it has been reasonably well looked after during its life static on your site)

As a commodity they will hold their value well, however you should also consider delivery costs in potential resale values. The further you are from one of our bases, the less we can offer to pay when buying back a shipping container (as its costs us more to come out to pick it up!). This should make storing horse tack in shipping containers one of the best value long term options available.

Do I need planning permission for a shipping container for tack storage?

A single shipping container on your site used for for storage use should count as a temporary structure and should be exempt from planning permission. However, we cannot provide a blanket guarantee so if there is any doubt please check with your local planning office in advance of making any booking with us.

We have a little more detail, and some hints and tips on what we can do to shipping containers to help with a planning application in our article do you need planning permission for a shipping container.

Will my shipping container tack room sweat?

All shipping containers will get some condensation form on the inside of the roof as they cool overnight. With expensive treated leathers being stored inside we appreciate you can’t afford to have your tack being damaged from the moisture in the air so we have a number of solutions for this.

We cover a lot of the detail for this in our ultimate guide to shipping container condensation treatments, however there are a number of temporary and permanent condensation treatment options that we can supply for you, and there are a number of DIY approaches we also cover in this guide.

In addition to this we have an excellent range of accessories that make storing horse tack in shipping containers an excellent idea. If you have no power nearby and don’t’ want to go to the expense of fitted electrics, we offer some very neat motion sensor LED lights and we have some unbeatable prices on heavy duty racking and shelving to help with the storage of all your equipment.

How do you deliver the shipping container?

We have a range of trucks and haulers helping us offer a nationwide crane equipped delivery service. We commonly use Hiab crane equipped vehicles to help us deliver the shipping containers and lift off. These trucks all have a single crane arm, usually behind the cab of the truck to help lift the container off.

Any containers 20ft or smaller will typically be delivered on a large rigid vehicle, a similar size to the large builder’s merchants vehicles you may see around. with an approx 27-30ft long lorry bed. All our containers 30ft and up are commonly delivered on a very large articulated truck (We will often also deliver 30ft’s on the larger rigid trucks as well)

As long as our truck can run over and operate on hard standing ground at all times, as long as the lifting zone is clear of any overhead obstructions like tree branches and power or phone cables, and as long as we can lift off more or less directly next to the truck then we can lift the shipping container off and put it on the ground for you. Your shipping container tack room is now ready to go!

Commonly we get questions, ‘can you put it over a fence, or down the side of our barn? etc. Typically, if its more or less next to the truck we do have some manoeuvrability – but we would often ask if you can send us a good set of photos of the area you need the container to go, the area you envisage our truck sitting when its doing the lift, and any area of worry on the way into site or to the area you want this container going.

If we arrive on site and cannot deliver due to unsuitable vehicle access, potentially risky or dangerous site conditions for our truck or driver then we do reserve the right to cancel the delivery and charge for the wasted trip, for this reason it’s very important to keep us as informed as possible so we can help with advice, suggestions to help deliveries go smoothly and the least risky ways to proceed if necessary.

A chargeable site visit is an option in most cases if you wish to remove any risk from delivery, but in many cases we can achieve very similar results without charging for a site survey but by getting in a good set of pictures, or in cases a brief video walk-though of the site taken from your smartphone.

Can you deliver a shipping container across soft ground or a field?

Our delivery truck are not designed for off road use. In very basic terms plenty of drivers who decide to drive into the middle of a field and get stuck might not have a job the following week so the drivers will not be willing to risk getting stuck or risk any damage to their truck when completing a delivery.

However, we quite commonly compete deliveries across fields and other potentially soft ground. Typically, this is undertaken in the summer months when the ground is firm, and very basically the onus will be on you to check the ground, ensure your happy that the ground is firm enough for us to run over, and you will then need to keep an eye on the weather forecast and cancel us with good notice if you feel there is a risk of rain in the day or two before delivery.

Quite commonly any of our drivers will ask for a disclaimer to get singed before he proceeds with any form of risky delivery. If the driver identifies any risks with the delivery he may insist that you sign a disclaimer before he continues. this essentially says ‘if I get stuck or damage my truck doing your delivery, I can pass my costs and changes to get my truck back onto you’

Having equipment to hand (eg a tractor) that might be able to help pull a driver out if he were to get stuck may help a lot if there is any risk of getting stuck, however the decision to proceed will always be down to the driver’s assessment on the day.

We can offer site surveys from our hauliers which will help remove any risk from the job for you and give you peace of mind over the delivery. Site surveys are commonly chargeable and please contact us to discuss the job specifics if you’re thinking of a site survey. we will commonly ask for photos to be sent in first so we can understand the problem or challenge at hand!

What options are available if you can’t deliver the shipping container where I want it?

When dealing with tricky shipping container deliveries, we never like saying ‘no’ and in our experience nearly every problem has possible solutions, its finding the most achievable ‘/ cost effective or practical one that will often be the tricky bit! We want your storing of horse tack in shipping containers to work well for you, so here are some of the more popular ways around problems with tricky deliveries

Shipping Container Deliveries Inside Barns

Although we often can’t lift off inside a building or structure, many of our hauliers have shipping container skates to help. think of these like a big set of roller skates for a shipping container. With care and experience we can manoeuvre a shipping container along a flat and smooth surface to get it into an awkward position.

Shipping Container Deliveries across soft ground and fields

If the ground is soft our delivery trucks won’t’ go over grass, but we have had customers in the past use tractors with large fork on the front and a hay trailer to take containers across a muddy field and lift them off into position.

At times we have had customers navigate small distances by rolling the container along using round fence posts as rollers. This approach requires considerable care and we would typically not recommend unless it’s the only options as we believe this is far from the safest way to move a shipping container.

If access is impossible for a large truck?

How about checking our flat pack range of storage containers, office and chemical stores. These are built very differently and are made from shinier steel. However, each panel is light enough to be carried into place by 2 people, meaning this makes a great storage container for impossible to reach locations such as back gardens, forests, the middle of an allotment plot and more.

 Would you like to be storing horse tack in shipping containers?

Storing horse tack in shipping containers should be a nice and easy option, but we do appreciate it’s difficult to understand this product if you’ve never dealt with them before.

Budgetshippingcontainers.co.uk offer the UK’s largest online range of shipping containers for sale with a nationwide network of storage and conversion yards and crane equipped delivery vehicles.

If you need a shipping container feel free to browse our online range of shipping containers for sale. You can also call us on freephone 0808 1234 215 any time 9am – 5pm weekdays and our team will be happy to discuss your requirements. Alternatively, you can use our online shipping container quote form or request a telephone callback. In both cases we aim to get back to you within 1-2 working hours (may take longer for more detailed quotes).