Moving cross country via container (Pods)

Benjamin Strange · #1 08-26-2011, 09:55 AM

Gents (and you rare ladies),

I'm going to move from San Francisco to New Orleans, in order to start up my own guitar repair and building shop there. I don't own much stuff, and was considering shipping my stuff there via these new fancy container moving services. All I need to ship is 7 instruments, some clothes, my recording stuff, and some other small items. I'm thinking that perhaps these Pod style moving services might be cheaper than packing everything into a car and driving 3000 miles.

Driving from New Orleans to San Francisco a few years ago cost me over $500 in gas alone, not to mention food and the occasional hotel. Since I don't own a car presently, I thought maybe packing everything up, getting a one way ticket, and then buying a car in NOLA might be the way to go.

However, none of these companies supply quotes on their website - you have to call each one. I don't want to bother with this just yet, since my move is 4 months out. Have any of you used these kind of services? How much did you have to spend? Would you recommend it, etc.?

MatticusMania · #2 08-26-2011, 10:27 AM

I dont recommend moving in a container. Maybe just put your stuff in one and ride in an auto...

**Mound of Sound** · #3 08-26-2011, 10:29 AM

I moved from Phoenix to New Hampshire about a year and a half ago. We moved our whole house. We looked at PODS, and they were pretty expensive. We went with U-Pack. You reserve an amount of space in a large truck and they charge you for that. You pack it up yourself, they come and pick it up, and drive it for you. It was still expensive ($3500), but we did go 2800 miles, and we used up 18 feet of space.

You might even want to look at just shipping everything UPS, if all you have is what you've mentioned above.

MJ5150 · #4 08-26-2011, 10:42 AM

Four months isn't that far out. It may be good to get your financials in order and make sure the movers have space on their schedule to accommodate your move. With something that small, you're going to have to fit on a truck going that way anyway, so those logistics need to be ironed out.

-Mike

bongomania · #5 08-26-2011, 10:50 AM

I used PODs when I moved from SF to PDX. My then-GF-now-wife had a bunch of large furniture that she didn't want to get rid of, and many boxfulls of other possessions, and a car; plus we have a dog and two cats. We did the math on all that and found that putting all the stuff in PODs, and driving up with the pets in the car, was BY FAR the most sensible and cost-effective option.

If I was single, with no pets and not much stuff, it would not have made sense at all. I would totally just rent an SUV from one of the major car-rental companies, and call it a day.

hover · #6 08-26-2011, 11:09 AM

U Haul van is not an option? Point A to point B for a flat daily rate (plus mileage I presume) and then drop it off at the nearest rental joint. Just another option. Probably the easiest in a short time frame to secure.

impactwrench · #7 08-26-2011, 07:33 PM

When I moved a lot of stuff, I towed a 6x12 uhaul trailer behind a pickup. Trailers are rented by the day and location (pickup and dropoff). The trucks are rented by the day and mile so ends up costing a whole lot more. You've got 4 mos...can you find a car or van or SUV big enough to tow a trailer with all your stuff?

()smoke() · #8 08-26-2011, 08:36 PM

it sounds like you don't need the space of a trailer or van, unless the recording equipment is larger than what I envision, so renting a trailer or moving van would just incur unnecessary expense due to the decreased fuel economy in comparison to renting a minivan and driving...most minivans should get at least 20mpg highway, and at 2000 miles, that's 100 gallons of gas, which should be under $400. so add the vehicle rental, which you can probably find at a good price with some searching for discounts

fhm555 · #9 08-26-2011, 09:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hover

U Haul van is not an option? Point A to point B for a flat daily rate (plus mileage I presume) and then drop it off at the nearest rental joint. Just another option. Probably the easiest in a short time frame to secure.

This...for me anyway. I'd be too worried about breakage and theft to turn all my instruments and gear over to strangers to move.

I grew up an army brat so we moved a lot, and we never moved that something didn't get broken or just disappear. As an adult I've paid to be moved twice and both times I lost expensive electronics and had other things broken.

Benjamin Strange · #10 08-27-2011, 09:10 AM

Yeah, looks like just buying a car is the way to go. I've gotten a few quotes from various container movers, and they've varied from $1500 - $3000 for the same size container!

I've seen people with really small ones at their houses, which would be ideal, but if it's over $500 to get it shipped then I might as well just pack it all up and take it myself. Which is fine - I'm due for a good road trip.

ADbassman · #11 08-27-2011, 09:53 AM

I'm in a similar situation since I'm moving from California to Georgia in January. Uhaul apparently won't rent me a trailer since I drive a ford explorer sport trac, and Uhaul in their infinite logic has determined that's the only vehicle on earth incapable of towing one of their trailers. I looked at PODS and it seemed much more expensive than other options I had, and I have a similar amount of stuff to what you have. I haven't quite figured out what I'm gonna do, but I may just have the military move all my stuff.