Does anyone on here haul RV's for a living? I had a dream last night that I quit my job and decided to pursue other things and the feeling I felt when I woke up is unexplainable. I've been stuck with these thoughts all darn day! I currently have a 2010 5.4 f150 which I would definitely be having to upgrade to a 2011-16 6.7 F-350
I am currently a 3rd year electrical apprentice in central AB and work has been kind of wishy washy this past year. The nice thing in my situation is that I am single and only have my dog to worry about when I make decisions like this.

Can anyone chime in and give me some insight so I can give my poor brain a rest?

 

My dad did this for a couple of years, and he did not get rich doing this. He did it more to see the country than to make money, but you really have to go all in to make any money doing it. And your truck has to be in top shape, 'cause it's gonna rack up some miles, obviously. Anyway, I wouldn't plan on getting rich doing it. But it could be fun. Just be sure and have a fall back plan in case it's not what you thought it was going to be.

 

Not RV's but transport vehicles on a 3 car trailer. Was just a thought but after crunching numbers it wasn't cost effective.
I'd suggest you finish you're apprenticeship, get your journeyman certificate. Afterwards if you decide later to change jobs and find out it wasn't right, then you'd could fall back on the trade.

 

I agree with this.

My FIL thought about running RVs or cars - you aren't going to get rich, and you've got to run your trucks HARD to make money. The reason? They only pay you while you're hooked up, so your return trip is on your dime unless you can secure a load headed back the other direction. If you can back-haul, then it's possible to make some cash, but not a lot. And if you break down, he was told they send someone to pick up the trailer and you're out that cash, plus have a broken truck.

 

Stick with the Electrical gig. You'll be happy you did. Is that central Alabama? Homeowners will always need an Electrician, Plumber, HVAC and other repair people because the newer generations are inherently lazy and phone driven. Get your Master of Electricians license, go into business for yourself and watch it grow. Maybe revisit the dream (pipe dream) gig later on in life. Also, get to a community that has a decent median household income. Homeowners with cash make for great customers.

 

Thank you guys for the suggestions, I was doing some number crunching last night and it seemed to be worse than I thought when factoring in hotels and other costs that didn't immediately come to mind. I'll stick with what I'm doing now and maybe in a few years something may come up that I'd like to do more or I'll find that spark again that got me into the trade in the first place. Thanks!

 

My youngest son transports RVs with his F-450 for a large dealer near here, but only part time because of his real job. They usually call him a few days prior and he can take it or turn it down. His dealer pays him one mileage rate for the haul and another rate for the trip back, about 90% of his jobs are one way hauls, dead head back..
So far this year, even with the pandemic, he's hauled to just about every state east of the Mississippi River.
He's making decent money doing it but by no means is he making a lot of money. And by working for one dealer, he never knows when he'll get a haul, some months he's on the road every weekend and some nights, some months he may only haul one weekend.

 

I spent over 20 years in the IBEW Local 760 in Knoxville TN as a electrician. Stick with it and it will pay off in the long run

 

Sounds like he got in good with a decent dealer. The factories were only paying one-way, maybe they've changed but I wouldn't hold my breath.

 

Also, most RV transport companies would not let you use a 2011 model truck. Also, they would tell you it would be beneficial to have a DRW instead of SRW. A 20 year old truck in their eyes would be a reliability risk for completing a long cross country haul.

Not sure about Canada, but if you were to make a delivery to the USA, You would have to meet USA DOT rules and regs. You would need log books and now days they want them to be electronic. Would think Canada has similar DOT rules and regs.

 

I understand your concerns... How many more years before you turn out as a Journeyman?
I have both transported my own 40' RV and other times I had an RV Toter move it for me. I am a retired Union Steamfitter and worked all over the US. I chased the big money jobs (60 hours+ / week)... You understand the "Business". I could jump in my car, drive all night and hire on a job the next morning. Once I was on that job and it looked long term, I'd have my RV Toter bring my trailer to where I was working. I had a spot rented in a park to put it. All I had to do was draw a day or two of OT wages and that paid for the moving of my RV... Run the math. A Journeyman (any craft) can make twice as much as an RV Toter and have no headaches.

Get as many "Certifications" as you can while still in school... Even the Electricians need welders.... Building a simple unistrut frame, st times needs to be welded. The highest paid Journeymen (of any Trade) were welding the aluminum buss bars in the power plants. They owned their own welding rigs, drew Union wages and rented their truck back to the contractor... Some of the best hands I worked with.

Hang with the industrial construction electrical work... Draw a good pay check, build a pension, have good medical coverage. Get Journeyman status and them go shop for other jobs.

Hobo