Mobile Bunkhouse Trailers – Top Entrepreneurs Podcast

Grant Stahla, Co-owner of Stahla Services, a nationwide provider of restroom, shower, and ADA trailer rentals again joins Enterprise Radio.

On this episode, the focus will be on the Mobile Bunkhouse Trailers, all the benefits and the specifics of renting this particular trailer for your needs.

Listen to host Eric Dye & guest Grant Stahla discuss the following:

(Host Eric Dye): Grant, why should our listeners care about bunkhouse trailers right now?

(Guest Grant Stahla): Yeah, that’s a great question, Eric. Let me pose up a situation and then that can kind of kick off this intro of why they should care about this. So a Wildfire Base Camp. There’s fifty exhausted firefighters kicking off their boots and crawling into a chilled bunk. They have A/C humming, gear stowed and doors locked down. That’s a situation where without that they would be burning precious hours, shuttling to town and not able to stay on site and then wake up and directly start fighting fires right away. So in these 15 minutes, I’m gonna share how exactly bunkhouse trailers keep mission critical teams rested anywhere, just like one of the camp bosses said, “those bunks saved us a 2 hour road trip every day”!

(Host Eric Dye): First things first—what exactly counts as a mobile bunkhouse trailer?

(Guest Grant Stahla): Yeah. Yeah, that’s a great question. These are definitely unique trailers, specialty trailers, so I’m happy to go into that. So bunkhouse trailers are self-contained, sleep modules on wheels. They’re climate controlled, code compliant and you can tow them in and tow them out in hours. They first had a big push after Hurricane Katrina, and now they’re the standard for FEMA, wildfire, oil and gas man camps, music festivals and film sets. Typical deployments are anywhere from 1 to 16 weeks stents where hotels are scarce or budgets are tight. So let’s crack one open and see what’s under the skin.

(Host Eric Dye): Grant, give us the guts, what’s inside these trailers that makes them livable?

(Guest Grant Stahla): You bet. So they all have sleeping pods, so they’re single or double stack bunks with 80 inch hospital grade mattresses is a typical size. For the HVAC, you usually have a three and a half ton package units or twin 13,500 BTU roof A/C’s to keep those temperatures nice and cool. For the safety features, there’s emergency egress windows, fire extinguisher stations and smoke and carbon monoxide. alarms. For plumbing, usually you don’t have plumbing on these units since they’re just sleeping units. And then for power, sometimes it’s twin 50 amp shore feeds or you have an onboard diesel generator for off grid operations or there can be three or four connections to 15 amp, 120 Volt power, so that wraps up some of the core anatomy and the tech of those bunkhouse trailers.

(Host Eric Dye) : Who are the big players, and what sets each trailer apart?

(Guest Grant Stahla): You bet. So obviously, if you’re looking at renting a bunkhouse trailer, reach out to us at Stahla.com. You can give us a call at 844-900-3190 or e-mail us at [email protected]. Some of the big manufacturers you have Satellite Industries, they make an 8, 10 and a 12 station bunkhouse. Porta Kleen, they make a 53 foot mobile bunkhouse on a semi trailer. Jag Mobile Solution makes an 8 Unit, 10 unit and a 12 unit and they make semi-trailers as well. And then Lang Specialty Trailers makes 8 units and 16 units. There’s several others, but those are some of the big players. You’re gonna have anywhere from 8 unit bunkhouses to 16 unit bunkhouses. It just kind of depends on the size of hauling unit that you want, so that’s some of the big players that are in the industry for bunkhouse trailers.

(Host Eric Dye) : How do customers decide which bunkhouse is ‘the one’?

(Guest Grant Stahla): You bet. So you’re kind of looking at privacy versus capacity. So you have open bay 16 bed units and then you have the private suite models which boost security and you have your own private bay. It’s kind of a difference between an open room sleeping situation and having your own small bunk room situation. So obviously one is more private and can be a little bit preferable but you’re not gonna fit as many people in those trailers. For water and wastewater, a lot of the trailers don’t have those, but some of them do have little sinks in them. So then you want to be able to choose between if you have the water capacity be able to supply those, and then for power like I mentioned earlier, you have some of them have generators on board, some are 50 amp power and some are 15 amp power so depending on how much power you have on site you wanna be able to understand what that trailer requires. For climate zones, there’s different insulation levels. What some of the standards are 11 installation and a heated underbelly for sub zero temperatures and then a lot of them have a reflective roof for desert gigs or really hot situations. And then for future resell, the private rooms resell well in a festival market and high capacity units resell well with disaster contractors. That’s a quick overview of the future comparisons and the decision drivers between deciding which bunkhouse is the one.

(Host Eric Dye) : Let’s talk money, what does it cost to rent or own one of these?

(Guest Grant Stahla): Yeah, you bet. So the purchase price on these trailers, they range anywhere from 110,000 to $200,000 depending on how you’re building it out, it can be 200,000 plus if you’re doing a semi-trailer with a big generator on it and then you have water tanks as well, depends on the size, the generator, the wet bath options. The rental benchmarks, the rental price, daily rental price starts at $1,200 dollars, goes up to $3000 per day. Depending on the size, your weekly rental rates are anywhere from $4,500 to $8,500 per week, and then your 28 day rental prices are anywhere from $12,000 to $20,000 with a four to five mile transport cost. For, if you’re going to be buying one, the ROI snapshot with $160,000 private room unit at $14,000 a month, that pays off in about 13 months if you’re just looking at top line and that’s pre maintenance or any other costs. For high yield contracts, you’re going to be looking at FEMA wildfire bases, pipeline shutdowns, 10 week festival circuits, anything like that – obviously you’re not going to be your calendars not going to be full, so there’s going to be different seasons where that trailer’s going to sit and usually it’s going to sit about 90% of the time and then you’ll have it in use and hopefully that, that use case you have it out longer than shorter. So that’s some of the ownership and rental economics.

(Host Eric Dye) : What keeps these trailers running smoothly in the field?

(Guest Grant Stahla): So you definitely wanna have someone out there with the trailer doing some daily maintenance. You wanna check the HVAC filters. You wanna log the tank levels if you have them and then you wanna wipe the bunk surfaces to be able to turn over the bunks in between people, there’s about a 20 to 30 minute amount of work per birth. So you strip the linens, you disinfect, and then you restock the PPE kit. In cold weather, you wanna heat trace the water lines leading up to the trailer again, if there’s plumbing, keep the diesel jen set above 1/4 of its tank capacity to prevent jelling, and then for the spare kit you want to make sure that you have A/C capacitors, bunk latches, keypad batteries, and then any of the parts that you need to avoid costly downtime. That’s a quick overview of the operational and the maintenance tips.

(Host Eric Dye) : What’s next for bunkhouse technology?

(Guest Grant Stahla): Yeah, you bet. So some of the new technology that people are looking at, they’re looking at solar ready, rough decks, so operating more off of that 48 Volt battery set instead of just the power in line power or the Gen. set smart locking bunk tracing, it ties beds to crew rosters for OSHA and FEMA reporting, and then looking at Merv 13 Filtration for clean air, so making sure that that each bunk is gonna have really clean air if you have a smoky environment because of fires or anything else, and then looking at hybrid diesel slash battery Gen. sets targeting 60 decibels Max at 25 feet. So that’s gonna be a lot easier on the ears and won’t cause damage. That’s some of the future transit innovations that we’re looking at as an industry.

(Host Eric Dye) : Grant, leave us with one key takeaway.

(Guest Grant Stahla): Yeah, absolutely. Key take away for bunkhouses is that they deliver hotel quality rest where there are no hotels, so you can save time, budget and energy by renting one. You can do a virtual walkthrough at Stahla.com and you can share field stories with us and we’d love to highlight those and share those with our customers. So that’s a quick overview of some bunkhouses. Definitely reach out if you want to learn more if you’re interested in renting a bunkhouse, reach out to us. Sometimes we’ll have used bunkhouses for sale, so reach out to us for that. But otherwise catch us on the next episode.

Tune into our ALL ABOUT Stahla Services Podcast Series – right here.

About Grant & Erin Stahla

Grant and Erin Stahla are entrepreneurs passionate about redefining portable sanitation and creating a business that reflects their values—care for people, excellence in service, and faith-driven leadership.

Their journey began with a shared passion for business, which became the foundation of their relationship. While most couples start with small talk, Grant and Erin’s first date was spent discussing sales, marketing, and operations. Grant launched Stahla Services right out of college, and Erin joined him in the business after they got married. Together, they’ve built a company that not only delivers exceptional service but also prioritizes strong relationships—with customers, employees, and the community.

Beyond their work, Grant and Erin are committed to personal growth, mentoring young entrepreneurs, and giving back through their support of Love Justice International, a nonprofit dedicated to preventing human trafficking. Their business is an extension of their mission to serve others while fostering a life centered on faith, family, and integrity.

About Stahla Services

At Stahla Services, we believe restrooms should be more than just a necessity. That’s why we provide restroom and shower trailer rentals that offer a clean, comfortable, and premium experience for event guests, construction crews, and businesses alike.

Unlike standard porta-potties, our facilities feel more like high-end hotel restrooms, featuring:

✅ Climate control for comfort in any season
✅ Fresh running water and modern fixtures
✅ Spacious, spotless interiors with fully stocked supplies

Whether you are hosting a wedding, managing a construction site, or organizing a corporate event, we deliver reliable service with a commitment to excellence. Our team ensures that your restroom experience is seamless, from setup to pickup, so you can focus on what matters most.

Beyond business, we’re driven by a purpose—to do things the right way, give back to those in need, and create opportunities for growth. With every rental, a portion of our profits supports Love Justice International in their fight against human trafficking.

At Stahla Services, we’re more than just a restroom rental company—we’re a team dedicated to providing comfort, reliability, and care in every interaction.