How to get ready for delivery day
Pick the exact spot and mark its corners, make sure the truck has a straight, level, firm run of about 110 feet for a 20ft or 130 feet for a 40ft with 15 feet of clear sky overhead, and have someone there with a phone on delivery day. Put your corner blocks out beforehand, settle permits and HOA questions first, and the drop takes minutes.
The checklist
Mark the spot. Four stakes or paint at the corners, and decide which way the doors should face — the box comes off the back of the truck pointing the way the truck was pointing. See how much room delivery needs.
Clear the run. Vehicles, trailers, a basketball hoop, the trash cans, low limbs, a cable drop. The truck needs the length of itself plus the container in a straight line and about 15 feet overhead for the tilted bed.
Firm the ground. After rain, a lawn will not hold a loaded truck. Gravel or packed dirt is fine; soft turf is a failed, billable trip. If in doubt, lay gravel or wait for a dry stretch.
Set the blocks. A concrete block or treated timber at each corner position, so the driver can set straight onto them. A level box on blocks from day one is a box whose doors work for years. Keep a bottle jack handy for fine-tuning; there is one on the accessories page.
Call 811 if you are digging a pad, and settle permits, zoning and HOA approval before you order — see permit rules.
On the day and after
We confirm the order, delivered price and delivery window with you before anything is charged, and delivery typically lands 7–10 business days after that. The driver calls ahead on the day; be reachable, and have someone there who can point to the stakes. They will not guess.
Walk the box before the truck leaves. Doors open and close, gaskets whole, no daylight through the roof from inside. Photograph everything. Report any problem that day, not next month.
Then lock it — a lock box and puck padlock, not a hardware-store padlock on the swing bars — and open the vents. See containers for sale — delivered price by ZIP
Buying a container?
Longleaf sells used and one-trip 20ft and 40ft shipping containers, delivered by tilt-bed across the Pine Belt. Enter your ZIP for the delivered price — it comes straight from the supplier feed and already includes the haul. Locks, vents, shelving and lights are on the accessories page. We sell; we do not rent.
- 20ft Standard Cargo Worthy (used) — from $2,885 delivered
- 20ft Standard One Trip (new) — from $3,635 delivered
- 20ft Standard Wind & Watertight (used) — from $2,470 delivered
- 40ft High Cube Cargo Worthy (used) — from $3,525 delivered
- 40ft High Cube One Trip (new) — from $4,925 delivered
- 40ft High Cube Wind & Watertight (used) — from $3,210 delivered
- 40ft Standard Cargo Worthy (used) — from $3,525 delivered
- 40ft Standard One Trip (new) — from $6,355 delivered
- 40ft Standard Wind & Watertight (used) — from $3,160 delivered
Keep reading
- Are shipping containers really watertight? — Are shipping containers watertight: what wind-and-watertight, cargo worthy and one-trip guarantee against rain, and why condensation still needs vents.
- How much does a shipping container weigh? — Shipping container weight: empty tare for a 20ft and 40ft, the maximum gross rating, why a loaded box never nears it, and what the weight means for your pad.
- Using a container while you renovate — and after — Storage container for a home renovation: why a box in the driveway beats a unit across town, and when buying it to keep beats renting one for the job.
- What should you check when your shipping container is delivered? — A delivery checklist for a shipping container: doors and seals, the daylight test, floor, roof, the grade you paid for, and what to do if something is off.
- Rent or buy a shipping container? — Rent or buy a shipping container: the rough break-even, what owning actually includes, when a short-term rental is the right call, and when buying wins.
Across the Pine Belt
Hattiesburg · Petal · Laurel · Ellisville · Purvis · Sumrall · Columbia · Collins · Seminary · Wiggins