Certified Mobile service

Anyone knows how to get certified to work on Heartland RVs? I am thinking about opening a part-time RV service. Not sure if it would be worth it, but just looking in to it. Being a firefighter I'm off 20 days a month. Go around and service snowbirds or whoever needs it. It would be a mobile service. Would do tires, brakes, bearings, warranty work, upgrades, mods, and whatever? I know there is a lot of full-timers here, just asking would a mobile service be worth pursuing down here in the south?

There are businesses that do studies for those who are considering new business ventures that could help. You would have to search your local area to see what is available there. You can also do some of that yourself by determining what, in the way of RV parks, there are in your area and then what other repairs services are available to them. If you already have the necessary tools and equipment, good, but that can be a big expense as well as wear and tear on a vehicle. Then comes advertising. Not a small expense because word-of-mouth is going to be a slow way to get going. And you will probably need a track record of good service to present to Heartland or any RV manufacturer before they will certify, not to mention the individual components of the trailers.

Starting a new business is not a small task and takes a fair amount of work to get it going successfully. Good luck if you decide to do that. It can be done but would involve some pre-planning and startup expense.

I thought about doing the same type of thing. There is a lot to consider when it comes to maintaining other peoples 'Toys'. Here is a RVIA website for certifications (http://www.rvtechnician.com/). There are also a few things to contemplate (as I used to have a General Aviation Maintenance business so these should be seriously considered)....Insurance Bond, should be quite high to cover loss of equipment (RV, Acft, etc) and/or loss of life. This covers YOU in case a legal problem arises. Proper tooling to work on the items you plan on maintaining...you will need expensive specialized tools with your everyday use tools. You will also need to invest in parts to stock. It sounds daunting, but once accomplished, you can relax and help others out! If you do pursue this, Good luck and have fun!

Abear79 said:

Anyone knows how to get certified to work on Heartland RVs? I am thinking about opening a part-time RV service. Not sure if it would be worth it, but just looking in to it. Being a firefighter I'm off 20 days a month. Go around and service snowbirds or whoever needs it. It would be a mobile service. Would do tires, brakes, bearings, warranty work, upgrades, mods, and whatever? I know there is a lot of full-timers here, just asking would a mobile service be worth pursuing down here in the south?

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David all I use is mobile services. There are four guys in my area and they stay busy. One of them does ac's only. As far as being certified by heartland I am not sure. When I was in warranty I had to pay up front and then submit invoice to be paid. Does have to be a legit business though.


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When owners ask for pre-approval to have non-Heartland dealers do warranty work, I think before approving, Heartland is checking to see if the servicer has industry certification. You might call Heartland Customer Service at 877-262-8032 / 574-262-8030 to see what they say.

Btw, if you have a few large RV resorts/campgrounds in your area, you'll probably have more business than you can keep up with.

I have a lot of tools already. I use to be a tech for GM and a private owner shop. I was planing on getting a service truck. This would be a joint venture with my father-in-law if this comes to be. Glad I asked, I didn't think about advertisement. I know there is a lot of campgrounds in the Lafayette area and the Hammond area. Lucky for me I live in the middle. Not looking to get too big, just help some people out. I know a lot of people are tired of bringing their coaches in for weeks for a little job.

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Apropdoc said:

I thought about doing the same type of thing. There is a lot to consider when it comes to maintaining other peoples 'Toys'. Here is a RVIA website for certifications (http://www.rvtechnician.com/). There are also a few things to contemplate (as I used to have a General Aviation Maintenance business so these should be seriously considered)....Insurance Bond, should be quite high to cover loss of equipment (RV, Acft, etc) and/or loss of life. This covers YOU in case a legal problem arises. Proper tooling to work on the items you plan on maintaining...you will need expensive specialized tools with your everyday use tools. You will also need to invest in parts to stock. It sounds daunting, but once accomplished, you can relax and help others out! If you do pursue this, Good luck and have fun!

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Thanks fort the site

Just guessing here but various certifications are going to be key so you can perform warranty work. I think too it would be important/helpful to be associated with a dealer or campground.


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If I do decide to do this I want all the certifications. I use to be certified in AC and few other things, but if this happens this could take a couple of years to get off the ground completely. Tools, truck, insurance, advertisement, training, certifications and etc.

Abear79 said:

If I do decide to do this I want all the certifications. I use to be certified in AC and few other things, but if this happens this could take a couple of years to get off the ground completely. Tools, truck, insurance, advertisement, training, certifications and etc.

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There's a guy in Breckenridge who started part time doing coach renovations and some mobile repairs. Then he decided to get the certifications and go full time into mobile repair. I think making the 2nd step took only a few months.

Having used a mobile service a couple of times in the past I can tell you, Heartland will NOT pay for the service call most companies charge. I've had Heartland authorize warranty work on two separate occasions and both times, I paid up front, submitted paid invoices to Heartland. They paid the invoice minus the service call. If I remember correctly, one service charge was $50 and the other was $75. For me, well worth the out of pocket cost to not have to pack up the camper and take it to a service center. We were living in the camper at the time and I could not leave the unit at a dealer for even a couple of days.

I think you could start small and test the waters. Visit a coule of parks and see if they will let you put up a flier. Make the price reasonable and don't charge a trip charge.

See if anyone bites. Then be honest with them that you are just getting started. You'd be amazed at how people just love simple honesty.

Andif it takes you 3.5 hours only charge them for 3 and your reputation and skill will grow and then you can slowly raise your rate and time charged. You can then start to add a trip charge if you want.

Granted this will probably cut into your ability to do warranty work but will allow you to test the waters and go from there and get certified when the money starts to flow.

Also invest in a good magnetic sign for your vehicle. You'll be amazed at the number of people who will stop you while doing work for someone else.

Apropdoc said:

I thought about doing the same type of thing. There is a lot to consider when it comes to maintaining other peoples 'Toys'. Here is a RVIA website for certifications (http://www.rvtechnician.com/). There are also a few things to contemplate (as I used to have a General Aviation Maintenance business so these should be seriously considered)....Insurance Bond, should be quite high to cover loss of equipment (RV, Acft, etc) and/or loss of life. This covers YOU in case a legal problem arises. Proper tooling to work on the items you plan on maintaining...you will need expensive specialized tools with your everyday use tools. You will also need to invest in parts to stock. It sounds daunting, but once accomplished, you can relax and help others out! If you do pursue this, Good luck and have fun!

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Sorry about the off topic kinda, but...

Hey Apropdoc,
You are the first post from Utah I've seen since I joined early last year. I'm in Clinton, and you?
I was thinking of carrying my (some of them anyway) tools (was a mechanic by trade for 30 years) just to help out/or do things for our Heartland family/friends that couldn't do for themselves or didn't want to while we were out and about around the country.
WB

I would think making yourself known to the different RV parks would be a good start. I would visit each RV park and get to know the owners. Maybe ask if you could offer your services during a rally or large camp out. I only use Certified RVDA / RVIA techs and research reviews and reputation of the tech.