Container Storage and Yard Services

What container storage is and when it pays

Container storage is the short-term holding of loaded or empty shipping containers in a drayage carrier's yard instead of on the marine terminal. Terminals give import containers a fixed number of free days, then charge demurrage for each additional day. When a warehouse cannot take delivery before the last free day (LFD), pulling the container to a yard is often cheaper than leaving it on terminal.

The industry term for this is a pre-pull: the carrier picks the container up before the LFD, holds it in its yard, and delivers it later on the receiver's appointment. It turns a hard terminal deadline into a flexible delivery window.

Storage solves one problem and leaves another. It stops terminal demurrage, but the steamship line's per diem clock keeps running until the empty container is returned. Knowing when storage helps and when unloading is cheaper is the whole skill, and this page lays out how to decide.

Container storage options compared

Every import container that cannot go straight to its destination ends up in one of these four places. Each stops a different clock.

How a pre-pull and storage move works

1. 01
   Spot the gap early

   Compare the LFD with the first delivery appointment your warehouse can give. If the appointment is after the LFD, or only a day before it, plan a pre-pull.

2. 02
   Release and appointment

   The container must still be released from customs, freight and terminal holds, and the carrier still needs a terminal appointment. Storage does not get around either requirement.

3. 03
   Pull before the LFD

   The carrier picks up on its own or a pool chassis and moves the container to its yard. Demurrage stops at the terminal out-gate.

4. 04
   Hold in the yard

   The container waits, usually still mounted on its chassis so it can leave without lifting equipment. The yard records arrival and departure for billing.

5. 05
   Deliver on the appointment

   When the warehouse is ready, the container goes out as a live unload or a drop. The delivery leg is a short local move instead of a fresh terminal pickup.

6. 06
   Return the empty

   The per diem clock stops only when the empty is returned to the location the steamship line designates. Plan this from day one.

What container storage costs: the line items

Pre-pull and storage pricing is usually built from these components. Get each one in writing before you approve a pre-pull.

A worked example: when container storage pays and when it does not

Example only, with round hypothetical numbers. Assume demurrage of $150 a day, a pre-pull fee of $150, yard storage of $50 a day, chassis at $40 a day, and per diem of $120 a day after the line's free days. The steamship line allows four free days out of the terminal.

Short delay. The warehouse can receive two days after the LFD. Leaving the box on terminal costs $300 in demurrage. A pre-pull costs $150 plus two days of storage ($100) and chassis ($80), or $330. Storage is roughly a wash, and the deciding factor is the risk of no appointment on day two.

Longer delay. The warehouse cannot receive for eight days. Leaving it on terminal costs $1,200 in demurrage. Pre-pull storage costs $150 plus $400 storage and $320 chassis, or $870, and per diem starts after day four, adding $480. Unloading into a warehouse right after the pull and returning the empty the same day avoids most of the chassis and all of the per diem, so it usually wins for delays of a week or more.

The break-even point depends on your actual rates, but the pattern holds: storage is a tool for gaps measured in days, and container unloading or warehousing is the tool for gaps measured in weeks.

A decision framework: deliver, store or unload

Run every delayed import container through these questions in order. The first answer that fits usually gives the cheapest option.

1. 01
   Can it deliver before the LFD?

   If your receiver has an appointment at least a day before the LFD, deliver straight from the terminal. Storage adds a move you do not need.

2. 02
   Is it released?

   If customs has not released it, ordinary storage is not available. Move it under bond to a bonded warehouse, or push the entry through before the LFD.

3. 03
   How long is the gap?

   For a gap of a few days, pre-pull to container yard storage. For a week or more, compare storage, chassis and per diem against the cost of unloading and returning the empty.

4. 04
   Does the freight need to split?

   If the container serves several destinations, unloading or transloading near the port beats storing a box that will be broken down later anyway.

5. 05
   How many free days does the line give?

   If the steamship line's free time will run out while the container waits, the per diem bill can exceed what demurrage would have been. Unload early and return the empty.

Good reasons to use container yard storage

• Appointment gaps. Your warehouse's first appointment is after the LFD.
• Vessel bunching. Several containers discharge in the same few days and your dock can only take a few per day.
• Weekend and holiday arrivals. Free time often starts at discharge, so a Friday discharge can burn days before your dock opens.
• Customer delivery windows. The container is going straight to a retailer or customer that has a fixed receiving date.
• Port congestion. When terminal appointments are scarce, pulling a container the moment one opens and holding it in a yard protects you from missing the LFD later.
• Export timing. A loaded export container ready before the terminal's earliest receiving date needs somewhere to wait.

Export container storage

Export containers face the opposite timing problem. Terminals open a receiving window for each vessel, often a few days before the cargo cutoff. A container loaded too early cannot be gated in, and holding it at the shipper's dock ties up the dock and the chassis.

Export container storage holds the loaded box in the carrier's yard until the receiving window opens, then delivers it to the terminal ahead of cutoff. If the vessel rolls or the booking changes, the container stays in the yard instead of incurring terminal storage. Check that the steamship line's free time on the empty covers the time from pickup at the depot to the terminal in-gate.

How to choose a container storage provider

Storage is only as useful as the carrier holding the container. Before you approve a pre-pull, confirm:

• Location. A yard near the terminals keeps the pre-pull and the later delivery short. A yard far inland adds miles to both legs.
• Own chassis. If the carrier uses pool chassis, ask how chassis days are billed while the container is stored.
• Security and records. The yard should be secured and should record in and out times for every container so storage invoices can be checked.
• A way out of storage. The best yards sit next to a warehouse, CFS or transloading dock, so a long delay can become an unload instead of a growing per diem bill.
• Bonded options. If customs release is the reason for the delay, a provider with bonded drayage and bonded warehousing can move the cargo under bond.
• Clear notice. You should get confirmation when the container is pulled, when it leaves the yard and when the empty is returned.

Common container storage mistakes

• Pre-pulling without a plan for the empty. Storage stops demurrage and starts the per diem clock, which often costs more per day than the terminal did.
• Waiting until the LFD to decide. If no appointment is available on the LFD, the pre-pull cannot happen in time. Decide when the vessel arrives.
• Storing for weeks on wheels. Long storage on a chassis adds chassis days to per diem. Unload instead.
• Missing a hold. A container on hold cannot be pre-pulled. Confirm release before you count on storage to protect the LFD.
• Assuming storage is free. Some quotes include a few free days, others bill from day one. Read the terms.

Who uses container yard services

• Importers whose warehouses cannot absorb a full vessel's worth of containers in a few days
• Retailers delivering to DCs with strict appointment calendars
• Freight forwarders managing several consignees' containers off the same vessel
• Manufacturers timing component deliveries to production schedules

What to send for a container storage quote

• Container numbers, terminal and last free day
• Container size and type (20', 40', 40' high cube or 45'; dry, reefer, hazmat, open-top or flat-rack), gross weight and commodity
• Expected storage duration and the receiver's first available appointment
• Delivery address and live unload or drop
• The steamship line's free days for the empty, if known
• Customs status: released, pending entry, or moving in-bond

Where we provide container storage

National Freight & Drayage holds containers at our operation in Long Beach, close to both San Pedro Bay ports. Details of how it runs locally are on our Long Beach container storage page. We pull containers on our own 20' and 40' chassis, plus triaxle chassis for heavier boxes, as part of our drayage services. Refrigerated containers are the exception: our yard has no reefer plug-ins, so we deliver reefers straight from the terminal and do not pre-pull or store them.

If a hold gets long, the container can move into our container freight station, warehouse or transload dock at the same site and the empty can go back right away. For background, read our guides to the last free day and demurrage and detention.

Frequently asked questions