Portable storage for El Cajon homes and businesses
Inland heat. Pack for it.
The short version: Steel portable storage containers from One Stop Moving & Storage come to El Cajon driveways for $99 a month (Standard, 8×8×5 ft) or $175 (Large, 8×8×7 ft). Each rental includes 25 free moving boxes and runs month to month, and delivery and pickup are quoted in writing for your address. We found no El Cajon permit rule for a private driveway.
- Delivery date set with your quote
- Homes, rentals and business lots
- Month to month, no early-return penalty
- Licensed CAL-190616 and USDOT 1956864, since 2008
Since 2008
Moving San Diego
CAL-190616
California mover license
USDOT 1956864
Interstate, MC 694565
BBB A+
Better Business Bureau
98%
Of our customers come back (company records)
7 days
7 AM–7 PM, phone open 24 hours
City rules
What are El Cajon’s rules for a storage container?
For a container on a private residential driveway, we found none. Anything placed in the street or public right-of-way needs an encroachment permit from El Cajon Engineering Services, so the driveway is the simple place to start.
Businesses have one more question to ask. If the container is part of a temporary use on commercial property, ask the Planning Division whether a Temporary Use Permit under Municipal Code chapter 17.75 applies before you book.
Just outside the city line the rules change. Rancho San Diego, Bostonia and Granite Hills are unincorporated county land, so San Diego County rules apply there, not El Cajon’s. The county zoning section on cargo (shipping) containers allows one per lot under 2 acres, up to 320 square feet, out of sight from the road, for 180 days in any five years, with a building permit. It doesn’t say whether a moving container counts, and a container in a county road needs a Public Works encroachment permit plus a traffic control permit that takes about six weeks, so plan on your own property.
On the lot itself, the container has to sit level, both doors need room to swing open, and the delivery truck needs about 30 feet of clearance. Describe the spot when you reserve and we confirm it before delivery day.
El Cajon at a glance
Summer heat
What shouldn’t go in a container during an El Cajon summer?
Anything that melts, warps or fails in heat: candles, vinyl records, photographs, electronics, aerosol cans and lithium batteries. El Cajon sits in an inland valley where record summer highs have passed 110°F, and a steel container is weather resistant and ventilated but not climate-controlled.
A few habits help. Load in the cool of the morning, keep wood furniture and mattresses a hand’s width off the walls, and close the doors between loads so the sun doesn’t bake the floor. Put books and papers in lidded plastic bins rather than cardboard.
If you would rather nothing sat in the heat, use our climate-controlled vaults, held at 68–72°F, from $245 a month for a 5×10 in San Diego County. That is full-service storage, not self storage: our crew picks up and loads, and every visit is booked ahead with staff present.
Homes and businesses
How do El Cajon homes and businesses use a container?
Mostly for three jobs: clearing a house for a sale or remodel, holding things between tenants or homes, and keeping a business’s stock or equipment on site.
Clearing a house
A Fletcher Hills or Cajon Heights home being staged for sale or emptied for a remodel: load room by room, and the container stays on the driveway until the work is done.
Between homes or tenants
A rental near Downtown El Cajon between tenants, or a family between closings: we can hold the loaded container at our facility and deliver it to the next address in San Diego County, quoted in writing.
Business stock and equipment
Seasonal inventory, files or tools on a commercial lot: check with the property owner and the Planning Division first, then keep it month to month.
Storage containers for businessesHow it works
How does an El Cajon container delivery work?
Reserve, load on your own schedule, and decide later where it goes.
1
Reserve and confirm the spot
Reserve below or call (858) 633-8600. Tell us where on your lot the container should sit, and we confirm the placement before delivery day.
2
Load at your own pace
The container sits level at ground height with steel doors and your own padlock. You have access to it around the clock while it is on your property.
3
Keep it, store it or move it
Done loading? Call us and we set a pickup day. Taking it to our facility, or on to a new address in the county, is a separate written quote.
What it costs
What does a storage container cost in El Cajon?
Rent in El Cajon is the county rate: $99 a month for a Standard or $175 for a Large, with delivery and pickup quoted in writing for your address. See container prices, line by line.
Instant price
Price a container for your El Cajon address.
Three answers and you have a real number.
Questions
El Cajon portable storage, answered.
Short answers for El Cajon. Where a rule belongs to the city or the county, we say so; the prices are ours.
All moving questionsDo I need a permit for a container in El Cajon?
We found no El Cajon rule that requires a permit for a container on a private residential driveway. Placement in the street or public right-of-way is different: El Cajon Engineering Services issues encroachment permits for that work. Tell us where you want it, and we confirm placement before delivery.
Will the El Cajon heat damage what I store?
It can damage heat-sensitive things. The container is steel, weather resistant and ventilated but not climate-controlled, and El Cajon’s record highs have passed 110°F. Keep candles, vinyl, photos and electronics out of it, or store them in our climate-controlled vaults at 68–72°F.
Do you offer full-service storage in El Cajon?
Yes. Our crew picks up your belongings in El Cajon and stores them in our climate-controlled vaults, from $245 a month for a 5×10. It is full-service storage, not self storage: there is no drive-up access, and every visit is booked ahead with our staff present.
Do you sell shipping containers in El Cajon?
No. Our business is renting portable storage containers, the 8×8×5 ft Standard and the 8×8×7 ft Large, not selling new or used shipping containers. Moving out of state? A loaded container can be shipped from El Cajon to the 48 continental states, quoted in writing.
Do the county rules apply in Rancho San Diego or Bostonia instead of El Cajon’s?
Yes. Rancho San Diego, Bostonia and Granite Hills are unincorporated, so San Diego County rules apply there, not El Cajon’s. The county’s cargo container section doesn’t say whether a moving container counts, and a container in a county road needs a county permit, so plan on your own property.
Sources
- City of El Cajon Engineering Services, contractor resources (encroachment permits), checked 2026-11-02
- El Cajon Municipal Code ch. 17.75, Temporary Use Permit, checked 2026-09-16
- County of San Diego Zoning Ordinance §6162, cargo containers, checked 2026-10-16
- County of San Diego PDS-726, requirements for placing a sea cargo container, checked 2026-10-16
- El Cajon, California: geography and climate (Wikipedia), checked 2026-09-16
- US Census Bureau Geocoder, city-limits check for the neighborhoods listed, checked 2026-09-16
Free quote
Get a written price for your El Cajon container
Send us the El Cajon address, the size and where on the lot it should sit, and you get delivery and pickup in writing before anything is booked. Call (858) 633-8600; the phone line is open 24 hours.