Living in western Oklahoma, I have found that it's hard to find a good load to get out of the area. Not much flatbed freight goes in or out of this area. I usually have to deadhead about 100 miles to get to anything.
Having said that, there is a brick plant that is not too awful far away, with loads on the board on a regular basis. I've never hauled bricks, but have heard stories of them falling off of trailers, or drivers delivering loads only to find some bricks missing when they arrive. Therefore, I have some questions:
First, what is the best way to keep bricks on the trailer? I've heard of guys using mesh material from hardware stores. How would you even secure it to the stacks to keep them tight?
I've seen brick "cages" on dedicated brick trucks. Is this something I can buy and carry with me? I'm not even sure how they work.
What about just tarping the load? Is that a safe alternative to keep stray bricks from falling off the trailer?
And last, are these ideas even worth pursuing? If it isn't going to pay decent, I guess I should just keep looking elsewhere for loads (I have yet to call about a load because I don't know anything about hauling it).
Thanks in advance for all advice!
School me on hauling bricks
Discussion in 'Flatbed Trucking Forum' started by ShooterK2, Apr 11, 2015.
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Ive seen the tarped but, the front and back were left open. I guess as a way to kinda help hold em down.
ShooterK2 Thanks this. -
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Vee boards/corner guards is what I use for hauling my pavers, the bigger the better. u can also use a sod tarp to cover.
bullhaulerswife and ShooterK2 Thank this. -
Normally bricks are on smaller size pallets, so the edge of the pallet is inboard maybe 6 ", so trying to secure pallets with just a tarp isn't advisable. V-boards probably, but be careful of some getting loose and flying (into the windshield of that new SUV driving along side you). Or you can shrink wrap each pallet, a little time consuming, but inexpensive, and pretty safe. Or, stand a pallet on end along side the pallet of brick to secure the pallet. (remember that 6" of space you have between the rub rail and the pallet of brick ?)
bullhaulerswife, ShooterK2 and truckerlife74 Thank this. -
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I used to haul brick locally. We used plywood bolted to light angle iron. The plywood went almost all the way to the deck. They make a commercial made aluminum piece that does the same thing but is pricey. I would not want to pack around either unless I was going to haul a lot of brick. If it were me I would look into "snow" fence. You could wrap the entire load and bungee the fence together that with vee boards would work well. A lot would depend on the brick company and how well they band their brick together.
ShooterK2 Thanks this. -
I have seen brick wrapped in plastic. That holds it together.
ShooterK2 Thanks this. -
For pavers, I just use some angle iron...pulls double duty allowing a 4" strap to securely hold the entire top row of blocks and also protects my strap from the sharp edges on the blocks. The pallets I haul are all shrink wrapped, so as long as I keep the top row from popping out, I'm good. Could probably get some sheets of expanded steel about the size of the pallet sides to slip in between the angle iron and the pallet...perhaps a nail to hold the bottom to the pallet to keep it on there. That way, everything would stack up to stow neatly out of the way for the non-brick loads.
I'm in a day-cab and provide power only. Needless to say, space is at a premium...so I can't have a bunch of bulky stuff on board "just in case". It ain't gotta look pretty...it just has to do the job when I need it, and not take up too much space when I don't. Of course if you've got a headache rack, tool boxes, under bunk storage, and pull your own trailer with additional storage, then you can buy the "proper" stuff that takes up a boatload of space when you don't need it.
As with many of life's problems, it's easy enough to fix this one with a trip to the hardware store...ShooterK2 Thanks this. -
take a little time and go to the brick plant and check out how well they band the cubes you probably just need straps and corner protecters
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