can someone explain HOS reset to me?

You don't HAVE to do a 34 hour restart. You will gain back the hours you drove 8 days ago. This is called running recap. However a 34 hour restart would reset you back to 0, but you could in theory run 12 months straight without a restart, you would just be limited to the hours you gain back each day.
Are you on Elog? There would be somewhere it will say something like "Hours to be gained" and that'll be what you will have the following day.

 

A reset is not mandatory.

You have 70 hours in eight days available for on-duty/driving time. If you get to the 70 hours in eights days you cannot drive again until you either take a reset or recapture hours at midnight of the eighth day (as it turns over to the ninth day) that were worked on the first day. Example; you had 1.25 hours on-duty and 8.75 hours driving on the first day, those 10 hours are added back to your available hours for your 70/8 on day nine.

There is an FMCSA Guidance (Question 26) for Personal Use of the CMV for the purpose of short trips to restaurants, local lodgings, terminal to home, etc., when you are unladen and off-duty. However, some companies do not allow drivers to make use of this Guidance. Personal Use is not to be used to "move forward" to your next load.

 

https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov › regulations

 

In a nutshell:

14 hour rule: When you start your day (coming off of at least a 10 hour break,) you start the clock for a 14 hour day. So, if you start your "day" at 6:00AM, you must not drive after 8:00PM. You can still do "On duty, not driving," but you must not drive*

11 hour rule: You may drive up to 11 hours in a given work period, as long as it is done before your 14 hour clock runs out. At or before the 8 hour driving mark, you must take a minimum 30 minute break.

70 hour rule: This rule takes into account the last 8 days. You add up your "Driving" and "On Duty, Not Driving" lines for the past 8 days, and if they are at 70 hours or more, you may not drive. This time period is a "rolling" 8 days, meaning that when your log time passes midnight, you could gain hours back by reworking the past 8 days.

34 hour reset: If you take 34 consecutive hours off, your 70 hour rule resets to zero, regardless of the last 8 days.

* A split break can be made, provided that 8 hours is taken in the "Sleeper Berth" this will extend the 14 hour window by the amount of time in the sleeper berth. After either the remainder of your 11 hours driving, or finishing out the new 14 hour window, you must take at least 2 hours off duty or sleeper berth.

I can explain recap hours a little better if need be.

 

But don't forget that if you ever exceed your 70, then a 34 cannot be taken.

Some companies prefer that you show time for your posttrip rather than on your pretrip so that you can use every last minute up to your 70 as drive time, then the 15 minutes many companies require for a posttrip can be done after you hit 70 legally...it just screws up a 34, and takes 15 minutes off of your total for tomorrow.

And I know I will get grief about this, but if you have an android phone, there is an app just for recapping logbooks.

 

You can take a 34 anytime. Not only at the end of your 70

 

Also, to throw a wrench into this thread, we all need to keep our fingers crossed that the suspension of the former rules stay in place and don't get rolled backed to the 1 only every 168 hrs, to include 2 periods covering the 1am to 5am timeline pending the passage of the funding bill, at the end of this month.

The FMCSA still has yet, to produce any data or documentation to show any differences, (which is due by Sep 30) since the suspension went into effect back in Dec, 2014.

An indication, based on the WH releasing a statement stating our commander "who knows everything" in chief, may follow the advice of his advisors and veto DOT funding, unless the suspension is lifted and those nuttier than ever rules, go back into place.

 

You can DO anything you want or need to DO.

Rules were meant to be broken.

 

A 34 is when a driver gets to do his laundry drunk