Why all the idling in cool weather?

GSD's make an excellent alarm system.. :smt023


back on topic.....lets worry about our own trucks here people and NOT everyone elses..

 

Good point, as far as the original topic, being an Owner opperator, it is good business to buy as little fuel as possible, it is not always practical not to idle, but if I could run a fan and pop the windows to stay comfortable I would.

I am really wanting to buy an APU for my next truck, we will see how it pans out.

 

Well if you see on the news "Truck Driver found dead in parking lot holding a can of ether. Authorities suspect it was a robbery gone bad. Criminals have been known to spray ether into trucks while drivers are sleeping and then breaking into the truck to rob the driver. Authorities have no leads and due to the facts consider the case closed. State Official was quoted saying that Truckers have every right to defend themselves"
In short another dumb trucker off the road. Tune in at 6:00 for for exclusives of Lost and his inflatable sheep. For channel 19 news I'm PlumF...Crazy

 

Leaving the windows open can be a security risk.

 

You can't be serious!

Let's see, In 39 years I have never had a starter fail on the road, but how much money would I have wasted on fuel if I was inclined towards this simple minded sort of paranoia?

Probably a helluva lot more than $2,400.

I put in the breezeway screens and open the sleeper windows and sleep like a baby, I have never been bothered in all the years I've been out here...Even in the old days when I used to patronize "Rubes Jersey City Truckstop".

Ive never really been scared of the bad things that "could possibly" happen though.
Most of the stories of mayhem at truckstops are just "truck driver B/S" anyway...
You know, The made up stuff that is there to pad the resume of the 500 pound former Navy Seal, Green Beret, Army Ranger retired CIA agent Black-Ops guy that resides at the truckstop counter when he's not crammin' Flying J pizza in his face as fast as he can while hiding in the sleeper of his "megafleet junkyard special" talkin' loud on his CB radio about how he's gonna tear your heart out and eat it if he can find you.

We've all "heard that guy" have we not?

 

What about the tales of getting ether sprayed into the sleeper through the open vents? Urban legend?

 

I've "heard" of it but have never seen it happen...It's alway some driver sayin' that he talked to another driver that was parked next to a guy that had it happen to him.
I'm sure that stuff like this has happened a few times but it's hardly the epidemic that it's made out to be by the "I'm afraid of everything" crowd.

I do not live my life in fear...I stay aware of my surroundings but I don't keep one finger on the can of mace, or feel like I have to carry a gun to defend myself with out here...That's just pure paranoia. Most of the blowhards that claim that they carry for self defence would hesitate long enough before pulling the trigger for a well trained individual to disarm them anyway.

If you have never shot a man before, I promise you that you will hesitate before you do because the implications of taking a human life are staggering to most normal people and that in itself precludes most people being able to defend themselves adequately with a gun or a knife.

Killing doesn't come easy the first time...It does get easier after the first time.

 

Amen to that. If you are going to stop for more then five minutes, shut er' down is my take on it, barring weather conditions of course.

 

Why worry about what somebody else does? It's really none of your business why somebody idles. I had a starter go out on a company truck once and got berated on a fuel island for idling by a Smith transport driver. I not so kindly got in his face and told him to mind his own business. That said I never had more than 3% idle in a company truck. In my truck it's 1 or 2% the only exceptions would be extreme heat during the day in the summer time. So I'm not one of these drivers that idles all the time. But I could care less if someone else does. Mind your own business. This is why we have all the quack environmental regs along with government demands and exorbitant fines because nosey people worrying about what everyone else is doing then regulations and restrictions get passed.

 

As we become more and more dependant on foriegn oil, and leave a larger and larger carbon footprint it will eventually become everyones business. In fact it already has otherwise there would be no idle restrictions. You don't really expect the price of fuel to go down do you?