Winter Time

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFW0R8ndbcE[/ame]

 

They have a special additive for the airlines... Its some kind of alchohol Im not even going to begin to spell. I still havent seen snow yet so Ill keep an eye on this thread for tips.

 

On the lease-op side, stop by the farm outlet stores to buy your anti-gel. Quite a bit cheaper there than at the truckstops. If you're buying fuel south of I20, be aware they don't put any no. 1 diesel in the fuel down there. You'll start getting fuel gelling sooner as you head north.

Walmart for windshield washer fluid. Keep an extra gallon of that around... goes real fast in the slop.

 

DD can tell us for sure the magic tonic airline use. My best guess is propylene glycol. When I lived in DC I would use it to keep the wiper blades from sticking to the windshield. I bought mine at the Walmart pharmacy. $9.00 or so for a 32oz bottle.

 

You can get air line antifreeze at most truckstops up north. Get some early in the winter because it disappears fast. If you bleed your air tanks daily, you shouldn't have problems with your tractor. That being said, its a good idea to apply your brakes lightly before parking while you cruise into the truckstop... heat them up to dry out. Always do that if you run through some water in a parking lot.

Acquire some wheel chocks to prevent your rig from rolling... if you have to leave your parking brake off to keep the brakes from freezing.

On another note, make sure you have a real hammer - to break loose brakes. ALWAYS check that the tires are rotating on trailers you have just hooked-up to, on both sides. Some non-Prime moron caught his rig on fire last winter dragging a container down the road with the tandems locked up.

 

Remember you are the captain of the ship, not your paper pushin, pencil deek dispatcher. If you feel it is not safe, shut it down....

 

Its a violation of the federal Surface Transportation Assistance Act to order a driver to continue on in unsafe (as determined by the driver) conditions. That being said, all of my FMs have always expressed concern when I'm running in bad conditions, and suggested if I felt it was better to shut down then it was time to do so. If you feel undue pressure from one of these folks, its time to call safety.

 

I keep all my state road report website bookmarks in a folder in my internet browser. You need to update them every year in the fall.

There are always one or two states that upgrade their system or reorginize their websites. It can be a pain if you are in a hurry or in an area with a slow connection searching the web for the new site.

Phone 511 works great in a lot of states. Horrible in others. Some states its 511, others its an 800 number. I usually call each state I expect to cross on a particular shift before I leave to either check the report, or have the number for quick redial.

 

I posted this on Gatorbaitors thread. Here are my 3 favorite winter trip planning weather sites.