Tanker Companies In Florida

I was local w them in the Tampa area where there were problems. Not too sure about your terminal but I always heard otr drivers stayed busy

 

i go by the dillon yard on 41 in brandon often, and they are definitely staying busy

 

Dillon is hauling for Mosaic now.. very busy

 

There are a couple of other companies:
Indian River Transport/Paramarine/North American Tank Lines -- different names on the surface but it is the same company
Bynum Transport
Oakley Transport

They are all liquid food tankers. Use to work for Oakley and I had nice equipment, made good money and was always pre-planned. I lived in Sarasota County and run mostly Florida to California. Never saw snow!

The first time I was dispatched it was from Lake Wales, FL to San Diego, CA and they wanted and ETE. The deliver date was 3 weeks from then I said what the heck. Dispatcher said all loads are like that but customer will take you whenever you want before that time, so it was up to me when I arrived meaning if I wanted stop some where along the way that is in route you could. That is how they handled home time. So I normally run straight out to CA from FL and straight back again. All the miles I could possibly do and home again. They had a lot of in state work to but you could make more money running the wheels off the truck OTR.

I moved outside their hiring area for family reasons and that's why I don't work there anymore.

 

I'm a long time tanker yanker. I know this part of the industry. Trimac, Quality Carriers and Kenan are garbage companies. Stay away!!! McKenzie is a coin toss. They mostly subcontract fuel deliveries and deliver some loads of their own.

One of the better companies to work for is Superior Carriers / Carry Transit. They are a rock solid company.

 

I used to work at Oakley also. My take is different. 3 years ago, Oakley fired half of the staff in Lake Wales FL. Things got better for a few months. Last year, they got rid of more dead weight, especially the dispatcher named Paul ( a real piece of work). They nearly went out of business. Somehow, they conned a few people to pony up over a half million dollars to keep the leaking boat floating.

Bynum is a company with a good story to tell and NO HAPPY ENDING!!! Stay away!!!

Indian River has nice equipment, but I'm not sure about their maintenance. Their drivers do get plenty of miles. It's only $0.35 per mile to start, but you spend a lot of time running, not sitting.

 

Dillon is a stable company. Good spot to work. They haul a lot of "sticky stuff" like asphalt.

 

The most important thing you can do with tankers is to take your time before and after you unload. After the product starts flowing, just watch your gear and make sure all is well. Not all tanks are plumbed the same way. The discharge valves are in different places. Internal valves are activated differently on some tanks. External valves are more consistent.

A good thing to do is compare notes with other tanker drivers. Learn about using older model tanks. There are tens of thousands still in use. Not all tractors and trailers have in transit heat. Check your seals on the tank and double check all the hose gaskets!!!! (That one will save your butt)!!!

 

Very, very true. Where you live here in Florida means EVERYTHING!!!!

 

Walpole (aka Walhole) is not a good deal. Food grade trucking is extremely competitive. They cut costs by cutting pay, etc. Dillon is a good deal.