Reefer can be as goofy as flatbed

This time of year is the transition point where they stop shipping on flatbed and dry vans. Too iffy past mid October especially if going to points along or above I-70. Some "cheaper' places don't care for some minor freeze damage to onions, but some places won't tolerate it. Hell, more than once I've seen where Walmart grocery delivery trucks have frozen onions to the point they were still at least partially frozen on the store shelf.

For long term storage of "fresh onions", they are always very careful not to allow them to freeze even for a short time.

But if they're going to make pico-de-gallo or other process for a chilled or frozen finished product I guess it may not make much difference if they're partially frozen prior to processing or not but, then they'll use the cheaper grade onions.

 

I've hauled highway guard rails that had to be tarped. After making the deliveries to the highway construction point, they unload the guard rails in the rain and stack them in the mud.

 

Consumers get mad when they buy a 5# bag of onions and many have a nasty, dirty, oily, smelly, sometimes salty road grime on them.

I've seen more then a few flatbedders drive in the rain [hard enough to generate spray for many miles] with them without bothering to bring the tarps down over the ends.

 

Diesel exhaust on the onions for a thousand miles.

 

Mmm onions

 

A few weeks ago I hauled onions out of Washington to WalMart in Florida. While passing through Montana, there was a brief stretch of I90 in the mountains with snow already on the ground. If I had overnighted near there with a flatbed of onions, there might have been freeze damage to the 'organic' onions.

 

Ive run many loads of onions out of the Yakima area into Boston, they do not freeze as long the reefer is on setpoint no matter how cold it got outside provided it was fed with fuel. Takes about 5 days or so to get it there.

There is always a certain amount of damage to onions at the store, Ive gotten somewhat particular over them.

 

I pretty much won't do onions. Too many claims and the product is too cheap to support market rates in a lot of situations (like now).

 

I was briefly thinking about this the other day.

Would a Conestoga style flatbed trailer offer enough protection to prevent most damage claims? It would definitely help protect product from freezing.