How to stay cool/Warm when you cannot idle the truck???

It's complete and TOTAL foolishness. These anti-idle laws make blood shoot out of my eyes. I have to clean my computer screen off again!

When did America stop being America? Somebody tell me what article of the Constitution gives authority to the government to regulate the environment. Let me save you some time. It doesn't!

I've said it before, and I'll say it again. If the government thinks it needs to step in and mandate/force companies and individuals to do things (like not idle), then they should be responsible for providing the alternatives.

If California says we aren't going to let trucks idle, then they need to provide funding to install APUs on any truck that will run in California. PERIOD.

We need to take our country back, ladies and gentlemen.

Andrew

 

Well, the constitution guarantees certain freedoms and that hasn't changed, but it's only a thin foundation layer. Anything it doesn't prohibit is addressed in the 100 layers of laws above that foundation. Very little of our laws are addressed there... such as possessing a lobster under 6 inches long. Yep, it's illegal.

But yeah I agree with you!

 

The 10th Amendment:

"The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people".

So, does California have the right to say no diesel engines can idle more than 5 minutes in our state? Sure. But this should be challenged on so many different levels, I don't know where to begin.

One could argue that the state is denying these individuals a basic right to a safe working environment, particularly if the law does not allow for idling in extreme temperatures. I'd think OSHA would be chomping at the bit to jump in and sue.

At the very least, Adam Smith's "invisible hand" should slap the state right across the face. Companies and O/Os should either refuse CA freight or charge a premium for having to deal with all the regulatory bull crap. If enough pocket books start hurting, maybe some things would change. I won't hold my breath.

 

If I want it to be cooler or warmer in the truck, I am either idling, or running an APU, whichever I have at my disposal. If I need the power to run my TV, microwave, or whatever else in the truck (which is basically my home), I am idling or running an APU.

This job has enough stress as it is, I am not going to live uncomfortably on top of that when I am on my off-time.

 

Company driver. I like gettin paid at the end of the week.

 

The fines for idling can be substantial. And yes, they are being enforced in some states. (even for 4-wheelers)

Some states such as Florida do have a temporary exemption for sleeper berths.

In California, even some APUs are illegal (depending on their emissions).

Reefers and equipment designed for the purpose in which they are used are exempt from the laws in many states.

 

It seems to me that nobody is representing truckers in politics. The trucking companies give me the impression that the drivers are the enemies, a necessary evil.

Am I wrong here? Is there any group other than the Union? Last time we had bad weather out here even the news blamed truckers in every accident there was involving a big rig. Could not possibly have been a car causing it.

Makes me nervous to hear Obama say we need a "new" Declaration of Independance when the original that is the foundation of our country is being trampled.

Did anybody represent truckers when this idiotic idling law? Guess I am giving myself a new topic to research. I hate politics.

 

Seriously don't bother. Environmentally AND financially (fuel-wise anyway) APU's are a very good solution. Demand needs to rise and they need to come way down in price like everything else. I'm confident that this will happen long before anything can happen in Washington.

What we do need is at least a 3-5 year grandfather clause/exception for the existing trucks.

 

The APU's on some trucks may not even be good enough for CA.

Under California idling regulations, trucks with MY 2007 and later engines are required to either route the APS's exhaust through the particulate filter of the main truck engine or to retrofit the APS separately with a Level 3 PM control device. This requirement became effective from January 2008. However, due to a combination of technical and commercial reasons, most engine manufacturers disallow routing the APU exhaust through the main engine filter, which makes the Level 3 retrofit the only compliance option.
http://www.dieselnet.com/news/2008/06carb.php

 

What about just adding another 2-4 batteries and a 5,000W inverter anyway? Climate control is really the big hurdle here anyway isn't it? Who's working on a completely electrical solution here?