APU/ Inverters

Usually a company either has them for all drivers or they don't have them at all. Most of the mega carriers have done away with them.

 

We're talking about company trucks, not trucks owned by the drivers. If a company truck doesn't have an APU, why would you want to spend $15,000 to buy one yourself to put on their truck, and I doubt if the company would let you do it anyway. If you go to work for a company that doesn't have APU's on their trucks, then you idle your truck when stopped.

 

I'm curious as to why you said this. Care to give more insight?

 

You are putting the cart before the horse.

I, as an O/O, did not focus on the creature comforts. I looked at what I can learn trucking-wise, legal aspects, manouvering, BACKING etc.

3 months later I had my own truck/authority. Now I'm debating on inverter vs. generator. Inverters look like they are not an ideal setup (battery drain issues) .. and APU cost an arm & leg, so generator may be way to go and still accomplish what I need.

 

Just a personal observation from talking with drivers who work for them. Most of the mega carriers I've seen are getting new trucks bare bone with no frills. I realize it's not the case with all of them which is why I said "usually".

 

As long as your truck has an inverter (which most company OTR trucks do) then it's just a matter of letting the engine idle while you use a microwave to heat things up and eat in your truck. An APU saves fuel as opposed to idling a truck if you are frequently driving in weather extremes and need to idle at night for heating and cooling.