Fuel hauling info please...

be careful with the common carrier fuel haulers.....in my area most all of them pay by the load, which is not good for you if their is an economic slow down.....and slow downs are very common....it doesnt matter what season it is, you can make over $1000 one week, then less than $200 the next.....some of the company's have a weekly guarantee, however, all experienced gas haulers know of them and they generally dont hire drivers with no gasoline experience....I've been a gas hauler for 5 years, it is generally a good job...you will be home every night, at my company, all the drivers traded weekends, so i worked day shift monday thru friday and every other weekend...loved the home time.....my advice is for you to get some experience, then try to hire on to a great company like Flying J, Pilot, Loves, etc, etc, because they make great money by the hour, great benefits, and you go to the same store(truck stop)every load...it can get very routine, however stay on your toes....its not water you're hauling..

all the best,
tommytoe

 

Didn't mean to quote the whole thing, but anyway, I have 1.5 yrs otr and 6 months route driving. Will this suffice? Dang, I gotta get my haz-mat first.

 

Also keep in mind, that depending on the company that you work for,
you could be paid a percentage of the load.

Example 20% of whatever the load paid.

This is not a good paycheck at the end of the week.

 

Are there any food grade companies in northeast that hire newbies or train students. I work with liquid in lawn care/landscaping but its at 500 to 800 gals. I really would like to do tankers after school.

 

Really depends on the area and the companies; most companies here (in Michigan) want at least two years of previous fuel hauling experience, OR three years verifiable OTR and then they will train you. You'll have to look around at the cos. in your area to find out.

Most tanker cos. DON'T hire students. Schneider will, but you could end up hauling Dry Bulk, not pulling a liquid tank. You would have to ask a recruiter as to what they have. As for the rest, again, anywhere from one year to threee years verifiable OTR to join.

Burky had (in a previous post) mentioned that some drivers at his company (Bulkmatic) had started off by being a tank washer, moved up to yard jockey (and transloading, if the terminal near you does that) and got into driving.

 

Thanks for all the info. Do companies pay 20% of the freight charge or the total load? when does that work in your favor?

 

anyone know anything about florida rock? they where hiring drivers in the atlanta area. havent had the chance to speak with their drivers yet

 

Thanks Brickman