Getting into refer trucking

If new to the wonder world of refrigerated freight, I can not suggest enough to give this thread a peek. @Rollover the Original has a post that in my opinion should be pinned to the top of the reefer thread. I’ve referred to it many times in my icebox days. Excellent write up, and great information and tips from him as well as many others.

Reefer / Produce hauling tips

 

Have you thought about the volume of Reefer loads out of Cleveland Tennessee? What about 100 miles radius of Cleveland Tennessee? Once you do, you’ll find out there is barely any. Because of this, the little bit, is very cheap freight. More importantly, in the area that you reside/decide to operate. Is there a need for the trailer that you want to pull or do you just like to pull it? If you want to go Reefer I think it’s a great idea. Just not if you want to operate out of Cleveland, TN.

 

Listen to this^^^. I happen to come from "reefer world", Wisconsin, and no shortage of reefer loads. Fact is, now that paper is kaput, I'd bet it's #1. Pizza out of Fox Valley, or cheese in central Wis. is still huge. Do you realize how many pizzas Kraft makes? While the debt free o/o part is a plus, that will change in a hurry. Busting into reefer isn't easy. Additional repair costs( reefers break all the time) and fuel, plus waiting at grocery warehouses, will have you changing your mind, I bet. What the long time O/Os don't haul, the megas do. Reefer used to pay more, and many O/Os have had those dedicated runs for years. Megas have rest of the rates cut so bad, you'd never make it anyway. Seems to me, the only trucking venue worth having today is a flatbed, only because it limits what the others can do. I'd say at least 75% of all the trucks I see in Colorado are flatbed. Good luck.

 

I don't think van is the bottom of the barrel, but you are still competing with every other van out there. Flatbed, is a whole 'nother world. THEY( customers) are waiting for YOU, not t'other way 'round. You call the shots, not some shmuck receiver, and I'd have to think pay is a different scale. With flatbed, there are so many options, and with spring around the corner, construction, which uses flatbed almost exclusively, will ramp up. Remember, van or reefer, it's "back it agin the fence, we'll call you" crap, where a flatbed, they are generally waiting for you.

 

While I agree Cleveland, TN ain't exactly a panacea of reefer freight it's not a complete dead hole. I can see how somebody that just ended up there once in a while might think that. Expand out 150 miles and there's a LOT of good reefer freight moving into/out of LaVergne/Nashville TN area and Decatur, AL. There's even some fresh chicken out of Chattanooga and north GA, not to mention Atlanta isn't for too away. There's produce and nursery, frozen. There's a big Peyton's (Kroger) refrigerated/dry warehouse in Cleveland that inbounds truckloads from all over the country every day. Reinhardt Foods in Louisville, TN inbounds a lot of refrigerated freight from all over the country. It's right on and nearby to some main freight corridors. There's some bad places a guy pulling a reefer could live but I wouldn't put Cleveland, TN on that list.

 

I have pulled a reefer exclusively for a long time. There are definitely things that you need to learn. In my opinion two really important things are, securing the load properly especially with produce. And meticulously maintaining your reefer unit. I have my reefer unit serviced twice a year and completely gone over.