How do refers make good money?

Honestly, you're with the wrong company. I ##### and complain about only getting 10k miles a month where I'm at...and you're only getting 1800-2000 miles a week? Reefer isn't bad. One thing is for sure, it isn't as much of a roller coaster for available freight...people gotta eat. And like @FozzyNOK said, you can haul a dry load in a reefer, but you can't haul a reefer load in a van (unless it's a really short load with lots of dry ice keeping it chilled)

 

Money in refr? Salary!

I get the same per day whether I have time to pull 5 trailers or sit in a dock "waiting on product" for 6 hours!

I am also home every night. Well, I stayed out a night 4 times last year.

Mikeeee

 

An O/O with a reefer trailer can haul anything a dry van can. I have hauled steel, furniture, paper products, machinery. A company guy is stuck with whatever he is given.

 

Not necessarily. We often load very heavy (46,000lbs in a van) and I could only scale 43k MAX at 1/2 full tanks in a reefer.

I also once had an issue with inside width in a reefer that was a dry load.

 

I agree, if i was owner op i would by a reefer trailer so i could hall dry and refridgerated. But as a company driver i will stick to van.

 

I don't either it's basically a hurry up and wait game.Plus how much more per mile does reefer pay compared to dry van.

 

Reefer might pay .2 cpm more but not worth it imo.

 

I wouldn't think so either.most drivers get paid salary at kb because of all the sitting they do,they're reefer.

 

There are other considerations for an O/O, too.

You could buy 3 decent used dry vans for the price of 1 decent used reefer. Then there is oil changes and maintenance costs to maintain a reefer that are non-existent for vans plus cost of fuel.

I would consider renting a reefer for high season if I lived in an area where I could cash in on $3/mile loads, but aside from that i think the money would be better spent providing capacity to a shipper and ability to preload or move 2-3 loads daily would be more beneficial.

 

Walmart drivers don't like to wait for unloads which is why they contract the grocery/refrigerated out.