How to sleep without A/C while in Texas at noon?

First off you need to check with the companies safety director about their policy reguarding idleing the truck in extreme heat and or cold. I would not under any circumstances roast or freeze for a company. He could #### well end up with heat exhaustion. IDLE THE TRUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! if they give him a ration of crap over it go to OSHA. Go to the D.O.T.
The last two answers are only if they are adamant about no idleing. Texas recently passed a no idle law like COMMIEFORNIA BUT they left it so that above a certain temp you can idle. Alot of these companies are trying to put the screws to drivers about idle time, but if your husband ends up in the hospital from heat stroke you can bet that same company will be saying but we allow our drivers to idle in extreme heat or cold. Find out what their policy is and go from there.
Also if they wont budge find a new company. There are plenty out there looking for good drivers not just steering wheel holders.

Good Luck and ###### driver IDLE THAT TRUCK

 

Jeez...

 

Idle!!!!!!!!

 

Make the HOS (Hours of Service) work for you...not against you.

If he wants to sleep at night...all he has to do is start his day every morning at his chosen time (I like between 5 and 7am). If he works for a company that strives for legal logbooks this works like a dream.

To start his day (start the 14 hour clock)...all he has to do is move the truck a couple of miles. This is why I never park at a consignee, I always stop a few miles away.

Some will argue that this will waste your time and cost you money...it hasn't for me. If anything it has made life easier...

If I had to try to sleep during the day and couldn't because they wouldn't let me idle in 100 degree temps...guess what? I'd sleep that night, right there where I was at...I won't move this truck if I'm not well rested enough to drive like it should be done.

Its that simple.

Trucking isn't that bad...but you gotta make the right decisions, nobody can make them for you. (that includes a dispatcher or fleet manager)

 

I can't sleep when I am hot. I idle! I can sleep down to about 20 degrees but below that, I Idle. If they don't like it, they can hire a robot to drive this thing!

 

Yup, the only way to get this silly s---t gone is when drivers refuse to work for idiots like this. Believe it or not there are sane people in the industry, even in Texas. Stupid practices are enforced just as long as they can get people to live by them (or die for them). Forget "driver's strikes" or OSHA or the Easter Bunny.

 

I went without A/C on my truck for a few years and there was only two times when I remember I was too hot to sleep, once in Orlando during the day, and once in Phoenix during the day. The first few hot days of the year are a little uncomfortable, but by late May I was used to it. Cold on the otherhand I can handle until about 20 F but below that it's hard on the truck to start, and hard on my to get out of bed. For hot days, shade, good ventilation, and a fan were all that I normally needed. Make sure all your windows and vents are opened, yet make sure there is no sun beating down on you, then a good 12v fan blowing directly on you. Sleep naked, or in underwear and your husband should be fine. Keep in mind, this was my decision. A couple years ago I was running for this guy and his truck had absolutely no heat when it idled and sometimes the heat would cut off while driving too. There was a ton of oil and sludge in the antifreeze so my guess is that it had a blown head gasket or cracked head and sometimes the sludge would block the heater core? Regardless of what was wrong with it, it didn't have any heat. I told the owner several times over a 8 week period to get it fixed and he made one lame attempt to fix it. Then one night in Williston, ND it got down to -4 F on the inside of the cab -14 F on the outside. I called him to tell him that night that I didn't think I could sleep in the truck when it was that cold. He told me to hang out in the truckstop, which the truckstop is basicaly a gas station with no seats, or dinner, or anything like that. I told him there was two little cheap motels within walking distance and he never made any offer for me to get a room. That was the last run for him. I would tell your husband to start looking for a new job. As someone above mentioned, don't let companies push you around, it hurts all drivers. When I drove in extreme heat and cold it was my truck and my choice. I kinda like driving the way the drivers before me had to, plus I'm little bit of a enviromentalist, but I wouldn't do that for a company. I don't mind helping a company out, but any big company has enough money to put their driver in a hotel if there is something wrong with the truck. Wish you and your husband luck.

 

I idle when it's too hot or cold. To my advantage, I don't stay at truck stops as I can't stand the smell of piss on hot pavement, the garbage, noise and crowds. I try to do good pre-planning when I can, etc.

 

This was at the heart of Why I quit May Trucking. I Cheyenne Wy at I think it was a Pilot (maybe wrong) anyway they were going truck to truck checking on drivers that were not idling to keep them from freezing, and May was still giving me a difficult time regarding idling.
I decide right there that when I got the truck back to the Mira Lome Yard that this was the proverbial straw. There was also a issue over forcing to buy a tire and having them deduct it out of my check. But the no idle policy was the biggest part of the deal.

Other than 2 issues they were not to bad..

Bottom Line Idle that baby, the house is warm I guarantee it...