Log Book Q:How often do you have to take a break when driving?

the only CURRENT regulations on breaks says you can drive up to 11 hours within a 14 hour period, then are required to take a 10 hour break. no specific time necessary, 10 hours in a row, and once your 14 hour clock starts it for then most part continues whether you are driving or not. (you CAN split log with an 8 hour sleeper berth, but it rarely is worth it). you also are required to log a pretrip OR posttrip inspection once per day. if you are not a complete idiot, you will do a thorough pretrip AND posttrip to always be aware of potential problems with the truck, but you are required to log only one per day. many companies have a policy regarding which (pre or post) is necessary to log. you can combine a pre or posttrip with fueling, thus saving a few minutes here and there on your drive time.
you are not required to log an inspection of the truck every time you stop, but all good drivers WILL inspect it several times per day, each time they leave the truck or spend any length of time in the sleeper. maybe not the full pretrip that you are taught each time, but important things to check repeatedly are:

5th wheel release. as easy as it is for you to pull it, it is just that easy for some jerk to come along and pull it while you arent looking.you think everythings cool,pull away and the trailer falls unceremoniously to the ground. and you get fired most likely. this in my opinion is THE MOST IMPORTANT part of any inspection.

air lines. no leaks, attached properly.

lights. all work. having a blown light is inevitable, it will happen MANY times thru the year. and a blown light is a beacon to dot saying "please pull me over and inspect me". a hassle you do not want. always keep replacement headlamps and trailer lights for quick replacement when needed. company should provide or pay for a reasonable number of replacements stored. i wouldnt even give them the chance to say no. call whoever approves such purchases and tell em you have a blown headlamp and two blown trailer lights within the first week, then youll have them for when you actually need them. then when you use one, replace it asap and call them again. each future time wont be a lie.

brakes. learn what is proper "play" for the truck. if you took away nothing else from training, take that. your brakes are your best friends. make sure they are in proper working order at least once per day.

tires. proper air pressure, proper tread depth. ESPECIALLY steer tires. do NOT hesitate to tell the company they need to replace the steers anytime you feel they arent safe, whether they tell you the tires are good or not. they wont be the ones dying in the multicar crash resulting from a blown steer tire. trailer tires can blow every day no big deal. (check em anyway lol). but blown steers can kill you pretty easily. (blown trailer tires CAN end up killing others, so im not saying they are not important)

trailer doors. are they still closed and sealed? you should have a lock on your trailer always, but not everyone does. those seals are very easy to break. no one really wants to steal your truck, (too easy to get caught), but many want to steal whats in your trailer. ALWAYS check the doors.

fluids. check on a regular basis. most drivers dont check everyday, unless there is a known issue. but it cant hurt, especially oil. you should be able to tell me anytime i ask you pretty close to exactly how much of each fluid is there.

im sure im leaving a ton of stuff out...these are the things i will ALWAYS check. every day or more. ill log it once per day, but several things mentioned above get inspected far more often than that. its all about my safety, and the safety of those i share the road with. and of course, most importantly, not painting an "inspect me" target on my truck for all police and dot to see.

 

you could be right i was just going off what we were told at our last safety meeting. which most safety guys have no idea what they are talking about anyway. college educated and no experiance behind the wheel of a truck.

 

That sounds like most of them

sent from my EVO4gLTE
OCed and MEANbean

 

New Law going - July 1, 2013 - drive 8 hours, 30 min break.

You might want to start doing your post PTI's. Pre - flag, Post - Log it. All on line 4.

May drive only if 8 hours or less have passed since end of driver's last off-duty period of at least 30 minutes. [HM 397.5 mandatory "in attendance" time may be included in break if no other duties performed]

Post - CFR396.11

Pre - CFR§ 396.13

 

i heard that they were trying to add more driving hours, But thats only if you take 30 minute break before 8 hours. I might be wrong but I heard it from somewhere.

As far as the break question, since the company I work for hauls haz mat I figure every four hours as a break would be necessary, I normally drive until the truck needs fuel or if I feel the need of a walk around to stretch.

 

No... drive 8 hours, take a 30 min break, then you can drive the other 3 hours so long as your 14 has not run out.

 

I thought getting fuel was logged 15 minutes?

 

Getting fuel is logged for however long it takes you. A company I worked for previously said to go off-duty while sitting in line, then go on-duty for fueling. I'm in Swift Orientation right now and they say on-duty from the time you get there until you are done fueling.

 

I think your talking about electronic logging. When doing paper logs you still need to show at least 15 minutes. That's one of the ways they check our logs. By swiping the fuel card they check our times and location.

 

The electronic logs work the same way as far as time frame and location.