Strap Placement on Lumber load

Finally someone who gives good advice.
That's the same way I was trained many, many, many moons ago.
It's the most secure way to do lumber and most definitely satisfies all the DOT gurus.

 

I learned after making all the mistakes. I try to keep my advice to a minimum and just post the reading because that's the best way to learn. A lot of my mistakes were preceded with bad advice or monkey see monkey do.

 

Fool proof method:

1. One strap per 4 feet of lift (i.e. 16 foot lifts need 4 straps)
2. Extra strap on anything not blocked against forward movement (i.e. 12 foot lifts at front get 4)
3. Standard lifts are "about 3 feet" tall, anything over two lifts high (6 feet) needs one belly strap per 8 feet of lift
4. Piece of dunnage under front or back of lift if "one by's" (i.e. 1x4) to prevent sliding

 

Said it before, I'll say it again. That file is golden. Use it weekly, study it daily.

 

Ok z.... how is that algebra fool proof?

 

Well, I guess it isn't completely fool proof, it still requires the driver be able to count, throw a strap and crank a snipe bar.

In all seriousness, it goes above and beyond the bare minimum required in the Green Bible in terms of aggregate working load limit coverage, and is nice and simple in terms of math. No need to figure out lift weight. Even 3,500 lb lifts of 8-foot OSB still end up fully covered -> ex. a stack of 4 lifts of OSB have an AWLL of 7,000 lbs, two 5,400 lb straps used indirectly is 10,800 lbs, three straps on ones not blocked against forward movement is 16,200, more than they weigh.

 

Oh i get it, but the way you wrote it, it read like a "train A leaves Cleveland at 7am traveling at 55mph..." word problem....

 

Lol, that's what a university education will do.

 

So where is this train going? It is leaving Cleveland so it may not matter, unless its going to Peoria.

 

I've always used 3 in the 1st 10 feet of the load. Then 3 in the last 10 feet of the load, then about every 6 feet in between those. Not counting the current CVSA blitz, you're always being looked at in F/B work, always give them a reason to look at the other guy and let you keep turning and earning.