Tips and Tricks to make life easier OTR

The reason you need a "detector" instead of just using your head, is that CO is a colorless, odorless, tasteless gas.

Exhaust leaks can cause CO to come up through places where the companies compromised the floor to install things.

I know a few drivers, me included, that have gotten a dose of CO in the sleeper.
I came out lookin like I had sunburn, and had a headache for 2 days.

So yes...
Use what's between your shoulders for more than a hat rack and spend the few dollars to get a detector.

 

I do smoke, although not a chain smoker and I put my window all the way down when I do smoke. For chain smokers who can up their trucks, they probably wouldn't notice a little CO anyway.

I spent the extra 15 bucks (on top of the 30) and got the kind of CO alarm that will record CO levels. That way, if a mechanic says, "I can't smell any exhaust." you can show him or her the CO moitor and insist they find the leak. It's also a good idea for when you're parked next to one of those APUs that isn't well maintained.

Also, keep several pairs of medical gloves with you. You can avoid dirty hands when you need to reach places your work-gloved hand won't fit and, if you're anything like me, you never know when you will come upon a nasty wreck and feel the need to stop and render aid. I recommend Nitrile (latex-free) because some people, like me, are allergic to latex.

 

I agree with Injun about the disposable surgical gloves, but I use them under my work gloves that are not water proof and get sopping wet. As you all know there is nothing worse than wet gloves in bitter cold. The vinyl gloves protect my hands from the wet work gloves. Call me a "sissie", but at least I am a smart sissie.

 

The key thing, I don't use an extra because you can't lock the doors on a 387 without a key. You push the button and it pops right back up.

If you have to break in, don't break a window. Find a claw hammer or large screwdriver and pry open the under bunk door. The thin metal holding the latch will bend out and the door opens. You simply hammer it back in place or use pliers to bend it back in place. You won't leave any damage behind.
Then you crawl your fat arse up in there and pop the bunk latch from the inside.

I learned that at a rest area about 2 in the morning. A driver locked himself out of a Columbia Ryder rental. He used my phone to call for help and after several calls nobody would come out. Tired, he finally took my hammer and hit his side glass 4 times and it didn't break. Since he didn't care about damage, I wanted to join in, lol.
That's when I used the hammer to pry the bunk door open. I thought the door metal would bend and stuff, but to my surprise it popped right open with no permanent damage. So if you are desperate, problem solved.

Before I got satellite radio, I would write down all my favorite radio stations for each big city. I wrote them down of the back of a business card and taped it up on the back of my visor. Then I could easily go to each station rather trying to search for them.

Buy yourself one of them little detail brushes available at most truck stops. They are about 6" long and 3/4" wide. Great for cleaning them hard to reach places on the dash.

One of them black seat organizers are handy, especially for holding your maps and pens and stuff. I didn't want to look at it, so I hung it on the back side of the passenger seat.

If you scale out and are lucky to have an old rusted trailer that refuses to slide... places that have a shop always have wheel chocks and I never had a problem borrowing them. They work wonders. It wouldn't hurt to keep one under your bunk (all of a sudden there is a shortage of wheel chocks at the customers docks, lol).

 

Why damage a good gasket when all you have to do is apply a little pressure
in one corner of the window.

By applying pressure to one corner you can get the window to pop out without
damaging it. Then once you are in all you have to do is put the glass and
gasket back in.

Putting it back in is the hard part but don't make it harder by screwing up the
gasket.

 

Winter driving keep the heat off your winshild lock in power divider turn off engine brake and slow down never drive faster than you can stop

 

Actually DO NOT lock in the power divider. The power divider is meant for getting the vehicle started on slick roads/parking lots and rolling over rough uneven terrain at SLOW SPEED as in 35 mph or less. Higher speeds than 35 mph for extended time may cause damage to the mechanism.

To clarify the point about keeping the heat off the windshield you have it half right. The half you forgot is you should roll down the passenger window a couple of inches to allow the cold air into the cab to cool the windshield. Once the glass is the same temp inside and out the snow will simply blow right off without sticking. Of course it is smart to wear a jacket and keep that heat blowing on your feet to keep your feet warm.

 

My first year trucking over the road I found it would have helped to have a 40 lb bad of salt and a tube of sand bungie corded or ratchet strapes to the cat walk just in case, and a snow shovel would be good too.
I remember having to break into my truck with the unlock kits they sell at the truck stop they do work!
Have a few spare fuses and tools with ya at least to fix the easy stuff. Oil and WW fluid too.

 

tools, small socket set, sae and mm. cresent wrenches, large and small. assorted screw drivers, and a large regular screw driver can also act as a pry bar. a small set of sae and mm wrenches. large and small vise grips. channel lock pliers, needle nose, slip joint, and a good set of dykes for cutting cable seals. 3 pound sledge for loosing brakes, claw hammer and crowbar for removing nails from trailers" very handy when you haul hazmat" torx set, hex set, hose clamps, all sizes. 5 of every size fuse. head bulbs, 1 each, marker lights, trailer lights, especially brake and licence plate. glad hand seals. good duct tape, not cheap crap, clear tape, electrical tape. and some of you are asking yourselves, what on earth do I need all THAT for?
just in case. in seven short years I have used every one of those, a lot of times saving time in a shop. the spare bulbs have saved me dot write ups and tickets. I had a hose clamp go bad once on a Saturday night on a coolant line. leaking coolant about two gal. an hour. I would have sat until Monday morning for a shop to fix. it took us 20 minutes and we were rolling. Extra straps, most company's give you two and two load bars. if its not enough and they wont load you unless you get more, you'll be glad you have them. hazmat drivers, save your placards, if you lose one you'll be glad you got spares. a gallon of oil, 2 gallons of coolant, a quart of abf. wd 40, silicone spray, electrical contact cleaner. Bungee's. that's my side boxes.
in my cab, smart phone with unlimited data, laptop for movies, games and Skype with family. 12 volt cooler, micro wave, I cook on the weekend and bring food out along with some sandwich stuff for a quik bite. dash cam, Sirius radio. I use my cb radio a lot, so I have a good radio with good antenna and coax ( my personal preference, I know many don't use them, I don't understand it, but to each his own.) Also, things like my phone I Velcro to an empty spot on the dash, I can see whose calling, dial numbers, ect with no more than a glance. Mike buddy for cb mike, I just reach and its there. Dayquil, Nyquil, you will need it some day. the list just keeps going, and Im tired, im home and its time to watch tv.
happy trails, hope some of this is a help.

 

Not going to hurt anything. Some northern drivers lock it in November and unlock in April.