The care and maintenance of box floors............

[woobergoober]

Just wondering if I could get a little info from others......I am one of the Detroit fellas, running a straight truck. As a result, the nature of 95% of my freight is automotive. Anybody that hauls alot of automotive, knows about the nasty, greasy, oily parts that go in the metal baskets and containers (mostly baskets though) and half the time, have no plastic or other barriers, enclosing the parts. The result is a sticky, oil saturated wood box floor. My question is, if any of you guys seal your floors with anything,and if so, does it do any good. I know that there is all the wear and tear from the forklifts going on and the containers being slid, but i was just thinking that this oil is not doing these floors any good; or am I wrong? Thanks for any advice.

Scott

 

[davekc]

RE: The care and maintenance of box floors........

I over time notice the same thing. What I do now is run quarter inch diamond plate one third into the box. Keeps the floors from being tore up. In addition, very easy to clean. And with most loads, seldom is freight all the way to the nose.
This can be installed right over the existing wood. Weld accordingly and screw to floor. For additional strength, you can run bolts in specific places for securement.
Hope that helps.
Davekc
owner
20 years

 

[woobergoober]

RE: The care and maintenance of box floors........

Great advice! Im going to check around and see who has that around my area, and for how much. Good point though, generally, our trucks or only loaded to a small percentage of their actual capacity.

Scott

 

[ATeam]

RE: The care and maintenance of box floors........

I've met a number of drivers that put polyurethane (varnish) on their floors. I've also read here in the Open Forum about the use of a two-part epoxy resin. How well either of these might work on an already oiled wood floor is hard to say. Some sanding may be required.

You make a good point talking about the kind of freight you haul and the freight's characteristics. It highlights the importance if considering exactly that if you happen to be buying a new or used box.

For example, while an extra legnth of diamond plate at the rear will do much to protect the wood where heavy freight and heavy fork lift traffic occurs, that same diamond plate may be an irritant in applications where a pallet jack, dollies, or tiny wheels on the bottom of tall computer servers convey the freight off the truck.

Whenever possible, we use our pallet jack to move palletized freight off the truck. Even if a fork lift driver is available at the dock, we keep him (her) out of the truck. Less chance of damage that way. We'll move the fright by hand to the end of the truck or onto the dock. The fork lift can pick it up from there. That being the case, a perfectly smooth approach into and out of the box is important to us.

We adopted our hand-unload policy after a terrible experience at an automotive delivery. It was a large plant with dozens of dock doors. There were a number of fork lift drivers racing about. While they were quite good, it scared the heck out of me watching one race into our truck at full throttle, lower the forks, shift into reverse, and then coast into the pallet while the wheels were spinning backwards to slow the forklift. He full-throttled out shifting the pallet an inch to the right just in the nick of time to keep the pallet from striking our roll-up door rails.

I stood between the forklift and the truck to stop this fool and told him we're not in that big of a hurry. He replied, "I am." I told him to cease work on our truck and went to the office to get a manager. The manager ordered me off the dock and talked to the fork lift driver. The talk angered the driver and he proceeded at the same or greater speed than before.

Next time we're in a situation like that, we'll keep the truck far enough away from the dock to prevent the fork lift from entering, but close enough for a fork lift to pick the pallets up from the rear of the truck as we move them there with a pallet jack.

Because we're willing to use a pallet jack and to provide some labor to protect our truck from wild-man fork lift drivers, a smooth floor surface front-to-rear is important to us. Very heavy pallets can be relatively easy to move if you have a good pallet jack and a smooth surface to work with.

 

[davekc]

RE: The care and maintenance of box floors........

A team wrote
For example, while an extra legnth of diamond plate at the rear will do much to protect the wood where heavy freight and heavy fork lift traffic occurs, that same diamond plate may be an irritant in applications where a pallet jack, dollies, or tiny wheels on the bottom of tall computer servers convey the freight off the truck.

The common sense approach to the above is to flip the diamond plate over and use the smooth side if desired. In addition, flat steel or aluminum can be used if weight is a concern. Install in the same fashion as above. Secure with countersink screws or bolts so no heads are protruding from the deck surface.
Another item is haz-mat drums. They are not to be loaded on a metal floor. That is another reason for not doing the whole floor. If a few have to sit on the floor, put plywood down or ask shipper for a couple of skids. Hasn't been an issue in years but you never know.
A team wrote;
Whenever possible, we use our pallet jack to move palletized freight off the truck. Even if a fork lift driver is available at the dock, we keep him (her) out of the truck. Less chance of damage that way. We'll move the fright by hand to the end of the truck or onto the dock. The fork lift can pick it up from there. That being the case, a perfectly smooth approach into and out of the box is important to us.

I am not sure who FedEx delivers to now but there are very few docks and factories that will allow you to do that now. The majority require you to "lock" your truck onto their dock with a safety latch. And of course, require the driver to lower their landing gear.
The exception to this would be curbside deliveries with a liftgate.

Another safety item is to have a load lock at floor level about four feet back from the nose of your box.
Reason; in case you do get the crazy forklift driver, he will hit that load bar before he hits your box and goes through it. Seen a guy last year go through a fedex truck box and two feet into the guys sleeper. Good thing no one was sleeping!
Davekc
owner 20 years

 

[RichM]

RE: The care and maintenance of box floors........

Very true Dave,many companies also have Union rules that do not allow you to enter the dock area and supervise the unloading operation, much less use your p/jack to bring the freight to the rear. There are also safety rules that do not allow a driver in the unloading area.

One of the worst ones I ever had was trying to unload at the Buick Plant in Flint,guy was sleeping on the fork lift and told me to come back when he was on overtime.

 

[woobergoober]

RE: The care and maintenance of box floors........

Thats exactly my problem. I have a pallet jack, but do not carry it anymore for 2 different reasons: First, since most of my work is automotive, automotive means UAW. When I get to the plant, the procedure is generally, 1.) park outside 2.) go in and tell checker you are there, and give him or her paperwork 3.) back into dock after permission is given 4.) shut off truck, drop landing gear, chock both sided 5.) go inside and wait in the drivers area.

I have yet to be allowed to even get close enough to my truck while its being unloaded, to even see how they are doing it. Got yelled at the other day for walking over just to prop up my roll up door for the extra couple inches of clearance. The other problem is with the freight dimensions. On a couple occasions, they called for a 26 foot truck, which I am. I showed up and they had to use up all but the last 6 inches of truck space with all the dunnage they had. I had to leave my pallet jack at the plant, and lucky it was only about 60 miles from where I live, so I was back in the area a couple days later.

scott

 

[davekc]

RE: The care and maintenance of box floors........

Pallet jacks can be a handy item but all too often they are more of a hassle. Most of the time when one is needed, the pick up or delivery point have one. As mentioned, most places do not want you on their dock. That is auto freight and many other factories. As RichM mentioned, alot of that is because of the various unions. They are great for local delivery or curbside. Other than those types of shipments, save your money. That is the same reason for not having a liftgate. Many places will refuse to unload you with that equipment. And depending on the type of liftgate, if you can't lock onto their dock, you can't deliver there. You gain some loads with them, but you also lose them as well. That is the reason very few trucks have them. Kinda like the pallet jack, by the time you figure your cost, maintenance, and aggravation into it, they seldom ever pay for themselves. Not to mention the safety issues, like doing a balancing act on the liftgate with a 10,000 lb. piece of equipment.
Davekc
owner
20 years

 

[simon says]

RE: The care and maintenance of box floors........

Diamond plate adds weight and causes other problems under wet and icy conditions. My box has a 2' plate which is the norm, plus the 12" high scuff plate on the sides. Cleaning: per Hulet Body DTW: light sanding with 80 grit using a sander of some type. Hit worst spots with something more coarse. Once smoothed down and clean, coat with poly-urethane 1-2 times. A Team has it right...

 

[davekc]

RE: The care and maintenance of box floors........

Simon
You can paint a coating on there if you are concerned with slippage during icing conditions. You shouldn't have ice, snow or water in your box anyway. Aluminum diamond plate will add 25 to 100 lbs depending on how far in the box you go. The other major advantage is tow operators going through the floor of your truck. Any items put on the wood will not prevent this. That is why they make aluminum floors on the newer trailers. They last three times longer and are much harder to damage. Floors in regular trailers must be replaced about every 4 or 5 years or they need extensive repair. And the obvious, aluminum is much lighter than wood.
Davekc
owner
20 years

 

[ATeam]

RE: The care and maintenance of box floors........

This topic has shifted a bit from floor treatment to pallat jecks and union rules on docks. That goes back to the point I made earlier. Know what kind of freight you will generally haul. It makes a difference in how you work and what equipment you use.

I can only speak from my own experience. As a White Glove drivers, we are required to carry a pallet jack. Jack maintenance is minimal. It is rare -even on automotive deliveries- to be ordered off a dock. The overwhelming majority of shippers and consignees are pleased to either load a pallet at a time onto the end of the truck (shipper) or unload it from there. You do not set foot on the company's dock. You operate out of the back of your truck. Integrity for union rules is maintained.

Again, our reason for this style of loading and unloading is to protect our truck. It requires more work. It is a hastle. But to us, it's worth it. And it makes a perfectly smooth floor surface desirable. The crash plate (factory installed diamond plate at the back of the box) in our new truck will be recessed into the wood (flush mounted). Bolt heads that anchor the wood will be countersunk and the holes will be filled to bring them flush with the floor.

Gentlemen, please. There is no right or wrong answer here. It's about the difference in freight typically hauled and one's working style in the truck and around docks.

 

[ATeam]

RE: The care and maintenance of box floors........

Not to mention the safety issues, like doing a
>balancing act on the liftgate with a 10,000 lb. piece of
>equipment.
>Davekc
>owner
>20 years

Lift gate capacities on expediter straight trucks run 3,000 to 5,000 lbs. If you know of one that has 10,000 capacity and is used in the field, I'd love to see it.

 

[davekc]

RE: The care and maintenance of box floors........

Lift gate capacities on expediter straight trucks run 3,000 to 5,000 lbs. If you know of one that has 10,000 capacity and is used in the field, I'd love to see it.

They actually do make one with that capacity. It is used of course with a tandem straight tuck. You will see these on occassion out west.
But you are correct in that most expediter liftgates are in the 3 to 5,000 range.
I thought I would throw out using aluminum or steel on part of the floor for folks to minumize some of their floor damage. It can get pricey when reflooring a box. It does cost more on a new truck so most dealers will not spec them with this. On your new truck it seems you have it right.
Still struggling with the liftgate balancing act even with a 1,000 lb skid. To each their own on that one.
Davekc
owner
20 years

 

[RichM]

RE: The care and maintenance of box floors........

Take it from me with 18 years experience. You do not want to screw around with a lift gate load over 2,000 pounds. It is quite easy to get injured and the next words you will hear is " Call us when you are back in service".

 

[davekc]

RE: The care and maintenance of box floors........

Amen!!!
Davekc
owner
20 years

 

[Broompilot]

RE: The care and maintenance of box floors........

Now I remember who told me, just last week I decided enough was enough. Fork lift driver dropped a 20K computer stacked 4 high, then he ran the FL with the broken light mounted on the side into the side of my wall.

I have delivered and PU this week two automotive loads that I loaded and unloaded myself and it was quicker for both of us. As soon as I pulled the pallet off the FL driver was right there with out going into the trailer deeper and deeper, zipped away and by the time the next was out he was back. It possible to get along with these guys (non union), and they were just as pleased as I was. Tired of the dirt, and wear and tear these fork lifts do to my box so I will use this floor jack as much as possible.

Thanks for the tip a few months back.

 

[woobergoober]

RE: The care and maintenance of box floors........

OK, I understand that I may be getting off subject, but regarding truck boxes and pallet jacks....One question; Most of you guys have sleepers on your trucks, may I ask what size your box is? I have a 28 foot box with a day cab, but of course with a sleeper, that would be slashed by a few feet. I always thought that 24ft was the standard for Expediter trucks, but I am willing to bet there are alot of 22ft boxes, just because it would be much more desireable to have a larger sleeper. Thanks for any input.

Woob

 

[RichM]

RE: The care and maintenance of box floors........

I have a 22 footer,works out well.

 

[Broompilot]

RE: The care and maintenance of box floors........

22ft

 

[ATeam]

RE: The care and maintenance of box floors........

>OK, I understand that I may be getting off subject, but
>regarding truck boxes and pallet jacks....One question; Most
>of you guys have sleepers on your trucks, may I ask what
>size your box is? I have a 28 foot box with a day cab, but
>of course with a sleeper, that would be slashed by a few
>feet. I always thought that 24ft was the standard for
>Expediter trucks, but I am willing to bet there are alot of
>22ft boxes, just because it would be much more desireable to
>have a larger sleeper. Thanks for any input.
>
>Woob


FedEx CC D-unit minimum box size is 22 ft. The idea is FedEx can sell up to 20 feet of box space for freight. The 2 or more feet is for driver's equipment. C-unit minimum box size is 14 feet, with 12 feet for freight. Note that a standard size skid (pallet) is 40"x48".