What is the correct procedure when loading carboard bales on a curtain side trailer.
Do they have to be strapped to the deck of the trailer or is ok to just use the internal straps per row of bales.
I believe the curtains are load bearing.
Any advice would be much appreciated.
Strap them, you can’t get into trouble for having to many straps.
don’t quote me but internal straps are only good for 400 kgs . Bales of cardboard out of a compactor / baler would be at least that or more .
I’d play it safe and put proper 5 ton ratchet straps on them load bearing curtains or not .
beefy4605:
don’t quote me but internal straps are only good for 400 kgs . Bales of cardboard out of a compactor / baler would be at least that or more .
I’d play it safe and put proper 5 ton ratchet straps on them load bearing curtains or not .
Strap them to hell ,
As a bale that’s done by some one who knows how to work a bailer or a big mechanical one will pack it tight thus heavy !
Never never use just internals you’ll be sorry as the Bales can move
I’d say…
Three sheets including the flyer.
Double dollies on the back though.
That is in fact me at the tiller.
blue estate:
beefy4605:
don’t quote me but internal straps are only good for 400 kgs . Bales of cardboard out of a compactor / baler would be at least that or more .
I’d play it safe and put proper 5 ton ratchet straps on them load bearing curtains or not .Strap them to hell ,
As a bale that’s done by some one who knows how to work a bailer or a big mechanical one will pack it tight thus heavy !
Never never use just internals you’ll be sorry as the Bales can move
Agree… but often you can’t get the strap between the top bale and the roof of the trailer
You Lads don’t know your born this is how the professionals did the job back in the day 24 ton of baled trim and never a problem !
Bewick:
1You Lads don’t know your born this is how the professionals did the job back in the day 24 ton of baled trim and never a problem !
Wheres the like button
Suedehead:
Wheres the like button
+1…
Transporting more cargo for more profit than a curtainsider and no XL willy wonty arguments.
cav551:
blue estate:
beefy4605:
don’t quote me but internal straps are only good for 400 kgs . Bales of cardboard out of a compactor / baler would be at least that or more .
I’d play it safe and put proper 5 ton ratchet straps on them load bearing curtains or not .Strap them to hell ,
As a bale that’s done by some one who knows how to work a bailer or a big mechanical one will pack it tight thus heavy !
Never never use just internals you’ll be sorry as the Bales can moveAgree… but often you can’t get the strap between the top bale and the roof of the trailer
Get a long length of 1 inch plastic pipe , jam the hook end of the ratchet strap into it and feed it up and inbetween the load and the roof 
- work smart not hard
Curtainsiders carrying waste are a popular one for being tugged at checkpoints because DVSA know there’s a high chance it’s not secured properly so easy money. They’re also easy to identify when driving down the road cos of the bulging curtains.
The DVSA and the CPU of the RPU love to tug or pull any vehicle displaying orange ADR marker boards especially when loading fertiliser out of Ince, but saying the the CPU guys are quite amiable and polite and depending if you pass the attitude test they may allow you to strap the load.
Give em grief then expect to be there all day and a more thorough examination of everything, any missing ADR kit , they will not allow you to move until it’s been taken care of, even a flat or missing torch battery.
baled card/paper straps straps straps ask yourself if one of these fell off and i were underneath would it flatten me
ive seen a few drop off while the forkie was unloading and they land with a THUMP
if you go to DS Smith at Kemsley if its not stapped /secured you will be sent away until it is
also genrally speaking when they are loading the bales they shove all different sizes on very little consistancy at some places
Bewicks pic’s show it all. Sheets, ropes, job done. It’ll still be on there when you get to where you’re going. My old dad was backing up on uneven ground with a scammel coupling. The trailer rolled and a crane picked the whole lot up with the load still on it.
peterm:
Bewicks pic’s show it all. Sheets, ropes, job done. It’ll still be on there when you get to where you’re going. My old dad was backing up on uneven ground with a scammel coupling. The trailer rolled and a crane picked the whole lot up with the load still on it.
True. The problem being of course that by the time you’ve finished roping and sheeting it to a satisfactory standard particularly if it’s raining or blowing a hoolie, you’ve lost a good hour of driving time, you’re knackered, your hands hurt like hell and you’re soaking wet as well. And you’ve got the same to come at the other end if you’re delivering it.
I concede that a properly roped and sheeted load is a thing of great beauty to us drivers of a certain age, and it’s nice to know that I could still do it at a push (though not as well as that I confess) but like manual boxes I’m glad I no longer have to do it every day for a living.
Sidevalve:
True. The problem being of course that by the time you’ve finished roping and sheeting it to a satisfactory standard particularly if it’s raining or blowing a hoolie, you’ve lost a good hour of driving time, you’re knackered, your hands hurt like hell and you’re soaking wet as well. And you’ve got the same to come at the other end if you’re delivering it.
True but…
Most of the places I loaded bales had a roping sheeting area under cover. I’m sure Health & Stupidity could be convinced to insist on such areas being mandatory.
Agree, I couldn’t do it now. 
The big timber yard in Ipswich docks have the big ladder with the wheels on that looks like the ones used for aircraft passengers years ago.
Once they finished loading the forklift driver is gone and nowhere to be seen so no help with throwing the straps.
The packs of timber are triple stacked on the trailer bed so you have to ratchet each pack , sometimes there’s is not enough room to get the straps on the top packs if the wood is almost touching the trailer roof.
The traffic planner would ring up to say what’s taking so long to load as he tracked the truck not moving for a long time.
When done I’m dirty and sweaty and knackered.
Another tricky issue is you strap a load to death or that dreaded MDF wood that always shifts in transit, then you are told to drop the loaded trailer at the yard as another driver will be delivering it in a trailer swap.
Here’s the conundrum, do you take off all your straps on the trailer you have dropped because you no longer have any spare ones in case you need them later on?
Or leave them all on and hope the reload won’t need any as the planner assures you there is no need for straps then that changes to you do need them but don’t have any as they are all left on the dropped trailer?
If you take them off that means the other driver will have to strap the load in the pouring rain with no cover and miss a booking time and the reload booking time as nobody warned him to come in early for time to strap it, or the driver supposed to take it is changed at the last minute and in bed at home to come in at 03.00 am.
Henry Stephens:
Here’s the conundrum, do you take off all your straps on the trailer you have dropped because you no longer have any spare ones in case you need them later on?Or leave them all on and hope the reload won’t need any as the planner assures you there is no need for straps then that changes to you do need them but don’t have any as they are all left on the dropped trailer?
If you take them off that means the other driver will have to strap the load in the pouring rain with no cover and miss a booking time and the reload booking time as nobody warned him to come in early for time to strap it, or the driver supposed to take it is changed at the last minute and in bed at home to come in at 03.00 am.
At my company, every trailer has a tackle box containing a minimum 13 straps and ratchets; so the kit stays with the trailer. Most of us carry a few extras in the side locker .
The downside to that is a tendency for damaged straps and ratchets to be left with the trailer rather than replaced.
Appreciate that our method doesn’t work if the load is taken by another company.
At my place we can get straps from the garage but not from 22.00 to 06.00 when they are shut, if my brand new straps have been borrowed out to another driver he will not return the new ones and I get his frayed and old straps.
