Is it a curtain sider or a box?
We have the boxes with a hydraulic lifting upper deck,takes 6’ cages on the bottom deck and pallets loaded to 1 metre on the top.
No steering axle on these.
This is them below.
I would always try to avoid screwing any type of trailer round in a tight yard and use a shunt, not just a double deck or stepframe. It is one of my pet hates to watch someone do that.
other tips for driving a d/d. …
you have to open your rear doors before backing onto an unloading dock.
Remember, freight is much higher on the top deck, and may have moved in transit, so watch out for falling items.
Before you do your walk-around-vehicle check, raise the trailer suspension at the rear, it’s the only way you can check the inner wheels/tyres.
Most d/d trailers have a switch at the front bulkhead, this needs to be switched on when stationary, in order to supply power to the trailer lights etc…
some switches, also air brake the trailer, so be sure to turn it off before you move off.
most d/d trailers have a door inside to separate the top deck freight from the swan-neck, if driving empty, make sure this door has been closed, as the door swinging around is very annoying!
as has been said, ensure the heavy freight has been loaded onto the bottom deck, and take it easy on corners and round-abouts.( as you should in any wagon !)
D/d trailers have their own battery supply, to raise the decks etc. often these are not charged- up, so invarabily the batteries run low and won’t raise/ lower the deck.
If this happens, there is usually an Anderson lead somewhere in the box/cab. Plugging this in will provide power from the unit to the trailer. Leave the unit running, to avoid draining the unit battery.
(but remember to unplug it before driving off! )
And finally, if loaded on a docking bay, the d/d trailer suspension will have been lifted, in order for the lower deck to have been loaded/unloaded.
Make sure the operator has levelled the suspension before driving off. If not, the bags will pop/blow on the first bit off uneven ground, and if the trailer suspension is still set high, (16.8") you will hit the first bridge you come to on the motorway!.
As you said, driving one is a doddle, and most d/d behave well in high winds when fully loaded, as the centre of gravity for the load is lower to the ground than most trailers, and the wind is unable to get under the trailer, so they are quite stable.
hope this helps should you drive another.
TruckOff:
other tips for driving a d/d. …you have to open your rear doors before backing onto an unloading dock.
D/d trailers have their own battery supply, to raise the decks etc. often these are not charged- up, so invarabily the batteries run low and won’t raise/ lower the deck.
If this happens, there is usually an Anderson lead somewhere in the box/cab. Plugging this in will provide power from the unit to the trailer. Leave the unit running, to avoid draining the unit battery.quote]We have roller shutters on ours.
Our loading bays have a mains power supply plugged into the trailer when it’s parked on a bay,and an extra suzzie on the tractor which supplies power from the truck batteries.
All these replies demonstrate perfectly the wide variations that an agency driver can come across. They range from the simple fixed floor DD curtainsider with no rear doors like the pallet systems use, all the way up to complicated rising floor fridge boxes with tail lifts like Tesco has.
Any driver would be well advised to ask for some training the first time they use one. Even if it looks like one he has used before, there may well be some crucial difference.
Like this;
