Hey guys
Ok quick question, my second ever class 1 run tonight for Simarco from Essex up to a hub in burton on Trent with a double decker trailer!!! Eek is there anything I need to know safety wise with a double decker? Ie anything different apart from the obvious height ? Little bit daunting
Cheers
Stop panicking Sam, double decker is the same length as a straight frame/standard trailer, as you realise, they are around 16ft 1" high & fit under all motorway bridges (minimum 16’6")
They handle the same as a standard trailer as long as they’ve been loaded correctly ie- not loaded with 15 tons on the top deck & 3 tons on the lower deck. Take it easy on roundabouts & bends.
If its windy just take it easy (& wear your seatbelt LOL)
Strap all the pallets with the internal straps & you’ll be Dancing Along like John Travolta on a Saturday Night !
They are a little tippy on roundabouts .and if you don,t like heights get a bit dizzy leave well alone 
.
I seen a freezer box come off the top deck smash through the safety chain and then wreck the aluminium ramp on the floor!!! It was blowing a gale and the box rolled off on its own.
Make sure the runners are greased well as its a foooker pulling back the curtain and your arms coming out of the sockets , the sloped roof ones are even worse if the runners are paggard have to climb up and yank it back until done properly !!
If it’s a lifting floor make sure the locks are on, there’s normally a “safe” light on the control panel at the back plus you can see the locks, they are solid steel blocks which stick out about 2 inches under each corner of the deck so that if the cables snap they will hold the deck. They retract automatically when you press the button to lower the deck. Make sure it is loaded properly (no problem if your loaders know what they are doing). On the new Grey&Adams lifting floor deckers the top deck has a 10 tonne weight limit but the heavier stuff should always be on the bottom. Never drive one with the top deck full and bottom deck empty!!!
You have 6 sets of duallies instead of super singles as it rides a lot lower, they do not like to be spun around on the spot (unit at 90 degrees or more). I have seen one with less than 10,000 miles burst a tyre while it is being scrubbed around on the spot (particularly tight yard requires jack knife to get on the bay).
Some trailers with suspension adjustment buttons inside will need you to pull the handle outside the trailer before it’ll go back into self levelling, make sure you check this. ALSO NOTE!!! A lot of these trailers due to their low riding are too low for some dock levellers, therefore they have “feet” under the trailer just behind the rearmost axle, when you use the suspension adjustment handle or buttons to RAISE the trailer it will lower these feet and physically lift the back of the trailer off the ground. Make sure before you set off that these are fully retracted because if they aren’t and you drive away you’ll soon know about it! On some of ours you simply pull the handle out and wait for it to settle but some have a “ride height” button inside the trailer that you need to push for it to return to self level.