Just a very provisional question, I might be parking my truck up next year for six months, from April to September. Is there any preparation I should do for this? Are the tyres likely to become flat-spotted, should the batteries be disconnected etc? Is there anything else to consider?
I know this happens, a lot of the rock and roll trucks only work for five or six months a year so I’m not expecting any major hurdles, but any input would be appreciated.
I don’t know if it’s a personal or commercial reason but surely as an asset it would be better working even if you’re not behind the helm. Could you not try and sub it out to one of the plant/flower companies that have a higher demand at this time of year?
If that is not possible then speak to whoever does your 6 weeklies and get their advise. They probably know the truck almost as well as you.
I have thought about putting a driver on it, but I would be away from the area and I don’t think I would be able to satisfy the obligations of the O licence re maintaining effective control.
Putting it up on axle stands would help the tyres no end. If you’re parking it outside then covering the tyres with an old sheet or similar will avoid them cracking from sunlight beating down on them all day (even in cloudy GB, it is the UV rays that do the damage and they penetrate clouds)
I’ve heard that it’s recommended to put a drop of fuel conditioner in the tanks, which should be topped off to avoid condensation.
Ideally it should be started once a week or so to keep seals etc lubricated or you will possibly have some hose type issues when you start running it again, so if you know somebody who can be trusted to do that, it would be useful.
I’ve no practical experience of this, never had the luxury of parking any of mine for any length of time, but I’ve heard all the above frpm people who park their trucks for months at a time 
I bought a 4 wheeler that had been stood 86 til 2002 ,I changed the tyres ,fan belt,and a few brake flex s ,never touched the brakes and there were no leaks anywhere it passed the mot for a few years after too.
Harry Monk:
I have thought about putting a driver on it, but I would be away from the area and I don’t think I would be able to satisfy the obligations of the O licence re maintaining effective control.
You must know other CPC holders based within your yard or through your contacts. Add them to your o licence and get them to do it.
I know how hard it is to let go of your baby and entrust it to somebody else and the hassle it could cause. However, get the right people behind you and you will have no worries, work ticks over, truck keeps running and you might even keep making a bit on top.
Despite any guarantee the people you contract to may have given, I’d take it with a pinch of salt and after your sabbatical is up you may struggle to find work again. IMO maintaining the current status quo has got to be something worth real consideration.
Harry Monk:
I have thought about putting a driver on it, but I would be away from the area and I don’t think I would be able to satisfy the obligations of the O licence re maintaining effective control.
I can’t help with the technicals but I’d think long & very hard about letting anyone in your motor unless you are proper minting it.
Can you get some one to run it up for an hour even if once a fortnight? Run the air con and maybe move it a few yards.
Thanks for all the advice so far, I will have a word with the yard owner and see if I can park it somewhere out of direct light. I might be able to get somebody to run it up once a fortnight or so and move it around a bit. It is all still theoretical at the moment.
As for putting a driver on it, I suppose I might if I knew somebody personally and knew they would look after it, but putting a random driver on it would be just a bit too worrysome for me!
Harry Monk:
Thanks for all the advice so far, I will have a word with the yard owner and see if I can park it somewhere out of direct light. I might be able to get somebody to run it up once a fortnight or so and move it around a bit. It is all still theoretical at the moment.As for putting a driver on it, I suppose I might if I knew somebody personally and knew they would look after it, but putting a random driver on it would be just a bit too worrysome for me!
If you can afford to keep it parked, then keep it parked, putting a driver on it will barely cover your costs (using your own numbers) so what’s the point of wearing the lorry out for turnover, different if you can make a decent profit, but no point risking your future for the sake of a few quid, you could be spending a tenner to save a fiver
newmercman:
Harry Monk:
Thanks for all the advice so far, I will have a word with the yard owner and see if I can park it somewhere out of direct light. I might be able to get somebody to run it up once a fortnight or so and move it around a bit. It is all still theoretical at the moment.As for putting a driver on it, I suppose I might if I knew somebody personally and knew they would look after it, but putting a random driver on it would be just a bit too worrysome for me!
If you can afford to keep it parked, then keep it parked, putting a driver on it will barely cover your costs (using your own numbers) so what’s the point of wearing the lorry out for turnover, different if you can make a decent profit, but no point risking your future for the sake of a few quid, you could be spending a tenner to save a fiver
Also depends if you want to keep a contract going to keep your toe in the door rather than letting it shut becoming hard to get in again.
newmercman:
If you can afford to keep it parked, then keep it parked, putting a driver on it will barely cover your costs (using your own numbers) so what’s the point of wearing the lorry out for turnover, different if you can make a decent profit, but no point risking your future for the sake of a few quid, you could be spending a tenner to save a fiver
Yes, I’m not anxious to put a driver on it, if I come off the road in late March there will only be about £1,400 of finance left on it, and if I clear that then the only ongoing expense I can see is yard rental, I may or may not be able to negotiate a discount on that as I won’t be keeping a trailer there so it won’t really cost me a great amount to park it up.
On my maths I think I can make enough working it six months a year over the Winter to be able to spend Summers living on a narrowboat and just bimbling around the canal network at 3 mph, and that’s pretty much what I plan on doing.
I’ll have a word with the fitter when I get back to the yard tomorrow and see what he says, but I do know that plenty of trucks only work half a year and they seem to manage ok.
Harry Monk:
newmercman:
If you can afford to keep it parked, then keep it parked, putting a driver on it will barely cover your costs (using your own numbers) so what’s the point of wearing the lorry out for turnover, different if you can make a decent profit, but no point risking your future for the sake of a few quid, you could be spending a tenner to save a fiverOn my maths I think I can make enough working it six months a year over the Winter to be able to spend Summers living on a narrowboat and just bimbling around the canal network at 3 mph, and that’s pretty much what I plan on doing.
I was going to ask what you were planning to do for the other 6 months of the year! ! Sounds perfect to me id love to go on a narrowboat but wife is sea sick!
Harry Monk:
newmercman:
If you can afford to keep it parked, then keep it parked, putting a driver on it will barely cover your costs (using your own numbers) so what’s the point of wearing the lorry out for turnover, different if you can make a decent profit, but no point risking your future for the sake of a few quid, you could be spending a tenner to save a fiverYes, I’m not anxious to put a driver on it, if I come off the road in late March there will only be about £1,400 of finance left on it, and if I clear that then the only ongoing expense I can see is yard rental, I may or may not be able to negotiate a discount on that as I won’t be keeping a trailer there so it won’t really cost me a great amount to park it up.
On my maths I think I can make enough working it six months a year over the Winter to be able to spend Summers living on a narrowboat and just bimbling around the canal network at 3 mph, and that’s pretty much what I plan on doing.
I’ll have a word with the fitter when I get back to the yard tomorrow and see what he says, but I do know that plenty of trucks only work half a year and they seem to manage ok.
You got it all worked out then, pay off the finance and park it, put something over the tyres to protect them, close the curtains and forget about it until you need to top up the bank account
xfmatt:
I was going to ask what you were planning to do for the other 6 months of the year! ! Sounds perfect to me id love to go on a narrowboat but wife is sea sick!
It’s something I’ve wanted to do for over 20 years, but life’s obligations (raising kids, paying the mortgage etc) didn’t allow it. Now my boys are nearly 16, I don’t have a mortgage (I live with my gf in her house) so there’s nothing stopping me, and I’ve been doing very serious planning on buying a boat for about a year now.
newmercman:
You got it all worked out then, pay off the finance and park it, put something over the tyres to protect them, close the curtains and forget about it until you need to top up the bank account
I think so. I’ve been driving a truck for 28 years now and while I still quite enjoy it at times, I think I’d prefer not to do it all year round for another 11 years until I retire. If I can save £1,000 a month over the Winter (it should be more without finance to pay) then I reckon I can live on that over the Summer, and the truck seems to have plenty of life left in it so hopefully I can keep it working until it is no longer LEZ compliant, which I believe will be 2020 at the earliest.
newmercman:
You got it all worked out then, pay off the finance and park it, put something over the tyres to protect them, close the curtains and forget about it until you need to top up the bank account
or just buy 4 old bald ones to stand it on and keep the good ones hidden away somewhere
chaversdad:
newmercman:
You got it all worked out then, pay off the finance and park it, put something over the tyres to protect them, close the curtains and forget about it until you need to top up the bank accountor just buy 4 old bald ones to stand it on and keep the good ones hidden away somewhere
Now that’s a good idea, if you’re leaving it outside I would ignore my earlier advice to keep it full of squirt too as that won’t last five minutes 
I would like to do that 6 months on and 6 months off thing, except I’d work in the summer and have the winter off, not much chance of going boating up here though, the water is a bit too solid for that 
theres a program on more 4 on Mondays at 9pm all about canal journeys next one is episode 3 prunella scales and her husband brilliant …in fact all trucks maybe parked up and we will all be on narrowboats enjoy harry…
Sounds a great plan but would six months off be too long? Didn’t you say you didnt like sitting still when you broke your ribs and wanted to get back to it. Also, as I mentioned earlier, are there implications with the company you provide traction for over a longer break.
Having read why you’re doing it and the fact you’d like to make it a long term plan, can you find someone who lives here for the summer and retires to warmer climes in the winter? There must be plenty of semi-retired folk and you can effectively truck share for 6 months at a time.
It will make all the hassle of running your own operation worth it if you can make this work. Good luck with it.
What a great idea. Wish I could afford to do that.