My thoughts. Those appliances won’t have been that heavy. So even if a couple fridges slide against the load bearing curtains there will be very little strain on the curtains or runners.
Compare that to a bulk load of sawdust or woodchip in a chipliner where there will be several tonnes pushing against each curtain.
Large recycled timber is loaded into chipliners then pushed down to flatten it with a large grab. This puts strains on the runners and curtains, as well as large sharp objects pushing against the curtains.
In over 5 years on a chipliner I never once had a problem with bulk loads. I’ve also carried similar loads to this with no issues.
As long as the curtains were load bearing as the op says then he did nothing wrong.
Op…what was the weight of the load out of interest?
Dave, I can certainly differentiate between curtains! I know standard, xl, and beef, and am able to identify all 3.
Happysack, the grand total of that load, was a staggering, child decimating, 7700kg! Given that, in their own guidance, DVSA now allow xl rated curtains to be used as a sole restraint, for loads up to 50% of a vehicles load carrying capacity, a lot of people need to get a grip, maybe read the actual regs, and be able to perform basic maths! A 44t gvw vehicle, with a net weight of 15560kg, leaves a carrying capacity of 28440kg, which makes the load just over 25%. I hardly think Mr DVSA is going to go postal over that, yet a lot of professionals would have thrown the toys out of the pram, and refused to take it!
This highlights the problem of the decker …professionals.how do you strap it and pay for three company cars .finger bays aren’t cheap .unite says break health and Safety as you can be replaced
There is little point reading regs .wing it .those poor little souls reading Facebook have kids to pay for …if u won’t wing it well find a non rec agency to wing it for you
I always imagine the drama queens, on here, getting given a chipliner and being still there two years later, trussed up in an abseiling harness, up some aircraft steps, throwing the thousandth ratchet strap over.
Own Account Driver:
I always imagine the drama queens, on here, getting given a chipliner and being still there two years later, trussed up in an abseiling harness, up some aircraft steps, throwing the thousandth ratchet strap over. [emoji38]
Or trying to rope and sheet 28 ton of loose woodchip because curtains are the work of the devil.
guess I have been lucky enough not to have to deal with ■■■■■■ loads like that for many years.
mind you we used to load coils from brinsworth onto tilts with a single strap over them (laid flat not on the roll), seeing as they were smothered in oil they would have been no use.
cracker-bar:
Dave, I can certainly differentiate between curtains! I know standard, xl, and beef, and am able to identify all 3.
Happysack, the grand total of that load, was a staggering, child decimating, 7700kg! Given that, in their own guidance, DVSA now allow xl rated curtains to be used as a sole restraint, for loads up to 50% of a vehicles load carrying capacity, a lot of people need to get a grip, maybe read the actual regs, and be able to perform basic maths! A 44t gvw vehicle, with a net weight of 15560kg, leaves a carrying capacity of 28440kg, which makes the load just over 25%. I hardly think Mr DVSA is going to go postal over that, yet a lot of professionals would have thrown the toys out of the pram, and refused to take it!
Fair point but incomplete, unfortunateley pesky rules call into action the phrase positive fit, and the sides of the load must be 80mm or less from the curtain.
Now im no expert on positive fit ( although i feel quite positive when fitting into a pair of beef curtains) but based on the image and the fact the load looks dodgy and the fact you thought it was dodgy and the fact fridges hurt when they land on your noggin and the fact that stacks of fridges have a tendency to slide and more facts and stuff I would say you could find yourself in a bit of bother as your XL curtains wouldnt be deemed sufficient.
Pedantic perhaps and sign of the times really but we cant get away with this stuff, back in the day this load would be on a flatbed sheeted and be a darn site more secure than loose inside a curtainsider. Even though we all know the curtains would probably hold it if a stack collapsed, opening the curtains would be interesting though as there might be a bulge or two but the same happens when around beef curtains.
Contraflow:
I love how Dipper_Dave always manages to get at least two ■■■■■■ innuendos into every post he makes.
Purely accidental honest.
Ive always had trouble coming across too condescending when trying to make a point and find ramming it home full thrust just annoys my fellow forum goers.
I find sliding her in nice and gentle when the other party has been gently moistened is a much better way for my point to be received.
Thetaff2:
You should go on there,most of these so called professionals are on there getting their mam to tie their shoe laces and stuff!
I find it quite ironic that you bleat on about professionals, no doubt thinking of yourself as one whilst condoning cowboy practice.
Professionals do the job properly. Professional drivers wouldn’t have taken that load like that.
Thetaff2:
Load bearing curtains do exactly what it says on the tin I’m sure as [zb] stinks a 50 kg knackered fridge ain’t gonna come out of that trl and kill some children.
Call yourself a professional but don’t know the regulations surrounding load bearing curtains. That load is not legal even with load bearing curtains because it does not meet the criteria for using load bearing curtains without using internal restraint. There is a limit to the distance between the load and the curtain on the sides and between both the load and headboard and the back of the load and the rear of the trailer.
Own Account Driver:
I always imagine the drama queens, on here, getting given a chipliner and being still there two years later, trussed up in an abseiling harness, up some aircraft steps, throwing the thousandth ratchet strap over.
At least when they come to leave the job it won’t be because of injury and they won’t be spending their retirement unable to do anything because they’ve got a knackered back or any of the other long list of common problems drivers have.
Conor:
Call yourself a professional but don’t know the regulations surrounding load bearing curtains. That load is not legal even with load bearing curtains because it does not meet the criteria for using load bearing curtains without using internal restraint. There is a limit to the distance between the load and the curtain on the sides and between both the load and headboard and the back of the load and the rear of the trailer.
“We now accept XL-rated vehicles as providing 50% of the total maximum vehicle load to the side. So you would not need to use additional lashing or other load security solutions, as long as you have loaded the goods with a positive fit”
‘Positive fit’ means: Loaded from the headboard with restraint at the rear of the load if it does not reach the rear doors. No more than 80mm between load and curtain to the sides.
With some slighty more inventive stacking, some dunnage, then proper restraint at the back, it could have possibly been made compliant. I’m inclined to agree that the weight of the appliances makes a break through the curtains very unlikely, but I still maintain my belief that a jobsworth DVSA inspector would issue a fine for that load.
Dipper_Dave and Conor are both exactly right. XL rating only applies when certain criteria is met - and it hasn’t been so that XL trailer is in effect a bog standard curtain sider.
