I’ve been told by agency I’m being assigned to do a milk tanker run Saturday night. The yard is secure but empty so I’ll simply collect an envelope from a box with my run details and keys in and crack on.
I said I’ve never done a tanker before so I don’t know how to do the hoses etc. They said if I can’t get any help at the destination to call the transport office on my papers and they’ll talk me through it. I usually wouldn’t take anything so vague or without specific training first but I’m broke so I can’t really afford to turn it down.
However I’d rather not go out completely blind and wondered if any of the sage trucknet minds can give me some pointers of things to expect, things to watch out for, hazards, tips for hose systems etc.
el gordo:
I’ve been told by agency I’m being assigned to do a milk tanker run Saturday night. The yard is secure but empty so I’ll simply collect an envelope from a box with my run details and keys in and crack on.
I said I’ve never done a tanker before so I don’t know how to do the hoses etc. They said if I can’t get any help at the destination to call the transport office on my papers and they’ll talk me through it. I usually wouldn’t take anything so vague or without specific training first but I’m broke so I can’t really afford to turn it down.
However I’d rather not go out completely blind and wondered if any of the sage trucknet minds can give me some pointers of things to expect, things to watch out for, hazards, tips for hose systems etc.
Cheers.
Only driven fuel tankers which had several hoses and meters etc but I suspect a milk tanker only having the one product would be fairly simple to unload.
It does however sound a bit strange that they are prepared to let you loose with absolutely no training so I would be a little wary and not take any chances because if it all goes wrong you can guarantee you will be fully to blame.
I think I would call them again and maybe get a second opinion.
Coupling or uncoupling flexes should be straightforward, if unsure ask someone where your loading or tipping. Remember to vent the tank both when loading or tipping, if there isn’t a special venting system open a lid. Make sure valves are open or closed, as appropriate, before loading or tipping.
I have known quite a few novice tanker drivers forget to vent. If in doubt do what you have just done on here and ask.
Lining up a tank is different to a box trailer as you have nothing to guide you and it’s VERY easy to overshoot the pin. All you can do is line up the mudguards with the side bars, then get out and check and check again, there is NO margin of error.
It sounds like liner work where you take an empty to a reload site and collect a loaded tank which is then delivered to a dairy. When pulling a loaded tank check the lids on top are screwed down also look under the lid to see the vent valve is closed (if there is ladder access) although many tanks are now ground only access, Any pipe work on top with handles should have the handles across the pipe not along it. The loading box at the rear or side will probably be sealed but I usually open it to check everything is closed and all pipes have blank end caps fitted.
When you get to an unloading point the operatives will usually do all the piping up and unloading, you are just responsible to ensure the VENTS are open. If in doubt ASK; milk tanker drivers are generally a helpful lot and will soon show you the ropes, just remember this next week when someone asks you.
Basically it’s one of the easiest jobs in transport but a well kept secret.
wows turn it down, milk tanker is one of the worst jobs, there’s no baffles in the tanks so touch the brakes and the lot comes sloshing up front, milk tanks rarely are full up therefore even worse.
Fuel is so much easier.
Don’t vent the tank, they’ll never let you in one again, funny to see, like a squashed coke can.
Good luck (go to the toilet before getting in the cab)
Muckspreader:
wows turn it down, milk tanker is one of the worst jobs, there’s no baffles in the tanks so touch the brakes and the lot comes sloshing up front, milk tanks rarely are full up therefore even worse.
Fuel is so much easier.
Don’t vent the tank, they’ll never let you in one again, funny to see, like a squashed coke can.
Good luck (go to the toilet before getting in the cab)
Not everyone drives like you…
To the OP: Make sure you open the lids before loading/unloading. They’ll know how to hook the hoses up. You’ll need to figure out what taps to turn but if you follow the pipes its easy to work out. When the tap handles are at right angles to the pipe then they’re turned off. You’ll find each tank has a tap near the bottom of the centre of the tank or each section, and one where you hook up the hose. If you’re unloading and its more than one section then start with the rear section first. That way if anything turns to crap you’ve not got a trailer with no weight at the front and 12 tonnes at the rear. When you’re loaded make sure the taps for the vents/CIP are closed or you’ll throw milk out all over the road.
When you’re driving it loaded then whenever you come to a stop keep your foot on the brake no matter how short and put the park brake on. If you lift off the brakes the momentum of the milk will either shove you forward or backwards 10ft or more. Try and time setting off just after the milk has finished going backwards or you’ll find yourself lifting off the clutch and going nowhere. Be prepared to suddenly shoot forward when you release the brake until you get used to it.
Muckspreader:
wows turn it down, milk tanker is one of the worst jobs, there’s no baffles in the tanks so touch the brakes and the lot comes sloshing up front, milk tanks rarely are full up therefore even worse.
Fuel is so much easier.
Don’t vent the tank, they’ll never let you in one again, funny to see, like a squashed coke can.
Good luck (go to the toilet before getting in the cab)
What a load of bs,reload tanks have a capacity of 30 000 ltrs and are normally filled to 29 000ltrs-ish,no ullage so not much slosh.In the old days of 38ton gross when they only had 24 000ltrs,that was “interesting”
Seriously
If you have no experience you should not even think about doing it, I am not trying to put you down but being a liquid tanker driver myself I can tell you that every driver needs a trainig program before driving liquid tankers. Firstly the movement of the liquid takes a lot of getting used to, it’s not even like fuel tankers that have compartments, most food grade liquid tankers are smooth bore (baffle less), they take some getting used to, even bends will feel different, never touch the brakes in a bend for instance, if you feel it starting to roll, you have to hit the gas and accelerate out of it as opposed to slowing which will cause the trailer to roll even more. Secondly there’s the hygene side, if you have not been shown how to treat the hoses and clean them after each stop you could pick up bacteria and give food poisoning to countless people. After driving trucks since 1975 and going on to tankers in 2007 I needed a weeks training before I got the hose thing done properly. By law I think you will find that in order to operate food grade liquid takers you have to sit and pass a HACCP (food control) exam.
As said raw milk tanks are usually full to within 1500 ltrs or so, yes there is slop but very little, when you brake just keep braking don’t try feathering or anything fancy and it’s surprising how well it will stop. You also have advantage that you cannot shoot any pallets no matter how hard you brake. However treat the load with respect, especially on corners and roundabouts, don’t ever forget you’ve got the best part of 30 tonnes of loose liquid behind you. Basically you’ll just be pulling a trailer, anything tecnikanal will be done for you, there’s no way you should be collecting from farms, unless it’s to meet a pump truck at one to fill up, most liner tanks don’t have any pumping equipment of their own: they’re just slave tanks…
I know plenty of lads who drive tankers from location to location.
Sometimes they do trailer swaps,
Sometimes they meet a trained operator on site to discharge the tank!
Either way you just need a bum on the seat. To take the product to the end user!
Glam it up all you want, it ain’t rocket science.
If a experienced tanker driver was off sick.
Then any agency driver would be driving that truck that day. Simple fact.
I always thought Britain and Europe were pretty strict about safety and other rules but these seem fairly lapse
There is now way on earth any liquid food grade tanker company over here would allow a driver near a vehicle without proper training and experience of the load movement, in fact we all have to get a ‘Tanker’ endorsement on our licence before we can even get behind the wheel.
Pat Hasler:
I always thought Britain and Europe were pretty strict about safety and other rules but these seem fairly lapse
There is now way on earth any liquid food grade tanker company over here would allow a driver near a vehicle without proper training and experience of the load movement, in fact we all have to get a ‘Tanker’ endorsement on our licence before we can even get behind the wheel.
Yep,seems surprising in a country like this that loves rules and regs but I regularly pulled milk tanks for 6 yrs and the only “training” I got on the first day was “make sure you open the lid when tipping and sign the wash sheet when you drop it,the rest you’ll pick up as you go along”.As said,its not rocket science and there,s always somebody about to ask.Finding dairies was the biggest problem,I never once got a proper address
Same as the above. Used to run a night run on milk tanks when u was working as a mechanic.
It really isn’t that difficult and as has been said above, a full load doesn’t roll or slosh that badly.
Crack on driver, put a bit of fate in yourself. If in doubt, ask
Dude - check out that other thread - as most of this has been said there already including (more detailed) advice on venting and other stuff like taking samples. When receiving ‘advice’ on here - you can often tell the people who’ve done the job (recently), and those who have either not done it for a while, or are SAS/missed the ferry fantasists who trot out the cliche stuff they’ve heard in an RDC. You guys
Whoever said it was easy - is pretty much spot on! Funnily enough it’s mostly COMMON SENSE, which is probably why the idiotically litigious culture in the US demands training - that’s the way we’re going too I guess.
A good bit of advice I was given was to put the handbrake on after coming to a stop at lights etc.
The reason for this is that if your leg gets a little light whilst on the brake pedal then the slosh (if any) wont move you. Some may say it’s not necessary but it never did me any harm.
I drove milk tankers for 20 years when I worked on farm collection, including 44t artic milk transport to milk depots.
It really isnt a big deal driving them, you might feel a slight ‘surge’ when they are partially loaded and you brake harshly, but if you drive ‘normally’, and dont go tearing round roundabouts, etc, you’ll hardly notice much difference.
Just make ‘checking the tanker manhole lids’, at the top of the tank, are securely clamped down, as part of your walk around check… loose manhole lids result in the cab being showered with milk when braking (I’ve done it!!!)
As mentioned, make sure the tank is vented prior to offloading and during the steam wash. If in doubt, just ask any of the delivery point depot staff who will be used to ‘unfamiliar’ drivers.
Ps… Some of the tankers I drove did have baffles fitted which reduced the surge.
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