Trailering bulk materials on pallets

[dgeesaman]

Hello,

I have an Aluma 8218 18' car hauler trailer for occasionally towing my tractor, ZTR mower, and sportscar. I also would prefer to use this for picking up bulk material when it makes sense.

We buy wood shavings for horse bedding in quantity. I picked up two pallets of shavings from the local supply a couple months ago and was unhappy to learn these pallets come 8' tall on a 5'x5' skid. They were top heavy just on the forklift. The shavings are these, and while they arrive stacked like bricks, they can slip around a bit and shift under the tension of straps. I got them home after taking down each pallet to under 5' high and arranging those bags. I don't have a lot of experience hauling anything that isn't solid metal and cinched tight, so I was nervous that if anything caused me to swerve or brake suddenly, that this load would have shifted and scattered all over the road. Thankfully it was a smooth ride and when I got home nothing scary was developing back there.

The trailer has a few stake pockets on each side. Someone suggested a cargo net but those cost hundreds of dollars.

It's time for couple / few more pallets of shavings again. Is there a safer way to use this open trailer to haul such material?

Thanks,

David

 

[aczlan]

Wrap the stack in the heavy plastic wrap (such as: Amazon.com: Duck Brand Stretch Wrap, 20-Inch Wide x 1000 Feet Long, Single Roll (970700): Office Products ) and it shouldn't go anywhere. That is how I see pallets of bagged mulch shipped to the local farm store.

Aaron Z

 

[RickB]

Wrap the stack in the heavy plastic wrap (such as: Amazon.com: Duck Brand Stretch Wrap, 20-Inch Wide x 1000 Feet Long, Single Roll (970700): Office Products ) and it shouldn't go anywhere. That is how I see pallets of bagged mulch shipped to the local farm store.

Aaron Z

At 8' tall I'd be inclined to use the stretchwrap to bind the two pallets together. A 10x5x8 rectangle will be more secure than two 5x5x8 rectangles. I get baler twine in on 8' pallets carried by LTL carriers with dry box trailers. Not unusual to have one tip over & scatter if there aren't a bunch placed close together.

 

[dgeesaman]

At 8' tall I'd be inclined to use the stretchwrap to bind the two pallets together. A 10x5x8 rectangle will be more secure than two 5x5x8 rectangles. I get baler twine in on 8' pallets carried by LTL carriers with dry box trailers. Not unusual to have one tip over & scatter if there aren't a bunch placed close together.

Each pallet is wrapped like that and will still yield under strap tension, but wrapping them together is a constructive improvement. Maybe if I combine that with a couple of bare pallets tilted against each of the 5' sides to keep from tipping that way... I'm seeing a scheme here using inexpensive materials.

David

 

[aczlan]

At 8' tall I'd be inclined to use the stretchwrap to bind the two pallets together. A 10x5x8 rectangle will be more secure than two 5x5x8 rectangles. I get baler twine in on 8' pallets carried by LTL carriers with dry box trailers. Not unusual to have one tip over & scatter if there aren't a bunch placed close together.

Good point.

Aaron Z

 

[aczlan]

Each pallet is wrapped like that and will still yield under strap tension, but wrapping them together is a constructive improvement. Maybe if I combine that with a couple of bare pallets tilted against each of the 5' sides to keep from tipping that way... I'm seeing a scheme here using inexpensive materials.

Could also make a box that sits on the top with 2' plywood walls to go down over the top of both pallets (like putting a upside down bucket over a bundle of sticks) to spread out the pressure from the straps.

Aaron Z

 

[dgeesaman]

Could also make a box that sits on the top with 2' plywood walls to go down over the top of both pallets (like putting a upside down bucket over a bundle of sticks) to spread out the pressure from the straps.

Aaron Z

I'm sure the forklift could get something like that onto the 8' stack, but it could be difficult to remove at home. However I suspect I could come up with something more manageable to keep the straps from pinching and coming loose.

The up-side is that if I come up with a good fixture I'll be making this 2-pallet run every two months for the foreseeable future.

David

 

[aczlan]

I'm sure the forklift could get something like that onto the 8' stack, but it could be difficult to remove at home. However I suspect I could come up with something more manageable to keep the straps from pinching and coming loose.
The up-side is that if I come up with a good fixture I'll be making this 2-pallet run every two months for the foreseeable future.

If nothing else, you could make a lid by screwing 2 2x4s to the top of the plywood with blocks to space them out and let the straps go underneath (as seen below, the 2x4s are red, the spacers are green and the plywood is orange) and use the "lid" to spread out the force of the straps.


Aaron Z

 

[medic0648]

Wrap the top 4ft of the pallets together with stretch wrap and put a piece of plywood across the top. It should squish down some, but not move.

 

[dhagood]

i deliver pallets of shavings (and feed, and hay, and fencing, and ...) for a ranch outfitter in colorado. what i typically do is to break the 8' tall pallet into two pallets roughly 4' high. at 4' tall the shavings aren't nearly as tippy as the 8' stack. the suggestions to put something on top of the stack are spot on. i typically use pallets as they are readily available and work fine for short runs. old school corner boards (two 6 foot 2x4 connected by nailing two 6" lengths of old strap material about 1 foot from each end) work very well and don't tend to collapse as i have seen pallets do.

use two ratchet straps per pallet and make sure there is adequate tension on the straps. if you have to stop to restrap, do so! loose straps do nothing to keep your load on the trailer. make sure you keep a good, safe, following distance, watch your speed when turning, and you'll be fine.