Unloading pickup with help from my tractor

[prosperity]

i like the conveyor belt idea, but , not sure about rolling the material over itself.
a clean sheet of plywood over your bedliner, then just pull out the belting and load
similar to the crank style, except use your tractor to pull it out!

not sure about a dump box insert, what truck do you have with only 5.5' bed? what do
you usually carry weightwise for a load?

i was thinking of picking up a small dump trailer myself. even a 4x8 would be better capacity than you
have in your box, and easy to dump, or just unhook for later use.

I'm thinking the conveyor belt on top of a sheet of plywood is about the best idea so far as far as pulling something off with my tractor.

HAve you considered a dump trailer? They're great, but a bit expensive. Personally, I think they're worth every penny! NAd you can use it with your tractor too!

I've been thinking more and more about the dump trailer. I wouldn't use one enough to justify buying one, but as I said above there is a rental unit near where I get my stuff. I am guessing that if the fee is ~$50 a day it would be worth it to me. Next time I get over there I will check on the rental fee.

I would second the idea of a dump trailer. I have a single axle trailer rated at 5000lb gross. It is easy to load with a FEL and the sides are not to high. Can carry 2 cubic yards of anything and you can (I have) put side on it to carry more light stuff. It is far easier than using the truck and having the problem of cleaning it all the time. You dump stuff in and it dumps stuff out. I used it for years as a grain wagon as well. I almost never use the truck bed for dirty jobs, just use the dump trailer. Mine it a BriMar and I love it. Don't know how I lived without it for so long.

DT508LP-5 - Bri-Mar

Yep - I think a dump trailer is more of what I need.

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I really appreciate all the great responses. After getting RA it has turned my whole life upside down. You never realize how far reaching the complications are. I never would have though I would have to be here at a place like this asking for help in how to do a simple task like unloading my pick-up. Thank you all for your help!

 

[s219]

I'd love a dump trailer myself -- I use the heck out of my 7x16 landscape trailer for bulk materials, but my wrists can't take a lot of shovel work anymore (carpal tunnel). It's convenient to go buy a ton of gravel or mulch when I need small amounts, but not so fun getting it off the trailer.

 

[beeforty]

I bought a "Load Handler" and it works pretty good for me for moving wood chips. It slides good on a poly bed liner but if you have the rhino liner type that is sprayed in I doubt it will work, too much grip. They do sell a poly type sheet for use in that situation. It doesn't seem to put too much stress on my tailgate as there is 2 straps that attach to your bumper to prevent it from curling up when unloading. I'm tempted to build some plywood sides that will prevent material from falling out around the wheel wells (wide bed) when you have a bed full of material, not just the light little loads they show in their ads where the material is neatly pile in the center of the bed.

 

[flyerdan]

If you have enough lift capacity you can get by with a cheap pickup bed trailer. I built this one out of spare parts a few years ago, this is when I dumped a load of topsoil someone was giving away. Too lazy to shovel it all out.

 

[k0ua]

I would second the idea of a dump trailer. I have a single axle trailer rated at 5000lb gross. It is easy to load with a FEL and the sides are not to high. Can carry 2 cubic yards of anything and you can (I have) put side on it to carry more light stuff. It is far easier than using the truck and having the problem of cleaning it all the time. You dump stuff in and it dumps stuff out. I used it for years as a grain wagon as well. I almost never use the truck bed for dirty jobs, just use the dump trailer. Mine it a BriMar and I love it. Don't know how I lived without it for so long.

DT508LP-5 - Bri-Mar

That is the cats meow!:thumbsup:

 

[Industrial Toys]

I personally don't like a loader anywhere near my pickup. I've done it lots of times, but I try and avoid it. Or I raise the load, and then slowly drive the pickup away. My favorite is to use an electric chain hoist I have mounted in the barn. Nice and slow, and then again I drive the truck away.

Those chinsy tuna-fish-can pickups they call "HD", will dent, if you just look at them wrong!

 

[ferrari99]

Just saw this and thought I would share.
Easy to build firewood unloader / load handler - A step by step guide - YouTube

 

[ferrari99]

Another thought you could build a dumping insert like this.
DumperDogg Pickup Dump Insert — Steel, Fits 6ft. Bed, 6000-Lb./1.5 Cu. Yd. Capacity | Lift Gates Dump Kits| Northern Tool + Equipment

 

[quicksandfarmer]

I use the FIBC bags all the time. They're very handy, load once move many times. I get them used on Ebay for about $15 each. They're on craigslist from time to time too.

 

[bcp]

Box on rollers:

http://www.finehomebuilding.com/item/13766/a-sliding-dump-bed-makes-unloading-gravel-fast-and-easy

Bruce