Axle load sensors

[openspaceman]

17 minutes ago, Paddy1000111 said:

That's what I was thinking with the hyd px reading.

They were sold as weighlode, basically you put a known weight in the tipper and lifted the bed slightly to a known position, you then read the pressure and referred to whatever calibration table you came up with, I don't think they are in business now but they were primarily for grain trailers.

 

When I was concerned about our guys returning overweight, because we had an issue getting the yard passed as an operating centre, I looked at single wheel weighers, basically an aluminium plate with a stress cell which you drove over slowly, they cost about 1500 quid but the boss just didn't want to know. After I was put out to grass one guy was stopped in a transit grossing just over 6 tonne.

17 minutes ago, Paddy1000111 said:

 

Realistically if I got stopped and was 20% over I would get charged £300 for it be it knowingly over or not.

I thought up to 15% over was a smack on the wrist  and a fine, over that it is a construction and use offence, points and a fine.

[Paddy1000111]

9 minutes ago, openspaceman said:

They were sold as weighlode, basically you put a known weight in the tipper and lifted the bed slightly to a known position, you then read the pressure and referred to whatever calibration table you came up with, I don't think they are in business now but they were primarily for grain trailers.

 

When I was concerned about our guys returning overweight, because we had an issue getting the yard passed as an operating centre, I looked at single wheel weighers, basically an aluminium plate with a stress cell which you drove over slowly, they cost about 1500 quid but the boss just didn't want to know. After I was put out to grass one guy was stopped in a transit grossing just over 6 tonne.

I thought up to 15% over was a smack on the wrist  and a fine, over that it is a construction and use offence, points and a fine.

6 tonne in what?! A Transit?! Did the coppers stop him or the wheels fall off?! 

 

AFAIK currently its:

a slap on the wrists <5%

5%-10% is £100 possibly +penalty points

10%-15% is £200 possibly +penalty points

15%-30% is £300

>30% is vehicle immobilised, court summons, points, fines, invalid insurance if it's in an accident bla bla bla 

Edited November 21, 2020 by Paddy1000111

[openspaceman]

4 minutes ago, Paddy1000111 said:

6 tonne in what?! A Transit?! Did the coppers stop him or the wheels fall off?! 

 yes transit, pulled on the M25 and weighed off and held at leatherhead weigh station

[Paddy1000111]

Just now, openspaceman said:

 yes transit, pulled on the M25 and weighed off and held at leatherhead weigh station

Good effort. What gave them away? The flat tyres or the clutch smoke from every stop ?

[Rough Hewn]

Fill your van with chip.
Drive to a weighbridge.
Empty out back until legal.
Spray can a line along the top of the chip.
That’s your chip line.
Do the same with green logs to get your log line.
Bit rudimentary but it works [emoji106]

[lux]

If you fit load sensors you will most likely be telling yourself that everyday your vans are overweight. 3.5t tippers have a very small legal payload. The sticker in my transit double cab states 600kg payload left on the back with the driver in the cab. That ain’t a lot of Woodchip... stick another guy in the cab and load it with tools and it’s even lower again.

sticking to the correct weight limits would really impact on your viability and how you have to price and time factor a lot of jobs.
If a van looks overweight it’s far more likely to be pulled over. It’s very cheap to get up rated springs and barns doors fabricated. Less than the cost of load sensors. If you look legit you’ll be left alone. Ie lights all working , seatbelts on at all times etc.
I’m really not condoning driving overweight in anyway shape or form but pretty much every tree surgery 3.5t vehicle is overweight every day, save for days being full with hedge trimming etc

If you want be totally legit I would pursue options that keep you legal and commercially profitable. Trailers- my latest tipper trailer has a payload of 2.7t. It’s on gas struts and tows a dream when full.
Look at 7.5t vehicles. They are a fraction of the cost of a 3.5t and you won’t worry about payload. Small enough to get on pretty much most sites still. Even if your driver needs a licence it’s cheaper to sort that than load sensors and most jobs you won’t have to run loads of chip to empty during the day
Far less hassle than expensive sensors and multiple trips to tip from site

I totally understand and admire your approach to stay within the rules but I think you might be setting yourself up for disappointment and future frustrations. You have probably considered my suggestions anyway but if you haven’t do give them some consideration

All the best.

[carmst74]

We once had a hire van (refrigerated vans, lose most of the payload in the fridge and insulation) and it had an on board weigh sensor from these guys:

 

Axle Weighing - OnBoard

WWW.AXTEC.CO.UK

 

Handy wee device I thought. Made sense given the amount of payload you lose in a fridge van.

 

I appreciate the view ignorance is bliss but having been there and done that with the over weight thing, we don't bother anymore. Doesn't matter if we are sending 1 pallet or 5, if its going to put the van over weight we put in on the 7.5t DAF instead.

[dig-dug-dan]

5 hours ago, Rough Hewn said:

Fill your van with chip.
Drive to a weighbridge.
Empty out back until legal.
Spray can a line along the top of the chip.
That’s your chip line.
Do the same with green logs to get your log line.
Bit rudimentary but it works

Wont be accurate if you are chipping oak, then next day conifer!

[Rough Hewn]

Wont be accurate if you are chipping oak, then next day conifer!

That is correct.
My advice is only a vague guideline (literally).
[emoji106]

[Paddy1000111]

4 hours ago, lux said:

The sticker in my transit double cab states 600kg payload left on the back with the driver in the cab. 

600kg?! Definitely won't be getting a double cab. The single cab tippers I have seen spec a 1137kg payload they have a steel "highway maintenance" type bed. I am wondering about looking into an ally bed with some other type of material for the sides, not sure what yet. From what I have seen on spec sheets you can save 100-160kg on payload by getting an ally bed with ally short sides and I may look at something like ThermHex for the side panels above the normal tipper side height which is a polypropylene honeycomb board for truck bodies, caravans, ships etc. Prices aren't bad (under £200 for all the sides), it's strong and only weighs 80kg per cubic meter so all the sides would come in at maybe around 60kg