Weight of wood chip.

[Peter]

You definately cant load a transit brim full even with the dryest lightest chip. Especially a crew cab as you can go over the axel weight on the back axle and still be under 3.5 overall.

I used to work for a LA, and they weighed every vehicle in at the yard every day. Bit of an eye opener regarding overloading!

Our transit crewcab with a weldmesh cage and ply sides weighed in at 3.2 tonnes, with no chip on.

Soon got rid of that and went back to the Cargos!

Yours with ally sides shouldnt be anything like so heavy, but I reckon by the time you've got your tools, you, and three dogs in the cab you'll be lucky to have a tonne of payload.

Euc, pop, and plane are three I know to be really bad, and lime is really lightweight.

If you ever get a chance to put your truck on a weighbridge empty, go for it. You'll be unpleasantly surprised!

Oh, and how much I fill my transit up depends on how far it is to travel, and whether its on main roads or not!

[Andy Collins]

Arborist, though it may help to make you feel better about being over weight if "the pigs" cant see in, if you get a routine check, as Steve did, its irrelevant. They (VOSA) put you over their weighbridge, they dip your tank, then the police go over with a fine tooth comb. No escape, no excuses. I think to adapt your vehicle in various ways will show your intent to carry more weight than the vehicle is designed for, and may work against you in the event of a tug.

[Lee Winger]

Wood chips = 240kg to 520kg per 1m3

 

as Mr Ed says >350kg per 1m3 is a good place to start

 

 

5.5 X 350KG AND THAT MAKES YOU A GOOD 500KGS OVER, DON'T FORGET TOOLS WEIGH AS WELL

[Quickthorn]

You definately cant load a transit brim full even with the dryest lightest chip. Especially a crew cab as you can go over the axel weight on the back axle and still be under 3.5 overall.

 

This is true..and if they do drag you down the the local weighbridge, they often weigh each axle after they've weighed the whole vehicle. This happened to someone I know who puts up kit garden summer houses. he was underweight, but overloaded on the back axle. They didn't prosecute him, but he had to empty the vehicle and reload it until he could get the back axle weight down. The whole process took hours, which meant that by the time they were satisfied, it wasn't worth going to the job that day..

[madmatt]

Arborist, though it may help to make you feel better about being over weight if "the pigs" cant see in, if you get a routine check, as Steve did, its irrelevant. They (VOSA) put you over their weighbridge, they dip your tank, then the police go over with a fine tooth comb. No escape, no excuses. I think to adapt your vehicle in various ways will show your intent to carry more weight than the vehicle is designed for, and may work against you in the event of a tug.

 

Not to mention if you have an accident and your overloaded the police will throw the book at you. Why delibrately set out to overload your vehicle arborist?

 

In the long run it will do you no favours, the drive train is under extra strain and the tipping body will be strained and start to crack up the brakes arn't designed to stop the extra weight and the chassis is designed to a gross weight. Get a vehicle that is more suited to the job or go to the tip more often

 

Sorry to have a pop but it really bugs me when people are hell bent on braking the law, when a lot of us are trying to show that this industry is profesional and we are all working within the law.

[bill]

whats the fine for overloading?

[Arborist]

Thanks for the advice and info,

 

1st off I'm not hell bent on braking the law (Only time was post hunting ban!!) other wise I'm a law abiding person my truck is insured taxed and mot and I have £5m public liability and tickets to carry out jobs I too want this industry to be seen as professional.

I was asking for advice to enable me to try and gauge the weight of the load so that I wasn't over weight.

Unfortunately I passed my test just after Jan 97 so at present am limited to 3.5t which is stupid as I am a competent and safe driver and my mum who is petrified of driveing my dads 110 TD5 could hire out a 7.5t lorry no problem.

 

I ment by having the doors it may reduce the chance of being pulled over.

 

I was also told that on the continent they are plated at 4.5t and I could but wont change to bigger tyres and have it plated higher.

 

At the moment I do the odd big job but most are smaller, when my business grows I'll look to buy a 7.5t lorry or bigger and a large chipper.

[Steve Bullman]

Did Steve get done?

 

i got pulled over and weighed. I was 300kg overweight. enough for them to prosecute. They let me off with a warning and also put me on their records...basically meaning next time i got pulled, no pleading ignorance, straight to court for me.

2 weeks later they pulled me again.....they actually saw me coming, the copper was parked on the flyover and was out of his car chatting to the vosa guy parked in front. when he saw me coming he went running back to his car and down the slip road to pull me.

Now this time I was being a bit more sensible. I had a level load of beech. My truck sides are aluminium, and 50cm deep with no chip sides, total buck measures 2.84m3 so not a large load by any means. I was legal on the rear axel but 4% over on the front. luckily for me they allow you 5%

 

but it goes to show how useless 3.5t trucks are for arb work.

[Steve Bullman]

whats the fine for overloading?

 

in my case if it had gone to court i would have been looking at a fine anywhere between £200-£800

on the plus side they dont give you points anymore.

 

interestingly i found out the other day that vosa are not allowed to count the driver in with the payload....has to do with discriminating against overweight drivers i believe.

b oth times i was weighed i was told to stay in the vehicle..so remember that one if you get weighed.

[Arborist]

How many of you on hear have been pulled over by VOSER?

 

Steve x 2.