Need Help On Staying Cool At Night

So being a rookie driver I don't have much to complain about western express. They gave me a job after not pursuing this profession when I got my cdl 5 years ago. One issue im having is staying cool on summer nights. You can only idle your truck for 15 minutes at a time before the engine shuts off. I the small white square fan that they sell at pilot and a regular Walmart grade box fan. The problem with the box fan is i can't find an inverter that will keep it going does anyone know what size inverter i need for the box fan And any other ways i can stay cool without the engine?

When it's really hot you'll need the engine. Some trucks you can flip the splitter to the up position and turn on the cruise control and it may override the idle shutdown.

If that doesn't work then make sure you are on a level surface. Set the trailer brakes and push the tractor brakes in... And you should find that your tractor doesn't turn off. Please don't skip step one.

Have you asked Western Express? I had the same issue when I started at Schneider. One day I walked into a terminal and asked a Trainer. He said run the truck and told me how. He said; “we don’t expect you to roast at night.”

Mike, so far you've gotten excellent advice. There's a way to override that idle cancellation feature. When you see another Western Driver at a customer or terminal ask them about it. Nobody's expecting you to cook at night. They want you getting good rest.

I had the same issue when I was a rookie driver at Western Express. Then another driver told me what the trick was. I'm assuming you're in an auto-shift so I'm not sure how to advise you. I had a manual back in the day. Just check with your fellow drivers, they should be able to help you out.

So being a rookie driver I don't have much to complain about western express. They gave me a job after not pursuing this profession when I got my cdl 5 years ago. One issue im having is staying cool on summer nights. You can only idle your truck for 15 minutes at a time before the engine shuts off. I the small white square fan that they sell at pilot and a regular Walmart grade box fan. The problem with the box fan is i can't find an inverter that will keep it going does anyone know what size inverter i need for the box fan And any other ways i can stay cool without the engine?

15 minutes? What kind of truck do you have? Mine is 5 minutes. With the spring/summer heat if my appointments or pickups/deliveries allow it try to end your day towards sundown as it's cool then or drive at night and sleep during the day so the truck will stay running. They also have window screens that you can buy that custom fit to your truck which use a plastic frame with screen material so you can have both windows down about halfway without anyone being able to just reach in and keeping bugs out and pets in. At some point in summer Western Express will pay for idle air if you can find a truckstop with it. Once it's full blown summer it will generally be hot enough even at night your truck will idle all night long. Check the amperage/voltage the fans you are using, then add everything you will run off of the inverter together, double it and that's the size inverter you will need. If you hard wire a large inverter put an inline breaker in to keep from burning the truck down, for some reason that makes companies mad. I have a 2000 watt inverter with a 300 amp breaker. The breaker has tripped twice when running the instapot and the cables got warm. I run a tv, microwave and insta-pot off the inverter. I have a fan and igloo iceless cooler that run off 12 volt plugs. Be sure to run the truck for a good 20-30 minutes to recharge batteries before bed so the batteries dont die while running your fans etc.

Stick or automated manual transmission?

Automated

When I said 15 minutes I was quoting Western

Should be an operators manual with the other truck manuals. Just for the opti idle system (freighliners)

I hit cruise button, then resume button. Idle runs up to 900 rpms then thermostat controls by lower bunk, hit mode button once......

Check lowest and highest temps, using mode button. set lowest to 60 F, high to 85 F, with 4 degree difference (up down buttons)

Should run until temps met.....IF it shuts down after running awhile, and you want it back "ON" just hit mode button again, you should here the electric click right before the starter engages.....

Need to just explore what that mode button does lol It's fairly easy after you've done it a few times.....

HellI just found out today cruisng the I-10 to Tolleson, Az, my cruise DOE's max at 67 with only 65 @ the pedal Ok I only had this truck a week, didn't know it could do 67

Update I did the airbrakes trick still turned off, the cruise control won't even acknowledge its being turned on. I sent my dm a message asking how I was to stay cool without an ac. Tomorrow i head to the VA terminal to get the ilder fixed. Hopefully the rain here in NC will help. Im glad I loaded up on Gatorade waters and green tea.