Chains Optional

I got a question for anyone who wants to comment. I live in Truckee on the Donner Pass (I-80) where we watch it snow sometimes like you've never seen anywhere else in the country (average snowfall for the winter is 42 feet - record so far is 72 feet winter of '51-'52). I once drove to North Dakota in the spring time and I witnessed first hand what RedGator was describing in Wyoming. It was such a whiteout and looked so bleak you felt like the whole world had disappeared and you were the only one left on the planet. That same trip, I (more accurately, we) was/were headed back to California by way of Montana and we got more spring snow crossing I-8. There were literally cars along both shoulders in the ditch - at least one per mile - and I was crawling along in our little red Ugly-Bug (which VW's were no stranger to winter travel) and these big rigs were blowing by us at 60+ MPH without a care in the world. The road was pure white and icy as all get out and I was terrified - especially of getting run over by those trucks. Now, being from the California mountains, I am no stranger to tire chains and it is axiomatic that when in shows here, your gonna wear chains, like it or not. My question is, do truckers use the chains as an option other places? You have no choice in California cause CalTrans sets up manned stations with CHP sitting there and you ain't going past w/o chains. I think if I were crossing Montana (or Wyoming) in those conditions, I would pull over and put them on for traction. I used to be a "chain ape" so I can install chains correctly in my sleep and when they are done right there is no "Clank, slop, clank" noise as they slap against the bottom of the trailer. I feel for those truckers who have to listen to that noise for forty miles and damage the trailer sometimes because they don't know anything about the proper installation of those gig 'ole hunks of metal. So any comments about optionally installed chains in bad weather? To me it seems obvious but I'm used to vertical where you won't go anywhere if you don't have 'em. When it's mostly horizontal, I don't know what the rules are.

Jopa

West of Denver you have to have chains on the truck November 1 to May 1. Have no option out west. No chain.....you are not moving in the western states.

There is a product called Insta-Chain where chains are available with a flick of a switch. They are approved for OTR trucks according to their website. I have used them when I was active with the local volunteer fire dept. and they work great. While I realize that the large carriers would never go to the expense, they could be a viable option for small fleets and O/Os. It must be a real treat to have to get out and chain up in those extreme conditions, and flicking a switch has more appeal to me!

There is a product called Insta-Chain where chains are available with a flick of a switch. They are approved for OTR trucks according to their website. I have used them when I was active with the local volunteer fire dept. and they work great. While I realize that the large carriers would never go to the expense, they could be a viable option for small fleets and O/Os. It must be a real treat to have to get out and chain up in those extreme conditions, and flicking a switch has more appeal to me!

Just another thing that can break or malfunction.

I think the automatic chains are really interesting. I mean, there's no "perfect solution" to anything. But this automatic system has some very interesting advantages.

The big one I thought of right off the bat is for all the times that trucks start up a hill that turns out to be icy and they can't get the traction to complete the climb. You hit the button and BAM...instant traction and you keep on going.

There have also been numerous times over the years I was stuck on nearly flat ground like in an icy parking lot with a tiny slope to it or trying to climb up the incline from a dock. A lot of the companies I worked for only gave tire chains to teams or people that were actually on their way to the Northwest. So we didn't have chains with us all the time. So you either had to trouble another driver to tow you free or call a tow truck if there's nobody around to help.

Not to mention the obvious added benefit of not having to manually put on chains.

West of Denver you have to have chains on the truck November 1 to May 1. Have no option out west. No chain.....you are not moving in the western states.

Yes, they check for chains well ahead of the actual control zone in California as well. My question is when there is no MANDATORY chain use enforcement, do drivers generally just go for it without them or is there a common sense approach that - to me - would mean if you could use the extra traction for safety, take advantage and stop & install them. Those trucks in Montana didn't have them but if I was driving under those conditions I would certainly WANT them installed. That's my question . . .

Jopa

I'm highly against these automatic chains.

I know its a convenience to not have to chain up. But I believe there is such a thing as being too reliant on technology. The entire trucks are already all electronic. And all these gadgets can easily break costing more money in repairs and downtime. We already have a million things that can malfunction and slow us down, this just adds to the list. The one last thing that is done by actual physical work is chaining up.

Think about the average driver. We're talking about someone who is probably overweight and doesn't get any exercise short of walking to the restroom at the truck stop. Chaining up is probably the only physical activity that some drivers get in an entire month. With this chaining up system, a lot of drivers will basically be hermits.

The last thing this industry needs is more ways of being lazy and avoiding any sort of physical activity - in this case, chaining up. I think these things are just terrible.

The last thing this industry needs is more ways of being lazy and avoiding any sort of physical activity - in this case, chaining up. I think these things are just terrible.

Yeah well let me tell ya something about that young man. There are 5,000 automatic gadgets on trucks nowadays that didn't exists 40 years ago like....oh, I don't know....power steering! I'm sure people said the same thing about that. Just another stupid thing that can break and make drivers lazy. Ever try to turn a rig without power steering? OMG! That's why steering wheels are so big on rigs, even to this day. Leverage. Even though we don't need it anymore.

What about air ride suspension, air ride seats, air ride cabs, air conditioning, cruise control, power windows, power locks, power mirrors, heated mirrors, Qualcomm , cell phones, Satellite TV, GPS systems, laptops, locking differentials, automatic traction control, anti-lock brakes, collision avoidance systems, air release 5th wheels, satellite tracking, APU's , and on and on and on....stuff you use every day of your life out there. None of that existed back in the day.

And what about that blender you use for smoothies? Why aren't you using a wooden spoon? Are you lazy? Do you know that thing can break at any time and poke your eye out?

These systems are very simple and don't seem fragile in the least. They're also a huge time saver and would get thousands of trucks out of dangerous or unnecessarily difficult situations every year with a flip of the switch.

You don't have to like these automatic systems. There's nothing wrong with preferring old school chains. I myself drive a '77 Chevy 4x4. I carry all of my bags of grain, bales of hay, and buckets of water to the animals by hand. I do 95% of all of my gardening by hand. I heat my house with wood and in fact I'm switching to coal next year! So I'm not all about technology by any means. But I don't think these systems are fragile by any means and I don't think preventing drivers from becoming lazy hermits is a viable reasons for rejecting a different technology.

Qualcomm:

Omnitracs (a.k.a. Qualcomm) is a satellite-based messaging system with built-in GPS capabilities built by Qualcomm. It has a small computer screen and keyboard and is tied into the truck’s computer. It allows trucking companies to track where the driver is at, monitor the truck, and send and receive messages with the driver – similar to email.

APU:

Auxiliary Power Unit

On tractor trailers, and APU is a small diesel engine that powers a heat and air conditioning unit while charging the truck's main batteries at the same time. This allows the driver to remain comfortable in the cab and have access to electric power without running the main truck engine.

Having an APU helps save money in fuel costs and saves wear and tear on the main engine, though they tend to be expensive to install and maintain. Therefore only a very small percentage of the trucks on the road today come equipped with an APU.

APU's:

Auxiliary Power Unit

On tractor trailers, and APU is a small diesel engine that powers a heat and air conditioning unit while charging the truck's main batteries at the same time. This allows the driver to remain comfortable in the cab and have access to electric power without running the main truck engine.

Having an APU helps save money in fuel costs and saves wear and tear on the main engine, though they tend to be expensive to install and maintain. Therefore only a very small percentage of the trucks on the road today come equipped with an APU.

The last thing this industry needs is more ways of being lazy and avoiding any sort of physical activity - in this case, chaining up. I think these things are just terrible.

Yeah well let me tell ya something about that young man. There are 5,000 automatic gadgets on trucks nowadays that didn't exists 40 years ago like....oh, I don't know....power steering! I'm sure people said the same thing about that. Just another stupid thing that can break and make drivers lazy. Ever try to turn a rig without power steering? OMG! That's why steering wheels are so big on rigs, even to this day. Leverage. Even though we don't need it anymore.

What about air ride suspension, air ride seats, air ride cabs, air conditioning, cruise control, power windows, power locks, power mirrors, heated mirrors, Qualcomm , cell phones, Satellite TV, GPS systems, laptops, locking differentials, automatic traction control, anti-lock brakes, collision avoidance systems, air release 5th wheels, satellite tracking, APU's , and on and on and on....stuff you use every day of your life out there. None of that existed back in the day.

And what about that blender you use for smoothies? Why aren't you using a wooden spoon? Are you lazy? Do you know that thing can break at any time and poke your eye out?

These systems are very simple and don't seem fragile in the least. They're also a huge time saver and would get thousands of trucks out of dangerous or unnecessarily difficult situations every year with a flip of the switch.

You don't have to like these automatic systems. There's nothing wrong with preferring old school chains. I myself drive a '77 Chevy 4x4. I carry all of my bags of grain, bales of hay, and buckets of water to the animals by hand. I do 95% of all of my gardening by hand. I heat my house with wood and in fact I'm switching to coal next year! So I'm not all about technology by any means. But I don't think these systems are fragile by any means and I don't think preventing drivers from becoming lazy hermits is a viable reasons for rejecting a different technology.

Totally understood.

But chaining up is the most physically demanding part of our job. Taking that away will make some drivers never exercise because thats the only exercise they ever do get. I like exercise and physical activities and even though chaining up sucks. It does feel refreshing in the end to finally be moving around, makes you feel human. But this will cause drivers to have to do less - which will make them lazy.

Yes, this will save lots of time and money because you won't have to chain up. But sometimes we are so focused about making money that we forget to take care of our bodies. Exercise is the best thing for a trucker. Having to chain up on a mountain pass forces you to get off your butt and get your blood flowing again. Health takes priority over money, and chaining up is a lot healthier than just pushing a button.

I do love this debates we have sometimes!

Qualcomm:

Omnitracs (a.k.a. Qualcomm) is a satellite-based messaging system with built-in GPS capabilities built by Qualcomm. It has a small computer screen and keyboard and is tied into the truck’s computer. It allows trucking companies to track where the driver is at, monitor the truck, and send and receive messages with the driver – similar to email.

OWI:

Operating While Intoxicated

APU:

Auxiliary Power Unit

On tractor trailers, and APU is a small diesel engine that powers a heat and air conditioning unit while charging the truck's main batteries at the same time. This allows the driver to remain comfortable in the cab and have access to electric power without running the main truck engine.

Having an APU helps save money in fuel costs and saves wear and tear on the main engine, though they tend to be expensive to install and maintain. Therefore only a very small percentage of the trucks on the road today come equipped with an APU.

APU's:

Auxiliary Power Unit

On tractor trailers, and APU is a small diesel engine that powers a heat and air conditioning unit while charging the truck's main batteries at the same time. This allows the driver to remain comfortable in the cab and have access to electric power without running the main truck engine.

Having an APU helps save money in fuel costs and saves wear and tear on the main engine, though they tend to be expensive to install and maintain. Therefore only a very small percentage of the trucks on the road today come equipped with an APU.

Brett, you sound like a regular homesteader! Much respect.