Sleeper Berth Hours
Topic 32933 | Page 1
Interchangeable. Either one, or any combination of the two, satisfies the requirements for a 10 hour break.
There is one exception to this, and that is using the split sleeper option to pause your clock.
Interchangeable. Either one, or any combination of the two, satisfies the requirements for a 10 hour break.
Thanks NaeNae - that is important.
Let me just go into this a little further for clarity. One of the great benefits of the new HOS rules is the ability to pause (or extend) your fourteen hour clock by taking a 2 hour break. Once 2 hours has passed while on off duty or sleeper berth , or any combination of the two, you can legally extend your 14 hour limit to 16 hours. That's a great benefit when your customers hold you up at their docks.
The caveat is that you need to do eight hours in the sleeper before switching to off duty for the final two hours of your ten. Doing ten hours in the sleeper is okay too. If you just do ten hours off duty during this scenario, you've violated the 14 hour rule if you used the extension.
CAUTION... It may not show up as a violation on your ELD. But you will be cited by the right kind of officer who happens to check your logs and knows how to do math.
Just some fun facts to know and learn.
Sleeper Berth:
The portion of the tractor behind the seats which acts as the "living space" for the driver. It generally contains a bed (or bunk beds), cabinets, lights, temperature control knobs, and 12 volt plugs for power.
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.
I once had a company (Schneider) review of my logs and was asked why I never slept? š³ The āif you didnāt log it, it didnāt happenā philosophy.
I explained that, normally when I shut down, I go off duty and by the time I hit the rack, the Qualcomm has gone into sleep mode and I donāt bother waiting for it to start back up.
The company evaluator said it is possible (but not probable) for DOT to say Iām not being truthful on my logs if I never log sleeper berth.
I took it to mean itās not illegal to just log off duty, but itās more accurate and will raise fewer suspicions if you ālog it as you do it.ā
I hope this helps.
Sleeper Berth:
The portion of the tractor behind the seats which acts as the "living space" for the driver. It generally contains a bed (or bunk beds), cabinets, lights, temperature control knobs, and 12 volt plugs for power.
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 truckās computer. It allows trucking companies to track where the driver is at, monitor the truck, and send and receive messages with the driver ā similar to email.DOT:
Department Of Transportation
A department of the federal executive branch responsible for the national highways and for railroad and airline safety. It also manages Amtrak, the national railroad system, and the Coast Guard.
State and Federal DOT Officers are responsible for commercial vehicle enforcement. "The truck police" you could call them.
The company evaluator said it is possible (but not probable) for DOT to say Iām not being truthful on my logs if I never log sleeper berth.
I took it to mean itās not illegal to just log off duty, but itās more accurate and will raise fewer suspicions if you ālog it as you do it.ā
I hope this helps.
This helps! I am getting better at it, probably because I wrote myself a reminder note, but sometimes I forget to switch from Off Duty to Sleeper and wasn't sure how big a deal it would be if inspected.
Follow-up question: When I first log Off Duty, I choose 10 Hour Break as the option. When I switch to Sleeper, should I be selecting that again? I've just been not selecting anything there since I previously selected it.
Sleeper Berth:
The portion of the tractor behind the seats which acts as the "living space" for the driver. It generally contains a bed (or bunk beds), cabinets, lights, temperature control knobs, and 12 volt plugs for power.
DOT:
Department Of Transportation
A department of the federal executive branch responsible for the national highways and for railroad and airline safety. It also manages Amtrak, the national railroad system, and the Coast Guard.
State and Federal DOT Officers are responsible for commercial vehicle enforcement. "The truck police" you could call them.
OOS:
When a violation by either a driver or company is confirmed, an out-of-service order removes either the driver or the vehicle from the roadway until the violation is corrected.
When I first log Off Duty, I choose 10 Hour Break as the option. When I switch to Sleeper, should I be selecting that again?
I wouldnāt worry about that unless your company requires it. The comments section can vary by company. Mine doesnāt offer ā10hr Breakā when selecting Sleeper Berth. I figure āSleeper Berthā is self explanatory.
Sleeper Berth:
The portion of the tractor behind the seats which acts as the "living space" for the driver. It generally contains a bed (or bunk beds), cabinets, lights, temperature control knobs, and 12 volt plugs for power.
OOS:
When a violation by either a driver or company is confirmed, an out-of-service order removes either the driver or the vehicle from the roadway until the violation is corrected.
Ok, good to know, thanks. My company doesn't require it. I also didn't know those options could be company-specific. I'll keep doing as I do then.
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.
Iāve always gone straight from post trip to sleeper berth.
Sleeper Berth:
The portion of the tractor behind the seats which acts as the "living space" for the driver. It generally contains a bed (or bunk beds), cabinets, lights, temperature control knobs, and 12 volt plugs for power.
The only time I specify anything under any duty status, is if it is a pre/post trip, personal conveyance reason, etc.
I forget to go to SB status all the time, and remember when I wake up to pee, I change to SB status, then edit the off duty status to two segments, one as off duty, and one as SB with the notation "fell asleep before changing status." No issues.
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Hey guys, I hope ya'll are having an amazing day. I just have a quick question or seek advice if anyone can help me out. Can a driver interchange his SLEEPER BERTH hours with OFF DUTY hours? Even if his vehicle IS equipped with a "sleeper berth", would there be an issue with a DOT Auditor or during a roadside inspection if a driver takes all of his resting hours in OFF DUTY as opposed to SLEEPER BERTH? If so, can I get some information of penalties or violations that can result due to this or maybe can I see some sort of proof that sates this might be wrong? My co-worker that showed me his logs since Janurary and it threw me off that he hasn't been using SB and I've tried doing some research to answer this but no luck.
Sleeper Berth:
The portion of the tractor behind the seats which acts as the "living space" for the driver. It generally contains a bed (or bunk beds), cabinets, lights, temperature control knobs, and 12 volt plugs for power.
DOT:
Department Of Transportation
A department of the federal executive branch responsible for the national highways and for railroad and airline safety. It also manages Amtrak, the national railroad system, and the Coast Guard.
State and Federal DOT Officers are responsible for commercial vehicle enforcement. "The truck police" you could call them.