Helping the in-laws move cross country by driving a 24' u-haul with a 14' trailer. What do I need to know to survive?
September 13, 2011 3:55 PM   Subscribe

Helping the in-laws move cross country by driving a 24' u-haul with a 14' trailer. What do I need to know to survive?

I've volunteered to help my in-laws move by driving a 24' u-haul with a 14' trailer across the country over 4 days.

I spent my day well by reviewing internet u-haul horror stories.

Besides going slower and not tailgating, how do I avoid dying in a fireball?
posted by sisquoc15 to Travel & Transportation (17 answers total) 1 user marked this as a favorite
 
Cute fireball.
You'll be fine.
One thing to remember is don't turn too tight near a gas pump--those trucks and trailers are longer than your car. I came within a half-inch of taking out a pump once.
Fireball!
posted by fivesavagepalms at 4:02 PM on September 13, 2011


Try not to get into situations where you need to do substantial backing up.
Assume that everyone is trying to kill you.
Keep ample distance between you and the care ahead of you.
Be very aware of poor pavement (rain, snow, ice)
Take the time you need to be safe, four days is pushing it in this rig (if you mean coast to coast).
Invest in a small CB radio to monitor traffic, they are still useful.
Check the trailer, hitch, chains, lights on a regular basis.
Don't drive when you're tired, correcting a quick nod-off in this is not like doing it in a car.
Be safe
posted by tomswift at 4:10 PM on September 13, 2011 [1 favorite]


care=car
posted by tomswift at 4:17 PM on September 13, 2011


If your rental truck's air conditioner dies in Needles, CA in the middle of an August day (in 1995, but we're talking hypotheticals here, right?), the fact that it's only 145 miles to Barstow does not mean that 2½ hours later you'll be hitting the motel pool.

From sad experience, where those 145 miles were spent watching the temperature gauge on the truck and pulling off at every single exit to get two of the largest sized drink sold at that exit with as much ice as they'd hold... and lasted one of the longest days and evenings of my life.

Seriously, as other commenters have said: Stay in the right lane, get plenty of sleep, make an effort to only park in places you can pull forward out of, allow for the fact that there are some serious hills in the west and you'll go up and down them slowly, you'll be fine. 4 days is tight, but doable, especially if you can swap out drivers.
posted by straw at 4:22 PM on September 13, 2011


Be very attentive to tire pressures. Check with a good tire gauge whenever the tires are cold and then give them a tap with a hammer when ever you stop to make sure one hasn't gone flat. This is especially important on the dual wheels on the back of the truck because an under inflated tire can be masked by the good tire next to it.

People are going to be constantly cutting you off but it is important to leave several car lengths between you and the car in front. If you've never drove a long combination rig like this either switch drivers or pull over for a rest every couple hours. 750 miles a day is a lot of driving at the speed restriction you'll be under pulling the trailer. If you are convoying with other vehicles FRS radios are cheap and because they are point to point they'll work when you don't have cell coverage.

Do not hesitate to call u-haul service at the slightest hint of trouble with either truck or trailer. They are a serious pain in the ass to deal with but they'll blame any damage on you where they can, especially tire damage and damage caused by a blow out.
posted by Mitheral at 4:28 PM on September 13, 2011


Don't try and race up the hills, slow and steady is good.

Downshift when you have long/steep downhills - I'm assuming your u-haul is an automatic (aren't they all?) - drop it into second gear and let the engine do the breaking.

Make sure all the fluids are topped off, carry extra jugs of the correct radiator coolant and windshield wiper fluid.

Stop at every rest stop even if you don't think you need to. This isn't a race, get out and stretch. Stop at scenic overlooks, enjoy the trip.

Pull over and let people pass if you notice a line forming behind you.

If you see a semi trying to merge, drop back & give him room and flash your lights to let him know he has room to fit in front of you. He'll usually flash (blink) his lights back at you to say thanks. It's fun to play trucker for a few days!

Stop at the big truck stops, their convenience stores are fascinating.

Get some audio books to listen to (you'll need a cassette adapter probably for your iPod/CD player). Makes the hours fly - I like Robert Ludlum.

When you stop, walk around the truck & trailer and feel the tires. They'll be warm, which is normal, but if you notice that one tire is hotter than the others then that means it is flatter - get some air in it & check the rest for real with a tire gauge.

Good tire pressure not only improves gas mileage but prevents blow-outs, which will ruin your day.

You have AAA, right? If not, get it NOW.

Remember that you're not allowed to pump your own gas in NJ and OR.

When you stop, check the trailer hitch connections & make sure the safety bars/chains are still secure.

Slow down early when stopping or there are sharp turns. It's better to coast a little further than have to try and stop quicker. Expect the other drivers to do the stupidest thing at every moment.

Good luck and have fun!
posted by jpeacock at 4:38 PM on September 13, 2011 [1 favorite]


"Remember to drive the back of the truck, too."

-my dad

That means, with something so long, you'll clip all kinds of corner with the tail end, something us car drivers are not so hot at keeping in mind.
posted by everythings_interrelated at 4:39 PM on September 13, 2011


Oh, also:

KNOW YOUR HEIGHT!

You don't want to be *that* guy that gets his too-tall rig stuck under the awning/drivethru.
posted by jpeacock at 4:40 PM on September 13, 2011


Two fruits of experience:
1) Confirm your insurance; buy it from U-Haul if necessary. Don't assume your own policy covers it.
2 Second KNOW YOUR HEIGHT and pay attention to bridge signs.
posted by LonnieK at 4:48 PM on September 13, 2011


I meant 'seconding' jpeacock on height.
If you screw up and get wedged, try letting air out of the tires. Don't forget to re-inflate, of course.
posted by LonnieK at 4:49 PM on September 13, 2011


Stop as often as you need to and try to plan ahead. If you even remotely think you'll need to stop anytime soon, take advantage of the first decent place you come across. There are vast stretches of the country where there is literally nothing around and no stops for hours and hours and hours, so you don't want to roll past a nice gas station thinking you'll hold it/have enough gas/just stopped a few hours ago/gotta make good time, then wind up spending 3-4 hours on the highway trying to hold it/nervously watching the gas gauge/trying to stay awake. True story, the wife and I were driving through one of the square Midwestern states and there were tolls on the interstate. She asked, "How the hell are they going to enforce that on the interstate?" I said, "By only having like 5 exits." I was right.

Truck stops are going to be your best friend, because they're designed for big, long vehicles to move around, as are highway rest stops for the same reason.

One thing I always do is pre-book my stops in advance using something like this (though that's just Holiday Inn Express and their associated hotels, whatever floats your boat is fine). I know roughly how much I'm comfortable driving in a day, so I can plot that far ahead, book the hotel, and that way I know when I'm stopping, I know where I'm stopping, and I know how far I have to go along the way. I can also poke around the hotel's address on Google for food, gas, and other things I think I'll need, which takes a lot of the stress out of the process.

If you haven't driven a big truck before, you should know that everything takes a lot longer than you're used to in a car. Speeding up takes forever. Slowing down takes forever. Plan all your moves in advance, because it's going to take a while to do anything.
posted by Ghostride The Whip at 5:04 PM on September 13, 2011


Scout out the territory before you drive into someplace where you can't see an obvious way to drive out. Backing a trailer is not intuitive, and you don't want to have to learn in a tight spot.

The secret of backing up when you're new at it: Grasp the bottom of the steering wheel and move your hand in the direction you want the trailer to go.
posted by Bruce H. at 6:04 PM on September 13, 2011 [1 favorite]


Stop at the big truck stops, their convenience stores are fascinating.

When on break buy a compilation CD of classic trucking songs. 'Six Days on The Road' should be one of them.
posted by ovvl at 7:07 PM on September 13, 2011


Drove from SoCal to Houston, TX in the same set-up (truck size and trailer size). Bastards lied about how much fits in a 24 foot truck.

You cannot drive through a drive-thru. Park and walk in for your food.

Definitely park where you'll be able to pull forward to leave. The backside of motels/hotels are usually great for this. Also, ask at the front desk, they may have tips for you.

Leave twice the room around you that you think you need. Better safe than sorry.

Drive the recommended U-Haul speeds. A cop will yell at you over his PA system as you're doing 75 down the Grapevine on I5 in California (ask me how I know!). That was from TX to WA, but it was in a U-Haul.
posted by deborah at 7:31 PM on September 13, 2011


When planning your route, check with each state's highway department to make sure that Google (or whatever) isn't taking you on roads where trucks aren't permitted.
(For example: having driven between Connecticut and D.C. a bunch, I learned that online mapping services like to take drivers on the Baltimore-Washington parkway, which doesn't allow trucks and could result in a ticket.)
posted by D.Billy at 9:56 PM on September 13, 2011


what everyone else said, and -
don't drive at night. hauling something with a huge truck is stressful enough, you don't need to add lack of visual cues to the mix. a nice plus about stopping around dinnertime is hotels generally aren't full up, and you can take your time with a nice dinner and some relaxing downtime, rather than grabbing some chips from the vending machine and crashing.
drive slow and pay no mind to slowing down traffic - they'll see the bohemoth upcoming and duly pass. going the speed limit or faster is horrible for your mileage, and a slower speed is more relaxing (notice my focus on "relax"?).
posted by camdan at 11:06 PM on September 13, 2011


Get some audio books to listen to (you'll need a cassette adapter probably for your iPod/CD player). Makes the hours fly - I like Robert Ludlum.

I'd say don't do this unless you've done it before. For whatever reason, books on tape make me go to sleep in the car. Once a book on tape has put me to sleep (as the passenger!), I tend to be shot for driving for the rest of the day and have to switch off with someone else much more frequently, as I keep wanting to fall asleep. (My mother's a book on tape person and this drives her crazy on road trips. I drive first thing in the morning and then when we switch, she can put a book on tape on.)
posted by hoyland at 4:44 AM on September 14, 2011


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