Dump bed floor

[kthompson]

I have never used a dump with wooden floors. I get aggravated enough with damp dirt and especially wet clay on the steel floor of our dump trailer. I often oil it before such use age. No doubt if you don't store wet dirt on good treated oak floor the floor will last a good while. Just keep it oiled.

 

[arkydog]

using metal, make 2 slightly over half pieces to meat in middle overlapping. step weld down middle and then stef weld around outside

 

[rstod]

This isn't tractor-related, but it is rural, steel-based, dirty, and testosterone-fueled. The floor of my 93 F350 dump truck is rusted, and there are several holes / tears adjacent to the cross bunks. I don't use it enough to justify having a new steel floor installed ($2000 +), but I would like it repaired so that dirt and aggregate don't fall through, and pallets will slide without getting hung up on the welds protruding above floor level. Before adding a new floor of any kind, I would remove the existing one, probably cutting it away in sections and grinding down the bosses where it is welded to the bunks--LOTS of grinding! I would think 5/4 or 6/4 rough-sawn oak lumber of pallet grade would be adequate for a new floor, even able to withstand rocks dumped in as carefully as possible. Probably a good idea to use wear strips available from firms that supply bed kits for classic trucks. Any thoughts on this subject?

I bought the steel plate to replace the bottom in my HD dump trailer....think it was 3/16"...6x10'....$450..... They cut it to my exact dimensions. Now to weld it in place when the weather gets better this Spring. I think steel is a better idea than wood.

 

[rstod]

would a bedliner work? no, leaking/seepage ... just an idea....

 

[Rustyiron]

We always used white oak for trailer decks, that would be my suggestion. That's if it's available. There's a self tapping flat headed screw that's traditionally used, not cheap but I bought a 50# box from fastenall years ago, you're not going to find them at a big box. It's a lot of drilling but beats one guy in the bed and another underneath. Securely fastened boards will incorporate the frames (body) strength and last longer than simply 2-3 rows of screws

 

[oosik]

I made a farm trailer with Horst ten ton running gear. It is not dump. I priced sheet steel for the bed. Just too darn expensive. I used 5/4 T&G plywood. I haul gravel, large rocks and chunks of pine trunks. It's held up well for seven years now. I sand and repaint the plywood every year with water based paint.

 

[PILOON]

Do as a friend does.
He gathers old oil storage reservoirs, cuts the ends off and drives his CUT to flatten the salvaged body.
He has done some 40 or so trailer 'rebuilds' using salvaged oil reservoirs.
An added bonus is many have a few gals of heating oil in them so he runs his CUT on those bonuses. (carefully filtered)
More and more people have given up with oil heat so it is a win/win situation.
When stuck he even buys the occasional oil storage from the local scrapper @ usually $100 per when he runs short, still cheaper than new steel.
But then re building used trailers is just sort of a $$ hobby for him.
There is always a buyer for a steel floored trailers at reasonable prices.

 

[tonynz]

most truck beds are corrugated section so that hold down bolts don't get caught in the load and things slide easily on it. You can buy the steel in 8x4 sheets and simply bolt them to the undercarriage. You dont need many bolts as the corrugations greatly increase the load you can place on it. Corten steel is rust resistant, ok it goes rusty but then the rust becomes its protection. 1/8th would be ample.

 

[tree grower]

Corrugated steel would be perfect, but I can picture only contemporary pickup beds which are ~17 ga. I have never seen a corrugated deck on anything but a pickup. I would use 10 ga corrugated in a heartbeat if it were readily available.

 

[Woodbutcher56]

Having had truck beds with both wood and metal my experience is the wood shrinks over time and leaving a gap between the boards which allows rain, sand and etc to drop through on the frame, gas tank and etc. Also in a dumping situation material always wants to stick to or hang up on the wood vs sliding out relatively cleanly on metal. I replaced one dump bed several years ago by welding a second layer of 10 gauge metal over the top of the existing metal and was very pleased with the results.