How much does that dirt weigh? or, Overloading 101

allen in texas · Nov 17, 2008

I hauled three loads of topsoil this weekend in my new dump trailer. I knew that I couldn't just fill it up but man, I never knew I was going to get this much weight on it so quickly.

I weighed a load just for grins.
The combined weight of the truck, trailer and dirt was 24,900 lbs
I dumped and weighed again.
12,720 lbs
!!!!

12,280 pound of dirt on the trailer.

This trailer is rated at 14000 lbs gross and weighs 5000 lbs itself.
I was about 3280 lbs over loaded.

Dumped it just fine though.
I need to be more careful when I load it from now on.

Wombat125 · Nov 17, 2008

I'm glad you discovered this early in the game.

I was in a similar situation many years ago. I worked for a small printing company in Ames, Iowa and as part of my duties, drove a Volvo straight truck hauling six or so 2700 lb skids of paper from Des Moines. The truck was rated for 29,000 lbs, but licensed for 26,000.

One day, just for kicks, I weighed the empty truck at the recycle center. It was 16,500 lbs. That means I was running over 32,000 lbs!!!

I'm guessing that is enough over to make the DOT officers really fussy. It was just dumb luck that the scales weren't open when I was that loaded.

Reg · Nov 17, 2008

I made the mistake of asking how much sand I would get in a ton if it was wet vs dry.
I got a very fast paced lecture on the perc rate through sand, when it had last rained and how the loader operator knew what he was doing and wouldn't drive into the pile at ground level.
Almost as an afterthought, how much water sand COULD retain, which was what I had asked.
I don't remember, other than it was very little.
Wet loam is a different beast.

Egon · Nov 17, 2008

Anybody weighted some wet sand and then weighted it when dry? Just a small bucket show be sufficient for definitive results.

Tig · Nov 17, 2008

Depends on the type of sand.

john_bud · Nov 18, 2008

Soil is about 90-125 pounds per cuft depending on soil type and moisture content. So you had about 4 to 4 1/2 yards of dirt. Sound about right?

Eagleview · Nov 18, 2008

Sounds close too me . We work in metric , 12,280lbs :- 2.2 = 5582kg's . Around 1250 kg's per metre = 4.47 cubic metres or 4.88 cubic yards .

wkpoor · Nov 18, 2008

When I first got my 6x10 Moritz dump I got a load of dirt. It was 3 or 4 scoops from a backhoe. On the way home I weighed it at the mill. It weighed 12K+ and its a 10K trailer. I found out quick that these dump trailers for use behind pickups are really mulch haulers. Mine is very small and can be overloaded easily with sand ,gravel, or dirt. Mulch or firewood is no problem.

allen in texas · Nov 18, 2008

john bud.

At 100 lbs per cuft, I would have had 4.5 yards.

Pretty close considering how much dirt was physically in the trailer.
I dumped it in the center of the trailer until it just touched the sides.
It was not heaped, and I figured that it was half full.
The trailer, loaded level with the sides would hold 8.1 yards, so 4.5 yds has got to be a pretty good estimate.

Certainly, I will never be able to fill the trailer but as I've said, I got it the size I did so I can put my tractor in it. Still 4.5 yards is a lot of dirt.

wkpoor,
I found out quick too.