oceanobob
Senior Member
Since we had the reachlift on the job to finish the loading docks (after we changed out the floor - ref: R&R warehouse floor) we were assigned to clean the yard. We worked the reachlift (forks as well slings to up n over) and a forklift and stacked "steel scrap", "maybe keep this", and "lets see if we can sell it" in three areas on the compacted road base gravel yard area. From the a/c area we got about two big rubbish containers of old cardboard boxes, old dunnage with termites LOL, etc etc. Thinking we were done, they asked if we could also get rid of their pallet collections. There is one pallet style that hasn't the three 2x4 'rails', it instead has little blocks of wood. They say those are worthless and the local Pallet King wont take anymore of those for any price. Then there are the old weather beaten w/ twisted wood hard as steel pallets and the Pallet King will take those for a buck each. We cant give them away to burn on the beach cause they have nails in em.
Well one rubbish can was about half full so we decided to see how it worked out to densify the materials by cutting them using a skilsaw and some old blades. Nice and dense load, but a lot of labor.
If we hire a low bed, the pallets are so shot out they dont stack really at all and loading em to 14' above the highway is quite squirrelly and tedious/frustrating for the forklifts and the operators; and we also have to unload the low bed at the trash facility. For sure the end dump guys want the work but their rigs all have very round bottoms and not too tall the sides. Only one trucking outfit has a true "massive demo end dump box" with high sides and a tight radius bend at the floor and they will be available for the scrap steel haul off. Takes them an hour to get to the job so that will about pay for a rubbish can / demo box (not counting tip fee).
The latest idea is to load the pallets into the rubbish can with the reachfork: we can get 5 rows of 2 ore about ten stacks about 7' tall in there (about 140 pallets). Takes about 90 mins to load it - for a couple reasons. The stacks are terrible and sluggo has to be utilized to straighten em up once in the can, and the reachfork carriage is way too wide for this so have to "one fork the stack". Doable but cant be in a hurry. Gotta stay smoooooth. Some single jack / sluggo / bar work occasionally, some hand stacking to resolve short stacks.... but that is about the effort.
Two gone this manner and about 4 more cans to get the rest of the sordid pallets off to the trash place. Hate paying to haul air .... but for this job, this will have to be the solution.
Never know in this business what the next job will entail. LOL.
Well one rubbish can was about half full so we decided to see how it worked out to densify the materials by cutting them using a skilsaw and some old blades. Nice and dense load, but a lot of labor.
If we hire a low bed, the pallets are so shot out they dont stack really at all and loading em to 14' above the highway is quite squirrelly and tedious/frustrating for the forklifts and the operators; and we also have to unload the low bed at the trash facility. For sure the end dump guys want the work but their rigs all have very round bottoms and not too tall the sides. Only one trucking outfit has a true "massive demo end dump box" with high sides and a tight radius bend at the floor and they will be available for the scrap steel haul off. Takes them an hour to get to the job so that will about pay for a rubbish can / demo box (not counting tip fee).
The latest idea is to load the pallets into the rubbish can with the reachfork: we can get 5 rows of 2 ore about ten stacks about 7' tall in there (about 140 pallets). Takes about 90 mins to load it - for a couple reasons. The stacks are terrible and sluggo has to be utilized to straighten em up once in the can, and the reachfork carriage is way too wide for this so have to "one fork the stack". Doable but cant be in a hurry. Gotta stay smoooooth. Some single jack / sluggo / bar work occasionally, some hand stacking to resolve short stacks.... but that is about the effort.
Two gone this manner and about 4 more cans to get the rest of the sordid pallets off to the trash place. Hate paying to haul air .... but for this job, this will have to be the solution.
Never know in this business what the next job will entail. LOL.