What method do you use for emptying your trailer?

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cvcook

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I've got a 18' trailer w/ 4' sides. one side is hinged 2' high so I drop down one side lay a 50' chain across the floor hooked to the hinged side close to the front and rear. throw it over the load, connect it to my hitch and roll it off the side. works pretty good. how do you guys do it?
 
treeman75 beat me to it. :) I now push the button on the dump box.

Many years ago when I used to load branches onto my snowmobile trailer, I would tie two long ropes to the back of the trailer and run the ropes along the deck to the front of the trailer. I would then lay the branches sideways (perpendicular to the ropes) on top of the ropes. Once the trailer was loaded, I would run the ropes along the top of the pile and tie them to the back of the trailer. Once at the dump, I would find something to tie the ropes (from the top of the pile) to. I would then just drive forward and the load would get pulled off the trailer. All I would have to do is untie the ropes from the trailer and whatever I anchored them to and I was off.
 
Did that for years and so glad I am not doing it anymore!!! When we were doing it, we used to pitch fork it all out. Tried the chain and rope method, but kept breaking things and messing up the equipment.
 
I have done it all, the easist was to load the brush all the same way brush towards the back. Then flip it out, roll it out or back up and slam the brakes. Glad to have dumps now. I still do it the old way somtimes on little jobs then chip bush back at the yard.
 
I have a dump on everything. My trailer, my pickup and my UTV. Think of how much labor and time it saves. It is well worth the cost. I would get a dump hoist before I would get a chipper.
 
Get going down a back country road at about 65 and pull the slip knot loose and let it fly! If need be, I just get the trailer fishtailing to get the rest off.

Seriously?

It only takes a couple of times fighting a trailer load or two of brush before the beauty of a simple small chipper and dump truck combo catches your eye. Dump trailer or not, you're wasting everyone's time, energy, and money otherwise. It is sort of like leaving the chainsaws at home so you can use the hatchet, axe, and the two man for a takedown. And I've seen that done too. LOL! It will get the job done, no question, and although very educational, it's not effective enough to be competitive in the long run.

I've had so many people want to bypass the chipper thinking it will be less money for less equipment. The price only goes up if I have to handle it any other way. When the customer opts to handle it, it isn't long before even they want the chipper. And once they see the difference, they understand.

I've done the trailer thing in a pinch, but always brought it back to the farm and pushed it all off into the burn pile with a tractor. I've also tried the chainsaw chipper technique in a grain truck, too. Still a waste.
 
gotta love the dump trailer or chipper for making the job easy.

My first couple years in business entailed using a 20' car/skid steer trailer to haul debris on. I used a 3/4 inch bull rope and tied it to the back end by the ramps, then ran the rope up the middle of the trailer to the front and left it coiled in the back of the pickup. Loaded logs and branches perpendicular to the rope (or sideways on the trailer) with the bobcat. Stacked it high as I could with the skidsteer all the way to the back then flipped the rope back over the pile towards the back where it was tied on. When ready to unload, just tied other end of rope to another vehicle or solid object behind the trailer and give her hell. The nice thing about the bull rope is it gives you flex just like a tow rope would so it uses that flex to really fling that stuff up and over the back of the trailer. Then, it brings you to a nice easy stop unlike a chain would. Works fine so long as you have something to tie the rope to and solid fenders and you have to make sure you alternate the direction of brush/stubs so you don't get all heavy stubs on one side and all light brush on the other. Doing so will cause the load to roll out the side and really beat the heck out of fenders. I pretty much destroyed my fenders in a year's time and then bought a dump trailer like every other sane person out there... : )
 
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