Hauling Tanks

[bigken462]

We covered this pretty good in this tread if you want to take a look. Some good reading too.

Good luck with your project.

 

[NudeDiver]

Does anyone know how many tanks can be transported legally in a trailer on the highways?

Good question. I once moved 18 tanks using my Isuzu Trooper. About half of them were on the roof rack (heavy duty, safari style). It was quite the load going down the road.

In retrospect, I can see that it was probably a bad idea. Didn't seem like a good idea at the time either - but you do what you gotta do

I'm now building a off-road adventure scuba support trailer. It will certainly have enough capacity to haul as many tanks as I would ever care to haul. The legal question piques my interest though.

 

[mdkpsk]

I want to thank everyone for the information I got in this thread. I will use it to make our scuba adventures more fun and much safer. Thanks, Marc

If anyone has more info or opinions keep'em comin'. That includes you too Crazy Uncle.

 

[DA Aquamaster]

I fixed 2 fish houses (this is minnesota, people put wheels under small homes to drag out on the frozen lake at 30 below to catch fish) last year that were loaded to the brim with fishing gear and bunk beds and all sorts of misc stuff like tv's then they were hauled a mile out on a lake over bumpy ice at highway speeds. the whole axle and suspension assembly crumbled leaving these guys stuck out there. Both houses were the same manufacture and owned by brothers.

So...you are saying the whole mad bomber cap wearing, not too bright MN ice fisherman thing is not just a stereotype?

 

[NorthWoodsDiver]

its not a stereotype at all, its entirely fact. of course not all Minnesotans are that way but the farther north you get the worse it is. I have seen fishhouses 24 feet long with hydraulic slideouts, 32 inch tv with satilight , ceiling fans, bunk beds, range oven/stoves, microwaves, generators, and fish mounted on the walls. And some of those people live out on the ice for a week or 2 at a time living off beer, chips, and pancakes. of course there are guys who just drag a pop up out with a propane heater too but why not blow $15-25K on a small mobile home with all the accessories. ;-)

its a nice place to live if you like winter, road construction, and mosquitoes I guess. I would much rather live in a small shack in florida or mexico and have a job throwing tanks around all day than make millions in minnesota (I dont make millions, or I would have moved long ago).

 

[Colliam7]

Does anyone know how many tanks can be transported legally in a trailer on the highways? We are looking to purchase a covered trailer to haul our gear. The trailer has a capacity of 1980 lbs. It will be used privately and not associated with any DS.

There are two apsects to your question: What is legal?, and What is practical? I am not certain that there is one, and only one, specific answer to the first aspect. It varies according to state, and whether or not what you are doing is considered commercial activity. But, I can offer anecdotal experience about the SE. Over the past four years I have hauled multiple tanks, in a trailer (enclosed), and in the back of a pickup truck (exposed), from NC to FL, and have not had any interest shown in my load by police officers in NC, SC, GA or FL, at any time. The number of tanks varied, but the last time (last week) we hauled 9 sets of doubles (double 80s to double 130s), plus six 80 cf deco bottles, plus two additional single 130s, plus six 40cf deco bottles and two 30 cf deco bolttes. This was in addition to gear for four divers (suits, BPs, regs, weights, fins, etc., etc. We did in this with a single axle enclosed motorcyle trailer, pulled behind a GM Suburban. I have hauled the same number of tanks, strapped standing upright in a circle, in the back of an open pickup (3/4 ton), been passed by multiple state troopers, and never had a problem. I do agree with the comment about being sure that the total weight is appropriate for the trailer capacity. I suspect that is more critical than any legal limit on the number of tanks being hauled - unless, you are involved in an accident, in which case all bets are off.

 

[djb_1965]

It is true, the chances of anyone ever stopping you and checking are almost zero. The problem will come if you get in an accident and DOT gets involved....then just toss 'em the keys and call it even.....

 

[djb_1965]

All kidding aside, I just pulled out my professional scuba inspectors hazmat guide, curiosity got the best of me. It states "Dive Operations involved in transporting cylinders must comply with DOT requirements". " Transporting 1001 pounds and greater of cylinders (which is approximately 28 80 cu ft aluminum cylinders requires a commercial license with a hazmat endorsement, proper placarding of the vehicle and a manifest". If you are truely doing this independantly, and not for a dive operation...even if volunteering, then you are ok. It is only for professionals in business...BTW the 1001 pounds refers to the weight of the cylinders, not contents.

 

[fdog]

Transportation of Hazardous Goods is the purview of 49 CFR subchapter C.

Subpart C - Applicability, General
Requirements, and North
American Shipments
Ž§ 171.1 Applicability of Hazardous Materials
Regulations (HMR) to persons
and functions.
Federal hazardous materials transportation
law (49 U.S.C. 5101 et seq.) directs
the Secretary of Transportation
to establish regulations for the safe
and secure transportation of hazardous
materials in commerce, as the Secretary
considers appropriate.

What may be extracted from this is that the good must be (A) Hazardous (as defined in Table 1 & 2 in 49 CFR) and (B) in Commerce.

Compressed gas certainly is a Division 2.2 hazardous good. If each package (cylinder, including contents and cylinder & valve) individually weighs more than 220 lbs, or the aggregate total of such packages exceeds 440 lbs, the driver must carry a manifest and MSDS for the comodity (49CFR172.602). If the aggregate of the load exceeds 1001 lbs, the vehicle must be placarded (49CFR172.504(c)). Not to mention an "X" endorsement on your driver's license!

A commodity is "in Commerce" if money is changing hands as a cause of the transportation. If you're paid to move the comodity, or are taking it somewhere to sell it, or it's part of your business, it's in Commerce. Highway Partol officers with a sharp pencil can take this to absurdities. "Pardon me, are you carpooling to the dive site and sharing the cost? Yes? That's in Commerce".

If both (A) and (B) are applicable, then you must placard and comply with the law. If only one applies, then you do not.

Please note this is the Federal law, and local jurisdictions and states may have more restrictive regulations.


Hope this helps!


All the best, James

 

[ektess1]

The DOT has NO sense of humor.