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Impressive knowledge of rigs Art!  Why did you decide to go into roof cleaning?

Roof Cleaning Wilmington NC (910) 622-7942 wrote:

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Besides I would have missed the pool and hot tub and dogs and oh yeah, my wife.

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 Hey Art, I think you have your priorities listed backwards...   lol  The wife has to come first.  Good luck with the transition into a roof cleaner.

Roof Cleaning Wilmington NC (910) 622-7942 wrote:

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Then can you explain how I drove a beer truck with air brakes before I got my CDL? It was a straight 8 bay truck. While I was driving that, I got my CDL learner's permit, medical card, and finally my CDL.

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 Maybe because you never got caught ?  An 8 bay beer truck loaded would be over 26001 lbs. I know guys driving trucks they shouldnt be driving that require CDL and havent been caught ........yet . A customer of mine has a sweet motorhome diesel pusher , he got pulled over in Virginia on 95 for speeding and sidelined  got towed to a weigh station , The state cops wouldnt let him drive it , I had to go get him , they checked all my paperwork and I almost didnt do a pre trip but I am glad i did.

Intrastate Non-CDL Drivers Information

Effective October 1, 2003, if you are a Maryland non-commercial driver operating a commercial motor vehicle in intrastate commerce (within the State of Maryland) and the vehicle weighs 10,001 and up to 26,000 pounds, you are now required to have a valid Federal Motor Carrier (DOT) physical card in your possession. If you are licensed prior to October 1, 2003, have a preexisting medical condition, and the onset was prior to 10/01/03, you will be exempt from this requirement for a 20-year period, provided your preexisting condition does not worsen. You are still required to maintain a DOT physical.

This new Maryland law, requires any noncommercial driver, operating a commercial motor vehicle that meets the conditions listed above, to obtain and to maintain a valid Federal Motor Carrier (DOT) physical card, DL-171 in order to remain qualified to operate a vehicle intrastate in Maryland.

If you do not have a valid Federal Motor Carrier (DOT) physical card in your possession, you will no longer be qualified to operate the vehicle in the State of Maryland.


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Like I said if you are over 10000 lbs you need a DOT medical card , And you will also need DOT numbers on the truck if its over 10001 lb CGVW (combined gross vehicle weight ) A non cdl driver will need a dot physical if you are over 10001 lbs

http://www.mva.maryland.gov/Resources/Recreational-Pretrip.pdf

here is the link ( 12 pages ) that tells you what you will have to do to get a NON commercial CDL
tho drive a motor home or a pick up with a 5th wheel OVER 26001 CGVW or a RV with AIR brakes
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This is a small part of the above link , the requirements for CDL commercial and non commercial are standard across the country Section 9.1 has all the info about haz mat.

FOREWORD
In 1986, the Congress of the United States passed the Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Act. This Act
requires the states to adopt uniform minimum licensing and testing standards for drivers of commercial
motor vehicles. By April 1, 1992, all drivers of commercial vehicles needed a Commercial Driver’s License.
Maryland’s Commercial Driver’s License Program became effective January 1, 1990.This was the beginning
of a new era that resulted in each commercial driver to be looked upon as a professional.

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MARYLAND MOTOR HOME/RECREATIONAL VEHICLE DRIVER’S LICENSE PRE-TRIP INSPECTION – BASIC CONTROL SKILLS – PUBLIC
ROAD GUIDE
This guide is designed to assist you in preparing for your pre-trip inspection of your motor home/recreational vehicle (RV). The pre-trip inspection will focus on testing your knowledge of obvious items that indicate the vehicle is safe to operate on public roads. It also provides information relating to basic skills and public road testing.

UPON SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION OF THE TESTING PROCESS:
Once testing has been successfully completed, you will receive a noncommercial license of the appropriate class containing one of the following restrictions:
In the case of a Class B noncommercial license, you will receive a “J” restriction: “Class B RV Authorized Only.”
In the case of a Class A noncommercial license, you will receive a “J” restriction: “Class A/B RV Authorized Only.”
To remove the restriction in order to operate additional noncommercial/commercial Class A and/or B vehicles, you must obtain the appropriate learner’s instructional permit and be tested in the appropriate class vehicle (other than a recreational vehicle).


Well this should slow down the sale of prevost motorhomes , read the requirements


Like I said you may want to check again , I am not trying to start an arguement , actually trying to save you guys some money . i have read that some of you are carrying 200 gallon tanks of SH , well you can claim ignorance only once and that may not fly in front of a judge , me , I have a hazmat endorsement , I have no excuse . The fines are very high, even worse if you are crossing state lines .

ShingleMD wrote:

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Roof Cleaning Wilmington NC (910) 622-7942 wrote:

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Then can you explain how I drove a beer truck with air brakes before I got my CDL? It was a straight 8 bay truck. While I was driving that, I got my CDL learner's permit, medical card, and finally my CDL.

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 Maybe because you never got caught ?  An 8 bay beer truck loaded would be over 26001 lbs. I know guys driving trucks they shouldnt be driving that require CDL and havent been caught ........yet . A customer of mine has a sweet motorhome diesel pusher , he got pulled over in Virginia on 95 for speeding and sidelined  got towed to a weigh station , The state cops wouldnt let him drive it , I had to go get him , they checked all my paperwork and I almost didnt do a pre trip but I am glad i did.

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 An 8 bay beer truck is a straight truck.  The paticular truck I drove was a 2000 GMC 6500 series with six tires and it could carry at the most 8 pallets of Coors beer.  Unfortunately, the job was not that simple since the distributor I worked for carried many different brands and most of them in multiple packages.   If you want to, feel free to research the heaviest production pallet of beer transported in 2000 and multiply it by 8.  Ad that to the weight of a 2000 GMC 6500 series with an 8 bay beverage body and see if it actually exceeds 26,000 pounds.  I doubt that it will, but I've been wrong before.  I typically carried around eighty different packages on that truck in the course of a week.  

I could go on and on, but I prefer not to.  Apparently you don't understand the difference in Intrastate (within a particular state) and Interstate (between and amongst multiple states) travel.  If you read the post that you took objection to, you will notice that I cited FEDERAL DOT regs, not state.  Federal regs trump state regs.  You also stated that the driver does not need proper training, he/she simply needs to pass the test.  You are absolutely correct, but I have a Labrador Retriever who could pass the test.  I still wouldn't toss him the keys to a truck because he isn't TRAINED to handle HAZMAT.  Nor is he HAZWOPER certified.  And he doesn't have a TWIC card (yet.  He is studying for it.)  (Plus he lacks opposable digits).   

You are also correct that I never got caught.  That's because not only did I have the proper training and credentials, I ALWAYS handled my trucks in a professional manner.  I never gave the DOT any reason to light me up and pull me over.  (To be completely honest, gas tankers are overweight above 8800 gallons and both companies I worked for typically dispatched 9000 gallon loads.  But knowing that, I drove with extra care and never gave DOT a reason to pull me.  Anyway, the company would pay the fine, it was just a numbers game to them and DOT was aware of that)  At any rate, I don't drive trucks anymore.  I mastered that trade and now I work for myself full time cleaning things. 

You said that you did not want to start an argument and I do not want to participate in one.  You implied that I was not a professional driver and I have no right to be offended.  I am currently not a professional driver, but I am currenly eligible to be hired.  I chose not to drive trucks anymore so I could persue my dream of being self-employed.   

I admire that you took the time to research and back up your point.  (Unfortunately you were comparing apples to oranges, but at least you put forth effort.  Most of the people on this board with only a few posts want hand-outs and you seem to be willing to earn what you get.)  Anyway, become a Premium Member.  You may have what it takes to be successful in this business and you won't have to drive trucks anymore.  Instead you can drive your own business.  Or if you don't want to become a premium member we can continue our discussion.  I hope to see you on the other side. 

 

ShingleMD wrote:

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If you took offence , I apologise , that wasnt my intention, The interstate part was for those who live near state borders and cross to do business , I go to va , de and pa quite a bit , thats why I have federal dot numbers on my trucks not just md dot numbers . I drive the trucks in the winter because I am bored , and I make $$$$ doing it . Oil trucks at 2900 gallons are over weight from the start , I just make a few close stops to get the weight down. I sell myself to oil and propane companies , I dont need to work in the winter
but I like money , so I will work for 1 company 2 days another 1 day and a third another , I get $ 45.00 per hour . Beats sitting home . Its a benefit to them , I dont want a job , i wont file unemployment , I dont want benefits , and I dont care wether they call me or not . Me , I have been self employeed for 30 years , the roof cleaning is an addition to my existing home improvement business , I already have a very large customer base . The rules and regulations are difficult at best , with a cdl I will have a harder time claiming ignorance than someone with a regular license . The twic card is great to have , I ran dump trucks in and out of dundalk marine terminal for a week last year for $900.00 for 6 hours . The driver showed up at the gate , he got out I drove the truck 2 blocks it was loaded I drove it out the gate and gave back to the driver 4 times a day , boring but good money

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Post some before and after pics.  Would love to see the progress.  What size box did you go with?

forgot to mention that my box truck is all aluminum. wondering how the SH will affect it. spills are inevitable as well as leaks. maybe rhino-line or line-x the floor and up the sidewalls some? not sure how that liner stuff holds up to SH either. any ideas would be appreciated.

We started with a trailer then moved into a box truck and now we are moving into a truck. The trailer worked great it just wasn't our style so we grabbed a box truck which also worked great but it was to big and cumbersome so we are going to try just working out of a 6 1/2 foot truck bed...ouch! Currently we are designing our tank and aluminum rack system. 

I will miss the rolling box truck billboard. We would watch people dial our number as they were driving along side us then all of a sudden our phone would ring    hopefully that will still happen.

We were undecided between black or white truck but we think the logos will pop better on the black?