Dump trailers, why does everyone love them?

[MG84]

Hope I don’t step on any toes by posting this, but something that’s been baffling me for the past few years is the extreme popularity of small dump trailers. Lets say anything from 7-20k gvwr, tag along or gooseneck.

Seems to me they are quite expensive, very limited in capacity and become an anchor the second you go off-road. Also they are slow as death to dump and you have to worry about a battery having enough charge to dump the load. In full transparency, I’ve never owned or even used a dump trailer so maybe I just don’t know any better. For a homeowner or very occasional user I can maybe see the apeal, but it seems like every GC, landscaper, small excavating co, handyman etc has one. What am I missing?

 

[crane operator]

They are running around with a personally plated pickup, no cdl, no commercial insurance etc. which makes it way cheaper than a dump truck.

 

[Pixie]

They can get into places a big truck can't, dump under powerlines and carry a small load when you don't need a big one.

Use mine lots. I've also carried 20 foot culverts, firewood and trash.

 

[MG84]

They are running around with a personally plated pickup, no cdl, no commercial insurance etc. which makes it way cheaper than a dump truck.

My little F600 s/a dump is 23000gvw (under CDL), hauls 6 ton legally, tags AND commercial ins cost me $700/yr. I believe part of it is just people don’t realize you can own and operate a small dump truck far cheaper than their pickup and dump trailer.

 

[MG84]

They can get into places a big truck can't, dump under powerlines and carry a small load when you don't need a big one.

Use mine lots. I've also carried 20 foot culverts, firewood and trash.

I’d bet dollars to donuts that I can get either of my 153” wb single axle dump trucks in anywhere one could get a dump trailer, barring any super low overhead clearance. I will say that for trash or small amounts of construction debris leaving a dump trailer on site may be more handy.

 

[673moto]

They’re perfect for people who don’t want the expense of an additional large dump truck.
Ever had to unload a truck or non dumping trailer by hand at the landfill and then you watch a guy pull up, dump his trailer in 2 minutes and drive away?
Ever needed just a yard or two of material to finish up a job?

Only draw back is your neighbors will want to borrow it all the time

Edit:

Dump trailers are to contractors what SUV’s are to soccer moms.

 

[RocketScott]

I wouldn't get enough use out of a dump truck to make it worth buying and maintaining

Mine's been quite handy

 

[cfherrman]

They are handy for random things including brush and trees which is not fun if your putting on a flatbed also try putting that in a dump truck. To load a dump truck how you do it without a loader?

Can I put roofing in your dump truck, you ok taking it to jail city at the dump?

 

[Welder Dave]

Way less maintenance than a dump truck, much lower loading height, can load by hand and more versatile to name a few. How do you carry a skid steer or mini-ex in a dump truck? They are expensive but so is a new dump truck. Questions like this are kind of strange to me. Anybody can scew the answers to fit their agenda. For a lot of people dump trailers are a good solution for a variety of different tasks.

 

[MG84]

Can I put roofing in your dump truck, you ok taking it to jail city at the dump?

Not sure I understand this question/comment? Lots of roofers around here use dump trucks, many use dump trailers.



I’ll admit my view may be jaded as I’ve been around agricultural and construction my entire life. Almost every farm had an old 2-ton truck, mostly either grain trucks, flatbed dump, sometimes a standard 10’ gravel box dump truck. I currently farm and run a construction business and have no problem keeping my two dump trucks and one grain truck (which is essentially a14’ flatbed dump) busy. The old C60 grain truck gets the least usage but also costs next to nothing, farm use plates are free in Va, ins on that truck is $60/yr, might change the oil every 2-3yrs.

 

[MG84]

Way less maintenance than a dump truck, much lower loading height, can load by hand and more versatile to name a few. How do you carry a skid steer or mini-ex in a dump truck? They are expensive but so is a new dump truck. Questions like this are kind of strange to me. Anybody can scew the answers to fit their agenda. For a lot of people dump trailers are a good solution for a variety of different tasks.

If we’re talking occasional use/homeowners, etc I’d agree with many of your points, including the maintenance. What I’m wondering about are the contractors that are using these dump trailers day in and day out. I’m 100% certain that a class 6-7 truck will outlast multiple pickups and dump trailers under commercial use. Cost per mile will be considerably less and safety on the road will be greater. I can’t count the number of dump trailers that I see with bent axles from being grossly overloaded.

FWIW, can load my skid steer or small tractor into my dump truck the same way one would with a dump trailer, just takes longer/more expensive ramps, a loading dock, or a good bank. The mini ex would fit, but boom may be over the 4’ max overhang, haven’t tried that yet. Plus I can hook any trailer I want to the truck and haul equipment with ease compared to trying to fit it in a dump trailer, but then we’re getting back into CDL territory.

 

[Welder Dave]

I think a lot of smaller outfits with skid steers and mini-ex's would use a dump trailer for smaller jobs and hire a dump truck if they had more material to deal with. There are a lot of outfits that couldn't justify a dump truck that's only required occasionally. If you're running a gas powered 3 ton or larger dump truck you're probably lucky to get 8 MPG. Then there's insurance and maintenance costs. Commercial insurance is pretty high for a dump truck especially a tandem.
Where I'm at if you want to go more than about 20 miles outside the city limits you need to get province wide insurance and registration and it's significantly higher than local insurance and registration. That's the other issue. If you need a dump truck you usually need full loads. It's not cost effective to haul twice as many loads with a single axle. Just reading on here several larger contractors say it's more cost effective to hire dump trucks than to own their own. Also if you're talking about a dump truck outlasting several pick up are comparing new to new? A used dump truck the same price as a dump trailer might not last any longer.
I used to have a Hino single axle dump truck and it was great. It got about 15 MPG empty and was great for small jobs but if I needed topsoil or gravel I usually needed a tandem load or more. It was far cheaper and more efficient to have the materials delivered. The place I got topsoil would haul the old material away after they dumped the topsoil. It was only about $40 a load extra back in the 90's. I could keep working and be finished the job a lot faster because I didn't have stop to go pick up materials or haul loads to a dump site. I didn't even know where you could dump old torn up lawns and stuff. Didn't have to when the truck that brought the new soil hauled it away.

 

[renovator]

I had one and it was great. It gave me versatility that I couldn't have gotten with a dump truck. I hauled tools locked up in my truck and still had the dump option. I could leave the trailer on the site (never overnight) if I need to run errands or get materials. I didn't use it that much, but when I did, it was a cost and time saver for my small operation. It was perfect for demo, base course, the occasional small skid steer or mini ex, cinder block, and even metal roof panels. There was no way I could have justified or afforded even a small dump truck.

 

[CM1995]

My little F600 s/a dump is 23000gvw (under CDL), hauls 6 ton legally, tags AND commercial ins cost me $700/yr. I believe part of it is just people don’t realize you can own and operate a small dump truck far cheaper than their pickup and dump trailer.

Not going to get that truck plated and commercially insured here in AL for $700. That would be at least $2K total per year. Just the tag for my '13 F350 with 200K miles on the clock is $500 per year plus insurance.

We built a dump trailer we use more as a flatbed and it's currently sitting in my side yard loaded with Bradford Pear trimmings and other yard debris. Most that trailer has hauled in the last 4 years.

 

[AzIron]

Dump trailer for the average small contractor is an illusion that they are self sufficient

They have a place but in the scale of dirt moving there not much they just cant haul any serious weight and if you had to move a decent amount of material to make money it would not pencil out but like was mentioned above it's really that people are trying to avoid cdl rules and have a dump truck

Not sure why people fight so hard to stay out of a real truck and skirt the law with a 1 ton in general I see almost everyday an 8 k mini loaded in a bumper pull dump trailer its overloaded and pulled by a single rear wheeled pickup

But at the end of the day a platinum 1 ton looks really good going to the lake cant say so much for a dump truck and that dump truck is not a fun grocery getter

Basically dump trailer for a small contractor allow guys to justify the purchase of new high trim package pickups and write it off same thing a gooseneck trailer does for a lot of guys to move a backhoe or 308

Homeowner use is a completely different story

 

[MG84]

Not going to get that truck plated and commercially insured here in AL for $700. That would be at least $2K total per year. Just the tag for my '13 F350 with 200K miles on the clock is $500 per year plus insurance.

We built a dump trailer we use more as a flatbed and it's currently sitting in my side yard loaded with Bradford Pear trimmings and other yard debris. Most that trailer has hauled in the last 4 years.

Pulled out my paperwork and I was a little off, comercial auto insurance on that truck is liability only, $1M coverage, $678 per year, tags are just a tick over $400 per year. Still though, that truck should easily make that back in less than one week of work per year.

 

[MG84]

Dump trailer for the average small contractor is an illusion that they are self sufficient

They have a place but in the scale of dirt moving there not much they just cant haul any serious weight and if you had to move a decent amount of material to make money it would not pencil out but like was mentioned above it's really that people are trying to avoid cdl rules and have a dump truck

Not sure why people fight so hard to stay out of a real truck and skirt the law with a 1 ton in general I see almost everyday an 8 k mini loaded in a bumper pull dump trailer its overloaded and pulled by a single rear wheeled pickup

But at the end of the day a platinum 1 ton looks really good going to the lake cant say so much for a dump truck and that dump truck is not a fun grocery getter

Basically dump trailer for a small contractor allow guys to justify the purchase of new high trim package pickups and write it off same thing a gooseneck trailer does for a lot of guys to move a backhoe or 308

Homeowner use is a completely different story

My thoughts exactly. A good portion of the dump trailers I see are being pulled by a $80k pickup, lifted, on Rockstar/Custom Offset/whatever-is-cool-right-now rims and 37”+ tires. Now I don’t know what their balance sheet looks like, nor am I one to tell a man how to spend his own money. BUT, I do know that I personally am not in business to buy expensive toys. Everything must pencil out and have a substantial ROI.

 

[Truck Shop]

One thing all these trailers are really good at---taking up three parking spaces at Ranch & Home
or the grocery store & parked crooked.

 

[cfherrman]

Not sure I understand this question/comment? Lots of roofers around here use dump trucks, many use dump trailers.



I’ll admit my view may be jaded as I’ve been around agricultural and construction my entire life. Almost every farm had an old 2-ton truck, mostly either grain trucks, flatbed dump, sometimes a standard 10’ gravel box dump truck. I currently farm and run a construction business and have no problem keeping my two dump trucks and one grain truck (which is essentially a14’ flatbed dump) busy. The old C60 grain truck gets the least usage but also costs next to nothing, farm use plates are free in Va, ins on that truck is $60/yr, might change the oil every 2-3yrs.

Most roofers around here use a dump trailer so they can avoid the nails in the ground at the dump. There are a few that use dump trucks but I rather have a nail in a trailer tire then a truck tire.

I think dump trailers main quality is low side height and multi purpose use. A dump truck is better in every way except the side height.

 

[MG84]

Most roofers around here use a dump trailer so they can avoid the nails in the ground at the dump. There are a few that use dump trucks but I rather have a nail in a trailer tire then a truck tire.

I think dump trailers main quality is low side height and multi purpose use. A dump truck is better in every way except the side height.

Ok I see. In our county we have a transfer station with a concrete floor, back in the building and dump. I always make sure the floor is completely clean before backing in, especially with the big trucks.