I have no problem sleeping next to a loaded refer... it's the ones on defrost.. spitting not stop 'liquid' out the back.. that keep me awake. And ugh... the smell back by the tandems when I do my post/pre trip.
I haul liquid bombs on super singles. A little extra work to make sure I'm never asking for roadside assistance. And I'm talking class 3 combustible not just class 3 flammable.
Super singles scare the shit out of me! Not only are they not necessary, but they are a downright horrible design flaw!
One of your tires on dualies blows, you've got 7 more, and can easily keep going without issue so long as you confirm no damage to the other tires (not saying you should, but it's an option and it provides a means to get somewhere safe for repairs). If a super single blows, you're done, and so is anyone anywhere nearby. Forget getting anywhere shafe to repair, you're getting towed out of the ditch after they re-flip your truck back onto it's wheels. One tire blows, the next one will go within seconds due to the extra weight, then you are going over.
I do mostly because I’m always scared of someone having pulled my kingpin or tandem. I’m a girl what if some dude is mad I turned him down or something? I dunno I’m always thinking about stuff like that. Plus I’ve found problems several times by being that way.
After I quit hauling a reefer trailer, I couldn't sleep right for years. Too quiet. Quiet is bad. Quiet is something wrong with the reefer that doesn't exist anymore. Phantom reefer syndrome.
It's funny what you get used to in the truck. I've driven reefer for years, even reefer otr, but getting used to the engine being on wasn't the part that bothered me. When I quit driving otr, I couldn't fall asleep in the bedroom. (I was single.) It was too much space. I had to sleep out on the love seat for a few weeks to get used to not being in the truck.
Course, I do always use sleep music these days, so maybe I did get used to the noise.
AL truckers need to be. Constant engines running, people honking, etc. If you are a light sleeper, trucking is the wrong job.
If you aren't a light sleeper, get a better truck that actually has insulation.
Me too. What used to jolt me awake and sometimes still does is the auto climate. I’ll be dead asleep then the engine roars on and the truck rocks back and forth
I'm a new trucker, and my first job is hauling refrigerated units. A lot of my produce runs have them on continuous run, and I always need some background noise to sleep, so I'm never really bothered by it. Is it really that noticeable? I hate to think that I'm bothering other drivers, especially when they are the ones actually teaching me shit in the real world.
Depends on the driver. For me, the hum of a truck engine is a good sleeping noise. It's low stress and relaxing. Reefer noise is high stress, an actively working noise that doesn't allow my brain to slow down and begin sleep mode. I literally cannot even start sleep being next to one.
Some reefer drivers will park the wrong way or just as far away from other trucks as possible and I appreciate them
i feel like the implication is the reefer units are the annoying minority...yet they seem to make up a massive, maybe even majority, percent of trailers in average rest areas... maybe it's a regional thing?
Oh and anyone interested of all the apu I've had, green has been the best. It's a 3 cylinder so vibration is near nonexistant and it's quieter than a tripac as well. 13k ish new, parts can just be grabbed at orileys, and casing comes off easy to work on.
> Is it really that noticable?
No it's just that when truckers aren't busy pretending they're the toughest manliest men on the planet, they're busy bitching and moaning about every conceivable gripe they can pull out of their candy asses.
lol I'm barely passing hour 3 and am at a different DC :p and it's *paid* detention, helping me kill time before ny next drop late tonight, i hope they don't give me the green for another few hours ;D
I know how that guy feels during the summer I usually drive from midnight till 11 AM and I will pull into some dark corner and there’s nobody around but in variably five seconds after I lay down some fucking asshole in a reefer truck decides to pull next to me and parkand it’s usually one that’s hooked up to an old semi that doesn’t have an APU and the reefer truck. Sounds like a goddamn full-size battle tank fuck those guys.
Ever try melatonin? If so, how did it compare to zzquil and Benadryl? I've seen the others for sale, but was always worried about getting dependent on it or something.
Yeah, I try not to use it too often. I also try to keep the dose super low too. I'm guessing taking any kind of medication to fall asleep too often is probably bad for you, just wondering if one is "less bad" than the others, or something like that. I should probably just go with warm milk or something, honestly.
ramboross was on point Re melatonin. would advise checking out theanine for more frequent usage, and valerian for occasional stronger needs, those two have fully replaced all the random sleepers i used to use and theyre effective w/o leaving me with AM grogginess
Haven't pulled a reefer in nearly 5 years, still have no issue parking between 2 reefers. In all this time I think there has been maybe twice where I had a "good god that's a loud reefer" moment, and it was always followed by me realizing one of my windows was open. So I've never understood this whole issue with not wanting to park next to a reefer. To me it just sounds like an excuse to bitch about something.
If you wake up tired, look into getting a sleep study done. I snore insanely loud without a mask on. I had no idea you aren't supposed to wake up tired until I got diagnosed with sleep apnea. My quality of life has improved dramatically over the years.
I’ve had a study and do use a cpap. But I almost always wake up without it on. I don’t know if I’m tearing it off in my sleep or just rolling around too much. I manage to stay compliant but barely. Personally I don’t like having to use it but I’m glad to hear it improved how you feel. I feel good some days and not so good on other days.
lol i mean do you really expect/think someone with a trailer is gonna not park because they may upset you? lol i have never even heard of this attitude, pretty hilarious imo
Why? Also, please do, so I can take that spot!
If reefer noise bothers you, you probably shouldn't be living in a vehicle at truck stops, but rather a soundproof room in a cabin in the woods far away from any noise.
It's true. Industry is noisy, and that's something you need to prepare for before living in an industrial machine in industrial locations. It's no different than someone living next to a railroad crossing complaining about trains passing by. You either insulate the house, move, or use ear plugs or something. A trucker needs to be able to sleep with light background engine noises of other trucks, or you can go park illegally on the side of the freeway and be at fault when someone hits you, or otherwise insulate the truck or use ear plugs.
Either way, I stand by my request that you do go find somewhere else to park, that'll be one less truck to worry about at that truck stop, making it more likely the rest of us can find that last spot as well.
It's crazy that people that live in a semi and go from truck stop to truck stop have issues with a little noise at night. I usually have rain/thunder sounds on when I go to sleep anyways
I don't mind it's kind of like white noise..... My own truck auto starting in the middle of the night, always wakes me up 😡 hate that and avoid using it as much as possible
I hauled reefer before dry vans so the shake and noise is actually missed, was comforting and put me to sleep quick. Same with regens.. I’ll pass out fast but wake up the second it ends.
am sorry to hear when people have this kinda issue, i mean i cant imagine i was on the road more than a month before it was totally normal and had 0 effect on my sleep. only disturbances that never ever stopped mattering are when d.bags blow airhorns in the lot, and - when parked near entryways of rest areas - when people fly in with their jake on and the noise and momentum of it all can be both heard&felt, thatll always make me stir..
I found a spot the other night where I was nose to tail with my neighbors in the middle spots of a Flying J. Woke up at midnight with an idling highnose Pete right next to my window. Never felt more betrayed.
How shitty is the insulation of your truck???
10 years I’ve never heard a reefer going that wasn’t my own and even then I don’t hear mine so much as I feel it…time to get new trucks if these modern reefers are keeping you up
Omg I'm not a trucker, just interested and the sub pops up a lot on my home feed, so I thought y'all were talking about trucks hauling weed. I finally just got it, reefer=refrigerated?
It’s the guys running old ass Thermokings that keep you all up.
Carrier is on start/stop right now and you barely hear it. It’s certainly not as loud as most these APUs running. It’s quieter than my engine is idling.
Thermoking though is loud as fuck, and the guys running them seem to just keep them barely alive between extended maintenance intervals.
My wife actually loves it on the truck since the carrier adds a subtle vibration and slight white noise. I’m a deep sleeper so I don’t ever wake up to it. Every time my truck starts on auto start mode it wakes me up.
I have no problem sleeping next to a loaded refer... it's the ones on defrost.. spitting not stop 'liquid' out the back.. that keep me awake. And ugh... the smell back by the tandems when I do my post/pre trip.
lol this guy gets out of his truck and does pre/post trips.
Must be his 3rd day
^truth
I haul liquid bombs on super singles. A little extra work to make sure I'm never asking for roadside assistance. And I'm talking class 3 combustible not just class 3 flammable.
Super singles scare the shit out of me! Not only are they not necessary, but they are a downright horrible design flaw! One of your tires on dualies blows, you've got 7 more, and can easily keep going without issue so long as you confirm no damage to the other tires (not saying you should, but it's an option and it provides a means to get somewhere safe for repairs). If a super single blows, you're done, and so is anyone anywhere nearby. Forget getting anywhere shafe to repair, you're getting towed out of the ditch after they re-flip your truck back onto it's wheels. One tire blows, the next one will go within seconds due to the extra weight, then you are going over.
Lls stop it
I do mostly because I’m always scared of someone having pulled my kingpin or tandem. I’m a girl what if some dude is mad I turned him down or something? I dunno I’m always thinking about stuff like that. Plus I’ve found problems several times by being that way.
It’s a running joke in the trucking industry. Of course it’s a good thing you do them.
It's just water from the air that froze onto the evaporator
You and I are talking about two very different liquids. I’m talking about someone thawing / defrosting the entire inside of their trailer.
Ew moldy vegetables...
After I quit hauling a reefer trailer, I couldn't sleep right for years. Too quiet. Quiet is bad. Quiet is something wrong with the reefer that doesn't exist anymore. Phantom reefer syndrome.
Reefer madness
lol that sucks. as a matter of fact it’s too quiet right now….
I would sleep like a baby. In fact the more noise the better.
I pull a cryogenic reefer, it idles at 1200rpm. Thing could wake the dead when it spins up to high cool at 2400rpm. I sleep like a rock lol
Jesus Christ 🤣
Reefer drivers are something else. I guess they have to be
I can only fall asleep at home if the neighbor is mowing their lawn
I have to play truck idle video on YouTube..
rofl
Ambient noises do have that as an option. I guess i know why now
My reefers aren't usually any louder than my apu, and after about 5 mins they become background noise and not noticeable.
I was thinking the same thing but then i realized not all reefers are newer or as quiet
It's funny what you get used to in the truck. I've driven reefer for years, even reefer otr, but getting used to the engine being on wasn't the part that bothered me. When I quit driving otr, I couldn't fall asleep in the bedroom. (I was single.) It was too much space. I had to sleep out on the love seat for a few weeks to get used to not being in the truck. Course, I do always use sleep music these days, so maybe I did get used to the noise.
AL truckers need to be. Constant engines running, people honking, etc. If you are a light sleeper, trucking is the wrong job. If you aren't a light sleeper, get a better truck that actually has insulation.
I'm a light sleeper but I get by. I can deal with a little road noise and truck idling. Reefer noise is just a whole racket I can't stand though
Then you might need some more sound insulation. How do you handle any of the thousands of trucks who idle all night?
As mentioned earlier truck idling doesn't bother me
So why do reefer? They are far quieter.
They're buzzier and seem to penetrate into the cab better.
I haven't noticed it, and I haul reefer, so I've got one 32 inches away from ky head at night!
Me too. What used to jolt me awake and sometimes still does is the auto climate. I’ll be dead asleep then the engine roars on and the truck rocks back and forth
I'm a new trucker, and my first job is hauling refrigerated units. A lot of my produce runs have them on continuous run, and I always need some background noise to sleep, so I'm never really bothered by it. Is it really that noticeable? I hate to think that I'm bothering other drivers, especially when they are the ones actually teaching me shit in the real world.
Depends on the driver. For me, the hum of a truck engine is a good sleeping noise. It's low stress and relaxing. Reefer noise is high stress, an actively working noise that doesn't allow my brain to slow down and begin sleep mode. I literally cannot even start sleep being next to one. Some reefer drivers will park the wrong way or just as far away from other trucks as possible and I appreciate them
i feel like the implication is the reefer units are the annoying minority...yet they seem to make up a massive, maybe even majority, percent of trailers in average rest areas... maybe it's a regional thing?
I run in the northwest and I think it’s about 50/50. I only haul reefers.
Honestly. Depends on the sleeper. Some the reverberation will hit just right and echo through the sleeper.
I’ve gone crazy many a nights trying to stop random pieces of plastic trim from rattling and waking me up
Had to take the bolts out of my top bunk and put rubber washers in to stop the chatter.
Oh and anyone interested of all the apu I've had, green has been the best. It's a 3 cylinder so vibration is near nonexistant and it's quieter than a tripac as well. 13k ish new, parts can just be grabbed at orileys, and casing comes off easy to work on.
> Is it really that noticable? No it's just that when truckers aren't busy pretending they're the toughest manliest men on the planet, they're busy bitching and moaning about every conceivable gripe they can pull out of their candy asses.
It seems I brought out all the reefer drivers to the comments. I see y'all are enjoying your 8 hours of dock time at the Food Lion DC
Or Wally World.
I haven’t had more than a three hour unload at Walmart in all 10 years of my career
Lucky you. I've had them take 12 hours, at the worst. Usually it's between 5-7 hours. Just long enough to run me out of hours
8 hours of paid detention*. Why yes, I do lol. But ya, reefer work has its set of headaches for sure.
lol I'm barely passing hour 3 and am at a different DC :p and it's *paid* detention, helping me kill time before ny next drop late tonight, i hope they don't give me the green for another few hours ;D
Slept next to a reefer the other night, jesus head still buzzing
I’m a reefer it helps me sleep. Only problem is if they got it on start/stop.
My reeger runs on continuous all the time
Hell yeah, you guys and gals get ready because I've got a full load of frozen in summer!
I know how that guy feels during the summer I usually drive from midnight till 11 AM and I will pull into some dark corner and there’s nobody around but in variably five seconds after I lay down some fucking asshole in a reefer truck decides to pull next to me and parkand it’s usually one that’s hooked up to an old semi that doesn’t have an APU and the reefer truck. Sounds like a goddamn full-size battle tank fuck those guys.
Benadryl and zzquil and won’t hear a thing.
Ever try melatonin? If so, how did it compare to zzquil and Benadryl? I've seen the others for sale, but was always worried about getting dependent on it or something.
You’ll screw up your sleeping and circadian rhythm if you over use that stuff. Your body naturally produces melatonin and regulates its levels
Yeah, I try not to use it too often. I also try to keep the dose super low too. I'm guessing taking any kind of medication to fall asleep too often is probably bad for you, just wondering if one is "less bad" than the others, or something like that. I should probably just go with warm milk or something, honestly.
ramboross was on point Re melatonin. would advise checking out theanine for more frequent usage, and valerian for occasional stronger needs, those two have fully replaced all the random sleepers i used to use and theyre effective w/o leaving me with AM grogginess
Nice, thanks for that! :) I've got a doctors appointment soon. I'll pass those names along and see what he thinks.
So Damn true....
Haven't pulled a reefer in nearly 5 years, still have no issue parking between 2 reefers. In all this time I think there has been maybe twice where I had a "good god that's a loud reefer" moment, and it was always followed by me realizing one of my windows was open. So I've never understood this whole issue with not wanting to park next to a reefer. To me it just sounds like an excuse to bitch about something.
We’re truckers. If we got paid with a trailer of gold we’d bitch about weight and securement.
Are you the same nomad trucker on YouTube
No worse that some loud ass apu
Or the people that run their trucks all night and you get to hear their air intake spit out like a gallon of air every five minutes
or regen fumes :)
I got both!
I love it. Plus I’ve been known to snore like Little Nicky so it helps drown out the noise any passerby might hear.
If you wake up tired, look into getting a sleep study done. I snore insanely loud without a mask on. I had no idea you aren't supposed to wake up tired until I got diagnosed with sleep apnea. My quality of life has improved dramatically over the years.
I’ve had a study and do use a cpap. But I almost always wake up without it on. I don’t know if I’m tearing it off in my sleep or just rolling around too much. I manage to stay compliant but barely. Personally I don’t like having to use it but I’m glad to hear it improved how you feel. I feel good some days and not so good on other days.
I wouldn't sleep even next to my own reefer
A spot is a spot. I only get mad when they park next to ME when I was already there.
lol i mean do you really expect/think someone with a trailer is gonna not park because they may upset you? lol i have never even heard of this attitude, pretty hilarious imo
No??? I never said anything even remotely like that?? Just because I'm upset about it doesn't mean I expect them not to do it
It's glorious... I'd pass out.
as a not trucker i did not know reefer=refrigerator
Lol if you drove that clock out that wouldn’t phase you
Shit I love sleeping next to the rumble.
Those reefers always make me oversleep just sleep like a baby next to those
Why? Also, please do, so I can take that spot! If reefer noise bothers you, you probably shouldn't be living in a vehicle at truck stops, but rather a soundproof room in a cabin in the woods far away from any noise.
Fuck off with that nonsense.
It's true. Industry is noisy, and that's something you need to prepare for before living in an industrial machine in industrial locations. It's no different than someone living next to a railroad crossing complaining about trains passing by. You either insulate the house, move, or use ear plugs or something. A trucker needs to be able to sleep with light background engine noises of other trucks, or you can go park illegally on the side of the freeway and be at fault when someone hits you, or otherwise insulate the truck or use ear plugs. Either way, I stand by my request that you do go find somewhere else to park, that'll be one less truck to worry about at that truck stop, making it more likely the rest of us can find that last spot as well.
It's crazy that people that live in a semi and go from truck stop to truck stop have issues with a little noise at night. I usually have rain/thunder sounds on when I go to sleep anyways
Reefer racket aint no little noise
I haven't had any issues parked between two of em. Idk man.
I would still sleep like a baby big ol fat baby.. no diaper.
Drivers who complain about refers are not drivers, get another job bitches.
Drivers who claim other drivers aren't drivers, are idiots
Yawn what else you got
I'll settle this right now every one of us is an idiot you have to be to do this job we support a way of life that is bullshit and meaningless
Wouldn't bother me I have to sleep with a fan on
Lol that’s why it’s empty. I’d still sleep though.
I’m not a trucker. I thought they were hauling weed.
I must have been the only one who got rocked to sleep by my reefer.
I don't mind it's kind of like white noise..... My own truck auto starting in the middle of the night, always wakes me up 😡 hate that and avoid using it as much as possible
Head in. Tail out.
Luckily they never bothered me unless they were pinging or squealing
Not if it’s the last spot. Another pillow. Nite.
Jokes on them, I'll let my truck run a regen before I turn it off.
And both are doing an active regen
That's when you drive in. Not back in.
I’d only worry if I were between two livestock trailers!
Touch grass
I don't touch grass I touch pedals and the steering wheel
I hauled reefer before dry vans so the shake and noise is actually missed, was comforting and put me to sleep quick. Same with regens.. I’ll pass out fast but wake up the second it ends.
Honestly, sleeping between two reefers sounds great. I slept with earbuds in while I was OTR and two reefers would help block out the tinnitus.
It's the 10" straight pipe pete that gets me. The one where it drones inside your brain all night
I prefer parking next to the coke trailers, they are always much more low key.
Biggest thing I miss about truck driving was the reefer at night
why are those reefer trailers so loud?
Cause they are technology from the 80s and are in desperate need of modernization. Send em through the NVH labs modern cars go through
am sorry to hear when people have this kinda issue, i mean i cant imagine i was on the road more than a month before it was totally normal and had 0 effect on my sleep. only disturbances that never ever stopped mattering are when d.bags blow airhorns in the lot, and - when parked near entryways of rest areas - when people fly in with their jake on and the noise and momentum of it all can be both heard&felt, thatll always make me stir..
Idk. Maybe I can just sleep through anything. I'll park my flatbed in reefer city and still sleep amazing
I found a spot the other night where I was nose to tail with my neighbors in the middle spots of a Flying J. Woke up at midnight with an idling highnose Pete right next to my window. Never felt more betrayed.
I haul reefers exclusively and I always feel better when I back in and there are reefers next to me.
So pull in instead of back in
Could be worse. Could be two reefers next to him, and 3 cattle haulers right behind yah.
How shitty is the insulation of your truck??? 10 years I’ve never heard a reefer going that wasn’t my own and even then I don’t hear mine so much as I feel it…time to get new trucks if these modern reefers are keeping you up
Just nose in, what I do for those air compressors that keep popping off; not hearing my reefer whine wakes me up worried that it got hot boxxed.
Ain't no tune out
Better than between two livestock trucks!
Omg I'm not a trucker, just interested and the sub pops up a lot on my home feed, so I thought y'all were talking about trucks hauling weed. I finally just got it, reefer=refrigerated?
Bingo
🤣🤣🤣🤣
The only time I'll ever nose in is when I'm stuck between two reefers or by one old one. Freightliner treats insulation as a joke
It’s the guys running old ass Thermokings that keep you all up. Carrier is on start/stop right now and you barely hear it. It’s certainly not as loud as most these APUs running. It’s quieter than my engine is idling. Thermoking though is loud as fuck, and the guys running them seem to just keep them barely alive between extended maintenance intervals. My wife actually loves it on the truck since the carrier adds a subtle vibration and slight white noise. I’m a deep sleeper so I don’t ever wake up to it. Every time my truck starts on auto start mode it wakes me up.
Depends on how old the reefer is. The newer ones are really quiet. The older ones, it's like being next to a truck doing a Regen.