How do you transport a container?
Shipping containers are bulky and heavy. Where do you even begin if you have a big steel box that needs to be moved or transported to another location? There are actually a few different options for you. If you have purchased the unit from a company with their own transportation, that’s the easiest option. Here at American Trailer Rentals, we have our own in-house drivers who will deliver the unit to the site location specified. ATR uses tilt-bed trucks to deliver the storage containers. If you want to save on the delivery fee, you can pick the unit up yourself, however, you should have some experience with this, and you will need to have the proper equipment. The third option is to have an independent driver, such as a tow-truck or flatbed freight company. However, if you use a flatbed delivery service, you will need a forklift to unload the unit. With a tilt bed, the unit is rolled off the back and is typically the most common and least expensive option
Having Your Site Ready for Delivery
You will want to make sure that the foundation is free of debris, firm, and level. If the ground is soft or unstable, you will want to consider pouring a slab, adding fill dirt or gravel, or using railroad ties or pressure-treated 6”x6”s under the containers. ATR recommends two 6”x6” that are 9’ long under a 20’ container. For a 40′ container, use three or four 6″x6″s.
Shipping Containers Transport by Truck
It’s common to ship containers by truck, but the type of truck depends on the size of the container and the accessibility of its destination.
A Tilt Bed Truck
If you’re moving a container less than 200 miles, we recommend using a tilt bed truck. The bed of this truck can be tipped at an angle to let the cargo slide off with ease. This means that the driver will arrive on-site and set the container on the ground with no additional equipment.
(Note: Tilt bed trucks require ample room to access the area where you plan to place the container. Additionally, the ground needs to be dry, firm, flat, and level.)
A Flatbed Truck
If you’re shifting your container past 200 miles, it is generally greater within your means to use a flatbed truck, due to the fact tilt beds – being much less frequent – value extra to function per mile. A flatbed truck has a easy constant platform with no surrounding walls, that means that you will want a crane or forklift to pass the modified container on and off the truck bed.
A Step-Deck Truck
Because high-cube containers are 9.5-feet tall – a foot taller than a wellknown transport container – transporting them requires a step-deck truck. Step-deck trucks, like flatbeds, have a fixed, flat platform however a step-deck platform is decrease to the floor to accommodate taller loads. Also like a flatbed, a step-deck truck requires a crane or forklift to go the container on and off the truck bed.
Getting Your Container off a Flatbed or Step Deck Truck
Upon arrival, your container will need to be removed from the truck correctly, otherwise, you risk damaging your new container. The correct method will depend on the size of your container.
- Shipping containers that are 20-feet long or shorter should be lifted with a forklift that has 6-foot tines and is able to hold the weight of the container. Keep in mind that standard warehouse forklifts should never lift a shipping container.
- If the container is larger than 20-feet, you will need a specialty forklift with 8-foot tines that can lift at least 15,000 pounds. This is necessary because a 6-foot tine forklift could break through the flooring due to the additional weight.
Renting a crane is often the most cost-effective option for customers with larger containers. Thanks to their built-in corner castings, shipping containers are easily rigged for crane transport.
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