[moshbikes114]

hi everyone i'd like to say hello as this is my first post. i love the site and i've been using many past threads to learn the business. i have a question, however. i'd like to know if anyone has any experience in the hauling business, as i would like to know how i can use a mason dump to make money. my dad has been around construction a while and he told me that i could work for a landscape supply company to deliver their materials, or i could work on my own for homeowners to deliver loads right to them, but my dad doesnt know anything other than that. i would like to get some details about how i can work fulltime next summer hauling. what kind of pay could i be looking for? do i need special insurance? could i work 40+ hours a week for a supply company or will the work be sporadic? how do i approach a company about working for them? i pretty much just need to know how to get on my feet with this. i know you guys are the best of the best thats why i came to you for advice. any help you could give me would be great. thanks again,
-matt

[Stonehenge]

Any delivery/hauling business will be subject to the demand for the stuff your hauling; mulch deliveries will be hot and heavy in spring, but there may be next to nothing in July and August. You could contact a local quarry - one by us uses several different companies to deliver their crushed stone.

I don't know how large your truck is, but unless it was able to handle larger quantities (12+ tons), you may have a hard time earning a living just from that. Smaller trucks around us only get $20-35 per delivery, and it'd be hard to pay bills all year on what that'd pay you.

A better option might be to strap a skidsteer and trailer to the back of that truck and do rough grades and construction site cleanups. More work in a single stop and more money, too.

Good luck with your new venture, and welcome to the site.

[moshbikes114]

true i hear you. what would be involved with site cleanup? i'm assuming you mean that i'd have to go round with the bobcat n cleanup the piles of fill dirt n stuff? that doesnt sound like a bad idea but then again i'd have to drop a pretty penny on a skidsteer... well i dont really need to "pay the bills" that you would think of, i'm only 18 and in college right now so i DO have to come up with about $7k a year to pay my part, but thats about my only expense, maybe 20 or 30 bucks a delivery would be workable in the summer for a good job u know? im pretty much addicted to work, though, and i'm not sure if the dead months in july n aug would work out too well for me. i'll definetly look more into it though thank you. any more ideas from anybody else?

[Uncle Albert]

BY me you can make money by going to a wholesale club or home depot. Call your-self A GUY AND A TRUCK. You have to see how many folks buy stuff and try to fit it in a car. And will pay for delivery, on the spot.

[PSUscaper]

You're gonna have to get a little creative or have a good connection with some local guys to make it work.

most of you stone suppliers have their own trucks...so it is going to be tought getting into that. You could run right from the quarries, but you have to figure out a way to market yourself, which is going to be expensive and take a long time to get the word to enough people to make it happen.

Right now, a small truck is going to kill you......fuel is high....will cost about the same to get a single axle (8 yards) as it would for you to truck a small load (maybe 3 yards).

Mulch would be a good route to go as it is light, you can haul a lot, and it is in high demand.

If anything, try contacting other contractors in the area in see if they might need some light trucking.

Also, you really are going to need full liability insurance......I wouldn't think of doing the work you are doing without it. Lets say you back into someone's house......hit a parked car..........pull some wires down with the dump body raised......sink into and damage someone's driveway.....there's a lot of things that can go wrong and you don't want to be wide open to a lawsuit.

Check out insurance rates first.....being as young as you are, you might be shocked at what a basic policy will cost. Maybe, if your dad has a company, you could tie your business into his so he could include you as just a driver and insure the truck under his company.

[Pelican]

Check with your local governments as well to see if any licensing or permits are required. It sucks to find out while delivering a load that these are required.

Drop your name and number at all the local supply yards, landscape, aggregate, lumber, etc. Most of these places only service large loads so you might get their calls for smaller loads. Don't expect to get rich. I've got a 3500 and 550, I just try to get my truck time covered when making deliveries. People don't realize I need to make the same money whether I'm hauling 1 yard or 4, so it's often a tough sell. If you can't make a buck, there's no sense doing it!

[moshbikes114]

very very solid advice, i'll definetly look into all the points brought up. thanks everyone for the help thats a great start.

[HardDaysKnight]

Homeowners are doing alot of small to intermediate jobs
themselves. None of them own a dump-truck. Make sure
you figure your gas consumption and offer your trucking
service from anything like material deliveries to even
moving. You could move all the outdoor furniture, grills, stuff
like that. Swing-sets?
Put a small AD in a local paper with all the ideas you get
from GTX and whatever else you can think of. The phone
will ring!

[moshbikes114]

haha and its always music when that phone starts ringing

[Bill Schwab]

Around here, trucking charges are $100.00 per hour with a 4 hour minimum. They do that to cover what the truck costs are for the entire day. Most homeowners are not going to go for that, so, you need to compensate yourself so that a one time deal that would take an hour would be enough to cover all time to and from that job. As time increased on that site, you could make a sliding scale if people wanted, but if you could charge the higher of the scale regardless, who is the fool if you don't?

Now as far as a mason dump goes.... That's a pretty small truck that will cost you about the same as a big truck and haul half as much. There should be a point where you get a larger truck or you are not going to be earning your potential.

[GLAN]

I read this thread last night and honestly couldn't expand on what has already been said.

When there was mention of a skid loader......that seemed the most logical.

Now......here is what I am thinking.

We all know there are plenty of do it your selfers.......there are plenty that would do their own concrete/paver walks/patios and such........I would think the biggest hangup with some of these types is the rip out.........they would most likely do it by hand....hire a dumpster to site onsite for a week......

What if you were to offer the rip out service?

[moshbikes114]

ahh glan thats a great idea. instead of hauling i could have a demo and rip out service and just utilize the dump. i really like that idea too. man you guys are great, so many quick intelligent responses, this site is so much better than lawnsite. i got lots of good ideas now, thanks alot guys.

[HardDaysKnight]

Originally posted by GLAN
I read this thread last night and honestly couldn't expand on what has already been said.

When there was mention of a skid loader......that seemed the most logical.

Now......here is what I am thinking.

We all know there are plenty of do it your selfers.......there are plenty that would do their own concrete/paver walks/patios and such........I would think the biggest hangup with some of these types is the rip out.........they would most likely do it by hand....hire a dumpster to site onsite for a week......

What if you were to offer the rip out service?

BRILLIANT!!! Nice Glan!

[bigviclbi]

I deliver small loads for a local mulch/quarry because they only have big trucks. $50.00 bucks for deliveries within 10 miles $75.00 anything more. I only haul about 4 tons. I think companies would LOVE to have someone deliver their small loads as they can make more money delivering big ones. Call around there is ALWAYS a need for someone with a dump truck.

[moshbikes114]

man i never thought i would get such great responses. i'll make some calls then bigviclbi that post is encouraging news. and if i have a mason dump i can plow with it in the winter, and tow a car trailer when need be... seems like it would be a great buy for me