Four Tips for a More Comfortable Trucking Lifestyle

A trucker’s life is more than a job. It is also a career and a lifestyle, which only adds to the challenges of making a living as a driver. However, while the trucking lifestyle in Wytheville, VA may be trying, you don’t have to spend every day on the road being miserable. Here are four tips for making those cross-country trips more comfortable:

• Make your own toilet: A 3 a.m. stop may reveal locked bathrooms, or your customers may just not have a restroom available to you. Freezing temperatures will make going outside to do your business more than uncomfortable, and even if there is a porta potty, who knows when it was last cleaned and emptied. Fortunately, you can always have a place for relief if you make your own toilet. Take a large bucket, line with a Hefty “Force Flex” 13-gallon Febreze scented trash bag and fill it with Fresh Pine kitty litter. Keep wipes handy and no-toilet zones will no longer plague you.
• Sleep when you can: Exhausted truckers cause accidents. It is important to sleep, but unpredictable schedules often make this difficult. Invest in a semi truck with space for a bed. Install a comfortable air or futon mattress and use regular sheets and blankets. This will allow good sleep when you need it. Just make sure your phone is charged so the alarm wakes you up on time. If you are tired after dropping off a load, communicate that to dispatch before you are assigned another load. Many times, truckers are overworked because dispatch does not fully understand the lifestyle.
• Collect shower credits: The prospect of a hot shower is heavenly to many truckers. Unfortunately, showers can be hard to come by. You may have to pay $10 to $15 out of pocket for a shower, or go without. One way to secure showers is with shower credits you earn by buying fuel. Find these spots on your route and be sure to stop at them. Pilot Flying J, for example, offers free showers in exchange for 1,000 gallons of gas purchased each month. Finally, keep a towel in your cab, since not all places provide them.
• Plan time accordingly: You have 10 hours after shutdown to rest and address any personal needs. Stop somewhere with all the services you require, whether that is fuel, showers or laundry. Throw clothes in the washer right as you get in the shower and chances are, they will be done when you are done. Then move them into the dryer and get something to eat. They will likely be finished when you are done with your meal. After that, spend time getting sleep. You can start your next shift clean, rested and ready to hit the road.

Complete Truck Service, Inc. supports the trucker life in Wytheville, VA by offering 24-hour road service, towing and repair. If you find the trucking lifestyle leaves you stranded, keep our number handy so we can get you back on the road sooner.

Categorised in: Trucking Tips

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