12-20-2011, 06:09 AM
Back in the 1960's & 1970's a lot of grain was hauled in standard refrigeration trailers as back hauls. Typically the driver or someone would "bag" the evaporator in plastic and seal all edges with tape to keep the grain from plugging the evaporator fins. On more than one occasion, the shop I worked at needed to replace an evaporator coil on a trailer because someone had started the reefer before the trailer was cleaned out. A lot of the grain came into So Cal as a back haul by a produce truck that had hauled Ca. produce to the east coast. The trailer full of grain was unloaded at a break grain terminal in the Long Beach harbor. The method of unloading was interesting as well.
The trailer would be backed onto a lift and the tractor would unhook and pull away. The trailer was then secured to the lift, the back doors opened, and the trailer was then lifted at a 45 degree angle to let gravity unload the grain. I think the grain terminals had a conveyer system to load the ships from the grain pile. Since I worked for either trucking companies that ran 100% reefers or a reefer dealer, I saw reefers hauling grain. I would not be surprised if dry vans also hauled grain.
The trailer would be backed onto a lift and the tractor would unhook and pull away. The trailer was then secured to the lift, the back doors opened, and the trailer was then lifted at a 45 degree angle to let gravity unload the grain. I think the grain terminals had a conveyer system to load the ships from the grain pile. Since I worked for either trucking companies that ran 100% reefers or a reefer dealer, I saw reefers hauling grain. I would not be surprised if dry vans also hauled grain.