Pickup Bed Weight for Winter Traction

[Doggy Daddy]

Ice blocks.  Removes itself as needed as the weather warms.

[Lennyjoe]

Cheapest 40 or 50 lb bags of sand or gravel from Home Depot.  Usually about 5 or 6 of them in the bed over the axle.  That way if you get stuck in snow or ice you can use a bag for additional traction. 

[zxcvbob]

Instead of putting it over the axle, try putting it behind the axle -- all the way against the tailgate.  It will take a little weight off the front wheels and send it to the back.

[230RN]

^ Do you really want weight off the front wheels?

Never did much hairy-assed driving if it was too bad when I had trucks, but for minor traction problems I kept kitty litter laced with table salt in the car.

"I used to put 3 or 4 bags of portland cement -- 94# each -- in the back of mine, way in the back behind the wheel wells.  The snow and rain hardened them into blocks with ribbed bottoms that matched the truck bed so they didn't slide side-to-side."

I like that idea, will forward to my sons who do winter driving.

Me, if it's reaally bad, Subaru full time 4WD notwithstanding, I stay home and dig into my 72-hour stash of non-perishable food and powdered milk

Re 72 hours, as an aside, I keep a goodly number of Hormel Compleats packaged meals on hand.  They keep for 10 percent of forever without refrigeration and can be eaten cold if necessary,

Never heard of snow socks before, will research them, but frankly, I don't do much outdoors any more if the weather is anything but 65°F +/- 30°, 10 mph +/- 5 mph wind, and humidity is 50% +/- 25%.



I'm not actually that fragile yet, but outside of those brackets, outdoor stuff requires a decision and possible waiting.

Terry, 230RN

[Frank Castle]

First thing, get good tires winter tire. maybe with spikes or may set of chains. I used Army sand bags, they where free. I filled them up myself and the bags where about 30lb each. I put 10 sand bags over the axle/ rear tires.( 300ish pound ) This worked fine with my 2 wheel drive truck, i had for 2 winters in Alaska.

The best vehicle for 9 months of frozen roads, is a front wheel dive car with spiked tires.

[K Frame]

"Sandbags seem to be the most popular option. I'll give them a go since I already have the fixins."

Tell Steve to get his lazy ass out of the truck and push!

[Perd Hapley]

I've been thinking about this question since last winter, but I was too busy to do much about it. So I had to buy some more bags last week, and throw 'em in the back of the truck. I've used sandbags for years, but I think I'm going to get one of those water bladder things. Have any of y'all tried those?

One problem with tube-sand is that exposure to the elements seems to really weaken those bags, and they start spilling sand everywhere. Eventually, they have be replaced, and I'm left with a bunch of sand. I thought about building a box to put the bags inside, or a set of small boxes - one bag per box. I guess that might be cheaper than a water bladder, but not by much. And the individual boxes would make the heavy sandbags even heavier for me to move.

The other 2 problems are having to store the sand in the off-season, and just the fact they're such a pain to move around.

I used to have a great solution to all those problems. When I worked for the mall, I kept the bags on a wooden pallet that fit neatly between the wheel wells of my Tacoma. In the spring, I'd lift it out with the forklift at work, and put it somewhere in the cavernous, indoor loading dock area. Being shielded from the sun for most of the year, and laying flat at all times, the bags lasted for years. Once I had them on the pallet, they were easy to move. Just drop the pallet back in my truck, come autumn.

But that is no longer my situation.

[Brad Johnson]

What about a couple of cheap storage totes you can fill with sand/rocks/gravel/etc.? Strap/tarp/tape the lids on and secure them in your truck bed, one per side. Maybe even wrap them in heavy plastic in case they shatter from cold. Treat them as disposables under a presumption they'll likely be trash by the end of winter. Once done, you can scoop out enough sand to make getting the remainder out a more manageable task.

Kobalt 24 gallon totes with latching lids are $35 from Lowes. At 90 lbs a cubic foot, you should be able to get 200+ lbs in them.
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Kobalt-Kobalt-24-Gallon-Weatherproof-Tote/5001968209

Brad

[zxcvbob]

Cinder blocks.  I think they are about 35 pounds each for the 8x8x16"s and cost less than $2, and they don't deteriorate.  You might want to cinch a nylon strap around them to hold them together so they don't slide around.

[Kingcreek]

I used to keep a row of 30cal ammo cans full of lead in my truck. The bed was notched for a cross board that would leave just enough space for the cans by the tailgate.
It worked great until ammo cans and lead became valuable enough for lowlifes to steal.

[RoadKingLarry]

I've always used the "tube sand" I can get about any hardware store or lumber yard. After a season the bags are usually about sun rotted so they go in the grandkids litterbox sandbox and I keep a five gallon bucket of sand around for various uses. I also keep a plastic coffee can full of sand by the front and back doors to deal with ice.

[Ben]

The tube sand has been working well for me. I was gonna make them myself back when this thread started, but the farm store had the 60lb tubes for $4 each, so I just pulled up and loaded four. One of them ripped a little when I put it in the bed this season, but I just grabbed some duct tape. I will probably take them to my shooting range after this season and toss them behind the target backstop, and get new ones next year.

[Perd Hapley]

Cinder blocks.  I think they are about 35 pounds each for the 8x8x16"s and cost less than $2, and they don't deteriorate.  You might want to cinch a nylon strap around them to hold them together so they don't slide around.

I hadn't really thought about them, but if they weigh that much, I could definitely make that work. I'd make it complicated, though. Probably put them on a sheet of plywood, with 2x4s screwed down around the edges, to keep them in place. Then attach the lumber to anchor points with chain or cable.

See, I turned a $20 project into a $65 project that will take me 2-3 Saturdays. It is my way.

[Northwoods]

I've been thinking about this question since last winter, but I was too busy to do much about it. So I had to buy some more bags last week, and throw 'em in the back of the truck. I've used sandbags for years, but I think I'm going to get one of those water bladder things. Have any of y'all tried those?

One problem with tube-sand is that exposure to the elements seems to really weaken those bags, and they start spilling sand everywhere. Eventually, they have be replaced, and I'm left with a bunch of sand. I thought about building a box to put the bags inside, or a set of small boxes - one bag per box. I guess that might be cheaper than a water bladder, but not by much. And the individual boxes would make the heavy sandbags even heavier for me to move.

The other 2 problems are having to store the sand in the off-season, and just the fact they're such a pain to move around.

I used to have a great solution to all those problems. When I worked for the mall, I kept the bags on a wooden pallet that fit neatly between the wheel wells of my Tacoma. In the spring, I'd lift it out with the forklift at work, and put it somewhere in the cavernous, indoor loading dock area. Being shielded from the sun for most of the year, and laying flat at all times, the bags lasted for years. Once I had them on the pallet, they were easy to move. Just drop the pallet back in my truck, come autumn.

But that is no longer my situation.

Just fill the boxes with sand, forget about the bag.

[Perd Hapley]

Just fill the boxes with sand, forget about the bag.

I like the fact the bag would keep the sand from spilling out. And the sand I have is already in bags, so why not?

[230RN]

As I mentioned a couple of years ago, I don't do much adventuring and physical exertion any more and retirement allows me to stick within about a four mile radius, all city.  If I get stuck somewhere, I keep some salted kitty litter in the car and a shovel.  And my cell phone. 

When I had a truck, it usually had a huge camper on it.

Once when we were going skiing in my Greenbrier van with four more friends we got stuck in traffic on I-70, I mean really stuck.  We agreed we weren't getting anywhere, so I decided to bound across the snowpacked median and I actually made it, thanks to the four extra weights in the car as well as the engine being back there.

Edited to add "snowpacked" for clarity.

[K Frame]

Just fill the boxes with sand, forget about the bag.

If you fill the boxes with sand, you need a forklift to get them out of the truck. If you leave the sand in bags in the boxes, you can unload the bags and remove the box if you don't have access to a forklift.

Leaving it in bags is the smarter option.

[K Frame]

"Greenbrier van"

My parents had a Greenbrier van when I was really little. I VAGUELY remember it. I think it was blue and white. I THINK it was the Corvair Greenbrier.

When it got wrecked, Mom and Dad got a 1970 Chevelle Greenbrier station wagon.

[Northwoods]

If you fill the boxes with sand, you need a forklift to get them out of the truck. If you leave the sand in bags in the boxes, you can unload the bags and remove the box if you don't have access to a forklift.

Leaving it in bags is the smarter option.

He was talking about 1 bag sized boxes.

[lee n. field]

What do you real Winter guys like to put in your pickup bed for extra traction? I haven't done anything since I've been here, but have mostly been driving my 4Runner if I need to go somewhere when it's snowy or icy.

I was thinking of throwing something between the wheel wells in the bed of my 2wd truck with AT tires. Right now I have a bunch of sandbags and piles of sand lying around, so that seems the most expedient. Something better to use? How much weight do you guys put in the back?

A few bags of cat litter (for traction) or road salt.

[Tuco]

Offer the loader operator at the dock company 25 bucks to drop a scoop of road gravel in the bed and get it for free.

[230RN]

"Greenbrier van"

My parents had a Greenbrier van when I was really little. I VAGUELY remember it. I think it was blue and white. I THINK it was the Corvair Greenbrier.

When it got wrecked, Mom and Dad got a 1970 Chevelle Greenbrier station wagon.

"The name Chevrolet Greenbrier was used by Chevrolet for two vehicles. The first vehicles were a six-to-nine-passenger window van version of the Corvair 95 van. Wikipedia" 

That was like mine.  We moved out to Colorado in the early 60s in it:

https://www.corvair.org/chapters/corvanatics/files/greenbrier/SRS8door1.jpg

"The Corvair 95 series also included the Loadside pickup truck and Rampside pickup truck that featured a mid-body ramp on the right side. All used the Corvair powertrain in a truck body and were produced in the model years 1961 to 1965. The Greenbrier name was used a second time from 1969 until 1972; for the mid-level Chevelle station wagon. Wikipedia"

Great fun vehicle, but you didn't want to get in a significant front end accident.  With no engine in front, you wouldn't have any legs left.

When camping, my usual ballast was lots and lots of guns and ammo.

I remember now that the friends in my Greenbrier said that other vehicles were also crossing the median in the path I had broken. 

[Opportunity]

Sorry, maybe I don’t understand something, but why do you all buy pickup and at the same time they are always empty and you have to put sandbags in the back?))

The fact is that I do a little (optional) work on accessories for pickup trucks (canopys, lids), but all my clients use pickups for utilitarian purposes (construction, landscaping, service), rarely does anyone use a pickup to move their own ass only…

[230RN]

Sounds like on-the-job, you just see them on-the-job, but off-the-job they haul their own asses around and you aren't there.  A lot of people only have the truck for all day-to-day driving.

Myself, I used the Lamborghini when not using the pick-um-up.

[tokugawa]

A block of concrete in the bed would make a really effective anti personnel round for the driver and passenger in the event of a collision.