Undercarriage Exhaust

[Trucker Matt]

Recently my wife and I parked for the night at one of the Pilot truckstops in West Memphis, AR. It was a cool comfortable night and we slept soundly. We awoke in the morning choking on diesel exhaust fumes that filled our sleeper. Sometime in the night a fellow expediter backed in next to us and kicked his engine up on high idle with his undercarriage exhaust blowing under our sleeper and into our open window.

This has happened to us several times and I avoid parking near other expediters for this reason. If a truck with an undercarriage exhaust backs in next to us, we'll move if he continues to idle. Although, sometimes in a crowded lot that is not an option.

Diesel exhaust is harmful stuff! Undercarriage exhausts put the stuff where it is likely to get inhaled into HVAC systems or open sleeper windows. Not to mention that operating temperatures drop during extended idling fouling the exhaust even more. To make matters worse truckstop parking with only a shoulders width between trucks conspires to keep the stuff at ground level.

Do any other drivers share my concern? Is breathing toxic fumes just the price you pay to live the glamorous life of a truck driver?

 

[Glen Rice]

Terry and Rene' had a incident similar to yours in the unit. Luckily they had a Carbon Monoxide detector that work well before any damage to life or limb. I would suggest buying one yourself, soon.

 

[Lonleyboy515]

That is why i don't park in them any more.They are noisy smelly places .It will be nice when every state has anti idling laws in place.It is great to pull in to a rest area were their is no diesel noise and smell it is so quiet you can get a good sleep.


JACK





FLEET/OWNER
PROFESSION
20 YEARS OTR
15YEARSEXPEDITE

 

[Broompilot]

I would like to make a suggestion, I saw this a couple of weeks ago for the first time. Back row in a truck stop Expeditor had pulled straight in not backed in like usual. This probably explains why. I just might start taking his advice although it was not given. I hate seeing my truck covered in everyone elses soot in the mornings.
Pulling straight in keeps you away from stacks and undercarrieage exhaust. Thanks for the tip, just be more cautious entering and exiting the cab Please...

Still feel safer back there with the 18 wheelers than up front.

 

[Trucker Matt]

I Appreciate your responses. Glen, I will pick-up a carbon monoxide protector.

I do avoid truckstops whenever possible, the only thing I hate more than parking in a truckstop is parking somewhere else only to have someone pounding on my door in the middle of the night telling me to move along.

Nosing into spaces generally lowers the risk of having your hood removed and it does get you a little farther away from the exhaust.

My core question is why should I have to defend myself from this stuff? If you have a truck with an undercarriage exhaust and you are fond of idling does it bother you that while it might be aimed out from underneath your truck, its going directly beneath someone else's?

Matt Foscue
Austin, TX

 

[geo]

when i had a c unit and parked at truckstops i always tried to get a spot on end of the row and have one side that didn't have any trucks along side it and other thing i also did was try and see which way the wind was belowing to park in right way to avoid all diesel exhaust sometimes it work and other times it didn't and in someplaces they had alot of room for the trucks to other are so tight
it was hard toget door open