Four Types of Trash Trucks

In addition to these types of garbage trucks, there are over 350 different types of refuse trucks such as grapple trucks, recycling trucks, chassis, cabs, and more.  The life of a trash man (or woman) is actually quite interesting and advancements in trucks are really making their lives a bit safer — and easier.

Side Loader Refuse Truck
Automation started phasing in during the 1980s, when the big green 'wheelie bins' became the residential standard. Automated arms on the sides of trucks appeared, capable of picking up the plastic bins and dumping them without a garbageman having to mess with them.

Side loaders can be loaded either manually or automatically from the side. An Automated Side Loader or ASL is a garbage truck that has a mechanical arm with an automated lift that reaches out to the side of the truck and grabs a residential garbage container. It lifts the garbage container and dumps the trash into the top front of the garbage truck. The trash is then forced through an aperture into the main body and compacted towards the back of the truck. An Automated Side Load truck only needs one person to operate the truck.

Rearloader Truck

Rearloaders have a large opening at the rear of the vehicle where a waste collector can toss waste bags or empty the contents of containers into. One person would drive the truck while the other two garbagemen would hop off and toss the garbage in the back. First there were three men on a rear-loader, then two men. Now they have lifting mechanism that will automatically empty large carts without the operator having to lift the waste by hand. As trends go, the rear-loader trash truck is mostly out. There is a rearloader system which involves having a dumpster that is built to fit a groove in the rearload truck. In this situation, the truck will have a chain or cable system for lifting the trash container up. The container is turned upside-down and the waste falls into the hopper of the truck.

Frontloader Truck 

The frontload truck has automated forks on the front. These forks are inserted into the sleeves on the waste container with the use of levers the driver operates from inside of the truck. The waste container or dumpster is mechanically lifted over the truck and turned upside down allowing all the waste or recyclable material to be emptied into the vehicle’s hopper. The waste is then compacted by a hydraulically powered moving wall that works to move the waste to the rear of the truck. Frontloaders are especially useful in commercial and industrial businesses that use large dumpsters.

Roll Off Truck

A roll off truck (or rolloff truck) is also known as a dumpster truck is used to transport dumpsters. They have wheels to roll the dumpsters on and off.

Prior to the loader systems the trash pick up job was fairly dangerous with employees hurting themselves coming off the trucks or picking up sharp, hazardous trash. To reduce many worker-related issues and  workman's comp claims, automated arms have made the job safer and more comfortable.

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