You are planning earthworks, a quarry job or a site clearance, and spoil, sand or aggregate has to leave the pit. A truck that suits one haul route can be the wrong choice on the next. This guide helps you choose between the main types of dump trucks by route, then by material, and read a capacity figure without being caught out.
What are the main types of dump trucks?
For planning a job, three groups matter: rigid trucks for roads and prepared routes, articulated trucks for soft or uneven ground, and mining haulers for dedicated quarry and mine roads.
Other tipping vehicles exist, such as tipper trailers pulled by a tractor head, side-tipping and bottom-dump trailers, and small site dumpers. "Tipper" and "dumper" are other names for the same family of machine, and quotes use them loosely. Ask which body type is quoted. For trailers and other vehicles on a job, see types of trucks and trailers for construction.
What is a rigid dump truck and when does it fit?
A rigid dump truck has a fixed chassis: the cab and frame are one rigid unit with no pivot, and a hydraulic ram lifts the front of the body to tip the load out at the back. It is the usual choice for hauling on roads and prepared haul routes.
You will see wheel codes such as 6x4. The first number is the wheel positions, the second is how many are driven. So 6x4 means six wheel positions, of which four are driven.
More driven wheels give more grip off the tarmac, but a road-going rigid truck is no substitute for an articulated one in deep mud. If your route is mostly hard surface, a dump truck is normally the right start. For a truck that will use public roads, ask the supplier for its current registration and inspection documents.
What is an articulated dump truck and when does it fit?
An articulated dump truck bends at a pivot joint between the cab and the body. It is typically driven on all axles. That suits soft, uneven or muddy ground on large earthworks, where a rigid truck may spin or sink.
It steers by bending at the pivot, so it turns tighter than a rigid truck of similar size and keeps the body behind the cab on uneven ground. It is built for the work area, not for long road trips. If the job has a long public-road leg, plan how it will be moved (see lowbed vs flatbed vs modular trailer) or whether another truck fits better.
If your site is a large cut-and-fill, a wet excavation or a rough access track, look at articulated dump trucks.
What are mining haulers and where do they work?
Mining dump trucks are built for mines and quarries and work on dedicated haul roads. Most are rigid-frame machines; what sets them apart is size. They are generally too large for public roads, so they are normally moved on trailers, the largest in parts.
They are usually the wrong tool for a normal construction site. They suit very large volumes of rock or ore over a long, purpose-built route, with large loading machines to match. If your quarry moves very large volumes, browse mining dump trucks; for smaller pits compare rigid and articulated trucks too. Ask the supplier about transport, assembly and who provides the loader.
How is dump truck capacity measured: tonnes or cubic metres?
Capacity is stated in two ways, and they are not the same limit.
- Weight (payload): the load the truck may carry, in tonnes.
- Body volume: the space in the body, in cubic metres.
Volume has two readings: struck (level with the top edge) and heaped (including the pile above it, so higher). An unlabelled figure can mean either.
A truck is full when it reaches either limit. Dense material such as rock or wet sand can reach the weight limit before the body looks full, while light material fills the body first.
Note. For example, say a body holds 10 cubic metres and the payload limit is 15 tonnes. Material weighing 2 tonnes per cubic metre would put 20 tonnes in a full body, so you load only three-quarters.
Watch out. Common mistake: comparing quotes where one gives heaped cubic metres and another gives payload in tonnes. Fix: ask every supplier for the rated payload in tonnes and the body volume, labelled struck or heaped.
Never load past the rated payload just because there is space left in the body. Legal axle and gross weight limits also apply on public roads, and wet material usually weighs more than the same dry material.
Which type fits your haul route and material?
Start with the route, then check the material.
| Haul route | Usual fit | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Public road, then a prepared site road | Rigid dump truck | Soft tipping area or entry ramp that is too steep or muddy |
| Soft, uneven or muddy site, large earthworks | Articulated dump truck | Long road legs, and how the machine arrives on site |
| Large quarry or mine on dedicated haul roads | Mining dump truck; smaller quarries may fit a rigid off-road or articulated truck | Size, and how it reaches the site |
| Mixed: road plus rough pit | A rigid truck on the road leg, an articulated truck in the pit | Needs a transfer point where material is tipped and reloaded, so allow a loader there. Otherwise pick the truck for the harder leg. |
Write down what the supplier needs to match a truck:
- Route: the surface (paved, compacted or soft), the one-way distance, any steep ramp or narrow gate, and whether part of it is public road.
- Material: what it is, and whether it will be wet or dry. Heavy loads such as crushed rock are limited by weight, light bulky ones such as green waste by volume.
- Tipping point: the ground there, any ramp, and any overhead line.
- Loading machine: which one fills the truck, and its bucket size.
Check the tipping point
Tipping makes a truck unstable, so tip only on level, firm ground and lower the body fully before driving off. If material hangs up in a raised body, do not drive off with the body raised. Lower it, keep people clear and ask the site supervisor or supplier how to clear it. Stay well clear of overhead lines, and ask the site owner what clearance and tipping rules apply.
Road-use, loading and permit requirements differ by project, site owner and municipality. Confirm them before mobilising.
How do you match trucks to the loading machine?
Choose a loader or excavator that fills the truck in a small number of passes. Divide the truck's payload by what one bucket carries. The answer is roughly the number of passes. If it is very high, the loader is too small and the truck waits. If the first bucket nearly fills the body, the loader is too big and risks overloading the truck.
For example, a 20-tonne payload and a bucket carrying 4 tonnes gives about five passes. Check the bucket's rated load in tonnes, not only its volume, because dense material is weight-limited here too. Check the loading height too, keep everyone out of the swing area, and never load over the cab.
To size the loader or excavator, read what size excavator you need. If you load with a wheel loader, compare it in skid steer vs wheel loader. For the machines that dig and load, see which earthmoving machine does what.
How many trucks you need depends on distance, loading speed and tipping time. Work through it in how to estimate how many machines a project needs.
How to do this on Maedah
Post one request with the truck type, the quantity, your city, the site on the map and the dates. Add the route, material and tipping-point notes from the checklist above.
Dump trucks and the loader can go in one project request. Sealed quotes come back side by side: compare the payload in tonnes, what is included (driver, fuel or loading) and the response time. Agree price and payment directly with the supplier.
