Water hauling: trucks, tanks, permits and how the work pays

Four kinds of water hauling

"Hauling water" covers very different jobs. The water, the customer and the rules change from one to the next, so decide which you are in before you buy a truck.

Water hauling trucks and tanks

A water hauling truck is usually a straight truck with a tank on the frame. Construction models carry spray bars front and rear and a water cannon for dust control and compaction; delivery models carry a pump and hose reel to fill cisterns, pools and stock tanks. A water hauling tank on a semi trailer carries far more and runs longer distances, mostly in oilfield and bulk water hauling between a source and a large user.

Potable work needs a tank used only for drinking water, built from materials approved for it, with sealed fill and outlet connections. Pennsylvania's permit application, for example, has to describe each tank, fill connection and outlet valve and how each is protected from contamination. Source A tank that has carried anything else, even farm chemicals once, is out for drinking water.

Water hauling in Pennsylvania: the permit

Pennsylvania is a clear example of how states treat drinking water haulers. The state code says no one may operate a bulk water hauling system without first getting a public water system permit. The application describes each tank, fill connection and outlet valve, how each is kept from contamination, and the exact place water is drawn from each source. Source DEP handles it through its bottled, vended, retail and bulk water hauler program, using Module 17. Changing sources counts as a major change that needs a new application, while relining a tank is usually a minor amendment. Other states run their own programs, so call your state's drinking water office before the first paid delivery.

Water is heavy: the weight math

Water weighs about 8.34 lb a gallon, more than gasoline or diesel, so a water tank hits the weight limit long before most other tankers do. On the Interstate the gross limit is 80,000 lb unless the bridge formula sets less. Source

Worked example

A tractor and empty water trailer weigh 32,000 lb, leaving 48,000 lb under an 80,000 lb gross. That is about 5,755 gallons of water, whatever the tank holds. A straight truck rated 33,000 lb GVWR that weighs 19,000 lb empty can carry about 14,000 lb, or roughly 1,680 gallons. Fill past that and the truck is overweight at the first scale. See the full comparison in how many gallons a tanker truck holds, and check axles with the truck weight limit checker.

Licenses for hauling water

• Class B CDL for a straight water truck rated 26,001 lb or more. Source
• Class A CDL for a tractor and water trailer when the combination reaches 26,001 lb and the trailer is rated over 10,000 lb. Source
• N tank endorsement when tanks over 119 gallons each total 1,000 gallons or more. The rule covers any liquid, so plain water counts. Source

Local water haulers often qualify for the short-haul exception: drivers who stay within 150 air-miles of their base, return there and are released within 14 hours don't need logs or an ELD, though the carrier keeps time records. Source

Driving a water tank: surge

Most water tanks are smooth inside or lightly baffled so they drain and clean easily. A part-full smooth tank is the worst case for surge, the wave that shoves the truck forward when you brake and sideways in a curve. Brake early and steadily, slow before turns, and remember a construction truck spraying a road is part-full most of the day. Federal outage rules for spec cargo tanks don't apply to non-hazardous water Source, but leaving a little room still helps in heat. More on handling in surge in tankers.

How water hauling pays

Construction water usually pays by the hour, with the truck and driver on the job all shift. Deliveries to homes, pools and farms pay by the load or by the gallon, with a charge for distance. Oilfield water work pays by the load or the hour and swings with drilling activity. Wait time at a busy fill station and slow unloading are where the money disappears, so price them in.

Pricing a delivery

A hauler fills a 1,600 gallon straight truck at a permitted source 20 miles from a rural home with a dry well. The run takes 2.5 hours round trip, including filling and pumping into the cistern. If the hauler's cost is $70 an hour for truck, fuel and driver, the trip costs $175 before the water itself and any margin. Price below that and each delivery loses money.

Bulk water hauling over the road

Some water moves like any other tanker freight: bottled-water plants, food processors and industrial users buy bulk water hauled hundreds of miles in clean tanker trailers. These loads go through brokers and shippers the same way milk or juice does, with wash tickets and product history checked at the dock. That is the part of water hauling a dispatcher can help with; local hourly and delivery work comes from your own customers.

Starting water hauling services

1. Pick the work: potable, construction, oilfield or farm. It decides the truck and the permits.
2. Get the license that matches the truck, plus the N endorsement for 1,000 gallons or more.
3. For drinking water, apply to your state's drinking water program before your first delivery.
4. Set up your authority and insurance if you will haul for hire across state lines.
5. Line up your fill source in writing, with its hours and price per gallon.
6. Price every job from your hourly cost, not from a competitor's flyer.

Water hauling sits beside the other liquid and dry trades in bulk hauling, and construction water trucks work the same job sites covered in heavy equipment hauling. For the full map of trades, start at hauling, explained by rig or our tanker truck guide, and see what GearLoads does for carriers.