One of the most useful options to help get heavy work done is a dump hoist and that then makes your body a dump body. Dump Bodies come in several different standardized configurations. The steel dump as shown below in the first two photos is very common for construction work, heavy landscaping where carrying material such as dirt, sand, gravel, rock and such is needed. These bodies are sized by the yard such as a 2-3 yard body, 3-4 yard body, 5-6 yard body and so on. It is very important to consider the chassis and body combination well when carrying these kind of materials because they are so heavy. This body is most commonly made of steel, but is also available in stainless steel and aluminum. This heavy duty type of body can take the punishment of these heavy materials.
Another type of dump body is a Flatbed or Stake Bed Dump Body. This is also a common body and it can be very convenient to be able to dump a load sometimes when using a flatbed.
Yet another type is the Landscape Dump Body. This is a very common body that is essentially a Flatbed Dump Body with solid, tall sides and is used in landscaping for lighter items such as clippings, small branches, and such from doing landscaping work. The tall sides help keep control of the cargo until it can be dumped. The sides can sometimes be removed, but the rear has gates that swing-away and cannot normally be removed. This allows the load to be dumped.
The sides are made out of marine-grade plywood, composites or steel. Because of the amount of material that could fit into this body with the tall sides, this type of body is NOT for but very small amounts of dirt, gravel, and rock. In addition it is not designed for these kind of materials.
The Landscape Body can also be used as a Debris Body. Debris Bodies are often used at construction sites taking odd loads of construction materials to other locations and general construction clean up.
Another common dump body is the Chipper Dump Body that tree trimmers use. Their grinders grind up the limbs and shoot the wood chips into an enclosed steel body and are dumped later. Wood is very heavy so Chipper Bodies must be mounted on heavy duty chassis. Typically, the minimum GVWR would be about 19,000 lbs. and greater. Most Chipper Bodies that we see are on medium duty trucks.
Other types of dump bodies are dump inserts which can be mounted in service bodies or even pickup trucks. These dump inserts are complete dump assemblies mounted in a sub frame with a hoist and dump body ready to bolt on to another body. These are made of steel, aluminum and composite materials. This can be an effective way to make use of a dump and because they are separate units, can easily (well, sort of easily) be removed and stored when not needed.
All in all, dump bodies can be a great tool for getting work done. Consider the dump body when you need to move material off your truck bed without labor.
