Refrigeration is one of the greatest inventions involving food and food preservation. It is often necessary for foods to remain chilled at a certain temperature to reduce spoilage and potential illness problems. This is why people often need to use refrigeration trucks for certain trips and loads.
The average cost of renting a refrigerated truck is around $160-$230 a day. This cost can increase due to the mileage a person requires, the gas used while traveling, and other additional expenses. It can be estimated that it will cost approximately 34 cents per mile.
After considering the average cost of a refrigeration truck, it is important to consider a few other factors. Some of these include what kinds of refrigerated vehicles are there, the dimensions refrigerated trucks come in, and what companies will rent refrigerated trucks.
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What Kinds of Refrigerated Vehicles are There?
There are a variety of vehicles available for people to own and rent. The distinctions between each vehicle are important to understand, as the purpose and the level of expertise of the driver will differ. The main three are refrigerated vans, refrigerated sprinters, and refrigerated trucks.
Refrigerated Vans
Refrigerated vans are vans that have a customized back portion, that is, a fridge or freezer. The temperature is controlled by the driver. The refrigeration system is useful because it can remain on even when the vehicle is not. These types of vehicles are the same size and proportions as regular vans, so they carry small loads. These types of vehicles are often used in a business setting to help maintain food, medicines, plants, and even some forms of wildlife. Businesses often will have the refrigerator space customized with shelves or other features to fit their needs. This vehicle comes in much smaller sizes than the other options. With the length being anywhere from 12-28 feet, people with a standard driver’s license are able to drive them.
Refrigerated Sprinters
As the name suggests, refrigerated sprinters are used in local transportation. These can be a variety of sizes but are usually smaller than refrigerated trucks. Usually, the trailers sit around 8-16 feet long. These kinds of vehicles are nice because they are built and designed to be filled and transported quickly. They are the nice middle ground between refrigerated vans and refrigerated trucks.
Refrigerated Trucks
Refrigerated trucks, also known as reefers, are a large part of the trucking industry. These kinds of vehicles have much longer trailers that can house many pallets of cargo. The refrigerated portion of the vehicle is actually a removable trailer. These vehicles are useful because they are built to handle products like fresh fruit, fresh veggies, medications, and other temperature-sensitive products over long distances. These kinds of vehicles are the ones that have 28-53 foot trailers that can carry up to 44,000 pounds of product. These types of vehicles also need to be driven by people who have proper licensing, such as a CDL.
What Dimensions do Refrigerated Trucks Come in?
Refrigerated trucks can come in a variety of sizes. Usually, they will come in standard truck sizes ranging from 28 feet long to 53 feet long. The height is less than or equal to 13.5 feet. The width also follows the national guidelines. These kinds of vehicles are built to withstand and carry loads of cargo that weigh up to 44,000 pounds. This kind of truck can handle many pallets of cargo, usually ranging from 14 to 26 pallets.
What Companies Will Rent a Refrigerated Truck?
There are a large variety of companies that do allow customers to rent refrigerated trucks. Many name brands, including Penske, Enterprise, Ryder, and Hertz offer these vehicles. All of these companies have a flat rate per day and a cents per mile charge. There can also be additional charges and costs like underage charges. These other costs are entirely dependent on the company and its policy.
Penske
Penske is probably one of the better companies for people looking to rent refrigerated trucks that are under 25. They allow 18-year-olds to drive their vehicles and have no underage fee. Renters must provide two forms of valid identification and a card for a deposit. They have vehicles ranging from 16 feet long to 53 feet long, with prices ranging from $160-$240 dollars a day. The cost per mile is also much smaller than some other places at 10-30 cents a mile.
Related Article: What You Should Know Before Renting from Penske
Enterprise
Enterprise is one of the companies that puts a lot of additional charges on people under the age of 25. If a potential renter is under 21, they cannot rent from Enterprise at all. Any renter between the age of 21-25 will be given an additional underage charge of $25 dollars a day. They also require people to have over 350 dollars more than the overall cost of renting to even begin to reserve a vehicle. They do have some smaller vehicle options, like a refrigerated cargo van, for those who don’t want a box truck. The flat rate ranges from $175 to $230 a day with a 49 cents per mile charge.
Related Article: Enterprise Truck Rental
Ryder
Ryder has some refrigerated vehicles available to rent that are a 16-foot model, a 22–26-foot model, or a 53-foot model. In order to make a reservation, the driver needs to give two forms of identification and renter’s insurance.
The flat rate costs for refrigerated trucks from Ryder range from $140-$260 dollars a day. The cost per mile driven is typically 25 cents but can be as little as 4 cents with the largest available model. If the vehicle is under 24,200 pounds, the driver also is not required to have a CDL. This can be a good match for someone who is younger and doesn’t have a CDL.
Hertz
Hertz is probably the least popular option for renting refrigerated vehicles. They only have one model available in only a few locations. This model is also a refrigerated van, so it is not worth renting if a renter has a larger load. The flat rate is $200 dollars a day with a 75 cents per mile additional charge. People must be over 20 to rent the vehicle and have a credit or debit card as well. If they are under 25, they also receive an additional 19 dollars a day cost.
Now that a person understands these different facets of refrigerated trucks and their usage, they are better able to handle the different challenges and experiences that come up with renting.