Cargo & Freight · Driver Training VideoPipe, Tube & Cylindrical Loads

Start with the bottom row

Block it and chock it so it cannot roll off the trailer. Nail your chocks down, or use pipe stakes and racks that are actually built to hold pipe — not scrap lumber you found in the yard.

Stack pattern matters

Only stack pipe in a stable nested pattern or a true pyramid — round locked into the row below it.

Bell and spigot concrete pipe gets its own rule — 393.124. That pipe has a wide end and a narrow end, and it can roll or telescope into itself if it isn't blocked and tied down exactly right. Know that section before you load it.

For tiedowns: go over the top, and add restraint against side movement too — over-the-top alone isn't enough. Hit your tiedown count for the length and weight, and every tiedown has to do its share within the fifty percent working load limit rule.

Between layers, use dunnage

Without it, pipe slides lengthwise and walks itself right out of your tiedowns.

Metal pipe has sharp cut ends and raw edges. Those edges will saw through a strap in a matter of miles. Use edge protection, and for metal pipe that usually means chain, not strap.

Load it even, side to side and front to back, and keep the center of gravity in mind — a lopsided pipe load can put you over on an axle even when the total weight is legal.

Your company standard: chock and block the roll. Stable nesting only — no loose stacking. Over-the-top restraint plus side restraint. Edge protection on every sharp end. And the correct tiedown count, every time.