What Are the Different Types of Bucket Trucks?

This sort of lift is ideal for open or unconstrained construction as well as industrial environments. Before the truck has to relocate, the boom can be moved to various different working positions.

Articulated Non-Overcenter Bucket Trucks

In contrast to the former, the top boom is kept at a constant angle while the bucket is raised or lowered. As a result, the bucket does not cross the middle of the vehicle. It is most suitable for use in fixed, easily accessible places, such as building maintenance and some utility services.

Telescopic Articulated Bucket Truck

The extenders for the boom of a telescopic articulated bucket truck are installed within the exterior piece. This allows the operator to extend the bucket at different degrees and distances. This bucket truck is ideal for forestry and construction locations with limited access or confined area. The operator merely needs to extend the boom to the required length from the best operating posture.

Insulated Bucket Truck

This, as the name suggests, is electrically insulated. It shields the operator from coming into contact with live electrical cables. This is due to the following factors:

• Bucket or liner made of a non-conductive substance.
• Insulated parts exist between the top boom and the elbow, as well as between the elbow and the truck chassis. This is appropriate for utility companies to use.

Non-Insulated Bucket Trucks

Non-insulated bucket trucks provide the necessary safety and functionality for lifting workers using telescopic, articulated, overcenter, or non-overcenter booms. They do not, however, protect crew members against electrocution. In most jobs , such a level of caution is unnecessary.

Track Mounted Bucket Trucks

Wheeled trucks are used in the majority of conventional bucket truck designs. These tracked trucks also serve as platforms for boom lifts. These, in turn, further support bucket work platforms in the majority of work settings and environments.

These bucket lift machines, however, have limits. Some tasks and situations on job sites necessitate greater accessibility. rack mounted bucket trucks are able to provide more accessibility than bucket trucks equipped with wheels can. This is why certain bucket truck lifts need tracks to move.

Because of worksite variables such as pitch or slope, lack of grip, and terrain, these machines utilize enormous track assemblies similar to those used on large farms, mining equipment, and even military vehicles. Furthermore, ground pressure is an important factor to consider. Ground pressure is described as the pressure put by a vehicle’s tires on the ground and is one indicator of its potential mobility, particularly over soft ground.

Factors To Consider When Choosing a Bucket Truck

Bucket truck models and manufacturers vary in features and capabilities. Each has unique characteristics in terms of weight capacity, working height, and side reach. The job needs and site conditions will influence your decision on whether to buy or rent a bucket truck. Consider the following elements when shopping for the best bucket truck.

How Far Bucket Trucks Reach

The platform height describes the bucket’s maximum height based on boom height and bucket location. The platform is at the end of an extended arm. The higher your employees can work, the greater the arm extension. Bucket trucks are classified into three sizes: less than 50 feet, 50-59 feet, and over 60 feet. It’s vital to remember that the boom height and platform height are also referred to as “working height”. This is the highest point at which an employee can work safely while the vehicle provides a secure and balanced base.

Side Reach

This is the platform’s horizontal movement from side to side. The side reach of the boom is the distance it can move the platform and basket. Some bucket truck arms can swivel 360 degrees, while others are restricted by the vehicle’s boom location.

Weight Capacity

Depending on where the truck is positioned for work, the bucket’s weight capacity will affect platform height and side reach. You will be able to use the maximum height and reach if it is directly beneath the work to be done. If you have to park the truck a few feet away to extend the boom, it won’t be able to reach as high or as far as it should.

Fuel Type

Bucket trucks run on three distinct types of fuel: gasoline, diesel, and hybrid.

Gasoline bucket trucks are typically used for minor work on paved or uneven surfaces. These tasks would require less height and side reach, such as utility vehicles.

Diesel-powered bucket lifts are used in heavy construction and high industrial-demanding industries. They are also commonly used in construction and agriculture. Both the vehicle and the hydraulic system for the lift are powered by a diesel engine.

Hybrid bucket trucks are now available, with the engine powered by gasoline or diesel. The hydraulic lift is supplied by an electric motor. This saves fuel and reduces the carbon footprint of your company.

Driveline

The term “driveline” refers to the transmission type as well as the:

• Driveshaft
• Axles
• Joints
• Differentials
• Wheels

The purpose of use and transmission types determine the size and specifications of such components.

Transmission Type

Automatic, two-wheel drive and four-wheel drive transmissions are available. All tough terrain and heavy jobs, such as forestry and construction, require four-wheel drive. Lightweight bucket trucks have two-wheel drive. While automatic gearboxes are standard in all bucket trucks, manual transmissions are also available. Manual transmission allows operators more control over movement in difficult areas.

History of The Bucket Truck

The first bucket truck, known as a “cherry picker,” was introduced in the early 1900s. Around the same time, the usage of internal combustion engines became generally recognized. The principle employed on the vehicle lift can be consistently traced back to the Romans. They employed constructions that are virtually equal to modern cranes and lifts.

Maintenance Vehicle or Cherry Picker?

Despite its current use as a maintenance vehicle, the bucket truck did not begin in an electric company’s garage. On the contrary, it evolved from the “cherry picker” vehicle. Trucks equipped with a liftable platform were generally employed during harvesting season. They would be used to lift workers who needed to collect fruit from high up on the trees. While harvesting, the platform functioned as a safe platform for the picker. Although traditional ladders were once used for fruit harvesting, ‘cherry pickers’ were safer. Furthermore, the platform was spacious enough for workers to move about without the fear of falling.

Another benefit of this new design was the reduced chance of tree damage. Ladders that were set up against trees to allow employees to climb up to gather the fruit often harmed the tree trunk. With this innovative vehicle, the platform could be placed close to but above the tree without damaging it in any way. It was an added bonus because moving from one tree to the other was considerably easier with this motorized platform version. Although the name “cherry picker” was a misnomer because cherries were not the only fruit, the vehicle was known by that name for a long time.

Other Industries

Other industries quickly adapted the ‘cherry picker’ to their own needs. It was a veritable godsend for the electric utility company, in particular, in the repair of damaged utility lines. It made their employees’ jobs easier, faster, and safer than the prior way of climbing a telephone pole and “hanging” from it to complete a task.

Other industries that have adopted and altered their own versions of this vehicle include forestry, sign and light, house painting and window washing, mining, and building, to name a few. This vehicle’s potential applications are nearly limitless. The bucket truck is the perfect truck for the job if the task involves heights and demands a high level of safety.

The Difference Between Bucket Trucks and Boom Trucks?

A boom truck is a type of hydraulic crane that is mounted on the chassis of a commercial truck. A boom truck may recover or transfer large things to inaccessible regions such as a ditch, hillside, or the top of a building by employing a boom winch.

A bucket truck is a sort of boom lift that is put on the frame of a conventional vehicle. This truck has an extensible, hydraulic boom with a huge bucket for lifting employees to elevated, inaccessible areas.

In simpler terms, a boom truck is a type of crane and a bucket truck is a type of lift.

Are Bucket Trucks Considered Aerial Lifts?

An aerial lift is any vehicle-mounted device used to assist employees in completing jobs at heights. Aerial lifts, unlike scissor-type lift mechanisms, are supported by a boom. As a result, a bucket truck is classified as an aerial lift because it fits this description.