Services · Transportation

Freight that
respects the
cargo.

Most damaged IBC totes did not get damaged at the source. They got damaged in transit by carriers who treated them like washing machines. We run owned trailers for a reason.

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How we load

The rules of an IBC load.

Two-high stacking max for filled or rinsed totes. Three-high acceptable only for crushed/recycle loads.
Cage-to-cage contact, never bottle-to-bottle. The cage takes the load.
Cross-strapped at each layer, with edge protection on the strap contact points.
No mixed loads of stainless and composite without isolation between them.
Pallet-orientation locked: fork pockets parallel to the trailer's long axis on all units.

Our equipment

What we run.

53' dry vans — the workhorse for protected delivery.
48' flatbeds — for outdoor-bound stock or oversize loads.
Step-deck — occasional, for stacked or specialty configurations.
Partner carriers — vetted, paid for IBC-trained crews.

Service area

Where we run weekly.

We have regular weekly or biweekly routes to nine states: MO, KS, IA, AR, IL, KY, OK, NE, TN. Loads to these areas are usually quotable for next-week pickup or delivery without scrambling.

For loads outside the regular footprint, we partner with vetted long-haul carriers and quote per-route. Continental US is always doable — sometimes the best move is rail-to-truck for the long leg, and we'll quote that too if it makes sense.

The freight quote we'll always give

Landed cost. Up front. No surprises.

When we quote, the price you see is the price you pay — totes plus freight, quoted together. No fuel surcharge added at the last minute. No "reweigh discrepancy." If we're wrong on the freight, we eat it.

Get a landed quote →

Trailer types compared

When each piece of equipment is the right call.

Trailer	Tote capacity	Best for	Limitations
53' dry van	40 floor / 80 stacked two-high	Reconditioned, food-grade, weather-sensitive cargo	Dock-height delivery only; tight residential access tough
48' flatbed	36 single layer	Project-grade, recycle-bound, oversize fabrication	Weather exposure; requires tarp on food-grade
53' step-deck	40 single + stacked accent units	Mixed-height loads, stacked configurations, awkward cuts	Not always available — partner equipment
20' / 40' container chassis	14 / 28 floor-loaded	Cross-dock to ocean freight, rail intermodal	Lower per-unit, longer dwell; only on prior arrangement
Hot-shot pickup + trailer	4–8 totes	Urgent small-quantity delivery, broken-load fill	Higher per-unit cost; only inside 4-hr radius

Freight pricing model

How a quote actually gets built.

A freight quote has four moving parts: line-haul, fuel, accessorials, and dwell risk. We tell you each.

Line-haul is mileage × rate. On owned trucks inside the 9-state core we're typically $2.65–$3.30 per loaded mile depending on lane density. Partner carriers price their own line-haul; we mark up modestly to cover dispatch.

Fuel is a per-mile surcharge tied to DOE diesel index, refreshed weekly. On the quote it shows as a separate line so you can sanity-check.

Accessorials are extras: lift-gate ($95), residential ($120), inside delivery ($180), redelivery ($140), detention ($85/hr after 2 free hours), tarp ($65), driver-assist load/unload ($90).

Dwell risk is what we add when a destination has unpredictable receiving — first-come-first-served scrap yards, ag co-ops in season. We say so when it's in there.

Ballpark per-tote freight

Inside the 9-state core, owned trailer.

1 tote, LTL: $160–$240 minimum
6 totes, LTL: $45–$70 / unit
18 totes, partial TL: $22–$38 / unit
40 totes, full TL: $14–$26 / unit
80 totes, stacked TL: $8–$16 / unit

Where we run, how often

Service map by frequency.

Weekly+

9-state core

MO, KS, IA, AR, IL, KY, OK, NE, TN. Owned trailers. Most quotes go out for next-week pickup or delivery.

Biweekly

Adjacent

TX (north + east), MN, WI, IN, OH, MS, AL, CO. Mix of owned and partner. Plan a week or two ahead.

Monthly

Wider reach

East coast, southeast, mountain west. Partner carriers. Usually pairs with another load in the corridor.

On request

West coast

Long-haul partner. Sometimes the smart move is rail intermodal for the line-haul plus truck drayage on each end.

Drayage only

Pacific ports

For exporters, we can dray a container to a port-area cross-dock. Export paperwork is yours.

Continental Canada / MX

Not directly. We'll deliver to a US-based forwarder of your choice.

Loading rules deep-dive

Why we're fussy about this.

Most IBC freight damage is preventable and traces back to two mistakes: stacking bottle-on-bottle instead of cage-on-cage, and under-strapping the upper layer. We see both on inbound freight from other yards every week.

Our rule set, in operator language: cage takes the load, straps take the stop. The cage is rated for top-down stacking force; the bottle is not. The straps don't hold the load to the floor — gravity does that — they hold the load through a hard stop. So they need to be sized for the deceleration force, not the static weight.

On a two-high stack of 40 totes, we use 4 cross-straps per layer (eight total), 4" webbing, edge protection at every contact point. Tightened, walked-around, re-tightened after the first 10 miles. Driver carries spares and a torque-style strap-tension checker.

For three-high crushed/recycle loads, we go to 6 straps per layer and add a corner-board frame. Three-high is only ever recycle-bound — never live cargo.

Insurance & damage process

If something goes wrong, here's the path.

Step 01

Note on the BOL.

If damage is visible at delivery, the receiver notes it on the BOL before the driver leaves. Photograph the noted BOL.

Step 02

Email the yard within 48 hours.

Photos, BOL scan, unit count affected, brief description. info@ibc-secondlife.com (or whoever's on your account thread).

Step 03

We triage same day.

If it's our equipment, we own it — replace, refund, or credit at your choice, no insurance dance. If it's a partner carrier, we file the claim and front you the resolution.

Step 04

Replacement or credit issued.

Typical close-out is 3–5 business days. We don't require return of the damaged unit before sending a replacement — we'll pick it up on the next route.

Our cargo insurance covers up to $100,000 per load on owned equipment. Partner carriers carry their own; we pre-vet for minimum $100K cargo coverage before they haul for us.

Residential & special delivery

When the destination isn't a loading dock.

Lift-gate

$95 add-on

Truck arrives with a powered lift-gate so the pallet can come off without a forklift on the receiving end. Works for up to 4 totes per drop.

Residential

$120 add-on

Non-commercial address. We send a smaller truck where possible. Driveway width, turning radius, and overhead clearance matter — send photos in advance.

Inside delivery

$180 add-on

Driver places the tote inside a structure rather than at the curb. Limited to ground-floor placement, pallet-jack-accessible path.

Appointment

$45 add-on

Specific delivery window committed in writing. Otherwise we deliver during the standard 8a–5p driver window.

Redelivery

$140

If no one's there to receive on a residential delivery, we attempt again the next routed day. Once. After that we hold at our terminal for pickup.

After-hours

Quote on request

Weekend or evening delivery for time-sensitive work. We'll quote if we can route a driver; sometimes we can't.

Sample lane pricing

Real numbers, recent runs.

Lane	Load	Trailer	Freight
Columbia, MO → Kansas City, KS	40 totes, two-high	53' van, owned	$620
Columbia, MO → St. Louis, MO	24 totes, single	53' van, owned	$380
Columbia, MO → Tulsa, OK	40 totes, two-high	53' van, owned	$1,150
Columbia, MO → Des Moines, IA	32 totes, two-high	53' van, owned	$890
Columbia, MO → Memphis, TN	40 totes, two-high	53' van, partner	$1,340
Columbia, MO → Denver, CO	40 totes, two-high	53' van, partner	$2,180
Columbia, MO → Lubbock, TX	36 totes single, flatbed	48' flat, owned	$1,690
Columbia, MO → Lawrence, KS	6 totes	LTL common carrier	$280

Transportation FAQ

Stuff dispatch gets asked.

Can you do my freight if I'm buying totes from someone else?

Yes, sometimes. If the pickup is along a route we already run, we'll quote it. We're primarily a tote-yard with trucks, not a freight brokerage, so we won't always be the cheapest. We'll tell you if we're not.

How far in advance do I need to book?

Inside the 9-state core, 3–5 business days for full truckload, 1–3 for LTL piggyback. Outside the core, 5–10 days depending on lane. Urgent? Email anyway — sometimes a partner has space tomorrow.

What's your on-time rate?

On owned trailers, roughly 96% within the committed window over the last twelve months. On partner carriers, closer to 89%. Weather, receiver dwell, and DOT inspection are the usual misses. We notify you proactively.

Do you offer team drivers for time-critical lanes?

Through partner carriers only. We don't run team driver operations in-house. For most IBC freight, team-driver economics don't pencil — single-driver is fine for 90% of our lanes.

Can I track the truck?

Yes. On owned trailers we use a GPS telematics platform; we'll share a live link on request. On partner carriers, we relay status emails every 8–12 hours from pickup to delivery.

What about hazmat?

We don't haul hazmat. Reconditioned and used IBCs we're shipping have been rinsed or washed and don't fall under hazmat regs in their shipped state. If your inbound load qualifies as hazmat, we'll refer you to a hazmat-certified carrier.

Do you do less-than-pallet quantities?

No. Smallest unit of shipment is one tote on a pallet, LTL. We don't parcel-ship totes.

What's the carbon footprint of one of your loads?

A loaded 53' van averages roughly 6.5 mpg on diesel. A 600-mile run with 40 totes burns about 92 gallons, roughly 940 kg CO₂e — or about 23 kg per tote delivered. We can run the number for your specific lane on request.