Best Ways to Remove Leaves and Brush from a Trailer

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It’s that time of year again for fall clean-up services, and dealing with leaves is most certainly on the list. There are many ways to load them, but what is the best way to get them out of the trailer?

PicturePerfectLawns: Leaf season is around the corner, along with tree-trimming season.

What method do you use for unloading debris such as leaves or brush? I’m wondering about leaves for the most part. I was thinking of after leaf cleanups having a large tarp set up on the high side trailer floor where all of the leaves will sit, then leaving a mower in the back to pull the tarp off. I got to thinking how many tarps I will be tearing through and came up with the idea of putting a large piece of plywood down underneath the large tarp. Drilling a hole in the plywood with a through chain and just pulling the plywood with the loader at the dump with the 20-foot-plus tarp of leaves resting on top of it.

Any other ideas for non-dump-trailer owners?

AVS Lawns: Length of chain link, some cable and a land anchor. Load on top of link with it attached to back of trailer. Fold cable over debris. At dump, anchor cable and drive forward. The link will roll it right out.

knox gsl: For tree trimmings, I use a 20-foot cable lying across the deck of the trailer with the ends hanging over the sides of the trailer. The best placement is directly over the rear axle. I use a shackle to attach the cable to create a lasso around the load that will cinch tight. I normally use another cable to attach the load cable to an anchor at the dump. If done right, I can unload as fast as a dump trailer. For leaves, I use a pallet attached to the cable and anchored the same way. I just stand the pallet at the front of the trailer and it will drag all of the leaves out if they are packed tight.

SP55669: I haven’t found a great way to do leaves yet. I use my blower. It takes me about a half-hour to unload a full 18-by-70-by-4-foot trailer. As for tarps, I get mine from the advertisement billboard people. They use big, heavy-duty tarps (canvas). I accumulated a couple for free, but a lot of times they will sell the old ones (in good condition) for $10 to $15; good sizes, durable, weather-resistant.

Nh scape: I’ve heard/seen those load handler mats with the crank on the tailgate work. You just unwind the handle then wind it back up. It handles like 500-plus pounds, I think.

GRANTSKI: Usually we put a tarp on the bottom of the truck bed or trailer and try to pull it or fold it over with a couple of guys, but usually we still have to remove some by hand if it’s a really heavy load.

OakNut: My trailer is small (5-by-8 with 2.5-foot sides), but I still can’t pull out a single tarp by hand and there’s no way to attach anything to pull it off at the dump, so I just layer the tarps as I load debris.

It’s pretty easy to pull off four or five loads rather than one full load.

13Razorbackfan: I haul a lot of brush in my 16-foot trailer, and what I always do is take one of the bigger limbs that spreads out with other limbs coming off of it like a peace symbol. I lay the one end right at the back (tailgate) of the trailer. I then pile everything on top and put the really heavy logs at the front of the trailer. I remove those first, then I open the tailgate and reach in and grab the “peace symbol” shaped limb and pull it out in one quick shot. As for leaves, I do the same thing with a giant tarp on the bottom.