After getting dressed I engage the PTO on my truck to warm up the hydraulic oil that runs the vac pump on my trailer. A cold pump doesn't do a very good job when it comes to sucking on or blowing off a load of production water.
I head to my first oil well to check the salt water tank for a load. Salt water tanks are 20 feet tall and each foot holds the equivalent of 20 barrels of liquid. Production water usually weighs around 10 lbs per gallon and so a water hauler has to do some simple mathematics to ensure he doesn't overload his trailer.
The water tank I gauge is at 8'9" and I'm going to pull 100 barrels. This means that I will be pulling 5' of water. So the top gauge on my paperwork will read 8'9" and my bottom gauge 3'9". The wind has been blowing freezing rain all night and has left some interesting ice formations on the staircase on site.
As my vac trailer pulls on my load of water I fill out the paperwork for the load. This includes documentation of the location where the water is coming from and where the water is going to. I'll be hauling the water to a salt water disposal where it will be pumped back into the ground.
A winter landscape filled with snow and ice keeps me on my toes all day long. One little slip can end me up in a precarious situation at any moment. This driver on my left ended up on a steep shoulder in a heavy fog the night before. A loaded trailer on an incline like that is the perfect formula for a roll over. I'm on SR 22 just North of BIA 14.
In this next picture, the entrance to the disposal is blocked by a water hauler who has overshot his entry. It's impossible to guess how long it will take for him to get out of the way and so I have to drive on to another disposal. I never laugh when I see a trucker in trouble, because I too have found myself in the same perdicament. Road conditions in the Bakken oilfield can change from hour to hour. A road I drove over without chains in the morning may need chains in the afternoon.
The worse feeling I've ever experienced as a truck driver is loosing control of my vehicle on ice and snow. I've had it happen with chains on and with chains off. The most I ever hope for is to avoid hitting other drivers and damaging equipment or property. I've been lucky over the years, but you never know what kind of situation awaits around the next corner or over the next hill. My best advice is to simply slow down before the danger presents itself.
The driver of this four wheeler flipped me the bird shortly after this picture was taken. His vehicle is buried almost to his windows. Accidents like these happen every single day in North Dakota's oilfield. I've helped pull many vehicles out of sticky situations, but this guy was just too far off the road for me to be of any help. He's located just off the sr 23 near the truck stop in Keene, ND.
Time is money in the oilfield, but unless you're getting paid by the hour, getting stuck can cost you a lot of money. Getting paid by the hour or paid by percentage are the two most common ways a water hauler is paid in North Dakota. Percentage is dependant on how many barrels you can haul in a day, and by the hour is of course obvious. By the hour is nice on snow days, but if you don't haul any loads, don't expect your employer to pay you for a full shift.
If you're looking for some insight into how water hauling employers pay in the oilfield, don't hesitate to check out my ebook about the "Secrets of North Dakota's Big Money Water Haulers". I've been doing this now for 18 months and have made a ton of money. I've made so much money that I'm no longer an employee driver. I bought my own truck and am now self-employed. You can do it too, but if you don't know exactly how, buy my book and find out for yourself.
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