Ratchet Straps Guide

I have to say, I’ve seen a lot of ridiculous things in my life and seeing how other people transport various heavy objects with their vehicles in one of them. One time on television, I watched segment of a documentary showing a person transporting a ping pong table with his car. How he did this was the unbelievable part – that’s the only way I could describe the situation when I first laid my eyes on it. Firstly, his car was only a Toyota Corolla so it was relatively small. The surface area of the table on the other hand, even when folded in its box is quite large. He placed the table on the roof of his Corolla and secured it with what looked like duct tape. A lot of duct tape. You can imagine that if you were driving behind that car, you would be very nervous. I no doubt would be. Suffice to say, the guy was spotted by a police car which promptly pulled him over. The policeman found the whole situation amusing and found the driver to be fairly decent and innocent. He decided to not punish the driver. Instead, the policeman simply escorted the driver to his destination.

What is the lesson in the above story? Use the proper tool for the job. Do not be the guy with a huge ping pong table taped to the roof of your car. Being pulled over by a police officer is relatively minor compared to what could potentially happen. If the driver had been driving on a highway for example, at high speeds (e.g. 100mph), an object that large, not properly secured, could pose a major risk to surrounding motorists. Even without moving fast, objects coming loose from your vehicle are still likely to be dangerous for yourself as well as others nearby. Therefore, I encourage people to strap whatever object they are transporting with the right equipment.
Ratchet straps are one such device. There is quite a variety of ratchet straps, ranging in size (width and length) and types (e.g. with snap hooks, with coated ‘S’ hooks, with ‘J’ hooks, with ‘T’ hooks, axle tie down strap, cargo ratchet straps) for all sorts of different applications and how you intend to secure the strap (e.g. securing directly the axle of your vehicle). The various situations where you would use ratchet straps include transporting a trailer, a tractor, a snowmobile and boats. Of course quality or grade will vary depending on the hardware store you approach.