Forklift bin tipper: which capacity to buy and what it costs

What does a forklift bin tipper actually do?

A forklift bin tipper is a steel frame that slides onto the forks and holds a bin, a stillage or loose waste. The driver lifts it over a skip, a hopper or a compactor, releases it, and the frame rotates forward so the contents fall out. The frame comes back to the carry position and the driver reverses away. Nobody climbs on the skip and nobody handles the waste twice.

In a cash and carry, a supermarket back room or a small factory, this replaces two people tipping a wheeled bin by hand at a raised skip edge, which is where the back strains and the spillages come from. It also lifts the discharge point, so you can empty into a tall skip or a hopper on a mezzanine rather than a bin on the floor.

Our hydraulic bin tipper is the entry point at from £715 ex VAT and is built for trucks of 1 to 3.5 t. The rest of the forklift attachments range covers the 1000 kg frames, clamps and positioners.

Which capacity and bin size do you need?

Rated capacity is the weight the frame and its pivot are built to carry and tip over. It says nothing about volume. The frames here are rated at 1 t, which is 1000 kg, and the hydraulic version is specified for trucks from 1 to 3.5 t.

So size from weight, not from how full the bin looks. Dry cardboard and film reach the top of a bin long before they reach the rating, and the volume of the frame is what limits you. Dense waste does the opposite: a bin that looks half full of wet food trim, glass or damp floor sweepings can already be close to 1000 kg. Weigh one typical full bin on a platform scale, write the figure down, and keep clear headroom under the rating.

• Light bulky waste such as cardboard, film and plastic packaging: volume decides, so take the largest frame the truck can carry safely.
• Mixed general waste: a 1000 kg frame is the usual choice and leaves room for a wet week.
• Dense, wet or sharp waste such as food trim, glass, metal offcuts and damp sweepings: weigh it first and stay well inside the rating.

Forklift bin tippers compared: capacity, fit and price

All four are fork mounted, so they go on any truck with forks of the right length and need no work on the carriage.

The three 1000 kg frames differ in frame size and finish rather than in rating, so the question to ask is not which is strongest but which one your bins drop into. Ask for the internal width, depth and height in writing and measure the bins on your own yard before you choose.

How much lifting capacity do you lose when a tipper is fitted?

Every fork mounted attachment does two things to the truck. It adds its own weight ahead of the front axle, and it pushes the middle of the load further from the fork face. Both cut what the truck may lift. A 2.5 t truck rated at a 500 mm load centre does not lift 2.5 t once a tipper and a full bin sit out in front of the forks, and the shortfall is larger than most buyers expect.

Work it out in this order: the empty weight of the frame, the weight of the full bin, and the distance from the fork face to the middle of the loaded bin. Put those three figures against the capacity plate on the truck. If the sum is close, go up a truck size rather than down a bin size. If you are buying the truck at the same time, the forklift range covers diesel, gas and electric counterbalance trucks and we can quote the pair together.

Two rules sit behind this. PUWER 1998 requires work equipment to be suitable for the job and used within its limits, and HSE guidance L117 covers the training a driver needs for the truck and for the attachments fitted to it. A driver who is signed off on the counterbalance truck still needs familiarisation on the tipper.

What to check before you buy a forklift bin tipper

Six checks settle almost every return and almost every argument on site.

1. Fork pockets and fork length. The frame must sit fully on the forks, with the pockets matching your fork width and spread. One of the frames here takes forks up to 1150 mm. Measure your forks before you order.
2. A retaining chain or pin. The frame has to be secured to the carriage or the fork heel so it cannot slide off as it tips. Confirm what is supplied.
3. Internal bin dimensions. Match them to the bins, stillages or dollies already in use, not to a bin you would have to buy as well.
4. How it releases. A mechanical release pulls from the seat, so the driver never leaves the cab. A hydraulic frame tips and returns under control but needs a spare hydraulic service on the truck, so check the truck has one before you choose it.
5. Finish and duty. For wet, salty or outdoor work, ask what the frame is coated with and how the pivot is protected. Waste is the dirtiest duty on the yard.
6. Plate and paperwork. A capacity plate on the frame, a declaration of conformity and the UKCA or CE marking, plus the weight of the frame itself, which you need for the capacity sum above.

Everything that depends on the factory build, including the dimensions and the finish, is confirmed on your written quote before you commit.

What should the written quote cover?

Ask for one email that puts the whole purchase in writing, so there is nothing to argue about later. It should list the rated capacity, the internal bin dimensions, the fork pocket dimensions and the empty weight of the frame, how it tips and releases, the finish, the documents supplied, the price in GBP ex VAT, freight to your postcode, duty and VAT, and the lead time. Our quotes hold for 30 days.

Everything is made to order at our partner factories and inspected before dispatch, with photos and a short video sent to you, then delivered anywhere in the UK. Guide prices across the ranges are set out on the price guide, and you can send your fork dimensions and a photo of your bins to the sales desk to get the sizing checked before you buy.