# Hopper trailer

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{{Short description|Self unloading trailer for bulk products}}
{{More citations needed|date=November 2025}}
thumb|A grain hopper trailer
A '''hopper trailer''' is a trailer pulled by a [semi tractor](/source/Tractor_unit) and used to haul bulk commodity products, such as [grain](/source/grain).<ref>{{cite web |title=What is a grain hauler (hopper)? |website=eCapital.com |url=https://ecapital.com/financial-term/grain-hauler-hopper/ |access-date=November 25, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Guidelines for Safe Handling of Powders and Bulk Solids |publisher=[American Institute of Chemical Engineers](/source/American_Institute_of_Chemical_Engineers) |year=2005 |page=747 |isbn=0-8169-0951-2 |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Guidelines_for_Safe_Handling_of_Powders/cp3zopuBur4C |via=Google Books}}</ref> These trailers are used extensively throughout the United States to transport [agricultural](/source/Agriculture) products as well as any other commodity that can be hauled in bulk and loaded and unloaded through the trailer.

==Design==
thumb|An empty grain hopper trailer
[[File:Hopperbottomsalemcountynewjersey280121.jpg|thumb|A hopper-bottom trailer in [Salem County, New Jersey](/source/Salem_County%2C_New_Jersey)]]

Grain hopper or hopper-bottom trailers typically feature a rolling [tarp](/source/Tarpaulin) on the top of the trailer, to enable easy loading of the product to be transported, and also offer protection during transport. They utilize two hoppers on the base of the trailer to unload to product, one servicing the rear half of the trailer, the other the front half. The output of these hoppers is usually controlled by a sliding plate on the base of the hopper, controlled by a user-operated [crank handle](/source/Crank_(mechanism)).

==Usage==
[[File:Grain cart to grain hopper trailer.webm|thumb|[Grain cart](/source/Grain_cart) to grain hopper trailer]]

A grain hopper trailer is used in conjunction with various other pieces of [agricultural machinery](/source/List_of_agricultural_machinery) to complete the [harvest](/source/harvest) of a field. [Combine harvester](/source/Combine_harvester)s or similar unload the harvest into [grain carts](/source/grain_carts), which in turn unload ''their'' load into a grain hopper trailer, for long-distance transportation. The trailers are then unloaded into low-profile [grain augers](/source/Screw_conveyor) for transportation to, and long-term storage in, [grain bins](/source/Silo), also known as silos.

==See also==
* [Combine harvester](/source/Combine_harvester)
* [Grain elevator](/source/Grain_elevator)
* [Grain bin](/source/Grain_bin)
* [Gravity wagon](/source/Gravity_wagon)
* [Hopper car](/source/Hopper_car)

==References==
<references/>

==External links==
* {{Commons category-inline}}

Category:Agricultural machinery
Category:Grain production

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Hopper trailer](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hopper_trailer) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hopper_trailer?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.