Load securement calculator: minimum tiedowns by length and working load limit
Enter the article's length and weight, the working load limit on each strap or chain, and how the tiedowns attach. The calculator applies both federal minimums and tells you which one decides the count.
As marked on the strap or chain tag
For one article not blocked against forward movement. Blocked articles, and commodities with their own rules (logs, coils, machinery, vehicles and more), follow other sections.
Minimum tiedowns
4
- By length
- 4
- Aggregate WLL needed
- 4,000 lb
- Each counts for
- 5,400 lb
- By WLL
- 1
The length rule decides: 4 tiedowns for 24 ft, and they give 21,600 lb of WLL.
Minimums only. More tiedowns, edge protection and blocking are often needed in practice.
Rules: 49 CFR 393.110(b) and 49 CFR 393.106(d), checked 2026-10-10. Read 393.110 · Read 393.106
4 tiedowns minimum for this article. Our dispatchers send dimensions, weight and securement needs with every open-deck offer, and you approve every load.
Get flatbed loads planned for meFlatbed load securement starts with two federal minimums, and the stricter one sets the count. One rule counts tiedowns by the article's length and weight. The other requires the tiedowns together to hold at least half the article's weight, counted by their working load limits. This load securement calculator runs both and draws the result on a flatbed deck, with each tiedown placed across the article.
The rules it applies
- Number of tiedowns for an article not blocked against forward movement: 1 if 5 ft or less and 1,100 lb or less; 2 if 5 ft or less and over 1,100 lb; 2 if over 5 ft up to 10 ft; over 10 ft: 2 plus 1 for each extra 10 ft or part.
- Aggregate working load limit: at least one-half the weight of the article. Tiedowns from the vehicle to the cargo count at half their WLL; tiedowns over the cargo, anchored both sides, count at full WLL.
Sources: 49 CFR 393.110(b), checked October 2026; 49 CFR 393.106(d), checked October 2026 Minimums only; commodity-specific rules can require more.
How it is calculated
- By length: the count from the length and weight rule above.
- Aggregate needed: article weight ÷ 2.
- Each tiedown counts for: its marked WLL, or half of it if it attaches from the vehicle to the cargo.
- By WLL: aggregate needed ÷ what each counts for, rounded up.
- Minimum: the larger of the two counts.
A worked example
A 24 ft article on a 48 ft flatbedExample
- ARTICLE24 ft long, 8,000 lb, not blocked in front
- BY LENGTH2 + 1 for each 10 ft or part over 10 ft (14 ft) = 4
- WLL NEEDED8,000 ÷ 2 = 4,000 lb
- STRAPS5,400 lb WLL each, over the top, so each counts in full: 1 would do
- MINIMUM4 tiedowns, the length rule decides, giving 21,600 lb
These are the calculator's EXAMPLE numbers. Use the WLL printed on your own straps or chains.
How to read the result
When the length rule decides, your tiedowns are strong enough for the weight, and the count is about spreading restraint along the article. When the working load limit decides, the article is heavy for its length: add tiedowns, use stronger ones, or switch from direct attachment to over-the-top where the cargo allows. Either way, the result is the legal floor. Real loads often need more, plus edge protection where straps cross sharp edges, and blocking against the headboard when the article can slide forward.
Flatbed securement habits that prevent claims
- Inspect devices every load. Cut webbing, stretched chain links or bent hooks lower the real strength. Remove damaged gear.
- Recheck after the first miles. Loads settle and straps loosen, so stop early in the trip and tighten.
- Protect the edges. A strap over a sharp corner can cut through long before it reaches its limit.
- Photograph the secured load. Pictures from several sides back you up if there's a damage claim.
- Read the rate con. Shippers may require a set number of straps, tarps or specific gear, beyond the minimum.
Securement on multi-stop and transloaded freight
Every drop on a multi-stop load changes what's left on the deck. Rework the securement after each stop, because a strap that held a full row may now hold nothing. The multi-stop load pay calculator helps price the extra time. Freight that moves between equipment through transload freight facilities needs securing again each time it changes hands. And securement time at a shipper's dock counts toward detention if the rate con says so; our warehouse detention policy template (coming soon) shows how facilities write those terms. To see what the extra time does to your profit, use the load profitability calculator.
Open-deck loads go better when the details come with the offer. Our flatbed dispatch team gets dimensions, weight, tarp and securement needs before a load reaches you, and you approve every load. Send an application.