Where should the weight be on a trailer? More weight should be placed in front of the trailer axle and less weight behind. The ideal distribution of weight is 60% in front of the axle and 40% behind the axle.
“Most of the weight has to be over the front of the trailer and tongue.” “I've always been told 60% of the weight on the nose and 40% on the tail.”
At least 60% of the load needs to be at the front of the trailer. If too much weight is at the back, it can swing out and you lose control of your vehicle.
Weigh Your Trailer with a Trailer Tongue Weight Scale
The easiest way to weigh a trailer at home (without purchasing a large industrial vehicle scale) is with a trailer tongue weight scale, such as this one from Sherline. Trailer tongue weight should be between 10-15 percent of gross trailer weight (GTW).
According to the GMC Trailering Guide, to get the proper trailer tongue weight, you should put about 60 percent of the load centered evenly over the front half of the trailer. For instance, if that 2,000-pound trailer is still carrying 1,000 pounds, roughly 600 pounds should be in the front half of the trailer.
To be safe, you need to calculate your vehicle's towing capacity under the specific conditions you're in each time you tow. To do that, you'll need to know the full GCVWR – the total weight of your tow vehicle and everything in it, combined with the total weight of your trailer and everything in it.
A light tongue weight or heavy weights placed at the rear end of the trailer can cause sway. On the other hand, too much weight on the tongue can overload the tow vehicle and cause poor tow vehicle braking, poor cornering and can damage the trailer frame.
As you load your trailer, you need to keep in mind that 60% of the cargo weight should be loaded in the front half of the trailer. Heavier items should be loaded in the front, with lighter, smaller items placed near the rear.
If you load too much weight towards the rear of your trailer, the trailer's rear gets overburdened. In such cases, the rear end can act as a pendulum that swings back and forth during the movement of your trailer. As the trailer makes this movement, it can pull your vehicle along.
Installing heavier-duty shocks, struts, and springs will help support additional weight from a trailer while also providing additional stability. Install High-Performance Brakes. Improvements to the brake system can help reduce stopping distances when hauling heavy trailers.
Reducing this load is best accomplished by placing the heaviest passenger to the front seat and the lighter passengers and cargo or no passengers and cargo in the rear seat and trunk of the vehicle.
Gross Trailer Mass (GTM)
Exceeding the GTM can reduce performance and eventually damage the axle, suspension, wheel bearings and tyres.
You don't want one side to end up much heavier than the other; you want the weight to be evenly distributed. Another general rule is to load your items onto the flatbed in such a way that about 60% of the items are in the front half of the flatbed.
Underloaded front axles (caused by shifting weight too far to the rear) can make the steering axle weight too light to steer safely. Too little weight on the driving axles can cause poor traction. The drive wheels may spin easily. During bad weather, the truck may not be able to keep going.
The most common causes for trailer sway are improper weight distribution, tight turns, steep roads, high-speed driving, a tall truck passing, crosswinds, over-steering, and under-inflated tires.
You can find your truck's towing capacity in the owner's manual or calculate it on your own. To find your truck's towing capacity, subtract your truck's curb weight from its Gross Combined Vehicle Weight Rating (GCVWR). The GCVWR is the maximum weight of your loaded truck and the weight of its attached trailer.
Exceeding what your vehicle is designed to tow can strain your engine and transmission, accelerate brake wear, damage your tires and even warp your chassis.
While you may not think much of it, towing, even for short distances, can do significant damage to your vehicle's transmission. Not all towing has to be detrimental, however. If you maintain your vehicle and avoid common errors, you can prevent costly damage to your transmission.
If you are unable to achieve level even with an adjustable ball mount, it is better for the trailer to be slightly nose down so long as the tongue weight capacity of the hitch and vehicle is not exceeded. If a trailer is nose up too much, the tongue weight is low enough that the trailer may begin to sway.
Trailer Weight vs Towing Capacity
Gross trailer weight is the total calculated weight of a trailer and its cargo. GTW isn't so much a rating as it is a measurement. Towing capacity, on the other hand, is the maximum allowable weight a vehicle can tow as determined by the manufacturer.
If you had a trailer, you also need to subtract the tongue weight from the GVWR. For this same example, if you had a trailer that weighs 2,000 pounds, the tongue weight would be 200 pounds. The total payload capacity will now drop to 2,800 pounds: GVWR – curb weight – tongue weight = payload capacity when towing.
Manufacturers will stress that you should never exceed your car or truck's towing capacity. We would add that, for safety reasons, it's best to never come within 10% of that total.
Not making the mirrors and side to side head checks
When backing up make sure that you look over your shoulder out the rear window. Also look to the left and to the right. Make sure that there is nothing in your way before you start moving.