Ok, lots of great advice about the various weight considerations in buying a fifth wheel & tow vehicle. Does any of that apply to purchasing a motor home (ie Class A)? Or do you only need to worry about the towing capacity for the toad?
-- Edited by cherylbrv on Saturday 30th of November 2013 11:14:01 PM
Lucky Mike said
07:37 AM Dec 1, 2013
you worry about Cargo and towing with a coach , as far as pulling power that has already been done for you during design...............the rules are the same as far as loading
Jack Mayer said
11:29 AM Dec 1, 2013
The biggest issue on motorhomes is overloading an axle, or a single wheel position. That is why it is critical on a MH to get individual wheel weights. You also have to pay attention to the CCC on them....some have VERY little cargo carrying capacity.
Cheryl, you have the short answer above, and part of the longer answer. Getting weights at each wheel position will help you keep your load balanced. Each axle on a vehicle has a weight capacity. Each tire also has a weight capacity. If an axle has a capacity of 18,000 pounds, for example, theoretically you can have 9,000 pounds on each end of it. Your tire and wheel capacities might be slightly above that. If that 18,000 pounds is distributed as 10,000 pounds on the left side and 8,000 pounds on the right side, you might find that the left tire and wheel is overloaded. The axle itself is right at the limit.
Another part is the Gross Combined Weight Rating (GCWR) for the coach. Our coach, a Foretravel U300, has a gross weight (GW) of 30,000 pounds, and a GCWR of 36,000 pounds. That means that we can tow something that weighs 6,000 pounds even if the coach is at GW. The Foretravel U280, though, has a GW of 28,000 pounds and a GCWR of 30,000 pounds. Big difference! Remember that EVERYTHING that goes in or on the motor home is part of the cargo. The tongue weight of a toad's tow bar may not be much, but that tow bar weighs quite a bit, and that's weight that counts. You can move some of the cargo around to help balance the load, just like you can do with a towable.
I don't have the tow bar for our new Jeep yet, but that tow bar is most of the weight that will be on the coach when we're towing. I can load up the Jeep (up to the Jeep's GW or 6,000 pounds total, whichever is less) and reduce the weight in the coach if I want. Once I'm set up somewhere, if the coach is somewhat overloaded it isn't as much of a problem, although the airbags have weight limits, too, and too much weight can cause one or more to blow out. In other words, I can load a few hundred pounds of "stuff" into the Jeep for traveling, then move it back into the coach when I'm set up. Of course, I'm not too keen on doing that (I'm at least as lazy as anyone else), but it that's what it takes to keep us safe I'll do it.
The key, as I'm sure you've figured out, is to have accurate weight numbers to work with. That means an accurate scale under each tire and knowing the weight limits of the tires, wheels, and axles. As always, the lowest numbers control the situation. For example, your coach has a rear axle rated at 24,000 pounds. Each tire is rated at 7,000 pounds when used in a dual setup. Each wheel is rated at 8,000 pounds. What's your weight limit? If the load is perfectly balanced, you can have 6,000 pounds on each tire. In real life it won't come out that neatly, but that's what you are aiming for. If left plus right is less than 24,000 pounds AND neither left nor right is over 14,000 pounds you are okay.
Hope this helps. If I'm off somewhere someone will correct me.
cherylbrv said
05:45 PM Dec 2, 2013
Great advice, all. Thanks! Just proved to me that buying a MH coach instead of a 5'er is not taking the easy way out when it comes to worrying about weight issues!
kb0zke said
05:55 PM Dec 2, 2013
Choosing the right rv truly is a weighty matter.
Lucky Mike said
06:05 PM Dec 2, 2013
Dave is right.....there is "Tons" to take into consideration
Ok, lots of great advice about the various weight considerations in buying a fifth wheel & tow vehicle. Does any of that apply to purchasing a motor home (ie Class A)? Or do you only need to worry about the towing capacity for the toad?
-- Edited by cherylbrv on Saturday 30th of November 2013 11:14:01 PM
Another part is the Gross Combined Weight Rating (GCWR) for the coach. Our coach, a Foretravel U300, has a gross weight (GW) of 30,000 pounds, and a GCWR of 36,000 pounds. That means that we can tow something that weighs 6,000 pounds even if the coach is at GW. The Foretravel U280, though, has a GW of 28,000 pounds and a GCWR of 30,000 pounds. Big difference! Remember that EVERYTHING that goes in or on the motor home is part of the cargo. The tongue weight of a toad's tow bar may not be much, but that tow bar weighs quite a bit, and that's weight that counts. You can move some of the cargo around to help balance the load, just like you can do with a towable.
I don't have the tow bar for our new Jeep yet, but that tow bar is most of the weight that will be on the coach when we're towing. I can load up the Jeep (up to the Jeep's GW or 6,000 pounds total, whichever is less) and reduce the weight in the coach if I want. Once I'm set up somewhere, if the coach is somewhat overloaded it isn't as much of a problem, although the airbags have weight limits, too, and too much weight can cause one or more to blow out. In other words, I can load a few hundred pounds of "stuff" into the Jeep for traveling, then move it back into the coach when I'm set up. Of course, I'm not too keen on doing that (I'm at least as lazy as anyone else), but it that's what it takes to keep us safe I'll do it.
The key, as I'm sure you've figured out, is to have accurate weight numbers to work with. That means an accurate scale under each tire and knowing the weight limits of the tires, wheels, and axles. As always, the lowest numbers control the situation. For example, your coach has a rear axle rated at 24,000 pounds. Each tire is rated at 7,000 pounds when used in a dual setup. Each wheel is rated at 8,000 pounds. What's your weight limit? If the load is perfectly balanced, you can have 6,000 pounds on each tire. In real life it won't come out that neatly, but that's what you are aiming for. If left plus right is less than 24,000 pounds AND neither left nor right is over 14,000 pounds you are okay.
Hope this helps. If I'm off somewhere someone will correct me.
Dave is right.....there is "Tons" to take into consideration
