Proper hook up

[jwheel53]

A friend of mine on FB posted videos of trailer crashes. The post outlined issues with safety chains etc. In my wife and I's travels, we have seen many accidents that have ruined trips for folks. As allot of people have posted here it is important to have good anti sway, safety chains ( 2 ), break away cable and load leveling. Besides the previous, you need to educate yourselves. Learn that if you get into a cross wind condition and you get into a sway condition, you can start to slow down but you need to use your brake controller to apply brakes to the trailer before you brake the tow vehicle. I'm sure that there is video on U Tube. Learning what to do will save you from heart break or loss of life. Safe travels.

[ctbruce]

Great advice. I'll add in having a properly sized tow vehicle for the weight of the trailer, non-Passenger tires on the tow vehicle, a properly adjusted weight distribution hitch and the trailer properly loaded all add to greater safety. If you're not sure what to do, ask some one who does.

[Ken / Claudia]

This type of discussion came up in my mind last week. Thinking about some who say my truck trailer combo is fine or I have never had any problems but, are over the trucks limits of do not even know what real weights they are towing or have for a payload.
I 84 near Caldwell Id. the 4 lanes of 75 mph traffic is reduced to 2 lanes in the east bound side of the freeway for about 15 miles. Traffic is supposed to reduce to 55 and is only separated by a few feet of the other way traffic and plastic reflective cones keeping you in your lane. Both lanes highly worn cement. Traffic was traveling about 55 to 60, truck after truck (the 18 wheelers type) passing within feet. A head on crash would be death with a closing speed of 100 to 120 mph or higher speed. How would you like that TV/ trailer combo that gets pushed around as the trucks normally pass you in the same direction. Now they come at you by the hundreds, each every second or so. I drove through that 2 times and wondered how many crashes they have had. Glad I have a TV/RV combo that does not change lanes with wind or passing trucks.

[rhagfo]

Originally Posted by Ken / Claudia

This type of discussion came up in my mind last week. Thinking about some who say my truck trailer combo is fine or I have never had any problems but, are over the trucks limits of do not even know what real weights they are towing or have for a payload.
I 84 near Caldwell Id. the 4 lanes of 75 mph traffic is reduced to 2 lanes in the east bound side of the freeway for about 15 miles. Traffic is supposed to reduce to 55 and is only separated by a few feet of the other way traffic and plastic reflective cones keeping you in your lane. Both lanes highly worn cement. Traffic was traveling about 55 to 60, truck after truck (the 18 wheelers type) passing within feet. A head on crash would be death with a closing speed of 100 to 120 mph or higher speed. How would you like that TV/ trailer combo that gets pushed around as the trucks normally pass you in the same direction. Now they come at you by the hundreds, each every second or so. I drove through that 2 times and wondered how many crashes they have had. Glad I have a TV/RV combo that does not change lanes with wind or passing trucks.

Well this just sounds like a normal state highway with one lane in each direction. I know of sections of this type of highway in Washington where the speed limit is 65. Here in Oregon many times the flow of traffic on these highways is 60 to 65.
What I didn’t see in your response is correct tongue weight percentage! This is the most important items to make for a stable tow package.

[linux3]

Originally Posted by rhagfo

What I didn’t see in your response is correct tongue weight percentage! This is the most important items to make for a stable tow package.

We almost never "dry" camp. We like full hookups.
But, I have found that if I put 15 ~20 gal. of fresh water in the tank, located way in front, I get much better handling.
I hate to tow dead weight but the pantry and wardrobe are both behind the second axle as are the grey and black water tanks. I need a little more weight in front of the axles to increase tongue weight.

[Ken / Claudia]

Rhagfo, yeah it was like many of Oregon's undivided highways, but this was on a freeway (ie freeway traffic flow in a metro area) and due to construction the cement barriers (GM barriers as they are named) were outside the lanes and no shoulders. You are right the correct hitch and tongue weight prevent that but also overloaded short wheel base TVs can have that problem at highway speed from a been there done that guy.

[kjohn]

My neighbor tows a new Jayco Ultra Lite w/tandem axle and a slide that come out the back end with a little VW SUV of some kind. Last year, he had a bigger trailer! Talk about short wheelbase! Makes me shiver to think of that setup.