[TITLE & MUSC]
Hi there smart drivers, Rick with Smart
Drive Test talking to you today about
trailering basics. This is the basic
information you need to know about
weights, axle weights, towing capacity, and
pin weight in order to keep you safe. Now
before we get started here, if you're
working towards a license or starting
your career as a truck or bus driver or
getting a house trailer or heavy trailer
endorsement, be sure to hit that
subscribe button and get all the great
information that will help you to be
successful on your road test and pass
your road test.
Now trailering basics: the first thing
you need to know is the towing capacity of
the towing unit, whether that's a car or
a truck. How much can the towing
unit tow. So that will help you to
determine the size of trailer that you
can purchase, especially if you're towing
a recreational trailer or whatnot. Next
thing you need to know is pin weight.
What is the amount of weight that is
going to sit on the towing unit; on
either the fifth wheel assembly or the
ball and hitch assembly. And then you
need to know axle weights for the truck
and trailer. You need to know the amount
of load that you're going to put on the
truck because your pin weight is part of
that load and that can sometimes be
confused with towing capacity and how
much weight is on the trailer. And then
finally, you need to know the axle
weights. As well, because the axle weights
on the truck and trailer have to be
within specifications because you can't have too
much weight on any of the axles
otherwise you'll exceed the weight
ratings for the axles of the vehicle and
you could void your warranty if it is a
new vehicle and the vehicle is under
warranty. So you need to know that as
well. Finally, we're going to talk a
little bit about tires on both the
towing unit and the trailer. And then
last we're going to talk about where you
can get your vehicle weighed and be sure
that you are within and under all of the
weight ratings for the towing unit and
the trailer. So we'll go over all of that today;
stick around, we'll be right back with
that information.
[INTRODUCTION & MUSIC]
Hi there smart drivers, welcome back. Rick
with Smart Drive Test talking to you
today about the trailering basic. This is
the basic information that you need to
know for weights and purchasing a towing
unit and purchasing a trailer and
keeping those within the weight
specification set up by both the towing
unit manufacturer and the trailer
manufacturer to keep you safe, your
family safe, and other road users on the
roadways safe. Now just before we get
started here, we'll talk about house
trailer endorsements and heavy trailer
endorsements. Now we have those in
British Columbia and they have them in
other jurisdictions as well. If you have
a trailer that weighs more than 4,600
kilograms or 10,000 pounds you will
either have to get a house trailer
endorsement, if it's a recreational
vehicle. If it's a utility trailer, then
you have to get a heavy trailer
endorsement. Now I just had an
interesting conversation with one of the
managers here at one of the recreational
trailer dealerships here and we were
talking about how ICBC determines this weight, which requires drivers to get a licence.
ICBC is the Insurance Corporation of
British Columbia, which is the licensing
authority here. When you get the trailer
endorsement, they don't go by how much
the sticker on the trailer says, the
trailer weighs, or how much the trailer
is going to weigh after you load it up. Rather
they go with the licensing weight
registration. So that vehicle will be
registered for 11,000 pounds on the
license and if it says 11 thousand
pounds on the license then you're going
to have to get a heavy trailer
endorsement or a house trailer
endorsement if it's a recreational
vehicle. So know that, that the weight for
the endorsement is what the licensing
weight is not how much the trailer
weighs or what how much it weighs after
you load it up with the water and all
your food and equipment and those
types of things. It's what is on the
registration when you get the vehicle
registered. So know that, and as well if
you don't have the endorsement and
something happens and you get into a
crash, an unfortunate event - your
insurance could be void. So make sure you
ask lots of questions about that if you
are purchasing a larger unit that is over
ten thousand pounds or forty six hundred
kilograms. So the first piece of
information you need to consider
when you're purchasing a trailer and
you're getting a hitch installed on your
towing unit if you have a car or a light
truck--that doesn't have a towing hitch
on it--you're going to have to go to a
towing hitch installation place or
you're going to have to go to a
recreational place and get a trailer
hitch installed. These service
outlets are really good at putting the
hitch on that you need and oftentimes it
does exceed the maximum weight that you
can tow with that vehicle. You want
the hitch to be able to exceed by 10 to
25 percent, even 30% of the amount of
load that you're going to put in the
trailer and the towing capacity of the
unit. so therefore if you purchase a 5th
wheel assembly, for example, and the
trailers you're going to tow is 5,000
kilograms you want a 20% increase on the
fifth wheel assembly. So you want the
fifth wheel to be rated for 6,000
kilograms, because that's approximately
20% more than the 5,000 kilograms of
your towing capacity. So that's the first
thing that you need to consider when
you're getting a hitch installed on your
vehicle. A lot of these trucks--half-ton
trucks--GMC, Dodges, Ford, Nissan--
all of these vehicles are going to be
about a 10,000 pound towing capacity. So
they're going to be able to pull a
trailer that weighs 10,000 pounds. Now
when they say towing capacity of the
trailer, that's the total weight of the
trailer with the load on it. That's not
the trailer empty! So know what the
towing capacity of your vehicle is. Now
the pin weight is approximately 10 to 20
percent of what the trailer weighs. You
can put a little bit more on
a 5th wheel hook up - you can put 15
to 20 percent on the 5th wheel. So there's
going to be about that much sitting on
the back of the towing unit. If you have
a ball and hitch assembly, you want to
keep it somewhere between 10 and 12
percent of what the trailer weighs. So if
the trailer weighs a thousand pounds, for example, you
want to have no more than about 100, 110
to 115 pounds on the tongue. So your tongue
weight is your first consideration. The
second consideration, in terms of your
pin weight, is that pin weight is going
to be part of the load that you place on
the towing vehicle. And the towing
vehicle is going to have a maximum load
capacity. And you're going to find all of
this information in your owner's
manual for whichever vehicle it is - the
trailer or the towing unit. And if you're
unsure about what the load capacity is
of the towing unit, go down to the
vehicle manufacturer and talk to them if
you can't find the information in your
owner's manual. But it will be in your
owner's manual. The other way you can
figure out the load capacity of the
towing unit - how much weight you can
put on the vehicle, is look at the
sticker on the door sill of the driver's side, on inside of
the gas cap for those of you in
Europe, and as well look in the owner's
manual. And that information will be in
there. The gross vehicle weight and the
axle weights--if you take those two axle
weights--because most vehicles are going
to be two axles. If you're into three
axles on the towing unit, it is going to be a commercial
vehicle. Take your two axle weights, add the two
numbers together and that's the total
weight that you can have for the vehicle,
and the load that's on it. Now know that
the pin weight is going to be part of
that load weight that you have on the
towing vehicle. So if you have a 1500
pound load weight on the truck, which is
your towing unit, for example, and the pin
weight is 750 pounds then you're pretty
close - you've only got another 750 pounds
for the number of passengers, water and
other stuff that you can put into the
towing unit. So the amount of load that
you put on the towing unit is different
than the towing capacity for that
vehicle. And that has to be another
consideration because that can affect
your handling and stability of the
towing unit. And then the last piece that
you need to know is the axle weight. And
if you have a tandem axle trailer, the
axle weight is those two tandem axles
together. So you're going to weigh that
as one and then the two axles on the
towing unit, the front axles, and the rear
axles. And again you can see here on the
sticker that it has the axle weights for
the towing unit and you cannot exceed
those axle weights. And again those axle
weights for both the trailer and the
towing unit will be in the vehicle
owner's manual. And you can find those
numbers if they're not on the sticker.
And again, if you're unsure, go to the
dealership and ask them at the
dealership for either the towing unit or
the trailer about what your gross axle
weight ratings are going to be because
you don't want to exceed the gross axle
weight ratings because you can jeopardize
safety and those types of things. Now the
final piece, in terms of making sure that
you're within the weight parameters for
pin and tongue weights for towing capacity,
for the load capacity--the amount of
weight that you can put on the towing
unit, the truck, and the amount of weight
that you can put on the trailer--is to
get your trailer weighed at a public
scale - a certified public scale. And
there's lots of places that you can take
your unit after you get it all loaded up.
For example, if you have a recreational
trailer, you fill the water tank up, put
all your camping gear in it, all of your
food, and all of the passengers is you're
going to put in the towing unit in the
vehicle, all of the stuff that you're
going to take with you and go out to a
scale and weigh it when it's loaded. That
will give you the best information and
there's lots of places that you can get
weighed. The most accessible places are
the government weighs scales for trucks
along highways. Oftentimes when they're
not in service, they'll leave the scale
on and you can just drive over the scale
and you can weigh your unit. Now
most of these are going to be an axle
scale, so they're just going to give you
the axle weights and basically all you
do to get your overall gross vehicle
weight is just add the numbers together
for the three axles. And that will give
you an overall gross vehicle weight. So
government scales along the highways. The
other place you can go is truck stops.
Most truck stops will have weigh scales -
it's going to cost you a fee. If you
can't find one at a local truck stop,
gravel pits will have weight scales, dumps
will have scales, salvage yards, recycled
paper, timber mill. All of these places
will have scales Just before you go in
and drive up on the scale, make sure that
you go in and ask the weight master if you
can actually weigh your vehicle. And
sometimes there's a small charge for it.
Usually it's less than $20 to get a weigh
on your vehicle. That's going to give you
the most precise information on weighing
your unit. Now just one last piece on
weighing your unit at a public weigh
scale is if it's a platform scale. You're
going to need your axle weights. So what
you're going to do is go into the weigh
master and say, "Listen, I need the axle
weights." So what you do is, you drive the
vehicle onto the scale
with the first axle. They give you a
number, the weigh master will wave you
forward; you drive on with the towing
unit with the two axles, you get that
weight; and then the weight master will wave
you on forward. And then you drive on
with the whole unit and you weigh the
whole unit. And essentially all you do is
you take the numbers--the three numbers
that the weigh master will give you--you
subtract the first number from the
second number and that will give you
the rear axle of the towing unit. And
then you subtract the second number from
the third number and that will give you
your trailer axle weights. And then
you'll have an overall gross vehicle
weight as well because that's the third
number that you have. And again, I'll
leave a description down in the
description box there of how to do that
calculation for getting your axle
weights on a platform scale if that's
what happens. But again, just before you
drive onto a platform scale with your
unit, go in and tell the weigh master that
you want axle weights because they're
going to have to take a different weight
every time you drive the first axle on,
the first and second on, and
then the whole unit on to the
platform scale and get your unit weight.
If you're in the least bit doubt about
how much weight you have on your unit--
what the actual weights are and those
types of things, make sure you take it to
a scale and get it weighed. And there's
lots of scales around, different places
and industries and those days places that
have scales and they'll charge you a few
dollars. Another place that you can get
it weighed is at local dump and
those types of things. So make sure you
get it weighed. Tires are another
consideration when you're trailering.
Trailer tires are specific - they're
stiffer sidewalls. And the reason they
have stiffer sidewalls is for better
handling and better tracking behind the
towing unit. So make sure that you have
the right size tires on the trailer. And
the sticker on the front will tell you
the tire size that you need for the
trailer that you have. If you don't have
the sticker on--it's an old trailer, like
this one here--then take the trailer down
or take the wheel off and take the
actual wheel with the old tire on it to
the tire shop and they will be able to match the
tire. And buy good quality tires. Again
I'm just one of those people - it's like
garden hose, buy good quality garden hose,
buy good quality windshield wipers, buy
good quality tires. It will just protect
you and your family and other road users
on the roadway. Finally, as well, with
tires, make sure you have the correct
tire pressure, And again, you can see here
on the sticker what the correct tire
pressure is for your trailer is on there.
For bigger utility trailers, most of the
time it's going to be 50 pounds per
square inch in terms of the amount of
tire pressure in there. And a you know
you can pick up the tire gauge - they're
really inexpensive and it doesn't take
you very long. and I'll put a card up
here in the corner for you in terms of
checking tire pressure and having the
correct tire pressure on your trailer.
And if you have too much tire pressure
or you have too little tire pressure
it's going to affect the handling and
the safety of your vehicle. So make sure
you have good
tires and you have tires up to the
correct pressure, for the both the
trailer and the towing unit. Quick review
of trailering basics. The first thing you
need to understand is towing capacity.
And if you're purchasing a new vehicle
for towing a trailer or you're
purchasing a trailer, you need to
understand how much the vehicle, the
towing unit, can tow. So if you have an
existing vehicle you need to match the
trailer to the vehicle and this is the
reason that I have a Boler is because
my 1998 Honda only tows about a thousand
pounds.
Thus the Boler trailer sitting behind
me is the camper trailer that we use. If
I was going to go to a bigger trailer I
would have to buy a different towing
unit because the 1998 Honda CRV is only
rated for about a thousand pounds. The
next thing you need to
understand is the pin weight and how
much weight you're going to put on the
hitch or the fifth wheel assembly for
this unit. Behind me here, it's about ten
percent. So it's about a hundred pounds
on the ball and hitch. And in smaller
trailers, like this one, you could just
put the jack on a bathroom scale and
that would allow you to figure out what
the pin weight or the tongue weight is.
If you've got a bigger unit, you can go
to a scale house and then unhook it or
just jack it up with just the jack on
the scale and that will allow you to
figure out what the tongue weight or the
pin weight is. Now when you're going to
get the hitch installed, if you don't
already have a towing package on your
vehicle, you have to get a hitch that's
rated for the amount of weight that you
want to tow on your trailer, whether it's
a recreational trailer, a boat trailer, or
a utility trailer. And a trailer hitch
installation place or a RV dealership,
or whoever is going to install your
hitch will be able to help you with that
and get you the correct hitch assembly.
Now on a fifth wheel assembly, you want
about twenty percent more than what
you're actually going to tow. So for
example, if you're going to tow a
thousand kilograms you want a twelve
hundred kilogram fifth wheel assembly, or
five thousand pounds you want a six
thousand pound - you want twenty percent
more than what you're actually going to
tow. Then you need to understand load
weights and how much load you can
actually put on the towing unit and how
much you can put in the trailer. And
that's going to on the trailer. And that's
going to increase your towing capacity
in terms of what you need in terms of
the towing unit. So on the towing unit--
the truck--if you have a thousand
kilograms that you can put on in terms
of load,
your tongue weight is going to
contribute to that. So know that it's
your tongue weight plus all your
passengers plus the fuel and anything
else that you bring in the vehicle with
you is all going to be part of the load
of the towing unit. So you need to
understand the load that's in the towing
unit and that the tongue weight and the
pin weight are going to contribute to
that load on the towing unit. Ss well you
want to understand axle weights. And if
you don't understand axle weights on the
sticker or the vehicles owner's
manual - that's going to give you
what the axle weights are and you'll
need to take it out to a scale. And if
it's a platform scale weigh each axle
individually and do a bit of math to
figure out what individual axle weights
are. If it's a rolling scale, you can just
do each axle and then do the overall
gross vehicle weight and see that you're
within manufacturer specifications for
the allowable weight on your unit.
Finally tires - make sure you good quality
tires on your trailer and know that
trailer tires are specific to trailers.
You want good quality tires. It's like
garden hose or windshield wipers and
other things in life that will annoy
you if they're not good quality. And as
well, good quality tires will keep you
safe. So make sure you have good quality
tires on your unit when you're going up
and down the road. Trailer tires, as
mentioned in the body are stiffer and
they will allow the trailer to track and
not sway and move around as much when
you're pulling it up and down the
roadway. So that's basic information that
will keep you safe and make sure you
don't exceed the weights, whether you're
pulling a boat trailer, a recreational
trailer, or a utility trailer. Because
that will endanger not only yourself and
your family, but other road users on the
roadway. Question for my smart drivers: do
you pull a trailer? Do you know how much
your trailer weighs that you're pulling
and have you actually taken it to a
scale and gotten it weighed. Leave a comment
down in the comment section there, all
that helps out the new drivers working
towards getting their license and starting their
career as a driver and looking to
expand the capability of their vehicle.
If you like what you see here share,
subscribe, leave a comment down in the
comment section. As well, hit that thumbs
up button. Check out all the videos here
on the channel if you're working towards
a license or starting your career as a
truck or bus driver. Lots of great
information here. As well, head over to the Smart Drive Test
website - awesome information over there
and tremendous online courses that you
can purchase. In the summer 2017 we're bringing out
"Air Brakes Explained Simply." It updates
the 40-year-old air brake course
here in North America that is currently
in circulation. As well,
there's a hundred multiple-choice
questions that you will be asked on a
CDL license exam and that will help you
to pass your CDL license here in Canada--
you're Class A or your class one license.
Thanks very much for watching. I'm Rick
with Smart Drive Test. Good luck on your
road test. And remember, pick the best
answer not necessarily the right answer.
Have a great day. Bye now.
featuring and making sure ahhhhh!! Not
manufacturer. Ohhhhhh, look at the big puddle [DRIVING THROUGH THE BIG PUDDLE] [LAUGHING] Daughter - oh, Daddy. That was a big puddle.
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