Loading the TD and Tow Vehicle for "Big Trip"

[JaneV]

Hi all you TD experts! Getting ready for my big cross-country trip and wonder what I should do for the best weight distribution between car
(Subaru Outback) and my new Little Guy 5x8 Silver Shadow.

I will be traveling for a month and doing some camping for several days at a time but also "boondocking" for naps/little rest stops.

I don't quite have a handle on what "tongue weight" & "GVW"really means and how that affects the ride/safety, etc.

Here is list of the major "stuff":
1. 6 gallon water jug (heaviest single item)
2. 48 qt. ice chest (starting with 3 gal frozen water and food)
3. folding table - pretty light
4. 4x4 shower tent - haha (really potty rm.) ( in nice compact tube container -quite light
5. Coleman Stove - in galley
6. folding chair
7. 48 gal tub - clothes
8. SPARE TIRE - in car wrapped in plastic! really only place for it

Thinking ice might last longer if chest in car rather than galley - any thoughts on that?

Also, I am meeting up with some of you all in Lampe, Missouri at Table Rock Lake AND Glendale Springs, North Carolina, Raccoon Holler Spring Fling!!! I can't wait to see other real-live Teardrop people

Thanks for any help, Jane

[Woodbutcher]

Hi Jane,

I think it will be trial and error at first. Pack where things fit and are convenient to get at first. Then see how it rides. I always carry my cooler in my tow vehicle. For me I always want my cooler with me even when I am away from camp. If I stop for lunch, get groceries, or just want a cold drink I want my cooler with me. Each time you break camp make little changes till you get a routine down that works for you. Good luck and enjoy your trip!

[john]

I generally keep my cooler in trunk if I have one. ACed air passes through the trunk before it exits the car. Ice lasts longer that way.

[Miriam C.]

Tongue weight is just that. How much the tongue weighs. You don't want it too light compared to the galley. If your td tends to have the tongue lift off the ball without your help it is way light. You can always use the water to control that.

Gross Vehicle Weight is the car and eveything you put in it, including people and gas..

You might keep the clothes in the car except what you need for night and the next day. Same fore the ice chest unless your tongue weight is way heavy.

6-gallon of water.....trade in for water bottles unless you are showering or going off-roading. My opinion only. I never carry more than a gallon of water unless it is in bottles. I do carry a container to get water from a faucet....

[pete42]

Will you carry the water jug full of water or fill it when you get to a campground?
As you may already know water is heavy I think 8 pounds a gallon so 6 gallons would be 48 pounds thats a lot of weight.
a full water jug and a full cooler stored in the galley could "unload" your tounge and cause the trailer to sway.
the rule of thumb for trailers is the tongue weight should be between 10 and 15% of the trailers weight a 2000# trailer should have a tongue weight of 200 to 300#.
You may hear different views of the tongue weight and how the trailer is setting when ready for towing, level or slightly nose low most warn against towing nose high.
having said all that I have seen them all kinds of ways what ever works.
pete

[Gary and Cheri]

I tow with a Jetta Sportwagen from VW. Sportwagen is another word by VW for stationwagen. The rear seat folds flat and provides an area about 6 feet long behind the two front seats. I go by two rules;

1. Keep the trailer light as possible with a tongue weight of 140-175 lbs.
2. Locate weight as close to the center of the tow vehicle as possible.

The heavier your trailer is the more likely it will be telling your tow vehicle where and how to go. Heavy is hard to stop and control when it is located in a trailer, especially if the trailer is without brakes.

When all the weight of a car is in the front of a vehicle it will plow or understeer when going into a corner. When all the weight is in the rear a car will have the rear end want to come around or oversteer. Race cars all try to have neutral handling or where neither end of the car wants to dominate the other end. The better control your tow has the better it can handle your total package. A tow vehicle that is packed with the wieght (ice chest and other heavy items) over the rear seat or center of the car will handle better than a car with everything packed in the trunk where the weight will cause the tail of the car to want to dominate the front. A secpnd advanatage to packing heavy items in the rear seat area is the use of the seat belt. I seat belt the cooler and other heavy items down so that in the event of an accident they will not come flying over the seats at myself and wife. As my car is a 4 door it also provides easy access to the cooler when cooking. Obviously if I had more than two people in the car I would need the rear seating area for a passenger and would need to pack differently.

I travel with just my wife and dog. Heavy stuff in the center of the vehicle and dog (which is light) strapped in his travelling seat belt in the rear.

You will find that most smaller cars have a 200 lb. max tongue weight. Load your trailer the way you would like and get a bathroom scale. Put the trailers front wheel or post gently on the scale. Shift weight until you are satisfied with the tongue weight. To little tongue weight is as bad as to much. I try for about 165lbs.

A trailer is like a teeter totter with the wheel as a fulcrum. If you need to have less tongue weight I find that putting my cast iron dutch ovens low in the rear galley will lighten the tongue almost a quickly as taking weight out of the front. Remember though to keep the trailer weight as low as practical.

Gary

[doug hodder]

Like mentioned...don't haul all that water if you don't need to. Chances are...unless you are doing some boondocking...you will be able to find what you need. Just some for drinking and some cooking. When it's all loaded...look at it...if the rear of the car and the front of the trailer is squatting...reorganize it. Doug

[dan galvin]

You may want to add a 8x8 or a 10x10 canopy to your list rain or shine it is nice to keep your self under somthing
it not fun to cook in the rain or the hot sun
have fun on your trip drive safe
Dan

[kirkman]

JaneV..... I second the tarp or EZ-UP shelter. One year every time I went out camping it rained with out my EZ-UP shelter it would have been a miserable year.

[Wild Bill]

I did not see where you packed the CAMERA! Keep it with you at all times and get some pictures in an album for all of us to look at!!! We like lots of pictures!!! Bill

[john warren]

yup, don't haul water. you can fill up when close to your destination if your campground is dry. really a couple gallons is enough for a day unless your staying put anyway.
i use one of those five gallon construction site water coolers with a spout. fill it up at the campground. and i have running water.

check you tongue weight with your bathroom scale and a stick. just set your hitch on the stick on the scale.
also i don't carry frozen foods or ice. i get what i need near the campsite.
just have a small cooler for ice and drinks on the road.
food costs pretty much the same at local grocery stores as it does at home, and money is much lighter.

most imortant ios to pack you sense of adventure,,, and use it freely

[JaneV]

JaneV..... I second the tarp or EZ-UP shelter. One year every time I went out camping it rained with out my EZ-UP shelter it would have been a miserable year.

Don't I know it........I just can't seem to make a decision on a side tent/shelter set up. The The side tent from Paha Que is nice and made for my TD but....pricey.
Maybe I should get a nice big umbrella and wing it 'til I get a few camp nights under my belt with my new TD experience?! Thanks, Jane

[JaneV]

OK - Camera - ready! - The heavy water- NOT going; Getting Something
for a shelter (after all, I will be outdoors all the time!) - Cooler- in tow vehicle. I am sooo ready for this adventure!! :
Thanks so much for the input! Jane

[kirkman]

:? Don't I know it........I just can't seem to make a decision on a side tent/shelter set up. The The side tent from Paha Que is nice and made for my TD but....pricey.
Maybe I should get a nice big umbrella and wing it 'til I get a few camp nights under my belt with my new TD experience?! Thanks, Jane

JaneV........ I like the EZ-UP because you can change where you set it up. Off the back, off the side, or pull your tear under it and rig tarps off of it with 6ft tent poles to make a custom shelter.

[Dale M.]

Don't forget can opener....

Dale