Is my food trailer too heavy for my tow vehicle?

Why the trailer always weighs more than you expected

The number on the listing is a shell. A builder adds wall insulation, stainless, a hood, a fryer, a flat top, a 3-compartment sink, two water tanks, propane and a generator. In cargo trailer conversions, a typical build adds 700 to 1,500 lb to the empty trailer, and that's for a camper, not a commercial kitchen. A bare 8x16 cargo trailer starts around 2,900 lb.

Water alone catches people out. It weighs about 8.34 lb a gallon, so a 30 gal fresh tank (the minimum some health departments require, Tooele County, UT for one) is 250 lb before you've loaded a single case of product. Run your own build through our food trailer weight & towing calculator before you sign anything.

Check four numbers, not one

People look at tow rating and stop. Camping World's towing guide uses an 80% rule: keep the trailer's GVWR at or under 80% of the tow vehicle's towing capacity, which leaves room for grades, heat and wind. A trailer with a 7,000 lb GVWR wants a truck rated for about 8,750 lb.

Then check payload. Tongue weight typically lands at 10 to 15% of the loaded trailer, and it counts against the truck's payload along with you, your crew and whatever is in the bed. A 7,000 lb trailer puts 700 to 1,050 lb on the hitch. Add two people and a bed full of supplies and plenty of half-ton pickups are over the door-jamb payload figure while still "under" their tow rating.

Last, GCWR: the truck plus trailer, both loaded. And the trailer's own GVWR. Running 7,600 lb on a trailer plated at 7,000 lb is overweight no matter what is pulling it.

Here is how it plays out. Say your truck is rated to tow 7,700 lb. At 80%, the comfortable limit is about 6,160 lb. A 7,000 lb GVWR trailer loaded close to its plate is already past that, and you haven't checked payload yet. That truck can pull it on paper. It will not be pleasant on a long grade in July with full tanks.

Can you raise the trailer's GVWR?

Not by bolting on bigger axles. The GVWR is set by the manufacturer for the whole trailer: frame, coupler, tires, axles. On truck-owner forums the answer to "can I upgrade my axles to raise GVWR" is the same every time: the plate stays what the maker put on it. If your build will be heavy, spec 5,200 lb axles and a matching GVWR before the trailer is built.

Weigh it at a truck scale

Don't guess. Truck stop scales such as CAT Scale weigh each axle group separately, and CAT has an app (Weigh My Truck) so you don't have to go inside. Load the trailer the way you work: full water, full propane, stock, crew in the truck.

Weigh twice. First the truck and trailer hitched, which gives you steer axle, drive axle and trailer axles. Then the truck alone with the same people and gear. The trailer axle reading plus the difference on the truck's axles between the two weighs is your real trailer weight, and the increase on the truck is close to your tongue weight. Ask your builder for a scale ticket of the finished trailer before final payment, too.

Do you need a CDL?

Usually not for a food trailer behind a pickup. Under the federal definition in 49 CFR 383.5, a combination needs a Class A CDL when the GCWR is 26,001 lb or more and the towed unit has a GVWR over 10,000 lb. A single truck at 26,001 lb GVWR or more is Class B. Most concession trailers are plated under 10,000 lb, so the trailer side doesn't trigger it.

Where it changes: big gooseneck or 24 ft-plus trailers plated over 10,000 lb behind a heavy-duty truck. Add the truck's GVWR to the trailer's. If you land at 26,001 lb or more with a trailer over 10,000 lb, you are in Class A territory. States can add their own rules for business vehicles, so check with your state DOT before you buy the trailer, not after.

Questions

Keep reading

• Food trailer cost by size: 12 to 24 ft, line by line
• 8x16 Food Trailer Layout: Dimensions and Floor Plan
• Food trailer buying mistakes to avoid

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