RV Q&A by Mark - April 2008

*NOTE: At Mark's discretion, material might be edited to suit a wide audience. Due to the large volume of material and correspondence we receive, individual replies might not be possible, nor can we acknowledge receipt of submitted material. Selected questions will be answered in future issues of our RV Education 101 newsletter and on our site. Thank-you for your understanding.

Q. I am trying to gather important safety information for our trailer club and I hope you can help us. Basically, here is the theory:
A travel trailer may appear to be safely loaded because the total weight on the axles is within factory specs. But, because the travel trailer has one or two slide-outs on one side, that side of the trailer is carrying, say, 500 to 1,000 more pounds that the other (lighter) side. And that could mean that the tires on the slide-out side are over-loaded and prone to a blow out.

Now, I know that all a person has to do is weigh the trailer at each tire position and then check that weight against the carrying capacity of that tire. But what I need from you is the motivation for club members to do that. Have you read, or have you any experience, or even a feeling, that there are lots of trailers out there with over-loaded tires because of such bad weight distribution left to right?

Would appreciate any insight you may be able to provide. Thanks so much for your time.

Mark Says: This is a really big problem. Not only do things like slide outs add more weight to one side, but packing too much on one side, where the fresh water tank is located and many other things factor in to overloaded tires too.

Rather than go over a lot of the stats in this email here is a link where you can go and download brochures with great information on how to maintain RV tires and how to properly weigh an RV. The one brochure states some interesting facts and stats on the percentage of overloaded RV's based on over 9,000 RV's being weighed at the time the brochure was made. It's a real eye opener.

The problem is, as you stated, trying to get people to go to the scales and weigh their RV. It is just one of those things that is confusing, giving the consumer even more reasons not to do it.
I think you will find these brochures helpful and you can print or order copies for as many people as you want.

Q. We like to go camping in early spring and late fall and are wondering if there is a list of trailers, fifth wheels, and or motor homes that are best suited to cold weather and also being exposed to road salt as we live in Wisconsin and often encounter salted roads in early spring and late fall. We currently have a travel trailer without insulated heated tanks but have been told even the ones with the insulated heated tanks are only good down to about 15 degrees F.

Mark Says: RV's really aren't constructed with extreme cold temperatures in mind. Most manufacturers offer some type of cold weather or Arctic package as an option. This usually upgrades the insulation R factor and may include things like heated holding tanks, dual pane glass, enclosed underbelly, larger BTU furnace etc.

Even with a cold weather package you need to exercise caution to protect the RV water system and other components that can be damaged in cold temperatures.

I am not aware of any list of the best RV's for cold weather camping, I think you would need to check with individual RV manufacturers to see if they offer the Arctic package option. I doubt if you will find any RV that is built to withstand a lot of exposure to road salt. It would require a good cleaning after returning from a trip where it was exposed to the salt.

You are probably correct when you say that even RV's with a cold weather package have limitations. I would recommend checking in to what these limitations are before purchasing a unit you plan to use in cold weather.

Q. I have a 1992 Toyota pickup V-6 with a manual transmission and a manual transfer case with a neutral. I want to know if I can tow this pickup behind my 2006 Itasca Spirit 29' motor home on a Ford chassis (E-450, V-10). If I put the transmission in neutral and the transfer case in neutral can I tow it? Also if I can tow it what do you do about the locking steering?

Mark Says: Lots of factors involved here, including weight issues. Unfortunately my towing guides only go back 10 years so I can't say for sure, but a manual transmission and a manual tranfer case with a neutral position are usually good candidates for towing with all four wheels down.

The first thing I suggest is to check the vehicle owners manual. If the vehicle can be towed in this manner it's usually listed in the manual, and it will tell you about any special towing restrictions too, if there are any.

Normally you would leave the key in the on position but not where it is draining the battery. There should be a position where the steering wheel isn't locked but battery power doesn't register. If not you may need to disconnect the negative battery terminal.

Now for the weight issues. First you need to know how much the fully loaded truck weighs. This includes anything you plan to load in it when you go camping. Next verify how much the motorhome can tow and check what the hitch receiver on the back of the motorhome is rated to tow. The motorhome might be rated to tow 6,000 pounds but if the receiver is only rated for 5,000 that's the most you can tow. Possibly the most important rating is the Gross Combined Weight Rating (GCWR) of the motorhome. This is the maximum weight for the motorhome and the towed vehicle when combined. Look for it on the motorhome weight label or in the owners manual. the two vehicles weighed together cannot exceed this rating.

You also need to look into braking laws. Many states require supplemental brakes on the towed vehicle if it exceeds a certain amount of weight.

I cannot say for sure if your vehicle can be towed with all four wheels down and would recommend you contact the vehicle manufacturer directly. Some vehicles that are configured correctly for towing don't track properly or have other towing issues. If the manufacturer didn't test that year and model it may not be safe to tow.

Copyright 2008 by Mark J. Polk owner of RV Education 101

RV Expert Mark Polk, seen on TV, is the producer & host of America's most highly regarded series of DVD's, videos, books, and e-books. http://www.rveducation101.com/