To All Enclosed Trailer Owners

Starboyz66ftp

i am buying a 14' or 16' trailer this week, i have a cube van that is awful on gas so i am getting rid of it and going with a trailer, i am just curiosu i have an 04 f250 psd, how does towing an enclosed trailer, say 14' affect gas mileage, i will have it loaded nt too too much, just standard tools, ladders picks, saws a compressor, drils, you guys know....just wondering how much fuel the trailer will take up when towing. also , i do a lot of work in the city , parking is tight , u guys have any reccomendations with aprking a truck a trailer. like do u guys park on the opposite side and pu out cones???

Glasshousebltr

I drop mine at the job.

Bob

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Bob

IHI

From all the towing we've done in the past, your PSD should only lose 2-4mpg over where your at truck only. FWIW when we went to indiana to pick up my dump truck with brother in laws 04 crew cab dually 4x4 psd we averaged 16mpg going over empty pulling my open trailer and 13mph hauling this 3 ton brick heading back home into a 20mph head wind.

Gas motors seem to fall under a variation, they either suck the fuel when not laoded and get 10mpg empty and 10 mpg with whatever type of load you can haul on them, or really good empty and once loaded cut the average in half, so say your at 18mpg empty, your gonna be at 9 mpg loaded.

Good luck with your trailer and tight parking. I deal with alot of situation like your describing and I had the trailer years ago, PITA, went van and it's been gravey ever since. Do have plans for an enclosed trailer for siding/window operation only however and the neighborhood will just have to deal with the thing taking up space.

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MJW

I have a 16' enclosed trailer that is extra high. It measures just over 9 ft. high. I tow it with a 2002 Duramax. I get about 19 mpg empty not towing. Towing this trailer I am down to about 12 or so mpg. They do suck the fuel, even empty. Drag is worse than weight when it comes to mpg and a diesel. It is nice to be able to leave at a jobsite as long as it is somewhat safe to leave it there.

MinConst

I havent compaired gas mileage. Maybe I don't want to know but it doesn't seem too much different than not pulling the trailer. I have a 12' trailer stand up. I can park anyplace I need to.

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Paul
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specwood

Just went to a cube van from a trailer. We don't leave trailer or tools on job. That's our policy. I was driving double with my 2500HD chevy anyway. Truck has a 6.0L. New van has 5.4. I suspect that it will get between 10 and 12. We'll see.

IHI

LOL, I hear ya about not leaving stuff on site if you dont have to. Neighborhood determines IF I even contemplate, but ypically my jobs are close enough to home I bring it back at the end of the day. Seen first hand how leaving a van on site can literally put a smaller guy out of business with the wrong person needing your tools worse than you do.

Had big block trucks, small block trucks, gas and diesel standard truck and used open/enclosed trailers. One thing is for certain, fuel is really a non issue since you have no choice in order to get paid and that extra $10-30 you save per job/week by leaving a trailer on site is a non issue for what could go wrong. Sure I hate spending $200/wk in fuel, but it's part of the business and will get worse, so mileage is a non issue since I have bigger fish to worry about.

I just never got used to the fact in most neighborhoods parking a rig can almost be as hard as the job itself since most folsk around here have single driveways, narrow roads, and do not want you parking on the lawn. If I were into new construct then a nice 24' enclosed would be a no brainer, but for a guy that does mostly remodels or jobs your in and out in 1-3 days trailers can often be a hassle, but anything to keep you from unloading at the end of the day and keeping materials dry is well worth the headaches associated with either and lack of fuel milage. Funniest thing is my "bus" gets better milage loaded at almost 11,000lbs and no OD than either of my other trucks with their racks/side boxes that have gas engines and overdrive.

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