New member with trailer sway problems

[driffel]

Hello!
We are new here, but not new to traveling with a travel trailer. We have a Ram 1500 Big Horn crew cab 4x4, 5.7 Hemi w/etorque, 3.92 rear axle ratio, 8 speed transmission. We have a brand new Rockwood Mini Lite 2205S travel trailer that we have used 1 time. We are currently having sway issues when we pull the trailer. Based on the specs of the truck, it should be able to handle the trailer just fine, but as I said, when traveling down the road at 55 mph, it will sway. We have been working on this problem ourselves, but tomorrow we will be taking it to a local dealership to see if they can make adjustments in the WDH to eliminate the sway. Does anyone have any experience with this problem and what you did to eliminate the sway issues?

[Farrier]

That can be scary.
Center of gravity can be a factor, as can side winds, vehicle length vs trailer length, and traffic.
Was it a particularly windy day?

[Cumminsfan]

Looks like the fresh water tank is in the rear. Lots of other heavy items in the rear like the fridge.
Just wondering how you loaded it. Was the fresh tank full? Was the fridge full? pantry full? Etc.
Tires look like 14". Were they maxed out on PSI?
Is you WDH setup so that the front of the truck is back to or real close to the OEM ride height?
Truck tires inflated to max sidewall?
You have plenty of truck for the specs on that TT so to me there's something not right or there's an inherent flaw in design.

[dizcom]

Sway generally comes from too much weight in the rear or not enough on the tongue. Move some weight forward. Also check to make sure your hitch isn't too high and your trailer is relatively level. Others will chime in with how to weigh and balance and setup your WDH. We used to tow and see this more frequently than we like. Once you have it setup properly, you'll get years of trouble free towing out of it. The trick is to learn your rig and what it needs and make sure you stick to it.

[tuffr2]

Your truck and that trailer should be a good match. I had trailer sway starting at 55mph when I had a Honda Ridgeline but traded for a F-150 which eliminated all sway. Just my guess but the WD hitch might not be set up correctly.

[Chargerman]

I would start with checking the weight on the hitch. Should be about 10% of the trailer weight. Then I would lower the hitch height.

[CecilD]

Welcome to the forum. Your trailer has torsion axles which means each wheel is independently sprung and there is no axle equalization. Torsion axles are sensitive to being towed level. If the trailer is out of level more weight will shift to an axle and possibly throw off your tongue weight percentage. For instance, if your trailer tows nose down, the front axle will serve as a fulcrum and unload your hitch weight.

I would verify the trailer is level with all occupants in the truck and ready to tow. Then, I would unload the rear closets and move all that stuff to on top of the bed, plus make sure your storage compartment has stuff in it. Then, take it for a test drive. If sway is gone, then you know your problem and can adjust.

Next, some weight distribution hitches have very little anti-sway capabilities. If they sold you a chain type pull up hitch with bars then you need to replace it with a capable hitch with ant-sway built in or at least add an anti-sway bar.

Good luck.

[driffel]

Originally Posted by Farrier

That can be scary.
Center of gravity can be a factor, as can side winds, vehicle length vs trailer length, and traffic.
Was it a particularly windy day?

The day we brought it home and on the short trip we took it was somewhat windy. We have an Equalizer Weight Distribution hitch, which we've used in the past and on our old trailer it was a great system. The current hitch was bought at the same time as our trailer and it fitted to it.

[driffel]

Originally Posted by Cumminsfan

Looks like the fresh water tank is in the rear. Lots of other heavy items in the rear like the fridge.
Just wondering how you loaded it. Was the fresh tank full? Was the fridge full? pantry full? Etc.
Tires look like 14". Were they maxed out on PSI?
Is you WDH setup so that the front of the truck is back to or real close to the OEM ride height?
Truck tires inflated to max sidewall?
You have plenty of truck for the specs on that TT so to me there's something not right or there's an inherent flaw in design.

I believe the fresh water tank is under our bed, which is in the front of the trailer. The tank was empty going to and from our short trip we took. Our pantry and fridge is in the rear of the trailer and they were full.

Tires were at max PSI. We have an Equalizer Weight Distribution hitch and it's within 1/2" of the OEM ride height. We have new Load E tires, which are now inflated to 60 PSI, but could be taken up to 80 PSI.

[Farrier]

Originally Posted by driffel

The day we brought it home and on the short trip we took it was somewhat windy. We have an Equalizer Weight Distribution hitch, which we've used in the past and on our old trailer it was a great system. The current hitch was bought at the same time as our trailer and it fitted to it.

Sounds as if you are fairly familiar with towing then. You're getting good insights from the gang here. Not sure that I can add anything that hasn't been brought up. Since you're taking it back to the dealer to check it out anyway that would be a good time to redistribute the weight.
Did you have much in it at all?

[TravelSolo]

What is the payload capacity of your truck based on the sticker on the door jamb?

From that number, subtract the weight any passengers, gear/cargo you add to the cab/bed and about 100lb for the hitch itself. Whatever is left over is the legal tongue weight you can put on the ball. Hopefully that is about 12% but not more than 15% of the GVWR of the trailer.

Your best bet is to go to the scales and weigh the following:

1) The truck loaded with hitch, gear and passengers. Get front and rear axle weights.
2) The truck as above but with the loaded trailer on the ball WITHOUT the WDH bars.
3) Truck as above plus trailer the loaded trailer on the ball WITH the WDH bars set

Also measure the height of the center of the front fender for #1 and #3. Post them up here along with the GVWR of your truck and the payload from the sticker so folks can start helping you

[driffel]

Originally Posted by CecilD

Welcome to the forum. Your trailer has torsion axles which means each wheel is independently sprung and there is no axle equalization. Torsion axles are sensitive to being towed level. If the trailer is out of level more weight will shift to an axle and possibly throw off your tongue weight percentage. For instance, if your trailer tows nose down, the front axle will serve as a fulcrum and unload your hitch weight.

I would verify the trailer is level with all occupants in the truck and ready to tow. Then, I would unload the rear closets and move all that stuff to on top of the bed, plus make sure your storage compartment has stuff in it. Then, take it for a test drive. If sway is gone, then you know your problem and can adjust.

Next, some weight distribution hitches have very little anti-sway capabilities. If they sold you a chain type pull up hitch with bars then you need to replace it with a capable hitch with ant-sway built in or at least add an anti-sway bar.

Good luck.

We have an Equalizer WDH, which is one of the best on the market, so we're told! I told my husband we may have to put the pantry items in baskets on the floor towards the front so that the rear of the trailer is not that heavy. We do have items stored in the storage compartment, probably 200 lbs worth. Thank you for your comments!

[tuffr2]

I just watched this video again for the 20th time over 5 years. This stresses moving weight forward.

https://youtu.be/6mW_gzdh6to

[Farrier]

Originally Posted by tuffr2

I just watched this video again for the 20th time over 5 years. This stresses moving weight forward.

https://youtu.be/6mW_gzdh6to

Nice video, thanks.