Just weighed our Class C and something doesn't seem right

[KeysVal]

Hi

We just purchased our first motorhome. A C Class, 2014 - 4 Winds Siesta 29 TB.

Looking at the tag on the drivers door it shows a GVWR of 14,500 lbs. We just made our first RV trip and we loaded the RV with the things we felt we needed for this first trip. I'll list the items below:

• One set of bed linens and pillows
• A few bath and hand towels
• Clothes for 5 days for my wife and myself
• Groceries for 5 days for 2 people
• 48 quart ice chest with a couple of 12 packs of soda and 20 lbs of ice
• 2 laptop computers
• printer
• 2 folding rocking camp chairs
• A Magma gas grill and carrying case
• A guitar in a hard case
• A large tool box (probably 70 lbs)
• A battery powered impact gun and drill
• A large bike rack installed on the hitch holding 2 regular bikes and a bicycle for 2.
• A medium sized cat (about 18 lbs)
• A small dog (about 12 lbs)
• A slightly larger dog (about 18 lbs)

We stopped at a truck stop and filled the fuel tank. The water tank was "mostly" full and the grey and blackwater tanks were "mostly empty".
We then paid to have our rig weighed and it came in at 14,120 lbs. That only gave us 380 lbs of additional cargo. If we would have had 2 more people, we would have been over the limit.

Does that seem right? I was thinking with what we had packed we would have at least 1,000 lbs available.

[Jeff24g]

Think about water and fluid such as pop. Every gallon of water-based fluid is right about 8.33 pounds per gallon. So a 48 quart chest is about 100 pounds. So fluid management is important. Your full water tank is pretty heavy too. We have a Winnebago View and have to manage the load.

[Do26]

Class c is usually close on weight unless it is a shorter (say 24') unit. The 14.5k limit is roughly the same (Ford e450 for example) no matter the length. Good on you for getting weighed! The scale does not lie.

I happen to have a 24' (all I can fit in my driveway). We make it work in size, and enjoy a large amount of cargo capacity, plus 7.5k of towing capacity. We have over 4k in cargo capacity! Same brand at 30 or 31 ft can get down to 1650 cargo. 4 people can be half the capacity. Add 400 for hitch and tongue weight for a small toad, and you probably are over with one days food and a change of clothes.

Many first timers do not even realize the limitations.

[Do26]

The brochures for your mh do not list dry weight or ccc weights... which backs up your discovery of being on the edge.

[KeysVal]

I'm guessing that the extended bike rack and the 3 bikes could be in the 300 lb range, so without the bikes and rack it will give us a little leeway.

We need to get this figured out. We plan to buy a 2018 Chevy Equinox and flat tow it behind our RV.

[youracman]

The longer Class C's, for the most part, have your problem, Val. My 31-ft sure does. I have a measly 1000 lb of CCC............so I put tool boxes, soft drinks, and any other really dense stuff in the toad. I think lots of folks with the longer Class C's do this. Helps keep you under the GVWR for the coach and usually well under the GCWR (unless you pull a really heavy toad).

Agree with the kudos on getting weighed. Helps ensure you are within the GAWR's too.

BTW- The older rigs (like mine) on the E450 chassis have less GVWR ...... Ford upped the rating from 14,050 to 14,500 a few years back.

Safe travels ............... Ed S in Denver

[Santara]

Originally Posted by youracman

The longer Class C's, for the most part, have your problem, Val. My 31-ft sure does. I have a measly 1000 lb of CCC............so I put tool boxes, soft drinks, and any other really dense stuff in the toad. I think lots of folks with the longer Class C's do this. Helps keep you under the GVWR for the coach and usually well under the GCWR (unless you pull a really heavy toad).

Agree with the kudos on getting weighed. Helps ensure you are within the GAWR's too.

BTW- The older rigs (like mine) on the E450 chassis have less GVWR ...... Ford upped the rating from 14,050 to 14,500 a few years back.

Safe travels ............... Ed S in Denver

they added 50 to rear 400 frt now how do we add 450 to front C big deal

[youracman]

Originally Posted by Santara

they added 50 to rear 400 frt now how do we add 450 to front C big deal

Wow! never realized that. Agree............ not a very big deal.

[HighDesert]

Val - welcome to the world of conservative packing, or what I really need vs. want. I know what you mean when you look at the space available and you start filling it, then reality hits home and, you did the right thing - weighing your vehicle. On our Sunseeker, I have about 200 lbs left on capacity and I am am still trying to sort thorough what I need and don't need to reduce weight. Keep at it, as it is fun and you'll enjoy the unit once it get it dialed in. BTW - we generally travel with about 1/3 tank FW and BW close to empty, if possible. Does help keep weight down.

[KeysVal]

Originally Posted by HighDesert

Val - welcome to the world of conservative packing, or what I really need vs. want. I know what you mean when you look at the space available and you start filling it, then reality hits home and, you did the right thing - weighing your vehicle. On our Sunseeker, I have about 200 lbs left on capacity and I am am still trying to sort thorough what I need and don't need to reduce weight. Keep at it, as it is fun and you'll enjoy the unit once it get it dialed in. BTW - we generally travel with about 1/3 tank FW and BW close to empty, if possible. Does help keep weight down.

Thanks for the response. I read somewhere that to get your "true" weight you should have full fuel, water, and propane, with the grey and black water tanks empty.

I was just expecting to have a lot more wiggle room. We plan on going on a 6 week or so trip in late September traveling from South Florida to New York City and then crossing into Canada around Niagara Falls, then back home.

We will need to have a fair amount more "stuff" for a trip of that duration. Plus the addition of the toad. I'm sure we'll have it figured out by then (i hope!).

[TCHB]

I have always know the longer class c RVs are pushing the weight limits of the drive drains. The RV dealers will not mention or the sales guy knows nothing about the weight issues.

[wanderso]

If you get a chance, also have the front and rear axles weighed when loaded. It can be quite common to be under the max overall but overweight on an axle. Most often the overweight will be on the rear duals. My last RV was quite near the max on the rear when empty but plenty of margin on the front axle. Due to the water tank being near the front and a small overhead storage area, I actually got weight off of the rear axle when I added water to the tank due to the fulcrum effect. It can also be easy to add a lot of weight on one side of the RV (imbalancing one side) due to the pantry and fridge on the same side in many floor plans.

[Firechicken]

I'm curious what your specific weight ratings are from the manufacturer. There should be a sheet like this somewhere. This is from our 2007 HR Atlantis on a E450 chassis.

[Rockwood27]

Val, your trip sounds great! I'm just wondering...have you made campground reservations up north yet? Many CG's start closing in mid-October or the open ones get booked for the fall foliage season.