Measuring nose weight

[jewells1]

Right at the risk of sounding thick lol, i would like to know in laymans terms how to do it.

We picked up our new caravan last week & bought a nose weight gauge,

I have played about with it but unsure if i am doing it right.

is it just a matter of placing it under the hitch, winding the legs & jockey wheel up & measuring it ( its on level ground)?...

Or do i only let the nose go down to the height of the tow ball & measure?

Thanks, john

 

[Lutz]

You're correct in saying that the caravan should be standing on level ground. Noseweight should then be measured with the hitch at the same height off the ground as if the caravan were hitched up to the car.

 

[ProfJohnL]

Just to put a little more meat on Lutz reply:-

When a loaded caravan is hitched to the with all passengers and luggage, the EU requires the tow ball to rest at between 350 and 420mm from the ground to the centre of teh ball.

If the gauge is height adjustable, then it should be set as Lutz suggests, at the same height as the tow hitch is when it it is attached to the fully loaded car.

When the measurement is made none of the steadies or the jockey wheel should be in contact with the ground, so the whole of the nose is only supported by the gauge.

None of the gauges I have seen are adjustable, thus you cannot achieve the correct measuring condition with them, which makes them almost useless. If they are taller than the loaded hitch, then they will under read the nose weight, and if they are shorter than the loaded hitch they will over read the actual nose load.

If the gauge is set to 350mm from the ground to the centre of the ball, then it will indicate the worst case load so if that is within the car manufactures nose load allowance it will be ok at all other legitimate heights.

 

[eckiew]

One way to check your noseweight with the hitch at the correct height would be to measure the height of your hitch on the telescopic gauge and as you should already know the height when connected to the car note the difference in measurements and then pull the caravan up onto boards in thickness corresponding to the measurement difference. A bit fiddly but as near as you will get without a maths professor.

Alex

 

[Mel]

What always bothers me is that about 85kg is resting on a not very substantial bit on plastic with a base of about 1inch square. What if the whole thing wobbles, the guage shoots sideways and the nose of the van comes crashing down? Or am I doing it wrong?

mel

 

[eckiew]

Raise the jockey wheel so it's just clear of the ground!

 

[Steve L]

You have every right to be weary of nose weight guages.

I had a 100 Kg smack in the mouth from mine about 4 years ago.

I was using a telescopic guage to measure my van. Just as I was bending down to read the guage the guage slipped and took off! It hit me right on the chin with a 100Kg upper cut. I had blood everywhere. I'd loosened 6 of my teeth and put a hole in my lower lip big enough to pass a pen through. I had to have 5 stitches without anesthetic and a trip to the dentist to grind the rough edges off the chipped teeth.

I was one lucky guy. It could of been far worse.

Luckily for me we were caravanning in a family group and I had a nursing sister, an ex ambulanceman and my first aid trained wife to patch me up.

I now use the bathroom scale method where possible and only use the nose weight guage that locks into the hitch and onto the ball if I have to. Those cheapo pogo stick guages are b***dy dangerous and should only be used as a one way boomerang in the scrap yard.

Steve L.

 

[Dustydog]

Steve I have one of those cheapies from Towsure. I hate using it for the very reason you experienced.

However as a guide it has given me an indication of the noseweight and now I know just how to load to keep within + or - 10kgs. Not that scientific I accept but I do check it from time to time and it seems within parameters.

As a matter of interest and safety can anyone recommend a good safe noseweight measuring guage?

Maybe Nigel from PC Mag could then do a bulk purchase deal if enough of us are interested. I hope so !!

Cheers

Dustydog

 

[WatsonJohnG]

I have a sloping drive so I set the van attitude up as for towing and put the noseweight gauge onto a small trolley jack and raise the jack until it maxes on the scale

 

[jewells1]

Everything seem clear now, thanks to everyone,

this is the nose weight guage i bought,

 

[Glenn_5132962]

I made my own out of some wooden fence post cut to the correct length & screwed to a 1" thick base board to spread the load over the surface of our bathroom scales. The height of this contraption is the same as the loaded hitch of the car. Works fine & no danger.