Is my trailer not level enought for towing

[Paul]

I picked up my new 2018 camplite 21BHS at the dealer. This is the way they set my hitch but I am not totally happy with it. To me it seem like it's not level. Should I raise it a little bit to have it more level?

[Diversteve]

A travel trailer with ideal weight distribution
will have a minimum hitch weight of about 12
percent of the gross weight, and the maximum
can range upward to about 15 percent, provided
it does not violate the rating of the hitch.
Except for the lightest folding trailers, hitches
rated Class II and higher are used for recreational
towing, and they use a receiver bolted
to the tow vehicle's frame. The hitch receiver
— which may have box dimensions of 1¼ inches
square, 2 inches square or 2½ inches square,
with the larger boxes for higher load ratings
— accepts a slide-in ball mount (or draw bar),
which is secured with a pin.
Besides serving as the trailer/receiver attachment
point, the ball mount also is used in
varying heights (known as "drop") to couple the
trailer in a level fashion (frame parallel to the
road surface), which is desirable for best stability
and trailer-brake performance.
http://webcontent.goodsam.com/trailerlife.com/digital_editions/TrailerLifeTowGuide2015.pdf

Trust but Verify.

You have a beautiful new rig!!!

[DavidM]

As noted above, the trailer frame should be parallel to the road surface. Yours is not.

But before looking for a higher hitch receiver to adjust the hitch height and level the trailer, I would first do a couple of things:

1. With all of your gear and normal fluids on board, measure the tongue weight. Your F150 may be limited to 500 lbs in which case you need a WDH.

2. When you load the hitch with the trailer's weight, measure the drop of the TV's frame. You should not drop more than 1-1/2". Any more and you need a WDH, irrespective of #1.

When 1 and 2 are sorted out, then level your trailer with the right drop hitch. Just looking at your pic you may be close on #2.

David

[Paul]

Something that might have had an influence is that I had a 300 lbs engine (maybe more?) in my truck bed. Maybe it wasn't the best idea to haul a car engine while towing my trailer!

[DavidM]

Paul:

300# in the bed of your truck would lower the rear end of the truck by less than an inch. From your pic it looks like your hitch ball is roughly 3" too low. So remove the weight in your bed (unless you routinely tow with that much weight there), and follow my suggestions above.

David

[Merlin]

Something that might have had an influence is that I had a 300 lbs engine (maybe more?) in my truck bed. Maybe it wasn't the best idea to haul a car engine while towing my trailer!

Yup, sure enough, it was not the best idea to haul an extra engine while towing or setting up the truck for towing  I've heard of carrying spare parts, but that may be going too far 

Anyway, when you get your camper out of storage next year, load it and the truck as you normally would for travel, then follow DavidM's advice for sequences. In the end, the trailer should be very close to level. Since the streets by your house may not be, you can check level by simply measuring the distance from the road to the bottom of the trailer frame in the front and the rear while hitched. Do both right and left sides, just in case you have a bump in the road on one side. Then make the final correction with a drop draw bar, or if you are using an Andersen WDH, moving the ball/friction cone down/up a bolt hole or two.

And that is one BEAUTIFUL rig!

[Paul]

I have been looking at Andersen WDH hitch but I am not sure what size of bracket do we need with our camplites. I know that I need 2 5/16 ball and I think the 4" drop/rise should be enought

https://andersenhitches.com/Catalog/4-droprise-wd-kits.aspx

[FastEddieB]

As noted above, the trailer frame should be parallel to the road surface.

I thought ideally it should be ever-so-slightly nose down.

I'll see if I can can find a source.

Edited to add: most sources seem to agree on level. Not sure where I got the nose-down thing.

[PaulJ]

Level it should be!  May the force be with you, and I can not recommend WDH MORE. WDH I do not leave home without it, too may crazies' on the highways today and safe is always better.

[Paul]

Level it should be!  May the force be with you, and I can not recommend WDH MORE. WDH I do not leave home without it, too may crazies' on the highways today and safe is always better.

What WDH are you using?

[PaulJ]

Equalizer. Had it on my previous trailer for 16 years and now on my Camplite for 1 year. It has saved us several times because of bad drivers going to fast at us in the mountains. I will not leave home without it. Previous trailer hauled with it and 8 cyl Ford F150 XL work truck . Now haul with Tundra Crewmax (with hinges in middle LOL) and all the bells and whistles. Love my Home on wheels.

[AZMVP]

Hi there. Congrats. If you go WDH, I recommend having your local dealer install it. And if you do go WDH, opt for something with sway control too. I got my WDH with sway control installed at dealer for about $400.

An alternative to WDH might be to consider stiffening the rear suspension of your truck.

Cheers!
Matt