I have a '98 Ford F-250 and a 5x8 utility trailer. I heat my house with wood pellets and frequently purchase 1 ton of pellets in the winter. My 5x8 utility trailer is rated at holding one ton of weight. I use the trailer to hold the wood pellets. My friend is a Mechanical Engineer and believes I should put the weight of the pellets on the truck and not on the trailer because pulling the trailer is harmful for the truck engine. I beleive the weight should be on the trailer because is saves the wheel bearings on the truck and wear and tear on the back axle. Futhermore, I believe the engine is pulling the same amount of weight whether it is on the truck or on the trailer. What do you think - should I tow the weight or put it on the bed of the truck???
The weight is the same but the rolling resistance is higher with the trailer. Besides which the truck will be less likely to get out of control in an emergency braking situation without the trailer. I vote to use the truck bed.
Put 1000 lbs. in the truck and 1000 lbs. in the trailer.
If you are worried about the truck bearings and springs/shocks, definitely put half the weight in the trailer and half on the truck. Handling will be better than with all the weight on the trailer and none in the truck.
Your friend makes some good theoretical points, but isn’t your F-250 rated to pull way more than 2000 lbs? Shouldn’t be an issue, certainly not ‘harmful’ if you have a good trailer setup.
The maximum payload is 2950# and it can tow 10,000#. Why not put 1 ton in the bed and one ton in the trailer and make the trip half as often?
The truck is rated to handle either. I wouldn’t worry about it, except that you only haul 2000# in the bed, but there could be 3000#+ with the trailer. For just that trip, the gas mileage would be marginally better if you put the pellets in the bed.
What a stupid thing to tell you. Heck, put TWO tons in the bed and on on the trailer.