23
Weighing Your Motor Home
When your motor home is loaded you should have it weighed. The actual weight of the mo-
tor home, passengers, all options, liquids, the hitch weight of your towed vehicle and your
personal cargo is important for you to know so you do not exceed the GVWR. There are two
important factors when loading your motor home, total weight and balance.
It is imperative that you verify compliance within all applicable weight ratings. Overloading
your motor home will void the and the warranties of many component
part manufacturers.
To obtain the side-to-side weights, there needs to be enough space on either side of
the scale to accommodate the motor home being partially o the scale.
Dierent types or scales may require dierent procedures when weighting the motor home.
The motor home must remain as level as possible on the scale (even if an axle is not physi-
cally on the scale). To obtain the side-to-side weights, make sure there is enough space on
either side of the scale to accommodate the motor home being partially o the scale.
If a boat, trailer or other vehicle is being towed, it should be weighed separately. Combine
this weight with the motor home’s Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW) to ensure the total com-
bined weight does not exceed the GCWR.
Once actual weights are obtained, compare them to theweight
ratings to ensure you are below the posted minimum ratings.
If there is a dierence in the weights on one side of the vehicle as compared to weights on
the other side, components (tires, wheels, brakes, springs, etc.) on the heavier side may be
overloaded, although the total axle load is within the GAWR.
It is important to redistribute the load to avoid component failure as well as to
improve the handling characteristics of the vehicle.
Dump the gray and black water holding tanks before traveling to avoid carry-
ing unnecessary weight. Full tanks can aect your fuel consumption, and de-
pending on tank location, can aect your vehicle handling characteristics. If
you cannot immediately empty your holding tanks, reduce your vehicle speed
until you reach a dumping station.