Caravan noseweight
hi just bought a bailey phoenix 2 berth and I cannot get the noseweight above 48kilos I have everything on the floor at the front of the van awning/water container/bedding in the front etc I have nothing behind the axle when it was delivered it was about 20kilos on the nose.acording to the 5/7% ratio it should be 68kilos minimum.any one else with the same problem. and is it safe to tow with such a low nose weight.
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used proper noseweight gauge and to check I used the bathroom scale method both were the same when I first got the van the hitch would not engage unless I pushed down on it that's how light it was.
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Seems thorough then Mike. I asked because gauges have been known to read wrongly. Bathroom scales are my choice as I can check their calibration easily by standing on them.
Not sure about stability but you seem to have achieved about a 4% ratio.
In your position I would have preferred more weight obviously. All I can compare with is my own previous Lunar ES which unladen on collection and when taken for service with motor mover and battery is probably 1,300kg with a noseweight of just under 60kg in that condition. At those times it does feel that it would be more twitchy if I were to throw it about in a difficult situation. With that 4.5% ratio on mine I would not fancy high speeds on motorways. When I took previous van in that unladen condition (with a sleeping bag) a 150 miles down to visit Alde at Wellingborough I added additional ballast at the front of the caravan for the tow down and back as I did not fancy the ride otherwise.
I have a newer ES which feels similar unladen but I have not checked its unladen noseweight.
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Could the levelness of the ground on which you are taking the measurements be affecting the reading? Have you tried measuring at another place yet? And making sure the brake is disengaged at the wheels?
My Bailey Senator is usually reading overweight when measured on my gauge, yet when I move it on the mover it often rears up at the front! Slight slopes and reaction of moments around the axles.
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When I picked up my caravan new from the dealer I estimated that the noseweight was only round about 20kg, but that was before there were gas bottles, spare wheel or anything else in the front locker. It towed reasonably well on my way home although one did feel a slight unease in the outfit, so I had to be even more careful than usual. However, this was a one-off journey and I now have no difficulty in achieving 80kg, which is the towbar limit and everything is fine.
Do you have a spare wheel for your caravan and if so, where is that located? Perhaps that can be moved up front, either inside the caravan, in the front locker - if there's enough space - or underneath on a spare wheel carrier.
What's the payload margin? If you've got enough to play with and you can't find anything else to load the caravan with up front, at worst you could fill the water container with water, but of course with the weight of a filled container you'd have to take care to secure it properly while in transit. That would be the least desirable option, but it could be the solution as a last resort.
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Do you have a spare wheel for your caravan and if so, where is that located? Perhaps that can be moved up front, either inside the caravan, in the front locker - if there's enough space - or underneath on a spare wheel carrier.
Good idea and what I would have considered but no front locker on this and recent Bailey models
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I have checked the noseweight severall times in different locations spare wheel in bailey is in the front ns bed locker awning in the off side two chairs in the ns all the bits and ie electric hook up cable in the front off side. water containers on the floor at the front.the motor mover is fixed on the front of the axle. the only thing is the battery which is fixed in the box behind the axle. I can lift the front up with one hand with no effort .their is nothing else loaded in the van .it does tow like a dream up to about 55.
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Your van must be completely level to get a true reading, try another spirit level. Also if your van sits nose down when on the car it will put more weight on the ball.
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Legally the weight should be taken at the height of the tow ball when hitched. This is difficult to achieve with most devices but any error should be small if it is near.
The figures given are the ideal but I doubt any sensible variation will make any difference.
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You can tell by manually lifting the hitch and the OP has said that it is quite light. Ideally it should be “quite heavy”. If it’s 100kg it’s going to be very heavy. Nose weight gauges are fine but you soon get to know what feels right.
My experience and that of many others is that a higher nose weight gives greater stability, particularly at higher speeds paying due regard to the maximum car capability and/or the caravan limit. The latter being (usually) 100kg. The only solution is is to put heavy objects at the front of the van but also, of course, avoid having weight at the back of the van.
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I did, I have a set of scales in the bathroom that I know to be accurate. I weigh myself on those and then check and adjust the cheaper bathroom scales reserved for the caravan as and if necessary. Dressed for outside I am near enough 80 kg so as I am looking for 80 to 85kg stand a good chance of accuracy.
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Even the most inaccurate scales are unlikely to be more than 4/5 Kg out and nose weight isn't 'that' critical.
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I've spoken to our technical team who have advised to put something heavy in the front locker/right at the front inside the ‘van. A full water container (safely secured) if necessary. Otherwise your outfit stability at higher speeds (i.e. above 50mph or so) risks being significantly compromised.
I hope this helps and enjoy your new bailey.
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you think they are different departments?
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A lot of Baileys suffered from high nose weight which is probably why they shifted the gas bottles and battery to the middle. Makes sense as the amount of gas carried doesn’t affect the noseweight. The OP needs to put something heavy at the front inside or front of the lockers. Usually an awning would do the trick but in this case it doesn’t seem to have done. Filling an aquaroll isn’t very sensible as it might reduce the available payload and anyway would be difficult to secure on the floor of the van.
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could try leaving the hot water tank full?
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Not your fault Ro but do the tech team know what they are talking about? If, in the unlikely event, the MIRO for that model is correct then the remaining load available is 117 kg before adding a leisure battery at around 25kg. After adding the battery there is 25kg left. Are they seriously suggesting putting 40kg of water in the usual aquaroll in the caravan and leaving 77 kg payload when as a couple we can only just manage on 150kg?
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I have just bought a Bailey Unicorn Seville and the noseweight without luggage etc is 30kg! Measured myself and by the garage. Bailey confirmed that the Seville is "light". But the 5-7% rule suggests that the weight should be over 70kg. Its practically impossible to get to a maximum. It sounds like a design fault. Has any body else experienced low noseweights?
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Unicorns don't have a front locker, so that's going to be tricky.
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