What Should the Tongue Weight be for a Boat Trailer

Question:

I have an Eagle tri-axle trailer to haul our boat. The weight of the trailer and boat is about 10,500 lbs.. I understand the recommended tongue weight is approximately 10 of the total weight of the boat and trailer in my case about 1,000 lbs.. The tongue weight is about 450 lbs., significantly less than the recommended 10. Interestingly, the tongue weight remains the same whether the boat is on the trailer or not. I have several question: 1. does the 10 rule apply to tri-axle trailers since much of the weight is centered over the three axles and not the tongue? 2. should I be adding wt. to the forward part of the trailer such as a spare tire or toolbox or move the boat forward to increase the tongue wt.?

asked by: Michael

Expert Reply:

The ideal tongue weight of a boat trailer is going to be much less than the ideal tongue weight of a travel trailer. The reason for this is because the majority of weight on a boat is going to be over or behind the rear axle(s) as that is where the engine(s) are located. The average tongue weight of a boat trailer is between 5-7% which you are just under.

Do you have issues with trailer sway? If so then you can add weight to the tongue in order to get to the recommended 5-7% mark but if you don't have any trailer sway issues then you shouldn't really worry. If you need to add some weight to the front of the trailer then you can always install a spare tire carrier and spare wheel/tire as this will be good for around 50-70 lbs. For a spare tire carrier I recommend the Fulton Hi-Mount Spare Tire Carrier part # FSTC1000301.

Let me know what size tires and lug pattern you have so I can see if we have a spare tire/wheel for you.

expert reply by: Conner L