Trailer questions

If this should be in the towing section I apologize. This isn't about towing a vehicle so I figured I would post here.  

Can someone help inform me of the do and do nots of towing a small trailer. It's a 4x8 trailer with a 2" ball and 12" rims. No trailer brakes. I'll be towing it with a 2005 Saturn Vue fwd with the 3.5. I don't plan to tow more than 2500lbs (I need to verify load rating of the tires still, I believe it was C) and the tow rating of the vue is 3500lbs. I have a class 3 hitch installed. 

Is it ok to install the receiver "upside" down so the tongue of the trailer sits higher when hooked up?

What size safety chains and is there a proper way to hook them up such as straight or crossed with each other?

How should the weight be distributed in the trailer? I know that most of the weight should not be near the rear. 

Is there anywhere near Cleveland Ohio that is better or worse to get my weight slip for the trailer?

Any other tips, tricks, or safety information would be appreciated. 

"Upside down" will work as long as the tongue is somewhat close to level. I've always crossed my chains, that way they can cradle the tongue if it drops off the ball.

In reply to Blunder :

1- Yes, but the trailer frame should sit approximately level

2- Safety chains are usually pre-packaged as "safety chains".  Don't use light weight chain. I used to cross them all the time but don't usually any more. I don't think there is a major difference. 
 

3- 10% on the tongue, not to exceed the car's rated tongue weight. 
 

What kind of vehicle are you towing?  I don't know many cars that will fit on a 4x8 trailer...

In reply to DeadSkunk (Warren) :

I've only had a trailer drop off the ball once.  Cradling it wasn't really an issue- the trailer WILL be crashing into your rear bumper. 
 

But yeah... I always liked the idea of cradling. 

What's the rated capacity of the trailer?  I am having a hard time picturing a 4x8 trailer with 12" wheels rated for 2500 lbs.

In reply to SV reX :

I honestly don't know what the trailer axel is rated for buy I believe the tires are load range C. 

In reply to SV reX :

I lost a trailer once and the chains ,and bumper, kept the tongue off the road. The chains tend to keep the tongue closer to center when crossed. I've also seen someone else lose the trailer and they had uncrossed chains that were too long, almost dragging the road. The trailer was swerving a lot and yanking the back of the station wagon around.

In reply to SV reX :

I won't be towing a car. It's for moving appliances, taking scrap to the dump, etc. 

In reply to Blunder :

Tiny trailers are squirrely. Check the load rating. 

In reply to Blunder :

Ok. You mentioned towing a vehicle in your first post. 

In reply to SV reX :

Is there a way to tell what the axle weight rating is? The axle just looks like a boxed in 2"x2" (maybe 2.5"x2.5") beam with shafts on either side with spindles and bearings held on by a castle nut. Wheels are 5 lug. 

I'm seeing 4x8 trailers in the 1400-1600 lb range. 2500 would be a pretty significant overload. 

In reply to SV reX :

Sorry, I'm an idiot. That should say this isn't about towing a vehicle. 

In reply to Blunder :

I thought it might be a Blunder. 😉

In reply to SV reX :

Good to know. I'll definitely keep the weight down. Are there any good rule of thumb ways to tell if you are near the weight limit? Such as tire pressure verse trailer height drop after being loaded?

In reply to SV reX :

I'll gladly blunder on here verse out on the road. 

In reply to Blunder :

I think I read the charts wrong. Looks like little trailers like that are rated by their capacity (not gross vehicle weight). If the trailer had a 1600 lb capacity and weighed 850 lbs empty, it would be pretty close to your 2500. 
 

I have a 5x10 that I use frequently for misc things like hauling trash. Random full loads are often around .75 tons when I drop them off. (Nothing super heavy like steel, masonry, or dirt).  Your trailer is 64% of mine, so I'm gonna venture a guess of a random load of household stuff to be around 1000 lbs. (plus the weight of the trailer).  You should be well under your 2500 lb target. 
 

I tow with a truck.  I'd be extra cautious with a lightweight car until you get some experience with it.

In reply to SV reX :

I appreciate all the advice and info. This is my favorite and almost only forum I visit. Top notch forum members here. 

SV reX said:

In reply to Blunder :

Tiny trailers are squirrely. Check the load rating. 

Depends on how it's loaded.  I had the springs on my HF 40x48 trailer practically bottomed out with stuff before and it was stable and secure behind a compact car, at 75-85mph.

Load heavier stuff more forward and you're fine.  The tow vehicle should sag a fair bit when the trailer is on and loaded, about/at least as much as if you were standing on the bumper.

This was easy to accomplish with the 40x48 because the trailer axle is behind the load bed's center.

from Harbor Freight website ,

4.80-12 in. Tire with 4 Lug Rim Load B (harborfreight.com)

 4.80-12 in. Tire with 4 Lug Rim Load B  , 

Working Load 785 lb.

So, what is the rule of thumb for tow vehicle / trailer weight ratio? 1:1? I once towed my 2600 lb Volvo 1800 behind my 3000 lb? Volvo 164 using my home made bumper tow bar over 1000 miles from ND to MO and back. It towed great except one time when I came around a barely wet dirty concrete road corner at a very slow speed (maybe 20mph) and the towed car jack knifed a little and slid me off of the road. Scary but luckily no damage.

Pete. (l33t FS) said:

SV reX said:

In reply to Blunder :

Tiny trailers are squirrely. Check the load rating. 

Depends on how it's loaded.  I had the springs on my HF 40x48 trailer practically bottomed out with stuff before and it was stable and secure behind a compact car, at 75-85mph.

Load heavier stuff more forward and you're fine.  The tow vehicle should sag a fair bit when the trailer is on and loaded, about/at least as much as if you were standing on the bumper.

This was easy to accomplish with the 40x48 because the trailer axle is behind the load bed's center.

They are still squirrely.  They may be stable and tow easily, but they react very quickly. If anything at all is wrong, there is very little time to correct. Plus, they can bounce (usually when unloaded). 800-1000 lbs isn't much except when it's jerking and yanking on your rear bumper. 
 

I tow a lot but can't offer a lot of feedback here because I never tow with a small car. I can only assume that something that is squirrely to tow with my truck is squirrely plus with a little car. 

Oh hell, I once hit a construction gap hard enough that the trailer came up and filled my rearview mirror.  It got the truck behind me to quit tailgating, at any rate   This was with the car and trailer so loaded down that the reciever hitch was almost touching the ground at times.

I have never experienced the trailer being squirrely, ever.  The worst thing was driving down a steep, corner-filled road with it behind a Miata (or maybe it was my RX-7?) and I found that it will tip up on one wheel before it slides.   Oops.   If anything, towing a loaded trailer behind the Miata made it MORE stable, like a drogue chute.

It's possible that being behind a truck WAS the problem, if the trailer was being towed nose-high.  That'd cause air to collect under the trailer at speed and make it do weird things.  Being behind a car, they tow great when nose-down or even level, and there's not much airflow under a car anyway.

On the rare occasion I tow a trailer, it's borrowed or rented. I worry a lot more about the condition of someone else's trailer than I do about the act of towing. Tires, wheel bearings, wiring, and lighting tend to suffer, and assembly is often haphazard. Make sure too that trailer parts like fenders and rails are firmly attached. Handing back a borrowed trailer with no fenders is a little embarrassing.

Double-check ahead of time that your Saturn has trailer wiring installed and that it's functioning correctly. Know where the corresponding fuse is in case you need to replace it on the road somewhere. Trailer wiring is usually pretty bad and will inconvenience you at the drop of a hat.

Read your owner's manual, see what it says about towing. Sometimes there's a tow/haul transmission mode. Sometimes they recommend you lock out overdrive. It's worth a read.

Towing a little utility trailer in the forward direction is easy breezy. Be conscious of it at all times. Give yourself extra time and room for lane changes, and don't assume that other traffic sees the trailer or cares about it or you in any way. Make sure you can see at least a little bit of the trailer in your mirrors when driving straight ahead so you can keep an eye on it going down the road.

If in hilly country, you'll develop a feel for the terrain. Feed in a little more gas when approaching a hill so you can hold speed when the hill begins, and roll out of the throttle as you crest a hill and start down the other side. This probably isn't strictly necessary with a lightweight trailer and a big engine like yours, but it helps to be cognizant of the physics involved.

Backing up with a tiny trailer is a bigger challenge. They're twitchy. Back up slowly and make small, gentle steering inputs. The axle is so close to the tow ball that the trailer will jackknife pretty quickly if you're not extremely careful. 

I like the challenge and the added engagement of towing a trailer. But then I also like trucking sims.

Cross the chains.  If the trailer pops off the ball, chains act as a basket to  catch it.  $250 fine in PA. if they're not crossed.