Quote:
Originally Posted by porscha356
Regarding the weight of the love seat. Bill, are you concerned with me getting a hernia putting it in the trailer or the affect on the slide from the increased weight?
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Actually, Bob, I was considering both. But my real worry was what it will do to the total weight of the trailer. The "dry weight" of the trailer is fairly low (depending on what model you get), but the SLs are the heaviest of the models in each line. In addition, once you add factory options (like the air conditioner and the awning), and then add maybe 200-300 pounds of "stuff" (food, water, clothing, cooking utensils, bedding, tools, folding chairs, battery, water and sewer hoses, and all the rest that is necessary for TMing), you are perilously close to the ratings of the trailer. And if you then throw in 200 pounds of love seat, you could go over the edge.
Like Larry, I would consider the strength of the floor, particularly the floor of the slideout. Many years ago, we had a discussion about the slideout floor beginning to sag, just under the normal load. TM strengthened it sometime after 2002, but I don't know precisely when (probably after 2004). If you get an older TM, and add a couple hundred pounds of love seat, you could encounter this problem. I would think you could stiffen the floor with a sheet of 1/2" plywood under the love seat, though. More weight, of course.
Take a look at
http://www.trailmanorowners.com/foru...read.php?t=340
And don't forget that with the love seat up front, much of the weight will come down on the hitch.
I don't mean to say that your proposed project can't be done. The ratings on the trailer have changed a bit over the years, so you can fold that in. And fortunately, since you haven't bought a TM, you have time to consider it all - that's unusual. A lot of it will come down to the capabilities of your tow vehicle, too. What do you plan to tow it with? What is the tow rating on your vehicle, and what is the hitch rating?
Bill