Tiny Life is a Highway, Travel Safe!

One of the great things about living tiny is that if your home is on wheels, you can practically take it anywhere you choose. When transporting your tiny home there are certain factors that should be kept in mind to assure the safety of you and your home. These factors include weight distribution, tongue weight, house size, and having a proper tow vehicle.

All weight should be distributed evenly with as much weight placed over the axels as possible. Appliances should not be placed all on one particular side of the home. Heavier items such as refrigerators, ovens, dishwashers, and clothing washer/dryers should be placed near the center or 60%back from the front of the house.

The amount of weight on the tongue should be between 9-15% of the total trailer weight. This will ensure that the back wheels of the truck that is pulling your home will stay in contact with the road. Most axels of a trailer are generally 60% away back from the tongue. This assures that there is proper tongue weight if the load is balanced over the axels. If the tongue weight is not enough, the house will bounce around a lot and could possibly raise the truck off the ground. In addition, too little tongue weight can cause the home to sway and allow the driver to lose control. Too much tongue weight can cause damage to the truck’s suspension that is towing the house.

The size of the home will also affect towing your home. Of course, a larger home will be harder to tow, that is just common sense. But for every foot in length, extra weight is added to the trailer. In addition, the longer length requires a larger turning radius and makes it harder to control in a turn. Your home should also stay within the 8.5’ Department of Transportation limit to keep from having to get a special permit every time you decide to move.

The type of truck you use matters when towing your tiny home. To assure the safety of your tiny home and considering the size of most tiny houses being built these days, I would recommend a 1-ton truck to handle your towing. Maybe a Dodge/Chevy 3500 or a Ford F-350. Whatever you decide, the truck should be rated to handle the overall trailer weight and tongue weight. Also, you will want to think about the truck’s suspension and make sure it will hold both weights as well.

Some other tips that might help you when traveling with your tiny home include:

Weigh your house at any truck scale. Weigh your home with the truck attached. Detach the house from the truck and then weigh the truck by itself. Finally, subtract the truck weight from the overall weight.
If you have a heavy tongue weight, place some of your heavier items towards the back.
Call the campground or RV park ahead of time to make sure they accept tiny homes. Also ask about water and sewer hookups, as well as electricity.
Use bubble levels and levelers to level your home when parked.
Purchase and use an RV GPS to navigate around low clearances, weight restrictions, propane restrictions, etc.to navigate around low clearances, weight restrictions, propane restrictions, and more.
Secure loose items in the tiny house before traveling.

Traveling with your tiny home is one of the greatest benefits of living tiny. You can literally take your home anywhere and stay as long as you wish. But don’t forget to travel safely. As you can see taking the proper precautions is not that complex but completely necessary to get the most out of your home and travels.

Until next time, live tiny!!