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Topic: My visit to the weighbridge

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MadMum1972

09/5/2013 at 1:41pm
Location: Hempstead Kent
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My van and I had a trip to the local weighbridge today. I am a little confused. They did four weighs, two with car and van together and two with just the van.

The van came out at 1470 and 1450kg. Our laden weight states 1443kg. Apparently, the 20kg variant was due to the high wind conditions interferring with the weigh.

My first question is, which weight should I go by? I would like to thnk the 1450kg as I will only need to take my cans of beans out to bring it down, lol!!

Tmy second question is, all my documents state 1443kg laden but then one includes the words 'technical mass' and it is 1500kg. Is there a bit of leeway on the weight we can go up to when we are laden then? Or is the 1500kg the weight at which structural damage may occur?

Sorry if these are silly questions with obvious answers but I am hungry to learn!

Thanks

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Chestnut Meadows Bexhill August 2015
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p@ul

09/5/2013 at 1:47pm
Location: Staffordshire Moorlands
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Did you take everything out of the van including the battery and gas bottle. Do you have a motor mover fitted ?

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MadMum1972

09/5/2013 at 1:54pm
Location: Hempstead Kent
Outfit: Vango Genesis Airbeam 500

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No, I didn't take anything put as I wanted the exact reading of what we had in there. We do have a mover which I know from the paperwork is 34kg. I was after the fuly laden weight as I know these bits and pieces all add up. I left the van 'fully prepared' for our hols including bedding. I just need clothes and food in the car.

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nelmo

09/5/2013 at 2:34pm
Location: Surrey
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I personally wouldn't worry about a few kg's difference either way. Like everything, a caravan chassis will have been built with a high tolerance, so they may put 1500kg on the documents but it has probably been happily tested up to 2000kg with no ill-effect.

Not saying you should put 2000kg in it, obviously not, but 50kg either way isn't going to be a problem - life is too short etc...

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david8858

09/5/2013 at 2:45pm
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Problem is if you exceed the MPTLM figure it could invalidate your insurance and result in you driving illegally.

It probably won't do any harm to the caravan as nelmo says there will be some tolerence and since you can get the MPTLM figure upgraded by the manufacturer on request it follows that there is some leeway.

David

MadMum1972

09/5/2013 at 2:48pm
Location: Hempstead Kent
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Great, thanks. A friend of mine said I am too paranoid as she says 'just sling everything in it, we do!'. Limits are there for a reason though!!

I have, since weighing, started weighing items in and items out, such as toothbrushes and other such stuff! It could get out of hand at this rate but I am slightly ocd with this sort of thing!

Well, i know not to put anything else in it and I don't really need to anyway. I must say I was pleasantly surprised as I thought I would be way over.

Thanks again
So excited about going away again tomorrow! Next weekend I am at home

But the following weekend, I am off for a whole week with my handsome beast! (that's the caravan)

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Once in lifetime trip to Florida Oct 2015!!!

mickeyb

09/5/2013 at 2:59pm
Location: Kent Coast
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Hi MM, nice to hear first trip went well. Don't think you've too much to worry about regarding weights. You're marginally over the gross but don't get paranoid about it. I assume that you have the gross train weight if they weighed car/van together and if you are within the parameters you can always put something out of the van into the car. Loaded to 1500kgs plus maybe a bit more wont cause any structural damage, the margins allowed within manufacture are far higher than that. I know all public weghbridges are regularly calibrated but the reality is, the readings will differ as you found out. If in the unlikely circumstances of you being stopped and check weighed, you'd probably find the readings would differ again from your local bridge but I'm pretty sure it wouldn't be a prob. The trained eye of the traffic officer or mobile mot traffic examiner can spot an over loaded vehicle, caravan/truck or whatever, and knows which to pull. Now you have a good idea on what you can load in car/van stick to your pattern and you wont go far wrong. If you ever do get stopped and found to be grossly overweight, simple, blame the oh.......Mick (Down the posh end of Kent)

nelmo

09/5/2013 at 3:53pm
Location: Surrey
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Quote: Originally posted by david8858 on 09/5/2013
Problem is if you exceed the MPTLM figure it could invalidate your insurance

Although that is true, I've never understood how that would be enforced?

If you have an accident, presumably you'd have bits of caravan all over the road, so how are they going to weigh it?

If it's stolen, nothing to weigh and in the unlikely event they recover and weigh the van, surely you could argue that the thieves did something?

If you have some claim where an assessor has to come round, empty the van before they turn up (even assuming they have some device for on-the-spot weighing).

Maybe I'm missing something...

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bobsbabes

09/5/2013 at 5:18pm
Location: Shropshire
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Quote: Originally posted by nelmo on 09/5/2013
I personally wouldn't worry about a few kg's difference either way. Like everything, a caravan chassis will have been built with a high tolerance, so they may put 1500kg on the documents but it has probably been happily tested up to 2000kg with no ill-effect.

Not saying you should put 2000kg in it, obviously not, but 50kg either way isn't going to be a problem - life is too short etc...

fine unless you get pulled and taken to a weighbridge by police points and fine ???

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john holleran

09/5/2013 at 5:26pm
Location: Usually In Newton-Le-Willows.
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You can these days be weighed whilst on the move. http://www.transportsfriend.org/enforcement/wims.html

An interesting read.

JayEss

09/5/2013 at 5:27pm
Location: Cheshire
Outfit: Knaus s470 + Hilux

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At least you can get yours uprated if you need to. I contacted Knaus about uprated mine and they said it isn't possible. It's built like a tank! I can't believe I couldn't have another 20 kg or so.

We've taken the spare wheel off, taken the carpets and folding table out and that's given us a bit of spare capacity

the black fox

09/5/2013 at 7:09pm
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its a bit of a wide open field really as some weights of car are based on a empty vehicle and others based for the latest version of the same car with a full tank and four occupants .as long as your sensible and stay within a reality check area you will be fine

Sool

10/5/2013 at 8:31am
Location: Yorkshire Dales
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Quote:
My second question is, all my documents state 1443kg laden but then one includes the words 'technical mass' and it is 1500kg.

I would use the figure that appears on the caravan's weight plate, which is the one that would be considered in a roadside event.

The law says what it does for a reason and I would never advocate driving overweight, for the simple reason that it's dangerous.

As things currently stand, VOSA will issue a £60.00 fixed penalty for an overload up to 9,99%, although the examiners will normally allow a 5% tolerance before issuing a fine. If, for whatever reason, the matter finished up in court things could be very different (£2,500 maximum fine, plus penalty points or disqualification).

For younger drivers limited to 3500KG outfits, being overweight could entail a licence offence (£1,000 maximum fine, plus penalty points), for which there would be no tolerance.

There is also the matter of the weight that your tyres will safely carry. It is recommended that caravan tyres are not run above 90% of their combined load potential. Look up your caravan tyre load rating on the table below, multiply this 2 (assuming single axle) and then by 90% to discover the maximum load they can carry.

Post last edited on 10/05/2013 08:43:09

JayEss

10/5/2013 at 9:54am
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Can someone explain how the 10% for overloading is calculated? Is it 10% of the MTPLM or 10% of the payload.

5% of the MTPLM gives me 75kg which seems an awful lot to overload by

Sool

10/5/2013 at 10:01am
Location: Yorkshire Dales
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Quote: Originally posted by JayEss on 10/5/2013
Can someone explain how the 10% for overloading is calculated? Is it 10% of the MTPLM or 10% of the payload.

5% of the MTPLM gives me 75kg which seems an awful lot to overload by

Overloading is calculated from the MTPLM, as it appears on the plate.

I agree that it can amount to one hell of lot, but I don't condone treading this route.

JayEss

10/5/2013 at 10:10am
Location: Cheshire
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Thanks for that. I've weighed everything into the van and weighed everything we've taken off it and I'm pretty sure we're well within payload but I haven't taken it to a weighbridge to see what unladen weight is yet.

We travel very light compared to others I've seen so I'm not overly worried but without knowing what the unladen weight is it's still in the back of my mind

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