i have a North* TC(Adventurer) with the outside compartments(fixed).
would like to put approx 91 lbs of cargo(7 12 pks soft drinks & 4 gals of water) in the right rear side compartment which is underneath the fridge.should i be concerned with the weight from a structural standpoint on the camper,not concerned with weight issues as it pertains to hauling.in other words is that too much weight to put in the compartment structurally speaking.
FYI: travel will not be offroad when loaded this heavy as i will be on the road about 6 weeks.
I can't offer knowledge on this, but can offer an opinion. If you look inside the compartment, you can get a pretty good idea how it is constructed, hopefully how the floor is supported. Personally, I doubt it will be a problem, but would consider spreading the load to other compartments by swapping some of the contents with contents you carry in the TC which weigh less.
Keep in mind, many of the holding tanks weigh much more, and they are held in the TC with a half dozen screws and a couple of straps. Look at battery boxes, two batteries are pretty heavy. As I previously suggested, look at how the floor of the compartment is attached to the rest of the TC.
I do wonder if you are on the road for 6 weeks, would you not have access to water and soft drinks?
I have the same camper with the detachable compartments. I would not put any significant amount of weight in mine. Plus I don't like to pile up the weight behind the rear wheels. All of our bottled water goes in the knee wall forward of the rear wheels. I'd call Rex.
Mike
I'd second the 'call Rex' as I am sure that is a concern for users of that particular camper. If those boxes are insulated/covered on the insides it might be harder to figure out how strong they are without tearing into things a bit. I would GUESS that 100 pounds shouldn't be a problem, especially if you spread it out within the space. I would think they anticipated people putting those boxes to use with fairly weighty items......but call Rex anyway. The benefits of having good manufacturer support.
I would first put a piece of plywood tightly fit in the bottom of the compartment. This will help to disperse any point loads and protect the bottom layer from wear. 91 pounds doesn't seem like a lot, but it's about 25 pounds heavier than a Honda 2000 generator with full oil and gas. I reckon that might be the use for such an opening if one chooses to load that compartment up.
Myself, I agree that heavy loads should be kept forward of the rear axle if possible. I carry my gen in the back seat area of the truck.
Mike and Carole
2007 Snowbird 9'6" Super Slide
2005 16.6 Double Eagle
2000 F350 7.3 SC 4X4
previously 8'10" Snowbird Camper
2006 Triple E Regency 27 foot SXL SOLD!
I have the permanently affixed side saddle storage gen storage compartments on mine too. My first instincts are that you will be OK, but you are carrying more weight than I usually do.
I'll also recommend calling Rex or Rory at the factory. keep us posted... I am interested in their take on the weight capacity.
2005 Dodge 3500 SRW, Qcab long bed, NV-6500, diesel, 4WD, Helwig, 9000XL,
Nitto 285/70/17 Terra Grapplers, Honda eu3000Is, custom overload spring perch spacers.
2008 NorthStar Arrow short bed.
Reddog1 wrote: I can't offer knowledge on this, but can offer an opinion. If you look inside the compartment, you can get a pretty good idea how it is constructed, hopefully how the floor is supported. Personally, I doubt it will be a problem, but would consider spreading the load to other compartments by swapping some of the contents with contents you carry in the TC which weigh less.
Keep in mind, many of the holding tanks weigh much more, and they are held in the TC with a half dozen screws and a couple of straps. Look at battery boxes, two batteries are pretty heavy. As I previously suggested, look at how the floor of the compartment is attached to the rest of the TC.
I do wonder if you are on the road for 6 weeks, would you not have access to water and soft drinks?
Wayne
Course I do,but not even close to what I paid.
I failed to mention that I am cheap!!! One has to save where one can to purchase gas for a 5,000 mile trip.
I also wonder why you carry so much soda, but in any case, I'd like to see the layout of your TC.
There have been cases that adding weight in storage compartments not only destroyed the storage compartment, they also damaged the structure of the camper. The problem is that most walls have more than one purpose, so if you damage one of the supports, the overall structure degrades rapidly.
100 lbs bouncing/jarring, can do significant damage in the wrong place.
'06 F350 Lariat Supercab SRW, 6.0 PSD 4x4 Long Bed, Intake Elbow, Walker Big Truck Muffler. '06 Host Rainer 950 Double Slide, Fastguns. Firestone Air Bags, Rancho 9000s, Vision 19.5s with Hankook DH-01 245s, Energy Suspension bump stops.
whizbang wrote: Why would you choose to carry soft drinks that you can buy anywhere?
One of the great opportunities afforded people that use Truck Campers is the ability to go to remote locations, which is frequently my choice and opportunity. Making a run for pop and bread often is a 70 or 90 mile one way trip out in the west, for me. These are choices one makes and sometimes “stocking up” before you leave town is a good plan as the alternative is to turn your truck around on someplace like the White Rim Trail and run into the nearest town, Moab. That is why I take extra eggs, milk, pop and Beer if other TC friends are going to show up! If you are just going out for a weekend, I agree, why take extra of anything. You probably don’t want to ask me how much Diesel, Premium Gas, Regular Gas, propane and potable water that I head out of town with, as it would make the soda pop question pretty silly in comparison. Each of us has different needs and uses.
Yes, a small sheet of plywood will help dissipate the weight evenly as will package tape the cartons together, to make them a brick. This will minimize a 12 pack sliding around acting as a sledge hammer/s on the corners of the compartment.
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