Stowing a light utility trailer against the wall

[jmarkwolf]

Can anyone advise why they don't recommend cutting the tongues on aluminum trailers and adding the folding type hinges to reduce overall length of the trailer? The hinges that are available, such as Fulton, seem to be very robust. Is it concern over the bolt holes wallowing the aluminum out, or dis-similar metals corrosion between the aluminum and steel bolts, etc?

I have an application where it would be advantageous to shorten the tongue on the trailer below, in order to hoist it against the wall for storage vs letting it take valuable floor space in my garage (I know the stone guard would need to be removed). The trailer is 12ft long, my garage ceilings are 10ft tall. Removing a little over 2ft of overall length might make it possible. Don't want to store it outside.

The trailer is designed to haul a quad, along with maybe some camping gear. It weighs under 500lbs, the bed measures 7ft wide and 8ft long, the weight capacity is 2520lbs (very optomistically). There's room for 2 maybe 3 dirt bikes, or my lawn tractor. The folding hinges have adequate capacity for my application.

Should I abandon the idea in favor of safety?

 

[cvairwerks]

That Fulton hinge is a cast assembly...Welding cast to formed steel gets to be involved. Bolting like that works, but would require upping a gauge or two or adding internal spacers to prevent tube collapse

 

[infinkc]

Id say cause it might have a chance of wearing out. Is your square tube coming off the trailer not galvanized? most alum trailers have a galvanized tube. If not, if its that light of load id cut it and put that folding coupler on. I would also add a safety chain from one end to the other. If you could find someone local, i would have them weld a plate at the end of the cut tube just to add more strength.

 

[FMB4]

Should I abandon the idea in favor of safety?

Shortening the tongue on a trailer will make it more difficult to maneuver. This is especially true when backing up.

 

[jmarkwolf]

Shortening the tongue on a trailer will make it more difficult to maneuver. This is especially true when backing up.

FMB4

I should have elaborated.

Once the hinge is installed, the original tongue would be swung back into place for original length and normal towing. Hence the hinge.

The original purpose for these hinges is typically for boat trailers that are too long to fit in a typical garage.

 

[yatg]

Based on the instructions, each side of that hinge is bolted to the tube with 4 bolts/nuts. No through bolts to crush the tube.

https://www.fultonperformance.com/product-assets/install/NHDPB230101.pdf

And the instructions don't match the picture of the item, so that's always reassuring.

 

[jmarkwolf]

Id say cause it might have a chance of wearing out. Is your square tube coming off the trailer not galvanized? most alum trailers have a galvanized tube. If not, if its that light of load id cut it and put that folding coupler on. I would also add a safety chain from one end to the other. If you could find someone local, i would have them weld a plate at the end of the cut tube just to add more strength.

Why would galvanizing make a difference in this application?

I don't know if it's galvanized or not, the website doesn't make mention of it.

 

[infinkc]

Why would galvanizing make a difference in this application?

I don't know if it's galvanized or not, the website doesn't make mention of it.

if it was galvanized you can just put that hinge on. can you take a picture of your trailer, you can tell if its galvanized compared to aluminum.

 

[ace10]

Just kinda pointing out the obvious... whatever you use to hoist her up on end is going to eat into your headspace.

 

[FredWanaker]

we all know the real solution here. Build a bigger garage.

 

[PoorUB]

Id say cause it might have a chance of wearing out. Is your square tube coming off the trailer not galvanized? most alum trailers have a galvanized tube. If not, if its that light of load id cut it and put that folding coupler on. I would also add a safety chain from one end to the other. If you could find someone local, i would have them weld a plate at the end of the cut tube just to add more strength.

I have never seen an aluminum trailer with a galvanized tongue. All aluminum, except for the actual ball hitch its self.

 

[PoorUB]

Can anyone advise why they don't recommend cutting the tongues on aluminum trailers and adding the folding type hinges to reduce overall length of the trailer? The hinges that are available, such as Fulton, seem to be very robust. Is it concern over the bolt holes wallowing the aluminum out, or dis-similar metals corrosion between the aluminum and steel bolts, etc?

I would assume it is because of dissimilar metals and corrosion, plus not being able to bolt it properly to the aluminum tube.
If the manufacturer says no, I would trust them. If it would work safely on an aluminum tongue, they well sell more!

 

[infinkc]

I have never seen an aluminum trailer with a galvanized tongue. All aluminum, except for the actual ball hitch its self.

 

[andyvh1959]

Hmm, I have a 5x10 tilt bed trailer and thought of using a winch to stand the trailer on end in the garage to save floor space. Hadn't thought about a hinged tongue to make it shorter. Maybe for a fishing boat trailer, but I don't see it for a trailer I might use to load to the max, 3,000 lbs in my case.

I already have a lift platform for my snowmobile and snowblower. I could use a pulley system to get the cable in a location to tilt the trailer on end for storage.

 

[csp]

Given the load capacity and use of that particular trailer, I wouldn't hesitate to use that hinge if it were mine.

People forget about relevance in threads like this.

I'm not sure where anyone got the idea that aluminum trailers have galvanized tube. None of mine ever have been galvanized or would need to be. Galvanization on trailers is for rust prevention.

 

[csp]

Your tongue tube appears to be steel that has been galvanized, is it not?

 

[ace10]

That's interesting design. Aluminum I beams with a galvanized steel tube nestled between.

 

[infinkc]

Your tongue tube appears to be steel that has been galvanized, is it not?

not mine, just an image i found online to show that they do make trailers with a metal beam with the rest aluminum.

 

[PoorUB]

Why would galvanizing make a difference in this application?

I don't know if it's galvanized or not, the website doesn't make mention of it.

The tongue of the trailer you posted a picture of is aluminum.

 

[PoorUB]

Well, that is a first for me. Is that trailer designed for salt water? Not much salt water in North Dakota!

Aslo I was responding to this comment,

Id say cause it might have a chance of wearing out. Is your square tube coming off the trailer not galvanized? most alum trailers have a galvanized tube. If not, if its that light of load id cut it and put that folding coupler on. I would also add a safety chain from one end to the other. If you could find someone local, i would have them weld a plate at the end of the cut tube just to add more strength.

Two places I worked have had aluminum trailers, my buddy has an aluminum trailer. I was shopping for one a couple years ago and never saw a galvanized tongue on any of them, all aluminum, and I looked at several different brands.

I would dare say a galvanized tongue is a rarity.

 

[andyvh1959]

I could see that hinged tongue working if it had something like a tapered square cone shape to engage into the tongue tube so it would actually bridge the load across the hinge area. Something that would take some force to engage. My trailer already has enough play in the coupler, in the draw bar, in the tilt bed lock pin area. I made a hard rubber pad for the tilt pin latch area to take up any play and reduce the noise when towing the trailer. Another "break" in the system would eventually mean more play, more noise.

 

[csp]

not mine, just an image i found online to show that they do make trailers with a metal beam with the rest aluminum.

The OPs tongue is aluminum. Not sure why it was even brought up because it's false that most aluminum trailers have galvanized steel tongues. I've owned a dozen at least personally, and currently have three, and not a one was anything but aluminum, other than the ball coupler.

It's irrelevant to the question asked about the hinge.

 

[ace10]

The OPs tongue is aluminum. Not sure why it was even brought up because it's false that most aluminum trailers have galvanized steel tongues. I've owned a dozen at least personally, and currently have three, and not a one was anything but aluminum, other than the ball coupler.

Likely in response to...

I have never seen an aluminum trailer with a galvanized tongue. All aluminum, except for the actual ball hitch its self.

And

...
I'm not sure where anyone got the idea that aluminum trailers have galvanized tube. None of mine ever have been galvanized or would need to be. Galvanization on trailers is for rust prevention.

 

[FredWanaker]

Aluminum can fracture easier than steel. Best guess is they don't want the liability of stress cracks coming from fastener holes in aluminum. That would be my concern with the number of holes needed to make it work.

 

[infinkc]

The OPs tongue is aluminum. Not sure why it was even brought up because it's false that most aluminum trailers have galvanized steel tongues. I've owned a dozen at least personally, and currently have three, and not a one was anything but aluminum, other than the ball coupler.

It's irrelevant to the question asked about the hinge.

It was asked, cause some dont know they are steel, like you did not know there were steel ones with the rest aluminum. If his actually was steel he could put the hinge on it with no issues. One may think the whole trailer is aluminum, but it may not be, was just asking to see as it would make life much easier.

 

[jmarkwolf]

OP (original poster) here:

I think some responses are referring to galvanized steel, and some may be referring to galvanized aluminum.

First, my trailer (and tongue) is definitely aluminum, stated as such in the original post. Second, I think this trailer is probably treated to withstand road salt, as are most if not all snowmobile trailers. There is such a thing as galvanized aluminum for corrosion prevention, but whether my trailer is galvanized I don't know.

I know aluminum dock sections are treated with something that prevents welding on them unless you grind off the surface treatment. Don't know if that is referred to as galvanizing or not, but I would expect so.

Would an aluminum tongue, galvanized or not, preclude using one of these hinged couplers safely?

 

[jubilee]

I’ve modified some trailer hitches in past that had square tube hitches by simply using the tube in a tube method, just like a receiver hitch.
You can lengthen, shorten, or completely remove ball end of hitch.
Always ran anti rattle clips on pins and ran two pins.

 

[jmarkwolf]

Hmm, I have a 5x10 tilt bed trailer and thought of using a winch to stand the trailer on end in the garage to save floor space. Hadn't thought about a hinged tongue to make it shorter. Maybe for a fishing boat trailer, but I don't see it for a trailer I might use to load to the max, 3,000 lbs in my case.

I already have a lift platform for my snowmobile and snowblower. I could use a pulley system to get the cable in a location to tilt the trailer on end for storage.

I used to hoist an HF trailer against the garage wall with a small manual block and tackle and a single hook in a wall stud for the hoisting, and two more for clipping the trailer corners to the wall. It was a tilt bed also, but only 270lbs or so. The tongue dropped out of the way so it fit under the 10ft ceiling.

Remember, the floor is always going to support at least half the weight of the trailer as you hoist it up against the wall, reducing the required capacity of the hoist, unless of course you hoist it entirely off the floor. I would still go with overkill on the hoist and wall attachment method however.

The downside of course, is that you have to clear a spot in the garage every time you want to hoist it up or bring it down.

The pic below is an aluminum Floe trailer I stowed on its' side at my hangar for many years. It was 12ft long and 8.5ft wide, weighing about 800lbs. I installed a 2x4 "bumper" along the side of the trailer so no damage was ever done. Had to clear out half the hanger every time I needed the trailer!

 

[ace10]

How about storing it on its side?

 

[Grimpala]

Could you sleeve the tongue instead of hinging it? Smaller thicker walled tube inside the current one. Couple of pins and you're back in business.

https://app.louisianasportsman.com/lpca/index.php?section=reports&event=view&action=print&id=146446

 

[thammel]

Check out the northern tool folding aluminum trailer. I bought it last year. Right now it is folded against the wall in my shed.

 

[Leaflessshadetree]

My thought is that bolt holes and the edge where the tube enter the hinge are both areas where stress could be a concern. The company that makes the hinge not only doesn't want the liability they also specifically state not to do it which removes them even further.
Is there another brand (or model) of hinge that is made for aluminum trailers?

 

[PoorUB]

Can anyone advise why they don't recommend cutting the tongues on aluminum trailers and adding the folding type hinges to reduce overall length of the trailer?

How badly do you want it? Talk to a local welding/machine shop. Perhaps they could cut of the tongue and do a slide in/out tongue and weld some reinforcement to the pin areas the hold it in place.

 

[CraigStu]

Depending which way you garage ceiling trusses run, how about removing a piece of drywall between two trusses to allow the trailer tongue to stick up into the attic/roof space. I can't tell if your tailer has brakes or not, but if there is no master cylinder attached to the hitch, you could remove the hitch each time and shorten it by 8 inches or so. A battery or air powered impact wrench would make that a 60 second job.

 

[csp]

Likely in response to...

It was mentioned in the third post in the thread, so it wasn't in response to anything.

On another note, the casting of this hinge is curved in the corners just like steel tubing is. The aluminum tongue on the OPs trailer is very possibly a squared off corner and even if dimensions are the same as what the hinge is designed to fit, the square corner would prevent the hinge from sliding over the tubing. Looking at two of my aluminum trailers the tongue tube is squared, not rounded in the corners.

 

[Firebrick43]

OP (original poster) here:

I think some responses are referring to galvanized steel, and some may be referring to galvanized aluminum.

First, my trailer (and tongue) is definitely aluminum, stated as such in the original post. Second, I think this trailer is probably treated to withstand road salt, as are most if not all snowmobile trailers. There is such a thing as galvanized aluminum for corrosion prevention, but whether my trailer is galvanized I don't know.

I know aluminum dock sections are treated with something that prevents welding on them unless you grind off the surface treatment. Don't know if that is referred to as galvanizing or not, but I would expect so.

Would an aluminum tongue, galvanized or not, preclude using one of these hinged couplers safely?

Galvalum is not galvanized aluminum. Galvalum is the aluminum/zinc alloy coating on steel roofing.

Hard anodizing aluminum improves corrosion resistance but I highly doubt it was done as that would be some bath and a killer power supply.

The only other solution is a coating of some sort such as paint or zinc chromate primer. Is it painted?

 

[ace10]

It was mentioned in the third post in the thread, so it wasn't in response to anything.

On another note, the casting of this hinge is curved in the corners just like steel tubing is. The aluminum tongue on the OPs trailer is very possibly a squared off corner and even if dimensions are the same as what the hinge is designed to fit, the square corner would prevent the hinge from sliding over the tubing. Looking at two of my aluminum trailers the tongue tube is squared, not rounded in the corners.

OK, OK. You win.
You definitely didn't mention that aluminum trailers don't have galvanized tubes.
And the trailer that was posted in #13, definitely doesn't have a galvanized steel tube.



Leaving this here so it's perfectly clear what wasn't said.

...
I'm not sure where anyone got the idea that aluminum trailers have galvanized tube..

lol

 

[andyvh1959]

At one point I was considering using my lift hoist, through a cable pulley system to lift the entire trailer up to the trusses above the overhead door (shop garage is tall enough for that). The 5x10 steel tilt bed trailer weighs 700lbs. Not sure if I'll still do that or just lay out a paver pad next to the garage and park the trailer on that. I'm in the city of Green Bay and there is no HOA in this area. I've stored the trailer outside for 16 years and no one has complained, but I'd prefer to have it inside.

 

[ace10]

Found this creative design for a folding aluminum utility trailer. Made up in Quebec

Adapt-X Folding Trailers - Apogee Trailers: Aluminum Foldable Trailers

ADAPT-X ALUMINUM TRAILERS STURDY – DURABLE – CONVENIENT The Adapt-X™ aluminum trailers combine unique features without any compromise. When folded, the Adapt-X™ aluminum trailers can be stored in only 39″. Built tough – Built to Last – Built to Fold STURDY STRUCTURE Structural Aluminum...

apogeetrailers.com

Up to 6x12

Spendy, but if it's what you need, then the 25-ish% premium is probably worth it.

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[csp]

Leaving this here so it's perfectly clear what wasn't said.

Are you sure about that? So what is this below in bold, from post #3 as already mentioned?

Id say cause it might have a chance of wearing out. Is your square tube coming off the trailer not galvanized? most alum trailers have a galvanized tube. If not, if its that light of load id cut it and put that folding coupler on. I would also add a safety chain from one end to the other. If you could find someone local, i would have them weld a plate at the end of the cut tube just to add more strength.