Dump Trailer Questions

[LilTractrThatCould]

Sure trac 6x12 10k owner here. Mainly used for yard maintenance around my mini pine forest. I love it unconditionally, it's saved so much effort over last two years. I love it even more now that the price on them has gone up substantially(thanks Rona). Most I've done is three dump runs/day and battery was still 70%(dump is ten min from house). I stuck with the 10k so WaDot leaves me alone on the hiways. The dump is kinda like a tractor, once own one, you can't understand why you waited so long to get one.

 

[greenerdreams]

i have been a professional landscaper for over 20 years. downsized a few years ago. I used to own multiple 1 ton dumptrucks and 3/4tons with dumper inserts. we always pulled ramp trailers for the equipment. after downsizing I sold all the trucks and bought a dumptrailer, wish i had switched a long time ago. trucks break, engines/trannies/brakes wear out etc. have had zero problems with the dump trailer. I have a single direct mount lift cylinder and i can overload it. a scissor is almost always going to be outsized for the trailer. when I do overload (not often and i almost always know when i have)and it won't dump i use a hi lift jack. The first few inches of lift are the most difficult, once past that point it will lift anything. I have heavy ramps that store on the trailer and can easily haul any equipment i own. set up your truck with a good tekonsha brake controller and you can tow without barely noticing the trailer. I have since sold all my other trailers since the dumper can do it all. Mine has a spreader gate that also opens barn door style. It is a nice option but i rarely use it. usually i would rather dump a pile and use a machine to spread, that way i end up getting exactly what amount of material i want in the right place. BTW i can dump many times per day and never kill the battery, i do have a permanently mounted trickle charger on the trailer and plug it in most of the time it sits.

 

[Tony H]

FYI. Some dump trailers have Gates only. No option to hinge open the bottom.

 

[MOTractor]

FYI. Some dump trailers have Gates only. No option to hinge open the bottom.

The trailer I am currently looking at (Doolittle 14') has 2 door versions "barn door" and "3 Way Spreader Gate" - The spreader gate seems to add about $1300 to the trailer price - The $1300 also adds "rub bars" not sure what that is yet

 

[jaxs]

FYI. Some dump trailers have Gates only. No option to hinge open the bottom.

You say "some dump trailers",does that mean I can still buy one with hinge open bottom belly dump? Are they available with gate plus bottom dump option or must you choose tailgate or open bottom?

 

[4570Man]

You say "some dump trailers",does that mean I can still buy one with hinge open bottom belly dump? Are they available with gate plus bottom dump option or must you choose tailgate or open bottom?

You can open mine from the bottom, open them in the middle like barn doors or open it from the top like a pickup. You’ll probably use the barn door function 90 percent of the time.

 

[nikerret]

You can open mine from the bottom, open them in the middle like barn doors or open it from the top like a pickup. You’ll probably use the barn door function 90 percent of the time.

Mine, too. I’ve used it like a pickup one time….

 

[4570Man]

Mine, too. I’ve used it like a pickup one time….

View attachment 718866

I use my ton dump truck like that all the time because the load gets stuck under it if you try to bottom dump and it doesn’t have a barn door option. Another bonus is it protects the lights and keep the back of the truck clean. But it doesn’t work very good to dump a trailer like that because they’re too low to the ground.

 

[MOTractor]

You can open mine from the bottom, open them in the middle like barn doors or open it from the top like a pickup. You’ll probably use the barn door function 90 percent of the time.

I was hoping the "3 way" also opened like a truck tailgate.

You say "some dump trailers",does that mean I can still buy one with hinge open bottom belly dump? Are they available with gate plus bottom dump option or must you choose tailgate or open bottom?

I was about to ask that, thank you!

 

[Sonny580]

The straight push cylinders on my sure trac are not big enough to lift the bed, so you have to either load tail heavy or carry the long arm jack to start the lift.--loader works too if you have one handy. I always have one of the skidloaders at the dump site. Quicker than messin with the jack! lol!
Also the cylinders are 2-way, another dumb idea! no wonder the new batteries only go for a couple loads. Gravity down would save on battery drain.

 

[LD1]

The straight push cylinders on my sure trac are not big enough to lift the bed, so you have to either load tail heavy or carry the long arm jack to start the lift.--loader works too if you have one handy. I always have one of the skidloaders at the dump site. Quicker than messin with the jack! lol!
Also the cylinders are 2-way, another dumb idea! no wonder the new batteries only go for a couple loads. Gravity down would save on battery drain.

I think part of the reason for DA cylinder is fluid capacity. The small pump/reservoir combos don't have enough capacity to lift a pair of cylinders without running out of oil.

 

[4570Man]

I think part of the reason for DA cylinder is fluid capacity. The small pump/reservoir combos don't have enough capacity to lift a pair of cylinders without running out of oil.

That’s the main problem. The other thing is they hold the bed down. That’s not usually a problem unless you’re loading something on the ramps. Overall I’d rather have gravity down with a bigger reservoir and a turn buckle to hold the bed down. The power down really slows down the cycle time. I doubt it does much for battery capacity since it’s not under load but it doesn’t help. The other problem is they’re prone to exploding reservoirs or puking out fluid if the battery gets weak and doesn’t adequately pump fluid back in as it’s going down.

 

[nisaacs]

I ordered the 3 way pump on my PJ, $225 option. Power up/power down and gravity down. I don't like/use the gravity down. It is too slow, especially if it is cold out. Then, if you let it down with a partial load it overflows the tank, even with restrictors in the line. They do make larger tanks for the gravity down systems.

I am looking at a double pump kit to speed up the dump cycle. They are expensive so I am also doing some research to see if I could just add a second pump, way cheaper.

KTI Hydraulics Dual Pump Motor Hydraulic Pump w/ Remote | Fayette Trailers LLC

 

[LD1]

I ordered the 3 way pump on my PJ, $225 option. Power up/power down and gravity down. I don't like/use the gravity down. It is too slow, especially if it is cold out. Then, if you let it down with a partial load it overflows the tank, even with restrictors in the line. They do make larger tanks for the gravity down systems.

I am looking at a double pump kit to speed up the dump cycle. They are expensive so I am also doing some research to see if I could just add a second pump, way cheaper.

KTI Hydraulics Dual Pump Motor Hydraulic Pump w/ Remote | Fayette Trailers LLC

The reason it overflows even with restrictors is you have no fluid going back to the rod side of the cylinder.

I think my trailer has a pair of 3.5x24 cylinders. That about 2 gallon of oil in the cylinders if it is raised all the way. The plastic think just ain't that big.

Gravity down tries to put all 2 gallon in there. Power down pumps as much as it can back in the rod side of the cylinder. With 1.75" rods 1.5 Gallo's of the two will fit back in the cylinder....so the plastic tank level only fluctuates 1/2 gallon

 

[nisaacs]

The reason it overflows even with restrictors is you have no fluid going back to the rod side of the cylinder.

I think my trailer has a pair of 3.5x24 cylinders. That about 2 gallon of oil in the cylinders if it is raised all the way. The plastic think just ain't that big.

Gravity down tries to put all 2 gallon in there. Power down pumps as much as it can back in the rod side of the cylinder. With 1.75" rods 1.5 Gallo's of the two will fit back in the cylinder....so the plastic tank level only fluctuates 1/2 gallon

The cylinder will vacuum some oil back into the rod side, just not enough. If the bed is empty, it drops slow enough that is wont overflow but it is just too slow. Not sure why they even offer it. They make larger tanks for the power up/gravity down systems but some manufactures don't know how to size the tank. I had a 6'x10' Parker that only had gravity down, it was really fast on the down but no control if the bed had weight in it. At the time, I wasn't aware of the safety valve/restrictor that I could have installed.

 

[jaxs]

Gravity down is a cost cutting decision that work's for some but not others. In some ways it's similar to a fel with trip bucket,room for improvement but beat's no bucket by a mile.