Dump Trailers

[tractorkid]

I am thinking about getting a dump trailer. I'm am yet to do any research other than looking at some manufacturers websites. Just curious how well they work. My thought is to use it for mulch, dirt, brush, etc around the yard and some work going on the street. I have a trailer right now and use it all the time but waste so much time unloading it so was thinking that a dump trailer woulld be a good investment. For those of you that have them, are you happy with them, do they work well? Also, I dont need too big, or heavy duty, do I go 1 or 2 axles. Also, if you don't mind sharing, what are some of the price range you guys have paid in.
Thanks

 

[GreatWhitehunter]

I'll offer some insite as I'm on the same quest just further along. I've found that dump trailers are a great tool and make lots of sense. You just need to see if the justification is there. Here's the pros, you can haul any bulk material whenever you like and avoid the high delivery prices. If you get a large enough trailer you can also haul your equipment. All the trailers I've looked at were very well made (brimar,ezdumper,premier,loadtrail,anderson,etc)
The cons I have found was price, and weight. These trailers weight alot. I have a 3/4 ton diesel so I'm not worried too much. The other con is size,I have a JD 3320 with fel and soon bh. The trailer I was interested in was 7x14
the tractor would fit well but that means I can't take any other toys(quad,mowers,etc) or attchments along with me. So at this point I'm leaning towards the flat deck trailer 12k 18'long with landscape stlye ramps. If I were you I'd go with tandem axles. Hope this helps.

Matt Traficante

 

[HomeBrew2]

I use mine mostly on my property, rarely on the road. Because my tractor is so small, it cuts a lot of hauling hours off it. I use it for spreading gravel from bulk pile, brush, dirt, excavated rocks, cut native grass for compost pile. Really really handy.

It's tandem axle w/brakes on one axle, 5'x10'x2' high w/stake pockets for sideboards, 7K# GVW, 2200# empty, elec/hyd power, single conventional ram (not telescopic, no scissors), barn style rear doors. About $2400 from a local mfg.

 

[AlanB]

I just bought a Homesteader 6X10 tandem 10,000 lb capacity for $3900

I have looked and thought on it for years. Finally had the extra cash in hand to either buy the pieces, or go ahead and just buy the trailer. Looked at how long it takes me to do projects, and figured I would concentrate on things I HAD to do, and just buy the trailer.

Consider carefully what you will dump and the tailgate option. I have the tailgate that works like a pickup, or like a dump truck, but NOT like a barn door.

Already a couple of times I was wishing for the barn door option when unloading debris. It may be a mod in the making, but I want to give it a good try first.

I would not consider anything but a tandem, and I went with the heavier axles and smaller body as we have employees using the equipment and some of the things that stay on the front of my mind (like the weight of gravel) sometimes goes right past employees. I was considering getting the 3500 lb axles but as my dad said, how long do you think it will be before you see the trailer with 6000 lbs on it..... NOT long is my bet. Same with a bigger box.

I considered bigger, longer, gooseneck etc. but went bumper pull for ease of getting in tight places and variety of trucks I can hook too.

I have an 18' gooseneck equipment trailer that is still too short too often so I did not want to haul my epuipment in this trailer.

It is all a series of compromises, I bought the one I could afford, in the size I thought MOST usefull for us, at the place that had them at what I considered a reasonable price.

I will say it put a real big smile on my face the first time I had to unload a bunch of debris at 9 pm after driving 4 hours and working all day..... Hardest part was setting the chains, the rest was just a big smile on my face!

 

[ddrake_pgh]

I have a 10 ft gooseneck dump trailer rated at 15,000;bs. I've hauled 12,000 lbs of 2b up steep mountains with no problem but the truck really had to work.

A couple things I hate about mine.
1.) the battery is not enough to dump the trailer near enough for it to be useful. What I really need is to be able to use my generator to power the hydraulic pump. The batter dies pretty quickly.

2.) I wish the axles were futher back. Its very difficult to back up.

 

[MrJimi]

I have a 10 ft gooseneck dump trailer rated at 15,000;bs. I've hauled 12,000 lbs of 2b up steep mountains with no problem but the truck really had to work.

A couple things I hate about mine.
1.) the battery is not enough to dump the trailer near enough for it to be useful. What I really need is to be able to use my generator to power the hydraulic pump. The batter dies pretty quickly.

2.) I wish the axles were futher back. Its very difficult to back up.

What if your battery was connected to your trucks battery like campers do? and how about a larger capacity battery, like a deep cycle etc. they use on bass boats.
Jim

 

[weesa20]

I don't own a dump trailer but I have used rented ones for different projects. They are wonderful things and have saved me a lot of time and energy. I started out renting open Uhaul trailers and using the tractor (when available) to unload but many times I was delivering materials to places other than where my tractor was.
A few thoughts about dump trailers:

1) they are very heavy- cuts into the load capacity and is a trade-off.
2) I have rented a Texas Bragg DT that I had to start unloading by hand several times because the hydraulic lift was unable to lift the load, (even though the load fit into the box) Have had better luck with a Bri-Mar
3) don't count in carrying large pieces of equipment because the dumptrailers are so much taller and harder to drive up into and out of. I have lifted the back tires of my trailblazer many times when unloading the dumptrailers as the load shifts.

W

 

[tractorkid]

Thanks for all your responses. So far I've looked at Bri-Mar, Cam Superline, and Downeaster. They all look well built, though the Downeater's don't seem to tilt as far as the others, though that could just be the photos, any opinions on this. Also, the Rascal series from Bri-Mar seems appealing. Though I am yet to get price quotes, they say it is their economy model perfect for the farm so I am thinking that may make sense to me as I am using only for personal use around the house carring dirt, mulch, logs, brush, etc. I also don't need too big as this isn't something I'll be using all the time. Anyone have any experiences with any of these brands?
Thanks

 

[AlanB]

If I remember right, the Bri-mar Rascal came with removable stake pocket sides.

I could see that being nice if you were doing a lot of palletized materials to get them off the sides.

I felt for the limited amount of palletized materials that we do, we could just load / unload them from the back.

I went with a deck over so that I had higher dumping heights. (and I still wish it was higher when dumping)

 

[rozett]

I have an Anderson 12k pound dumper that I use to deliver firewood. I tow it with my Ford Excursion on the road and with my Cub 7360 around the farm. I've delivered well over 100 cord of wood, plus use it to move brush, manure, mulch, etc. I used it today to pick up a load of hay and shavings at the feed & grain. It has been an excellent performer.

I bought mine on eBay. It was a year old and in very excellent condition and I paid slightly more than half the cost new. Mine has a single cylinder (I've seen some double cylinder units) and the bed goes up to about 50 degrees. The deep-cycle battery is mounted under the bed and I charge it throught the 7-pin RV connector on the truck. When I haul it with the tractor, I do not have the lights or battery hooked up. I can dump it 3-5 times before I need to put it back on the truck to charge. Obviously, dumping firewood eats up a lot more battery than dumping brush or mulch. I did wear out the original hydraulic pump and motor. The replacement was about $750 installed.

Mine has the 2-way tailgate with a side hinge and a top hinge. So the gate swings open to the side or you can release the bottom and let the tail swing like a dump truck. I do wish I had the barn door tailgate. Mine did not come with ramps, so I have not hauled my tractor with it. (the Cub has never needed to go to a dealer {knock, knock} ).

All in all it's a valuable piece of equipment that I could not do without.

 

[Joe1]

If you look at the single axle trailers as I did, you might find them to be lightly built. I tow with a 99 Jeep Cherokee rated at 2,000 tow capacity or 5,000 with a weight distribution hitch. A large 2 axle was out of the question. I only looked at one manufacturer (I can't recall the name), but was underwhelmed with them. They had one single axle trailer on uneven ground with the bed raised and it looked like it was wracked out of square. It seemed fairly flimsy and was, I thought, fairly expensive so I didn't
go that route.

As far as ddrake's battery problems:

Is your truck and trailer wired so that the truck recharges the trailer battery while driving? If so, then you would also get some small additional power thru that if the truck is running while dumping. You might also need a larger battery and possibly heavier battery cables to the hydraulic pump to give longer life and less resistance.

 

[tawilson]

I bought a 12 X 6 Cam Superline a couple of years ago. It has some extra touches I like: adjustable height hitch so I can match it to my equipment trailer, molded wiring harness with fuse block, heavy duty safety chains with spring clips. I got the single drop down tailgate and sometimes wish I had the barn door style. With my tailgate when the dump is raised the tailgate almost touches the ground. I have problems getting the load to dump if too much material is up front. I keep a steel bar in my truck and a little leverage with the battery box is usually enough to get it started. Once it lifts 4" or 5" or so it usually takes off. Definitely wire your truck to charge while travelling, but I turn it off to dump because it may blow the fuse because of the draw.

 

[tawilson]

I just noticed a used Bri-Mar at the JD dealer in town. Looks like it's in good shape and I think it had an electric jack.

 

[Ford960]

A dump trailer is one of the best things that I've bought this year...

See my earlier post on this subject:

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/trailers-transportation/86582-look-what-i-bought-today.html

I just hauled 6 tons (3 trips) of crushed stone with it today and will haul some more tomorrow. Then I have several loads of fill dirt to haul after that.

It never has a problem raising the bed even with almost 3 tons in it and I've hauled about 25 loads since I bought it and grossed $405 with it in one day with just 6 loads.

I rewired the light plug so the battery gets charged from the truck and tow it with an F-350 diesel dually.

Sometimes I wish that I had a bigger trailer but that only increases the empty weight and reduces the effective load weight capacity and not worth the extra expense.

 

[willfick]

I have a single axle E-Z Dumper that I bought ($2950, I think I remember) five or six years ago. Its plate says 5,200 lbs gross, its label says 4,000 lb. load. Electric brakes.
I've hauled more than that on it, once 4,700 lbs. of stone, the only load I've had weighed. I often put more on it when I'm just around the place, not on the highway. I've put so much damp sand that it wouldn't dump a couple of times - each time it was too much to the front and when I shoveled it toward the back some it would go on up.
I got the single axle partly because I didn't figure to need to pull much more weight than that with my Tahoo (it says 10,000 [they're kidding, right?]with a weight distributing hitch, which I only recently got and had I known what a difference I would have a long time ago) and largely for maneuverability. The project I used as an excuse to buy the dumper involved turning the trailer around on the concrete pad outside the garage. The narrow front Farmall will do that (just) where a double axle would have had to back the whole way down the driveway. My chiropractor would not have approved.
I've been really happy with it, only thing so far is that I've ruined a battery because I didn't understand how often you have to add water to a deep cycle when you use a 25amp charger. Every time?
With a good battery it would dump at least twelve times with as heavy a load as it would lift. And with the Farmall it's easy to run the jumper cables from the tractor battery to the pump box.
Wm
edited for fingering

 

[2nstonge]

I have a 7x14 dumper made by PJ Trailers - Manufacturers of top quality Flatdecks, Goosenecks, Deckovers, Tilts, Dumps, Carhaulers, Utilities, & Car Dollies it's built like a tank; dual axle, 3-way door (dump, meter, barn), lots of stake pockets, deep draw battery that charges thru the 7 pin connector (though not very well). I keep 2 deep draw batteries in rotation and always have one fully charged on standby if I'm doing multiple loads of heavy material.

Overall very pleased with it but it is a compromise if you want to use it as an equipment hauler. The slide out ramps get heavier every time I use it, it's not big enough to hold my tractor and some of the attachments, it's a bear to maneuver around inside the bed to chain the tractor down - I'm always banging an elbow or knee or something.

But, I don't need a pure dump trailer all the time (or I would'a bought a dump truck) and I don't need a pure equipment hauler all the time (or I would'a bought a flat bed).

Paid $6500 complete including trailer brake install and more D-rings welded to the body for additional tie-down points. I tow it with a Dodge 2500, no problems - although the mpg is painful (9-10 loaded).

-Norm

 

[2nstonge]

I should've mentioned powder coat finish - get it if you can. I saw more new rusty trailers sitting on the dealers lot...2 years of pretty good use on mine and the finish is still holding up.

-Norm

 

[McDenny's]

Hey all,
We sell a full line of PJ trailers, Felling and several other makes at work, if anyone wants information let me know. I know we all have some busy schedules and cant get out to the dealers and I can bring some booklets home for needed specs, and take pics if needed if you want to see something special.

Dennis

 

[wushaw]

Here is a couple of pics of mine...well half mine. It has a 20ton dump cylinder, it has dumped anything put in it so far, I know 9 tons of crushed concrete was my max load. The co-owner has put more in it.
We were tired of paying the 300% delivery charges for material, I don't use it like my partner does and so far I think we/he has saved @20k in delivery charges for dirt, gravel...etc.
Dump trailers are great, I plan on getting/building a small one for around the place when funds are available.

: Gallery
: Gallery

 

[sullyfe]

Hello
Here is my 2 cent's worth. I purchased a PJ 7x14 foot gooseneck dump trailer with the extra 2 foot tall metal sides that can be removed that makes the box 4 feet tall. It has both the dump style and the swing door gate, it also came with a spare tire and the ramps all for 7200.00 out the door. It can haul my kubota M5700 FEL cab tractor with no problems. It handles very well and dose not twist when dumping a full load. I am very happy with this trailer overall. It was a big help on removing about 10 yards of dirt and grass on a drive way that I am putting in for a customer.