Tips on saving weight to gain usable payload.

[P Bentley]

A question here which might be daft or obvious, but does the driver and passenger count as part of the payload?

Tombola says
yes...and a little too much in my case

Ah, well that's changed my calculations quite bit. I hadn't thought of that until this thread. Doh.

You could spoil my calculations even further by confirming that fuel is also involved in payload (surely not)??

The new van we are getting in december has payload of 550 so that,s 370 with the 2 pax counted in. (maybe 380 by december if I get some blubber shifted.)
With water, gas, and bits I havent even thought of yet, it looks like my draws in the wardrobe will have a pair of flip flops and a pair of speedo budgie smugglers.

 

[Wabs]

2 years ago, when we first got the MH,( and were far less experienced) we loaded up with all sorts of stuff,,,then after joining the Funsters, I realised, that we didn’t need this crap,( payload is 900kg so never really worried), we then got rid of stuff we MAY need,,,bloody hell what a difference, we could have funded a small country on what we got rid of,,just go to show what knowledge you get from the Funsters,

 

[Lenny HB]

A question here which might be daft or obvious, but does the driver and passenger count as part of the payload?

A driver at 75kg is included in the MIRO so any additional weight the driver is over 75kg plus passenger comes out of your payload.

 

[Wabs]

Our last van was an Exsis i678 it was just about runnable at 3500 but very tight.

We didn't have an awning, had the TecTower oven, 2 x 14kg Alugas bottles, Snipe satellite, 2 batteries, 200 Watts solar.

We carried 2 e-bikes, spare wheel, twin tub washing machine and 2x 20lt of water in the garage as ours was a 2014 model with a tiny 100 Lt water tank.

Loaded with full tanks we were about 100kg over so we uprated to 3850kg.
I'm 75kg the boss 45kg.

75 kg? You lucky sod, I’ve not been 75kg since I was 21,,

 

[Lenny HB]

Tombola says
yes...and a little too much in my case

Ah, well that's changed my calculations quite bit. I hadn't thought of that until this thread. Doh.

You could spoil my calculations even further by confirming that fuel is also involved in payload (surely not)??

The new van we are getting in december has payload of 550 so that,s 370 with the 2 pax counted in. (maybe 380 by december if I get some blubber shifted.)
With water, gas, and bits I havent even thought of yet, it looks like my draws in the wardrobe will have a pair of flip flops and a pair of speedo budgie smugglers.

90% fuel is included in MIRO so doesn't come off your payload.
500 kg is ok if a Brit van but for a German van you need 700kg as a lot of items that are standard on Brit vans are options on German Vans.

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[Lenny HB]

75 kg? You lucky sod, I’ve not been 75kg since I was 21,,

I think I'm overweight I could do with loosing 3 to 4kg.

 

[Wabs]

I think I'm overweight I could do with loosing 3 to 4kg.

You’d have to run round in the shower to get wet,,daft bugger

 

[Lenny HB]

2 years ago, when we first got the MH,( and were far less experienced) we loaded up with all sorts of stuff,,,then after joining the Funsters, I realised, that we didn’t need this crap,( payload is 900kg so never really worried), we then got rid of stuff we MAY need,,,bloody hell what a difference, we could have funded a small country on what we got rid of,,just go to show what knowledge you get from the Funsters,

We carry too much crap but we have 1350kg payload and still have 250kg spare.
Latest item is a paddleboard that probably gets used for a couple hours on a 6 week trip but all the time we have the payload, what the hell.

 

[Wabs]

We carry too much crap but we have 1350kg payload and still have 250kg spare.
Latest item is a paddleboard that probably gets used for a couple hours on a 6 week trip but all the time we have the payload, what the hell.

Maybe get a fridge for extra burgers,, you need building up,,

 

[Itsmcb]

I have recently down plated my Hymer Exsis I 678. from 3850 Kg to 3500 Kg. It was a easy paper exercise via SV Tech (See other threads). When we first purchased the van in 2019 we knew we may need to down plate, due C1 licence / health issues. ( The DVLA's incompetence & delays in these matters are also covered in other threads )
Whilst I can just live with the reduced pay load it is very tight. Thus I am still looking for any tips to save weight. I am sure this will be useful to many other Funsters in the future, who may face the same problem.
We were lucky enough to be able to buy our new van to our spec, with some weight saving in mind.
With Hymer & many other makes you get a basic model, to which you add the options you require to make up the van of your choice. Most of these options add weight, thus reducing usable pay load. Clearly one's individual needs & choices will differ to others with different requirements. We could have ordered the Exsis I 588, which is a lighter base van. The 588 is a fantastic unit, but we preferred the 678 layout & are willing to make some compromises to have the van layout of our choice.

In our case we wanted the following essential things. that reduced the usable payload.
Large Fridge freezer,
Full cooker,
Solar panel,
Awning. We did not use the Hymer standard option but ordered a 1 meter shorter one to be fitted by the dealer.
Second habitation battery. (fitted by me after purchase)
External gas point. (this save the need to carry an additional gas canister for the bbq ).

There were several items on the option list we did not order. Whilst desirable were not essential.
Metallic paint, this surprisingly, adds 30 Kg to the weight.
Fog lamps.
Driver's side (passenger in UK ) automatic step.

There were several things we did order & now wish we didn't, as are not used.
Carpets
Wooden shower tray.

The one big weight saver was that we transferred the two large SafeFill gas bottles from our first van.
Given that TV streaming is now quite possible all over France & Spain perhaps we did not need the 85 cm dish we transferred from our previous van.

I have gone through all the "Stuff " we normally take with us & saved an additional 80 Kg, this included the extra table & 2 chairs. Also removed the front bed mattress & slats as this is not used normally. It is amazing how much unnecessary stuff that accumulates over time. We still have one electric bike, 2 tables, 2 chairs, bbq, awning ground sheet, tools & leveling blocks.
With all this, fully laden with food, water, dog & SWMBO we are approximately 3470 Kg, as I said before very tight.
I am going to replace the 2 x 95 Ah Gel batteries with one 110 lithium battery, saving some 30 kg.
I still need to find other savings if we can, I am thinking of using plastic bottles for wine & spirits.

I will not appreciate any one suggesting, I go on a diet to loose weight, no matter how true that my be.

We insisted that the van was weighed before we took delivery. We were lucky it was slightly lighter than we estimated by a few Kgs. We used a spread sheet to add the weight of all option items to the base weight of the van. As it happened it turned out to be quite accurate.

I appreciate that not everyone will be able or want to purchase a new van. But if payload is particularly important, you can take some of these factors into consideration when looking at used vans. You can insist the van is weighed as a condition of purchase, as the manufacturers published figures cannot be trusted & the possible number of options that may be on your particular van.

Any other tips & Ideas will be most helpful.

If your 3470 FULLY loaded and you can save another 30kgs with your battery swap why do you need to save any more, that's 70kgs spare, that's a lot of wine.

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[Wabs]

If your 3470 FULLY loaded and you can save another 30kgs with your battery swap why do you need to save any more, that's 70kgs spare, that's a lot of wine.

My missus would be quite happy to be towed on a skateboard if it allowed us to carry more wine,,,,now there’s a thought

 

[WildBunch]

Thank you all for your responses. There was a lot of good advice in them. To many to respond to all of them just now.
But we are lucky as we have a Grunden gravel pit a few miles up the road. Free if you don't need a weight certificate. I will do a further check before the start of this season.
It is clear that you have to look at each thing & ask do I really need this on the van. Empty all unnecessary liquids, including the Elsan. (oh I do like a good toilet thread)

Just one serious point..it does not matter what in theory is included in the MIRO or not . The only weight that will actually matter is the curb weight as measured by Plod if pulled over.

 

[Wabs]

Sorry, I deviated from your original post, but that happens often, there are far more experienced people than me that will answer that

 

[grasscutter]

We carry too much crap but we have 1350kg payload and still have 250kg spare.
Latest item is a paddleboard that probably gets used for a couple hours on a 6 week trip but all the time we have the payload, what the hell.

More work on the paddleboard = loss of kg

 

[P Bentley]

500 kg is ok if a Brit van

500 kg is ok if a Brit van

It's French.
I knew that payload weight had to be considered, but (like many others before me no doubt) I never really considered it, until I started to add up the equipment and utilities that one would carry, especially as our intention is to be off grid as often as possible.
As I scour through the various threads on peoples experience and what they find was, and wasn't required, the more I get a clearer picture of the pitfalls to avoid.

I do find it unusual that many people have jettisoned their spare wheel to save weight, but I guess it is makes sense for those who never stray too far from the beaten track. I cant think of any other reason why you would remove the ability to help yourself.

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[Wabs]

500 kg is ok if a Brit van


It's French.
I knew that payload weight had to be considered, but (like many others before me no doubt) I never really considered it, until I started to add up the equipment and utilities that one would carry, especially as our intention is to be off grid as often as possible.
As I scour through the various threads on peoples experience and what they find was, and wasn't required, the more I get a clearer picture of the pitfalls to avoid.

I do find it unusual that many people have jettisoned their spare wheel to save weight, but I guess it is makes sense for those who never stray too far from the beaten track. I cant think of any other reason why you would remove the ability to help yourself.

I would nt fancy jacking up a 4 ton vehicle on the Lego Jack they come with,,that’s what the breakdown peeps are for

 

[Minxy]

What we used to do many moons ago was to take smaller bottles of stuff instead of large ones, eg if we had large bottles of sauce I'd put enough for our trip into smaller ones, same with relishes, coffee, sugar, washing-up liquid, other foodstuffs etc, basically anything that was in a larger size container than we'd need whilst away. If you want a tipple (spirits) don't take the large bottle but put some in a smaller one. We did this mainly due to having restricted storage space but obviously saves weight too and I still do it for some things now especially stuff that comes in glass jars/bottles as I don't like glass in the MH due to the damage it can cause if you drop one and also trying to clear up broken glass fully without a vacuum cleaner isn't ideal with 3 dogs who could cut their paws on the smallest piece.

Shoes and clothes are a biggie in the sense that it's surprising how much they can weigh although the sizes needed by the owner can play a major part in this! . Do you really need X number of jumpers, pairs of shoes etc? When away its surprising how little we use from the enormous mountain we take, it isn't a problem for us as we have plenty of payload but if not then it would get weeded out considerably.

Cutlery, utensils etc, it's surprising how heavy they can be, so get lighter versions or take less ... do you really need a dozen forks, a 100 teaspoons etc? Pots, pans - how heavy are your mugs? Get china ones, much nicer to use and a lot less weight, same with plates and bowls. Pans can be heavy so only take what you really need but don't think that using one for boiling water for a cuppa can replace a kettle as it doesn't as it tastes different.

 

[Minxy]

I do find it unusual that many people have jettisoned their spare wheel to save weight, but I guess it is makes sense for those who never stray too far from the beaten track. I cant think of any other reason why you would remove the ability to help yourself.

I would nt fancy jacking up a 4 ton vehicle on the Lego Jack they come with,,that’s what the breakdown peeps are for

You'd be stuffed if you needed a new tyre though and they couldn't get a matched one ... could prove very costly and time consuming.

 

[Lenny HB]

Do you really need X number of jumpers, pairs of shoes etc?

Yes, always carry about 7 pairs of shoes & sandals and 2 pairs of walking boots, 'er indoors about the same. Of course only wear two or three pairs but nice to have a choice.

 

[Puddleduck]

I appreciate that not everyone will be able or want to purchase a new van. But if payload is particularly important, you can take some of these factors into consideration when looking at used vans. You can insist the van is weighed as a condition of purchase, as the manufacturers published figures cannot be trusted & the possible number of options that may be on your particular van.

We were very interested in a van at a car dealers and asked for it to be weighed as it had so many extras fitted.

It was plated at 3500 kg and weighed "as was", empty, no driver, minimum fuel, no water at 3700 kg. We declined to purchase but it was a lesson for us and the dealer who had no clue as he usually only sold second hand cars. I did tell him about SVtech. Perhaps we should have made enquiries about up-plating and used that as a bargaining tool but didn't.

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[Lenny HB]

We were very interested in a van at a car dealers and asked for it to be weighed as it had so many extras fitted.

It was plated at 3500 kg and weighed "as was", empty, no driver, minimum fuel, no water at 3700 kg. We declined to purchase but it was a lesson for us and the dealer who had no clue as he usually only sold second hand cars. I did tell him about SVtech. Perhaps we should have made enquiries about up-plating and used that as a bargaining tool but didn't.

If it was a Ford you may have been able to take it up to over 400kg but on a Fiat light chassis with a max of 3850kg no chance of being legal.

 

[Puddleduck]

Forget the spare wheel it weighs 30Kg plus the rack.

But if fitted from new not having it with you may invalidate your breakdown cover.

Our van didn't come with a spare wheel but we carry a spare tyre. Once the leveling system is fitted we'll be able to take out the jack but will keep the towing eye on the van "just on case".

 

[Puddleduck]

If it was a Ford you may have been able to take it up to over 400kg but on a Fiat light chassis with a max of 3850kg no chance of being legal.

I was a Merc

 

[Lenny HB]

I was a Merc

Probably could have taken it up to 4500 or more, might have needed a change of tyres.
Bet the car deal still sold it as a 3500kg van.

 

[Puddleduck]

Probably could have taken it up to 4500 or more, might have needed a change of tyres.
Bet the car deal still sold it as a 3500kg van.

Probably. Not my concern though as we had decided not to buy given the lack of knowledge and probably no meaningful guarantee.

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[Wabs]

You'd be stuffed if you needed a new tyre though and they couldn't get a matched one ... could prove very costly and time consuming.

I wouldn’t ditch the spare, just don’t fancy changing it

 

[Stealaway]

But if fitted from new not having it with you may invalidate your breakdown cover.

Our van didn't come with a spare wheel but we carry a spare tyre. Once the leveling system is fitted we'll be able to take out the jack but will keep the towing eye on the van "just on case".

Our 2019 didn't come with a spare although I did buy one and then decided at 3.5 tonnes I don't have the spare payload to carry it.
It stays at home along with the jack and tools, except for the towing eye.

 

[the1andonly]

Mine didn't come with a spare but has one now. Even if you have no intention of changing it yourself a spare is vital. To save the lbs discard the jack, find some other way, take a tyre as a min.
Reduce wt in other ways minxy has good ideas some the same as i used in bongo use special plates and only 2 off cutlery crockery smaller bottles of stuff (plastic sauces vinegar etc). To save even more wt cut the toes off the wifes shoes.

 

[The Wino]

Mine didn't come with a spare but has one now. Even if you have no intention of changing it yourself a spare is vital. To save the lbs discard the jack, find some other way, take a tyre as a min.
Reduce wt in other ways minxy has good ideas some the same as i used in bongo use special plates and only 2 off cutlery crockery smaller bottles of stuff (plastic sauces vinegar etc). To save even more wt cut the toes off the wifes shoes.

Hopefully while she's not wearing them!

 

[Itsmcb]

Mine didn't come with a spare but has one now. Even if you have no intention of changing it yourself a spare is vital. To save the lbs discard the jack, find some other way, take a tyre as a min.
Reduce wt in other ways minxy has good ideas some the same as i used in bongo use special plates and only 2 off cutlery crockery smaller bottles of stuff (plastic sauces vinegar etc). To save even more wt cut the toes off the wifes shoes.

If I cut the toes off my wife's shoes I'd probably wake up screaming and weighing a bit less myself

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