Towing Your Travel Trailer in Bad Weather

While the ideal weather for towing is a nice sunny day with no wind, that’s not always what you’re going to get. This is especially true if you tend to use your travel trailer during the off-season, in fall and winter. Bad weather can crop up anywhere, and it’s good to be prepared to deal with it so that you aren’t caught off-guard. Here are some strategies to employ when you’re towing your travel trailer through stormy weather.

Check Your Setup

Before every departure, particularly when the weather isn’t looking good, you should walk around your trailer and towing vehicle to make sure everything is as it should be. Here are a few things to look over: 

• Double-check the security of both the hitch and the towing chains so that your trailer doesn’t detach in transit. 
• Make sure slide-outs are pushed in and windows and doors are shut and locked. 
• Use a tire-pressure gauge to check the pressure of all your tires, since low tire pressure can reduce your traction, which is terrible on wet roads.

Exercise Caution

Keep your speed about five to ten miles below the posted speed limit when driving in the rain. You should also increase your following distance so that you’re not riding the bumper of another vehicle, since you’re going to need a lot more room to bring the towing setup to a full stop. Make all your maneuvers slowly and always watch the road ahead for sudden traffic changes or obstacles. Try to avoid driving at night in bad weather, since your visibility is already limited.

Keep Your Travel Trailer Maintained

Finally, it’s a good idea to stay on top of regular maintenance tasks with your travel trailer and your towing vehicle so that both are always in good working order. If you don’t neglect your travel trailer, it’s less likely to get you into an accident, even if the roads are terrible. You can always get in touch with the B&D RV Center service department if you need some travel trailer maintenance assistance.

Stop by our Utah location in Vernal to check out our selection of new and used RVs for sale. Talk to one of our sales team members about our RV financing options if you’d like to use them. B&D RV Center is proud to be your Tri-State family-owned RV dealership, serving the metro areas of Salt Lake City, UT; Grand Junction, CO; and Rock Springs, WY.