Picking up a new trailer, suggestions needed!

W

WillWashesCars

New member
Joined
Jul 18, 2013
Messages
318
Reaction score
0
Next week I will be picking up a new detailing trailer for this season. For years now I have worked out my car for small jobs and my van for larger jobs. But the van is done and going away. I plan on towing the trailer with my car for this season.

That being said the size is most likely going to be small, probably 4x6 enclosed. This definitely is enough room for all my tools and chemicals as I can fit everything inside my car. But I don't like having all the chemicals in my clean car.

So that being said, any suggestions for organization, types of trailers (v-nose, side door, barn doors, etc.) would be appreciated. I looked everywhere online to get ideas but I would love to hear them first hand from people. :props:
 
Hi,
A 4'x6' trailer is small, but should be easily towed by just about any car without a serious strain on the vehicle. By that, I mean the brakes, the tranny, and engine.

If you're going to be carrying things on wheeled carts, like pressure washers, or perhaps other heavy power equipment, then one might consider getting one with a rear door that swings down, and doubles as a loading ramp. Otherwise, it means either lifting gear, or making some sort of makeshift ramp so you can more easily get equipment in and out.

That will have to be your choice.

Cargo trailers can be inheritly difficult to navigate with, because you'll likely lose all vision from the rearview mirror. Even with a smallish 4x6.
This then will mean your only rearward vision will be through the sideview mirrors, and with cars with smaller mirrors, this can complicate things some. With my Tahoe, and a 6x12 trailer that I own, custom Cal Vu Street Scene side view Mirrors added on board, they look superb, but surely compromised my seeing ability when towing.

Another very worthy option to have with any trailer, and they usually aren't standard fare with an enclosed trailer, is a spare wheel-tire, and some means of a small jack (a little scissor Jack would be the ticket, to get under the Trailer's Axle), and lug wrench to be able to change a flat if you get caught in some out of the way place. Yes, a little pricey to add such, but you'll surely be glad you have such, if a flat tire happens.

The walls of a trailer aren't exactly like a house, where you have 2x4 studs to mount brackets to hang really heavy stuff, but you might be able to invent some means to add shelves, or hang items from the ceiling.

Interiors of these trailers are usually just cheap wood paneling. You might want to consider coating the walls, and more importantly, the floor, with a low odor polyurethane varnish sealer. This will waterproof, and protect such prone surfaces.

As for the hitch, and lighting, hopefully, you'll be able to find a proper hitch arrangement made specifically for your vehicle. Don't skimp here.
A company called "Hoppy" often makes ready to go wire harnesses for lighting, that will be an easy wire-up for your vehicle.

Oh, and get a good coat of sealant-wax on it when you're all settled in.
Decals, or business signs? Well, that's up to you? It might be best to keep the trailer in an inconspicuous state, maybe no advertising on the outside, which might only invite theft of the contents.

Oh, and white, will be the most "coolest" color, and the most visible. I've tested this, even silver is a lot hotter inside the trailer versus white.

Hope these brain farts have helped, best of luck!
Mark
 
One thing about many Cargo Trailers, they aren't quite as well lit up as a Private owned Semi Tractor-Trailer. While they may commonly have front, side, and rear Marker Lights, if you can add any sort of reflective striping, particularly at the rear, this would be a plus for safety.

Usually at the lower rear of a cargo trailer, there is an area where one can add some reflective striping, red, and white being your best choices. Other places to add such might be a benefit.

Most Cargo Trailers aren't exactly works of a builder's art, they are about the equivalent of towing a 12' rinky dink Jon Boat.

Don't trust anything, all should have a good shakedown inspection. Check things like lug nuts, attachment of axle tubes to frame, etc etc etc.

Usually, any town, even my little po dunk town here in new mexico has an RV-Motor Home place, where they sell and can access many accessories, parts, etc.

Most trailers have nothing in the way of interior lighting, or roof mounted, fans, etc, but they can be added by the end user, the list is almost endless. They can be tapped into the 12V supply if wanted.

Most RV stores can supply you with a huge "wish list" catalog, with a myriad of RV Accessories, parts, etc.
Mark
 
If there is any chance to trade the car for a truck that would be your best option for pulling a trailer. Then you could go a little bigger. I have a 6.5x12 with a ramp style rear entry. Had it wired by an electrician for outside/inside 120 amp power and 8" fluorescent interior lighting. I've got it stuffed with everything and I'm running out of space. Do what you need to do to make your business work for you, but bigger is better in this case......
 
I personally think a 6x12 is quite a huge trailer for a small detailing business, unless you're going out to detail the Blue Angels fleet of jet planes.

Towing a 6x12 with my Tahoe across country, from Illinois, to NM, and from Fla to NM once was no picnic.

The bigger they are, the harder they are to maneuver through traffic. Once in Houston TX, I was tortured. Hope I never see Houston again in this lifetime towing a trailer in rush hour! LOL

Bigger does have its advantages though, being used for other purposes of course.

It's hard to say what works for one person, will work for another?
Another option is a large Van. Most large vans get horrid gas mileage though.
 
Wow thank you so much for all of the input. A 4x6 is more than enough room for me to haul everything I need including my powerwasher, a generator (not always used), my supplies and other tools. Everything is very compact and light weight and for quite some time I used my Subaru to lug everything around.

I would like to have something bigger but there is no need for it. The less room I have, the less unnecessary garbage I will be lugging around. I generally know what I am up against so I can pack accordingly.

Also, I have heard that about trailers not being all the well built. I do plan on adding exterior truck markers and such to be safe along with interior led lighting. I have 100s of feet of good quality white led strips from a project I did so I can use that to effectively light the interior without using that much power. It can all be powered by my car's 12v system without draining the battery.
 
The thoughts of making sure you have a spare are MUCH TO BE LISTENED TO! ;)
I'd also go for a ramp style rear door as when you're not detailing with it you can use it for anything that'll roll up inside. Wouldn't hurt to have a side door up front as well. And if you can get one that's A shaped on front it'll seriously help when trying to get it moving down the road.

The more roof vents you can put in the better. They'll help keep it cooler AND provide a lot of light. Even with a 4x6 you can squeeze in 4 vents easy.

Considering all the 'wet work' that a detailing trailer is subjected to I'd suggest you take it to a spray in bedliner place and get the floor, and about a foot or two up on the walls done. It'll go a long way towards helping protect both it, you, and your equipment from wear and tear. This I'd say is a must have as well as the spare.

Layout in the interior is totally however and whatever works for you. One thing that you can do with shelving is to attach 2x4's along each wall, (front to back) at various heights that are pre-drilled on the top edges every 6" or so. Then build shelves that fit the width that you can slide out the back. Make the shelves about 18" deep (at most) but the full width. Then you can slide them in, take them out, arrange them all on the top, put them at more than one level, put one at the back, open in the middle, 2 at the front, so on and so on. With the pre-drilled holes you just drop a bolt in to keep them from sliding backwards (or forwards). Doing it like that you can literally double the floor space.

Great idea to put a vent for a generator and let it run without having to pull it out. Then make a connection inside to outside that'll allow to plug straight into the side without running cords through the doors and such. Same thing with lighting, any lights you can attach to the sides for work lights are a plus. Places like Northern, Harbor Freight, Tractor Supply etc. are good to look into for trailer building supplies too.

Just chunking stuff out there..........
 
Bedliner isn't a bad idea. I wasn't sure how to go about waterproofing the interior yet. But I will definitely take everyone's advice and make sure I get a spare and the kit to go with it. Don't want to be stuck on the side of the road on the way to a big detailing job.

cardaddy said:
The thoughts of making sure you have a spare are MUCH TO BE LISTENED TO! ;)
I'd also go for a ramp style rear door as when you're not detailing with it you can use it for anything that'll roll up inside. Wouldn't hurt to have a side door up front as well. And if you can get one that's A shaped on front it'll seriously help when trying to get it moving down the road.

The more roof vents you can put in the better. They'll help keep it cooler AND provide a lot of light. Even with a 4x6 you can squeeze in 4 vents easy.

Considering all the 'wet work' that a detailing trailer is subjected to I'd suggest you take it to a spray in bedliner place and get the floor, and about a foot or two up on the walls done. It'll go a long way towards helping protect both it, you, and your equipment from wear and tear. This I'd say is a must have as well as the spare.

Layout in the interior is totally however and whatever works for you. One thing that you can do with shelving is to attach 2x4's along each wall, (front to back) at various heights that are pre-drilled on the top edges every 6" or so. Then build shelves that fit the width that you can slide out the back. Make the shelves about 18" deep (at most) but the full width. Then you can slide them in, take them out, arrange them all on the top, put them at more than one level, put one at the back, open in the middle, 2 at the front, so on and so on. With the pre-drilled holes you just drop a bolt in to keep them from sliding backwards (or forwards). Doing it like that you can literally double the floor space.

Great idea to put a vent for a generator and let it run without having to pull it out. Then make a connection inside to outside that'll allow to plug straight into the side without running cords through the doors and such. Same thing with lighting, any lights you can attach to the sides for work lights are a plus. Places like Northern, Harbor Freight, Tractor Supply etc. are good to look into for trailer building supplies too.

Just chunking stuff out there..........
Click to expand...
 
Here are a couple of pictures of shelves I made for my work trailer. It's a 16' but on a smaller scale this may help out. I don't have any better pictures at the moment but it's 3 tiers. I can definitely help out if you have any questions though.

Sent from my EVO using AG Online
 
Wow 6x12 looks very roomy. I still didn't pick up my 4x6.. trying to find a decent trailer within a reasonable distance from me is near impossible. Looks like I will be driving deep into PA but I was hoping to avoid tolls as much as possible.
 
I purchased a 5x8 V Nose last year with front side door and Rear Barn doors.

The Front side door to me is a must.

I prefer the V nose for driving ( less wind resistance)

I went with Rear barn doors b/c you can hang shelves on the inside of the doors plus you have more room to back up and still open your rear. You can always purchase or build a small ramp for the back. It's not that high off the ground either so lifing something 2ft off the ground is not a big deal. Nothing wrong with a ramp. Just pick what works best for you


I think someone mentioned earlier about the lighting.

I went with ALL LED Light package. Cost me about an addtional 100 bucks and worth every penny!

I towed this behind a subaru outback with zero problems and to me this was the ideal size for getting in and out of small spaces.. A 4x6 should be ok. but may become to small if your Arsenal continues to grow. Plus think resale.. Just a thought

Let us know what you end up picking up:props:
 
If your looking for a trailer you could tow with your car, you should check out space trailers. They are very lightweight and they also look unique as they aren't your typical trailer
 
Maybe a 4x6 open trailer with a ARE DCU topper mounted to it. You would have a low profile trailer with plenty of storage.The toppers can be found for a few hundred on CL. They are over 2k new.With a wrap and materials you should be under 2k. If in future you decide to get a truck just mount topper to it.It sucks paying for a wrap twice.
 
Do you haul water or use your customers'? I currently use my customers.

I'm thinking about a trailer as well. I have a Chevy Silveado but like you I don't like having the thing junked up. I also like the idea having everything in the trailer so I can un hitch.

How do you other mobile detailers carry water and how much? I use a rinseless wash and sometimes a waterless wash when it's too cold. I also dont use a power washer. I get great results but don't know what I may be missing.
 
I used a 65 gal tank. I only do a couple cars per day so I didn't need the mammoth tanks some others use.I use most customers water now.So much easier, but still have option to reinstall tank in under 15 minutes if needed. I think the ARE DCU topper would be the best route.Trailers are nice but do get in the way. After several diffrent set ups I've settled on a small truck. My current set up is a Nissan Frontier with a ARE DCU Topper with a bed slide. The topper is perfect for wrapping and plenty of storage.The bed slide is worth every penny too. I can get in and out of tight quarters easily now. I've been considering my Pontiac Vibe as a second mobile set up.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top