I know the general consensus is that dump trailers are worth it. But I am wondering how many of you have small 5x8 dump trailers and are they worth the extra $$$? I was leaning towards a 5x8 utility trailer with brakes. But after talking to the guy at the dealer he suggested a small dump trailer. I will be using it primarily for firewood (only about 3-5 cords/year).
I don't know what the price differences are but based on the needs, for me it would depend on these things:
Can you bring your trailer to the place where you stack your wood and how?
-I can't reach my main stack by car but I can unhook my trailer and bring it next to the stack by hand. Unloading from a trailer is better for your back than taking the pieces from the ground (also depends on high you stack is and your trailer is pretty big so may be hard to move it by hand/mower when loaded).
-If you can reach your stack by car.
=> Then you wouldn't really need a dump trailer, only makes it harder to move by hand.
-If you sell wood from time to time and deliver it, a dump trailer would be easy. One of the reasons I would want one.
I am also the type that once I buy something I keep it until its dead, so point being, I would rather hold off 3-4 months to save up for a dump trailer if I was going to happy wih it in the long run rather buy a small utility trailer now and always wished I would have bought a dump trailer
In that case I would go for a dump trailer, then you won't have to dream about it at night
. Even if it's just 1 time a year that you dump something, it will be worth it in the long run. And you never know what you'll find in the future, suppose you need one in a couple of years, better buy the dump trailer now instead of buying it the future.
A dump trailer does weigh more but you will save time unloading, so depending on your travel time, it can be an advantage or disadvantage. Suppose you're hauling wood a day long (cut the previous days), a dump trailer would be faster in short distances. But you can load more on a flat bed so it would be better for a longer distance.
Other hand, if you bring home a load a day. Do you want to unload it in the evening or just dump it and leave again in the morning?
Many variables to think about
Typhke