Seems to me about a yard or maybe 1.5 yards...

 

1/2 ton? 3/4 ton? Bigger? Timbrens or airbags?

 

Do you drive a dump truck? If not, the amount you can carry is precisely:

not enough.

 

1/2 - 3/4 of a yard. That's around 2000 lbs.

 

I carried 2 yards of sand in my Titan about 20 miles last spring. It was squatting pretty good and I had to brake and turn more carefully but it worked out. 1 1/2 yards would have been a less stressful drive for sure. 3 miles I would definitely do 2 yards again, my drive, I will reduce it a bit next time.

 

Most places only let you get a yard at a time with a long bed truck. A yard of sand weight depends on how wet it is. It can be from 1500 to 2500lbs.

 

My Titan can do a yard no problem. I did a yard at a time for the first 6 yards last year but 1.5 yards the last 2 loads, it handled it fine but it's hard on the suspension and the breaks. This picture is a yard in it

 

Pay the $50

 

Pay the $50

My place is 5 miles up the road, delivery is $100, that's almost 3 extra yards of sand. Shoveling it out of the bed of the truck is a lot easier than shoveling it off the ground. Plus I also drove the truck on the lawn to where it needed to be dumped. I ordered 20yards this year and paid for delivery but I know I'm gonna regret shoveling it off the ground into the cart then towing and dumping the cart.

 

While I'm not a proponent of overworking a half ton truck (assuming that's what you have) if you install some timbrens, an add-a-leaf kit, or some air bags, then overloading for a distance of 3 miles is okay.

 

The average 1500 series truck across almost all models has a payload capacity of 1300 to 1600 pounds (which includes people and tools) so it will be very easy to bottom out your suspension with a little bit of sand.

 

I've put 1 yard in my 1/2 ton silverado with no issue.

 

According to the googles, a silverado (not sure your year) has about 1900lbs of payload capacity (I believe this includes passenger weight), so subtract your body weight and any other passengers weight, and that's about how much weight you can put in the bed. Rig2 above said a yard of sand weighs 1500-2500lbs depending on how wet it is.

 

I've hauled about 2/3 of a yard in my Colorado without issues. The sand was very dry though.

 

Not necessarily a criticism, but for those who've said they've done it with "no problems," I can't help but wonder if there are longer term effects that have surfaced yet.

 

My dad just got a yard of sand in his 2018 gmc 1500 yesterday. He said it did fine, but he wouldn't want to put any more than that, because he could definitely feel it putting a little more strain on the truck.

 

If you do it, air tires up to the max pressure on the sidewall. Don't forget to air down when you're done. You should have a sticker in your drivers side door frame with capacities specific to your truck.

 

For the record, that Titan was a work truck with upgraded suspension and I have since replaced it so I can't comment on long term issues (suspension, etc).

 

Not necessarily a criticism, but for those who've said they've done it with "no problems," I can't help but wonder if there are longer term effects that have surfaced yet.

I remodeled houses for 15 years, 8 of which was out of a Dodge Ram 1500. It was often over loaded in the bed to the point the overload blocks were slammed on the axle or the trailers I towed with it was well over the tow limit. I went through brakes every 15kish miles but other than that it still runs like a champ with 220k miles on it, my mom owns it now. I'm not saying someone should overload their own truck but a yard of sand isn't gonna cause catastrophic damage to a 1/2 ton truck. More than a yard of sand or gravel is more a safety issue than harmful for the truck.

 

You could think of it like this. All 1/2 ton trucks can tow at least double their payload and some can tow over 4 times their payload. I'm not sure about the truck in question but my Titan has a payload of 2,100 pounds but can tow 9,300 lbs. it's not that the drivetrain that can't handle the weight it's the suspension and brakes. The truck starts to squat the more weight you put in the bed which in turn raises the front making the front end really light and front tire traction become less and less. The issue is that the front brakes have less stopping power and steering becomes sketchy with a severely overloaded bed.

That said, if you want to be extra cautious then have them dump 1/2 yard in and check the suspension. If it looks good then add the other half. But it should be able to haul a full yard, if not I would trade it in for a Titan :lol: :thumbup:

 

How much sand do you need? If more than a yard or two, I'd seriously consider borrowing or renting a trailer (think Home Depot).

 

I had an entire dump truck delivered earlier this year and it was $70 delivery for the 20 yards. I spread 14 in the front yard. a few yards out back and still have 3-4 yards left for during season leveling.

I thought about using the 8x14x2 tandem ax 6k trailer to save on delivery. Then i thought about all of the added shoveling. $70 to not have to do added shoveling is money well spent if you need a lot of sand.

I will need the same amount next year.

 

The payload limit rating for your specific truck should be available in your owner documents or on-line. For example, my 2012 F-150 with 5.0L V8, 8-ft bed, and regular towing package has a maximum payload of 2,000 lbs. I also have the option of using a trailer, with a maximum GVWR of 7,000 lbs. So with a trailer, I could safely and legally haul about 2 yards per trip if I really wanted. The optional "max tow" package for my truck raised the payload limit to 3,000 lbs and the GVWR to 10,000 lbs. Your truck and options will vary.

There's some safety margin factored into these limits, so you can probably "get away" with a little more weight on a short drive. Frankly, it's not worth the risk. If the drive is short, then carry loads well below your limit and make several trips. It's not the leaf springs, ride height, engine, or transmission you must worry about. It's your brakes and how you'll stop when some yahoo dives in front of you and slams his brakes.

 

I did about 2-3 yards of sand and compost in my F-150 on Monday. I'm known to overload my truck a lot. I know I probably shouldn't. You could do it but there's probably some long-term effects or safety issues that go along with it.

It's not the leaf springs, ride height, engine, or transmission you must worry about. It's your brakes and how you'll stop when some yahoo dives in front of you and slams his brakes.

Boy howdy. A couple of weeks ago I took a load of river rock to the landfill (to be recycled and used as road base). It's out in the boonies. I was on a state highway going about 65 when some idiot didn't secure his load and an ottoman flew out of his pickup and onto my lane of traffic on the highway. I had a very shifty load and it was like time just stood still when I was making the decision on how to avoid it. I knew if I slammed on my brakes, my load would shift not only making the brakes not very effective but could destroy them or I could get rear-ended. If I swerved to the left or to the right I could either lose control and roll the truck, or drop off the shoulder, or hit a car next to me. It was probably one of the scariest driving experiences I've had, so I agree it's braking you need to worry about, not necessarily the engineering of the vehicle.

 

it's not that the drivetrain that can't handle the weight it's the suspension and breaks. The truck starts to squat the more weight you put in the bed which in turn raises the front making the front end really light and front tire traction become less and less. The issue is that the front brakes have less stopping power and steering becomes sketchy with a severely overloaded bed.

That's what my dad was saying also, he could tell the front end wasn't as sturdy while driving the 3-4 miles home. He only had a yard, so it wasn't bad... but more than that and it gets sketchy for sure...