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Does anyone know of a device that will alert you to hauling too much weight?

JefffromNJ

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I have a 2018 Sport short bed and would like to add something that would alert me if the truck is overloaded. In a perfect world, maybe a hitch mounted device that reads weight placed on the bed, or possibly a sticker that could be mounted on the bed to show how much weight is being hauled. I want to be able to make sure people that use the truck do not overload it without me knowing.

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I have a 2018 Sport short bed and would like to add something that would alert me if the truck is overloaded. In a perfect world, maybe a hitch mounted device that reads weight placed on the bed, or possibly a sticker that could be mounted on the bed to show how much weight is being hauled. I want to be able to make sure people that use the truck do not overload it without me knowing.

Thanks
I've never heard of an aftermarket solution to monitoring payload. There are scales you can mount on your hitch to measure the hitch weight that would be applied to your truck from a trailer, but that doesn't measure anything loaded in the bed, for example.

Onboard Scales + FordPass would take care of that for you, but it wasn't available on a 2018 F150. Even on a Gen14 truck, it seems like it would be difficult to retrofit those after the fact, but it's likely possible. I doubt that it's even possible on a Gen13 truck.

Perhaps you could rig up some type of remote sensor that triggers when your springs are compressed a certain amount? You're still likely going to get some false positives when your truck in a non-overload situation hits a speedbump, for example, but it's a start.
 
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JefffromNJ

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Perhaps you could rig up some type of remote sensor that triggers when your springs are compressed a certain amount? You're still likely going to get some false positives when your truck in a non-overload situation hits a speedbump, for example, but it's a start.
That's was my thinking, it would have to be a remote sensor of some sort. I keep thinking about truck and/or package sensors that warn of damage during transit. If nobody knows of something, that is the direction I will walk.
 

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I want to be able to make sure people that use the truck do not overload it without me knowing.
Just curious, is your truck in some sort of rental / loaner fleet situation? Or maybe the concern is family users that might not disclose imprudent use?

Nope, I've no practical suggestion for a device that'd function as you seek; I agree that the 'parameter' you would need to measure is suspension compression calibrated to known loads (the 'calibration' of compression-inches to pounds-load might not be linear and would only be valid for static measurement).

Good Luck!
 
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JefffromNJ

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I'm thinking of renting the truck via Turo and don't want people to abuse the rental. So, no building material and no use of the bed to haul 30 pieces of drywall, that kind of stuff. I was thinking I could have an upcharge for towing, and a penalty for use outside the permitted/paid for use.
 

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Blueshound

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I'm thinking of renting the truck via Turo and don't want people to abuse the rental. So, no building material and no use of the bed to haul 30 pieces of drywall, that kind of stuff. I was thinking I could have an upcharge for towing, and a penalty for use outside the permitted/paid for use.
Maybe I'm wrong but I think people are going to abuse your truck no matter how you try. Unless you're registered for commercial use in your jurisdiction, I doubt you can get your insurance company to cover any damage or liability to others (but you should definitely check).
 

JohnMcClane

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le to abuse the rental. So, no building material and no use of the bed to haul 30 pieces of drywall, that kind of stuff. I was thinking I could have an upcharge for towing, and a penalty for use outside the permitted/paid for use.
I think most options will have to be of the homebrew/contracted variety. A few things I can think of.

1. Rigging something up that detects when the bump stops are hit probably wouldn't be too difficult and while hitting the bumps stops isn't necessarily indicative of being overloaded, it can definitely provide abuse information.

2. Hitch to ground detection, some IR sensors and a simple arduino should be able to give you pretty frequent readouts, but also, not going to be super helpful in the "overloaded" department.

3. I think my favorite option. If you don't have the bed camera in the 3rd brake light, get one and have it recording locally on the truck 24/7, this would obviously require watch through, but if you combine one of the other options with this one, should make it easy to know if you even need to watch.
 
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JefffromNJ

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I'm just in the info gathering stage now, but MY primary interest would be to rent to people moving stuff local or state to state rather than those grabbing 30 bags of concrete or 20 pieces of wall board. I wouldn't mind them hauling a travel trailer either, for an appropriate fee, but construction would tear the truck up way too fast and financially, a two day rental could not financially justify the rental. So, the original idea was to have a large deposit that would be lost if the "sensor" showed the truck was overloaded.
 
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JefffromNJ

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I think most options will have to be of the homebrew/contracted variety. A few things I can think of.

1. Rigging something up that detects when the bump stops are hit probably wouldn't be too difficult and while hitting the bumps stops isn't necessarily indicative of being overloaded, it can definitely provide abuse information.

2. Hitch to ground detection, some IR sensors and a simple arduino should be able to give you pretty frequent readouts, but also, not going to be super helpful in the "overloaded" department.

3. I think my favorite option. If you don't have the bed camera in the 3rd brake light, get one and have it recording locally on the truck 24/7, this would obviously require watch through, but if you combine one of the other options with this one, should make it easy to know if you even need to watch.
Suggestion 3 was actually what I was thinking of too. Hard to deny abuse when its in full color.
 

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Suggestion 3 was actually what I was thinking of too. Hard to deny abuse when its in full color.
If you do that, I think it has to be silent. Any sound recording is illegal unless there is a clause in the contract.
 

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powerboatr

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front and rear dash cams, and a clause in rental that driving habits are recorded and if dash cam is unplugged there is a penalty ???
but logic robert seems to think your not going to get what you want in an manner that is affordable and holds water , in legal circle
i know a 2000 crown vic will do 100 , so did a 2002 and 2004 in rental fleets . rentals are abused. whether is turo, avis, etc

has to be a better way to snag some off duty cash
may i ask how does turo rental affect your insurance rates?
 
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JefffromNJ

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Not sure about insurance and will need to look into that before pulling the trigger. My assumption is Turo has some insurance component for me built into their justification for their portion of the fee, otherwise I can't see how they could operate. Current thinking is that I would be looking to rent for at least $125/day AFTER my Turo fees are paid or it's not worth doing. Then, having a 2 day rental minimum would get rid of home depot runs and an additional fee to unlock my hitch for pulling a trailer of another $75/day or so. No idea if this would work, but I currently have an extra 2018 F150 Sport that I am either going to sell (market has taken a dive) or rent to others, if it makes financial sense and I can control the use so the truck is not destroyed.
 

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Personally, I'd rather place a 'Guy with truck' ad over letting someone I don't know drive my truck.
 

MTNMN

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Personally, I'd rather place a 'Guy with truck' ad over letting someone I don't know drive my truck.
Agreed to me this just sounds like a major no way!

I dont even like letting people I know in my truck, let alone random strangers.
 

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Wouldn’t be too terribly difficult to source a load cell that you can place between the leaf springs and the rear axle. We use them in the logging industry between the fithwheel and the frame to make sure we get an accurate weight to maximize profit.
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