Start Your Landscaping Business Off Right – Equipment Musts

Landscape trailers are a familiar sight in cities and rural areas. If you own a commercial landscaping business you own at least one landscape trailer, it would be hard to do business without it. And while all landscape trailers may look similar their features can vary greatly and having the right type of trailer can make a huge difference to your business. You might not always think about your trailer as one of the tools of your trade but it is going to work hard for you so you should always buy the best landscape trailer you can afford.

Open Trailer vs Enclosed Trailer

The first major decision you will have to make when you buy a landscape trailer is whether you want a basic open utility trailer or an enclosed trailer. The biggest advantage of the basic entry-level open trailer is the price. This is the least expensive option and many people starting out in the landscaping business think that an open trailer will be good enough to get the job done. And it is, but that does not necessarily make it the ideal choice. Enclosed trailers are obviously more expensive, but they offer you so much more, and the biggest advantage is they reduce the opportunity for theft or damage from the elements. A locked enclosed trailer can be parked overnight and you don’t need to worry about half your equipment disappearing.

Accessorize Your Landscape Trailer Correctly

Once you have chosen your landscape trailer, you need to choose the features. If you choose an open trailer, you can either have a steel deck or a wooden deck. Most landscapers choose a wooden deck because it is lighter (allowing for a higher cargo capacity) and it is easier and less expensive to replace. You will also need accessory racks, hooks, and lockboxes for keeping smaller equipment safe and secure and stop your tools rattling around the trailer. Most trailer ramps are basic and functional but if possible, get a landscape trailer with a ramp that is fitted with springs, this will make it a lot easier to lift the ramps at the end of a long day. Also, make sure that the trailer has enough tie-down points.

Get a trailer that is big enough for your business

There is no standard landscape trailer size and your choice depends entirely on your needs, but the average landscape trailer is typically 6 to 8 feet wide and 12 to 16 feet long. If lawn care is the focus of your business then you will need a large trailer with space for lawn mowers, granular fertilizer spreaders, small pressurized hand sprayers, larger backpack sprayers, trimmers, blowers, lawn rollers, and hedge trimmers. If you want to keep working throughout the winter, you might consider offering snow removal services and then you will need to purchase a snow blade for your lawnmower. If landscaping is also part of your business then you will need a variety of smaller tools, including shovels, spades, rakes, hoes, pruners, loppers, hedge shears, and picks and these should be stored in lock boxes or racks.

All this equipment needs to be loaded onto your trailer and this will determine not only the size but also the weight capacity of the trailer and the tow capacity of your vehicle. At a minimum, a half-ton truck rated for towing is required to tow your average landscape trailer, though considerably more towing power may be necessary depending on what you haul. You also need to ensure that you have the right brakes on your trailer, the federal regulations stipulate that any trailer exceeding 3,000 pounds in gross vehicle weight (GVW) must be equipped with its own electric brakes.

When you buy a landscape trailer make sure you do your research and speak to a dealer about the various options. McFarlane’s will be able to help you find the perfect trailer for your landscaping business.