Read through about any of my old threads as its about all I post on. That is because towing TTs for the Mfgs commercially is what I do. I assure you the 30' floor plan and the Ram 1500 are compatible with proper weight distribution. No sway and stability is achievable. Please ignore the people who talk to you about stacking up weight guesstimates toward a magical payload sticker number they mean well but only parrot what they have heard. Even moderately exceeding your GVWR isn't necessarily all bad and sometimes is preferable as to other priorities. (lol I know some legalistically minded individual is freaking out right now)
The Hensley Arrow or Pro Prop hitches are an expensive but good solution as they are good at both setting weight distribution and have superior sway control. That said just like any WDH they should be taken to CAT scales that weigh steer, drive, & trailer axles separately and at the same time. You will use these numbers to set your rig up for proper weight distribution. Bags & load tires are helpful aids but the answer is primarily in proper steer weight, drive weight, and tongue weight percentage. (Of gross trailer weight)
I just use a simple relatively inexpensive Andersen WDH with built in sway control. Other properly sized WDH's with built in sway control will also work fine. If you don't have them you can normally get instructions for adjustments from the hitch Mfg. But I'm not a fan of older WDHs where in you have to add the now obsolete add on friction bar. If staying with your existing WDH you will need to know the rough weight of your loaded TT to match that to your spring bar rating to make sure you have enough spring bar.
CAT has a free app for your phone which has a locator addresses even GPS directions. Cost in most areas is $12 and $2 per additional weigh. So for under $20 you can make your rig stable and safe for your family using the scales and Mfg limits. Best is to start with three passes. First with wet TT & weight distribution applied. Second detach your weight distribution, stand on the hitch and push it up and down a bit to dissipate any weight distribution and get a second weigh. Third pull off the scales unhook your TT and weigh just your truck. Now you have all the info you need. You can see what your WDH was already providing, and have a starting point as to where you need to get to and as to what progress you are making when you start making adjustments.
For an end product goal you are going to want to;
1. Replace or come as close to or slightly under your unloaded steer axle weight as reasonably possible. Worse case make sure you are under the max steer axle weight which should be 3,900 for a 4th gen 1500. The most common problem is too little weight distribution where the front axle is a couple hundred pounds under unloaded steer weight. This is dangerous and common with no WDH.
2. Get your drive axle weight equal or greater than your steer weight (unlikely to be a problem) and at or below your max drive axle rating which should also be 3,900. Some people routinely exceed this by up to 10% or 4,300. I've seen non WDH loads get high 4,500 plus which is dangerous on a non HD type axle. A failure here at speed is a bad wreck.
3. Get your tongue weight between 10 & 15% ideally 12 & 14% in my experience with our trucks. This is your primary sway control. When using a WDH tongue weight is no longer static but rather becomes dynamic IE spread between steer, drive, & TT axles. Therefore proper TW calculation is done as follows. Subtract your unloaded truck weight from the combined axle weight of your loaded truck. Take this number and divide it into your gross trailer weight for your actual seen tongue weight percentage. What the brochure says or the tongue says when put on a scale is irrelevant when using a WDH.
Naturally the trailer should be level front to back. Perhaps an inch lower in the front. I keep a tape measure in my truck door to do a quick measure front and rear of frame to level ground. You shouldn't exceed your CVWR. 15,950 is max for the 4th gen 1500 platform. You shouldn't exceed max receiver rating which with our factory class 4 receiver is 1,150 pounds tongue weight. Some Ram guides have said more with WDH. Last but most commonly exceeded is the GVWR which is 6,950 on my Ecodiesel. The rub here with a bigger heavier trailer is that generally you don't want more weight on your TT axles than on your truck axles so as to reduce the odds of the tail wagging the dog so to speak. Tongue weight is adjustable via the WDH and weight distribution in both your TT and in your truck. So say setting the tongue weight to 15% vs setting it at 10% not only can take you above or below GVWR or payload as some might say it also can change the bias as to what has more axle weight the truck or the trailer.
Example 6k truck 8k TT.
10% TW 6,800 on truck axles, 7,200 on TT axles.
15% TW 7,200 on truck axles, 6,800 on TT axles. No tale wagging this dog.
I'd trust my familys safety in the later even though its 3.5% or 250 pounds over GVWR. Finally if you have a really heavy TW trailer and want to take some weight off your truck / TW. Propane and batteries on the tongue are heavy. Some people change or relocate batteries or propane tanks. You can also remove your heavy tailgate & use a net and or relocate your 60 pound spare from behind your truck axle to either behind the cab or better behind the TT axles such as under the trailer or on its back bumper. In this way you not only took 60 pounds off your drive axle but by moving it to behind the trailer axles shift some of the TW off the tongue and back onto the TT axles. Generally the best place for weight is above the TT axles. This kind of stuff is normally more for the guy needing to safely tow a 9 or 10k TT but it flat works.
Sorry for the book but it’s not a 30 second topic. Here is a recent example scale slip. Not a perfect setup but in the zone so to speak so despite its weight it was a relaxing tow.
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