Roof rack adapted to carry 4x8 sheets?

[Bob Slater]

Whenever I carry drywall on my sedan, I put an 8 foot 2X4 on each side to help secure the load.

[Peter Quinn]

"On a string and a prayer"

J.R.

What many fail to note in that picture is that the entire back seat is filled with sakrete, which at least partially added to that cars demise.

I work for a business that sells lumber and plywood retail, mostly to contractors, but people show up in all kinds of vehicles with all kinds of improvised racks to buy a little wood. Seems if you keep it light and secure it well it should work. Just please, don't pull out in front of me if you would!

At 75 pounds per sheet, just how many sheets of plywood would you think prudent on a 200# roof rack? I once hauled 11 sheets of plywood, three anderson windows and 7 bundles of arc comp shingles in an Isuzu trooper with the back door open and a few 1000# compression straps holding things together. I now use a 1 ton van which makes the other methods moot for me. Even with the van I find delivery a preferable option for sheetrock in most cases.

[Dan Karachio]

When I had a car with Thule racks I set up 2 - 4 foot 2x4's that bolted flat on top of the cross bars. I would lay sheets of plywood on these bars and then use a C clamp at the end of each 2x4 to clamp the plywood to the 2x4's. No ropes required. Hauled a lot of plywood that way - even put longer 2x4's on once and carried a 10 foot wide garage door.

Hey John, That sounds like one amazing adventure you saw that day. Like something out of a cartoon or a comedy. Unbelievable! I think your suggestion is the ticket. I was thinking clamps and not ropes/straps as well, but you made it clear as to how it could work. Thanks! Still, my cross bars are round and Thule are square right? I think I can do something to make this work. I think the good old trusty C clamp is the most reliable clamp for this job too!. By the way, Yakima does have one little product for hauling - see: http://www.yakima.com/Product.aspx?Number=8005000 Doesn't take care of hold down though.

As for weight, the rack is rated to hold 200 pounds so I am in pretty good shape. I have had the 90 pound kayak and a 20 pound bike on it and not a sign of stress, so two three sheets of plywood should be fine. The car is a Subaru and those things are built like little tanks. It's a nice 35 mph route to the various lumber yards, so I guess I need to make a test run!

Trust me, the spare truck would be my first choice, but I have this thing in the house that would make doing that very difficult. It's called a wife!

[John Ricci]

What many fail to note in that picture is that the entire back seat is filled with sakrete, which at least partially added to that cars demise.

Peter, I know the pic and the connected story well...800lbs. of cement in the back seat, punched the tops of the shocks through the floor etc. I was making a joke, that's all Fools, like suckers are born every minute!

J.R.

[Peter Quadarella]

I carry sheets on the rack of my Expedition. The most I've done is 4. Two or 3 is better and I try to avoid any long trips or the highway. I use 4 ratchet straps - 2 each way, and it seems pretty secure to me. It's a bit of a pain though as it takes time to get the straps on properly.

[Daniel Hillmer]

All you need are the straight Yakima utility crossbars, no?

BTW I think the buying a used truck isn't such a good idea -maintenance, registration, licence, insurance, fuel, etc.
If you buy lumber often enough a utility trailer would be a better idea imho.

One thing to remember, even with a trailer, you still have to get a license plate for it, register it and insure it (although it's cheaper than for a vehicle) and also your gas mileage will go down will cost more if you go on long trips. So you still have factor all that in with your costs even with a trailer.

[John Ricci]

One thing to remember, even with a trailer, you still have to get a license plate for it, register it and insure it (although it's cheaper than for a vehicle) and also your gas mileage will go down will cost more if you go on long trips. So you still have factor all that in with your costs even with a trailer.

I guess it depends on where you live...I'm in Ontario, Canada and a utility trailer registration is a one time $15 fee, the plate is permanent and transferable, no insurance hit and behind a full sized pickup the mileage loss is inconsequential. That would be the reality in my world but I don't know how it works where you live

J.R.

[Don Bullock]

I guess that station wagons are smaller than they used to be. We used my dad's Ford station wagon wagon to haul plywood sheets when I was a kid. Now several full size sheets fit in my Chrysler van.

[Steven DeMars]

A 4' X 8' light weight utility trailer is the best way if you do not have a truck. Some fold or store upright. . . .

The roof top method will always leave you wishing you had another way to haul. Also with a trailer you can carry anything within the weight limits of the trailer . . .

http://www.newmansinc.com/light-duty...tytrailer.html

[Jim Becker]

One thing to remember, even with a trailer, you still have to get a license plate for it, register it and insure it (although it's cheaper than for a vehicle) and also your gas mileage will go down will cost more if you go on long trips. So you still have factor all that in with your costs even with a trailer.

Trailer registration in PA is $60 for 5 years and there is no additional insurance required...the normal auto policy covers utility trailers.

Ultimately, a small utility trailer is a better solution for this kind of transportation need than using the roof rack if there is generally going to be somewhat regular transportation needs. Tying a couple sheets on top once in a blue moon and driving slowing isn't really a bad issue, but it's not as safe as a small trailer and you have to consider both the weight limits of the roof rack AND the roof. In many cases that's not much weight at all.

When I sold my Tundra in favor of the Highlander Hybrid to better meet our family needs, I invested a grand in a nice 5'x8' tilt-bed utility trailer. It was well invested money, IMHO, and I've used it a lot more than I expected. My particular trailer also has a 2160# cargo capacity (2950# Gross) and that also means I could put my Kubota on it (sans backhoe) if I needed it to be serviced in the shop, rather than on-site, as well as carry heavier landscaping materials. But for general lumber and sheet stock hauling, a few hundred dollars can buy a very functional solution...and don't discount looking for a used trailer, either, on Craig's List. (Of course, there is the cost of a hitch receiver if your vehicle doesn't have one...)

[Brian W Evans]

I second the idea that you can do this with Yakima racks. I do it all the time also. I don't go on the highway with sheet goods, however, and the lumber yard is less than 10 miles on 40 mph or less streets. I also tend to avoid doing this on windy days. That being said, I have put at least 3 sheets of 3/4" and 2 sheets of 1/4" material on at one time with no problems. I tie them down with clothesline. When I got my racks I got cross bars that were 55" or so (don't remember the exact measurements) so I would have some sticking out the side to tie the rope to. The law in my VT says that cross bars can't extend beyond the side-view mirrors, which works on my Subaru.

So, I say go for it. Just err on the side of caution and go slow.

Edit: Just wanted to add something since we're talking about racks. I recently had to buy some molding and casing material and bring it home using my roof racks. Needless to say this stuff was quite long and would break easily if tied down to a roof rack. I read somewhere about using an aluminum extension ladder as a support. I can tell you it works great. The ladder is light enough and rigid enough and there are obviously plenty of places to tie down to. I tied the ladder down securely after extending it to the right length, then tied or taped the molding to it.

[Don Morris]

Like several above, I've brought home a bunch of sheet goods on an SUV supported on 2 X 4's to keep the sheet goods from flexing and catching the wind. On one SUV I had a Yakima rack, on the other SUV I just had the factory rails. I secured the 2 X 4's to the rails or rack, clamped the sheet goods to the 2 X 4's plus used strapping. Didn't go over 55 and watched it carefully. Worked.

[Anthony Watson]

Dan,

I ran into this same problem years ago. We don't own a truck, but I often need to haul lumber and other items. I considered buying a truck, but didn't want the extra gas, maintenance, licensing, insurance, etc. I opted for a small utility trailer. It was a 4'x8' kit trailer I bought from a local department store. I think I only paid about $150-200 for it, and maybe another $100 or so in wood for the floor and sides. It costs me roughly $30 a year to license and is covered by my regular car insurance at no additional cost.

I pull the trailer with my old 1976 Rabbit, even up our steep mountain road with no problems. I can carry three passengers (in addition to myself), a weeks worth of groceries in the back of the car, and up to 1000 pounds of cargo in the trailer. All while getting 25mpg on average. Try that with a truck!

I haul full sheets of plywood, long boards up to 12' long (I've even carried a few 16's over the years), long pipes, etc. I also carry lots of things you would never get on a roof rack, like bark dust, sand, firewood, garbage, furniture (a full couch), finished woodworking projects, large tools (table saw, air compressor, etc.), and much more.

Anthony

[Greg Cole]

I'd worry more about the roof rack than what the actual vehicle can with hold. Ever seen a car upside down? (I've put one upside down so I've seen it from the inside) The door posts and reinforced areas around the doors hold up the weight of the vehicle, granted the sheet metal is dented to hell... but the roof doesn't totally collapse.
I drive a truck, always have and will... so seeing loads on a car roof are somewhat a source of entertainment for me.
And I seem to recall a story to go along with the crushed Jetta pics, as in it was intentional..... least I think I remember that. Anyone to honestly try to load out that much stuff in that car has no business trying to build what ever all the materials are for, nevermind drive a car.

[Bruce Benjamin]

I'll just repost what I posted in that old thread linked earlier...I want to point out that the key is that most factory roof racks are weak...

One of the problems with tying to a factory roof rack has already been explained, the wood blowing off of the rack. If it doesn't blow off of the rack, the rack itself can blow off of the car. A lot of factory racks are only held onto the roof using expanding rubber nutserts through the sheet metal of the roof. Some are probably more secure but I doubt that any are substantial enough to handle the force of an unexpected gust of wind on a sheet of plywood.

The no-brainer obvious choice is to just buy a small flat bed utility trailer. The HF trailers have already been suggested and they will work fine as long as you don't overload them. If you absolutely insist on hauling on the roof of you SUV then buy one of the aftermarket sport racks, like a Yakima. The ones that hook onto your rain gutters, (if you have rain gutters) are the strongest. The racks that only utilize the existing factory rack aren't any stronger than the factory rack. After strapping the plywood to the sport rack, then run some straps over the wood and through the passenger compartment, through the windows. You may have to get creative with this since it will require you to either crawl through the window to get in or tighten the strap in front after you're already in the car. I work at a lumber yard and I've seen this done. The guy secured the rear strap through the rear windows and then kept the front one very loose until after he was in the car. He then used the ratchet to tighten it down. The only way this will fail is if the straps fail or if the roof rips off of your car.

All of that being said, I still think overloading any car or light truck on the roof is a stupid idea so let your own sense of danger be your guide. Just spend a couple hundred bucks on a Harbor Freight trailer with 12" wheels and you won't have to worry about ruining your car, (A CRV is a CAR, not a truck or an SUV...No Utility) and possibly injuring or killing anyone in the process. That can't possibly be worth the money you saved on a trailer, can it?

Bruce