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Truck load calculator: will 2 yards of 2A fit my truck?
Stone, soil and sand are heavier than they look. Pick the material and how much you’re buying, enter the payload from your door sticker and your trailer’s rating, and see whether it fits in one trip, how much it weighs and how many trips it really takes.
Two loose yards of 2A weigh about 5,000 to 6,200 lb. A yard of #57 stone is 2,400 to 3,000 lb, topsoil about 2,600 lb and mulch about 500 lb. Your limit is the “combined weight of occupants and cargo” on the driver’s door pillar, minus the people riding along. Checked Nov. 13, 2026.
Truck load calculator
Bed size, inside, for the volume check (inches, optional):
Weights are per loose yard, the way a loader dumps it in your bed. Wet material weighs more. Check your truck’s tow rating and hitch rating separately.
Weight per loose cubic yard
| Material | Pounds per loose yard | Source |
|---|---|---|
| PennDOT 2A (crusher run base) | 2,500–3,100 | Ohio DOT 2,500 lb (limestone crusher run); Penn State 1.55 tons (PennDOT 2A) |
| #57 stone (PennDOT 2B) | 2,400–3,000 | Ohio DOT 2,400 lb (limestone No. 57) to 2,500 (gravel); Penn State 1.50 tons |
| #8 stone (PennDOT 1B) | 3,000 | Penn State 1.50 tons |
| #3 stone (PennDOT 3A) | 3,100 | Penn State 1.55 tons |
| #1 stone (PennDOT 4) | 2,800 | Penn State 1.40 tons |
| Driving surface aggregate (DSA) | 3,300 | Penn State 1.65 tons |
| 2RC / recycled concrete | 2,250–3,200 | Ohio DOT 2,250 lb (recycled concrete); Penn State 1.60 tons (PennDOT 2RC) |
| Bank run gravel | 2,700 | Ohio DOT 2,700 lb |
| Shale | 3,000 | Penn State 1.50 tons |
| Riprap (R-3 to R-6) | 2,800 | Penn State 1.40 tons |
| Asphalt millings (RAP) | 2,650 | Ohio DOT 2,650 lb |
| Sand | 2,630–2,960 | Missouri DOT loose weights, 2,630 to 2,960 lb |
| Fill dirt | 2,800 | Penn State 1.40 tons |
| Topsoil | 2,600 | Penn State 1.30 tons |
| Mulch (shredded wood) | 500 | EPA 500 lb (shredded wood chips); wet mulch weighs more |
Ohio DOT’s figures are the factors it uses to convert loose yards in the truck to weight (Table 410.06-1). Penn State’s are the as-shipped loose factors in its DGLVR materials calculator. Sand is from Missouri DOT’s loose-weight table and mulch from EPA’s conversion factors. Where two sources differ, the calculator plans on the heavier number.
Where to find your numbers
On vehicles up to 10,000 lb GVWR, federal rules require a tire and loading placard on the driver’s door pillar that reads “The combined weight of occupants and cargo should never exceed” followed by the weight (FMVSS 110). That number, minus the people riding, is what the bed can take.
The trailer’s GVWR is on its certification label. Subtract what the trailer weighs empty to get what it can carry. If you don’t know the empty weight, run it across a scale.
Plan on 10 to 15 percent of the loaded trailer weight sitting on the hitch, and count it against the truck’s payload (Mopar). The calculator holds back 15 percent of the trailer’s GVWR.
Why moisture matters
EPA’s conversion table, citing FEECO, puts dry sand at 90 to 110 lb per cubic foot and wet sand at 110 to 130. That’s roughly 500 lb more per yard after a rain. Soil swings the same way: the same table lists common dry earth at 70 to 80 lb per cubic foot and wet earth containing clay at 100 to 110. If the pile’s been rained on, load less.
Questions
How much does a yard of 2A weigh?
About 2,500 to 3,100 lb per loose cubic yard. Ohio DOT converts limestone crusher run at 2,500 lb a loose yard, and Penn State’s dirt and gravel roads program uses 1.55 tons (3,100 lb) for PennDOT 2A as shipped. Two yards is 5,000 to 6,200 lb.
Will a yard of gravel fit in my pickup?
Only if your payload allows it. A loose yard of #57 stone runs about 2,400 to 3,000 lb. Find “The combined weight of occupants and cargo should never exceed” on the placard on the driver’s door pillar, subtract the people riding along, and compare.
How much mulch can a pickup carry?
Mulch is light, about 500 lb a yard for shredded wood chips in EPA’s conversion table, so the bed usually fills up before you hit the payload. Measure the bed and the calculator works out the yards it holds level. Wet mulch weighs more.
Does trailer tongue weight count against my truck’s payload?
Yes. Mopar says tongue weight should be about 10 to 15 percent of the loaded trailer weight and that you must count it as part of the load on your vehicle. The calculator holds back 15 percent of the trailer’s GVWR from the truck’s payload when you tow.
How much topsoil can I haul in one trip?
Penn State’s factor for topsoil is 1.30 tons (2,600 lb) per loose yard. Divide your available payload by 2,600 to get yards per trip. Wet soil weighs more, so stay under the line.
Sources: Ohio DOT, Construction and Material Specifications, Item 410, Table 410.06-1 (loose conversion factors); Penn State Center for Dirt and Gravel Road Studies, DGLVR Materials Calculator (tons per loose, as-shipped yard); Missouri DOT, Highway Maintenance Tables and Conversion Factors (loose weights of various materials); U.S. EPA, Standard Volume-to-Weight Conversion Factors (updated Feb. 28, 2006); 49 CFR 571.110 (FMVSS 110), tire and loading information placard; Mopar, Trailering Basics Part 1 (tongue weight and payload). Checked Nov. 13, 2026.
Muthler Landscaping & Construction · Lock Haven, PA
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