Trailer maintenence
 

Just wondering what everyone does for their rituals to not wind up with issues...

1. How often do you change/repack bearings?

2. How often change brake pads?

3. do you rotate or balance your tires?

4. if you do balance do you use equal so they self balance or do weights?

5. aside from rinsing after dipping in salt/brackish water. what other tips to ensure everything stays in good working condition?

I do a complete bearing job every other year but grease the hubs every couple of mths, but I also do not put a lot of miles on my trailer. Bakes & tires when needed again not a lot of miles.

I am also curious as to what others say.

i would also like to know...thanks.

After every dip in water, no matter which kind of water..your suposed to atleast pump 1-3 strokes of grease in the bearing,,,this is not to grease it ..but to push ater that got in out of it !!!!!

also,,after rinsing..spray all moving parts ( open ) with WD 40 !!!!!! ( leavesprings, haengers, brakes, and electric connections )

changing bearings should be done once a year !!! even if u don't use the trailer they will have flat erea from sitting !!!

I usually pull the wheels and check the brakes once a year. I'll also repack the bearings fully via the zerk until I see new grease coming out.

Don't forget about checking the boards, lag bolts, and carpet. The boards crack often and you will find out how quickly this can damage the boat.

I don't typically have my trailer wheels/tires balanced with weights, but I do have them spun on the balancer to make sure they are not WAY out of whack.

Next time you launch the boat, and are parking the trailer, take a couple minutes to gently pull the trailer up on a curb and check the give on each of the bearings.


The absolutely BEST tool you can buy/own/use for trailer maintenance is a laser pyrometer.

I'm kind of curious...do many of you treat brackish water like salt water? I'm planning a trip to an area that is known for it and I have a steel trailer. Should I be concerned? Should I do anything in particular?

dunk it in fresh water as soon as you return.

Salt Away

Brian,
What temps are you seeing from your bearings, in what amount of time?

Bearings should be cleaned and packed every year so you can examine the brakes and bearings, and adjust them. I balance my tires when new and when 1/2 worn. I use weights not equal. Brakes are replaced when 90 % worn. All fasteners should be checked several times a season, preferably before every trip. Don't forget to grease the actuator and trailer ball also. And keep the tires fully inflated.

1. I have axles that have a zert in the front and a hole near the rear bearing that repack 95% of the grease and pushes the old stuff out the front. I usually push in new grease at the beginning of the year and half way through the season. I do trailer 3-4k miles a year though.

2. I just finished replacing all the brake plates on my drum brakes about 3 hrs ago. It sucked!!!!!! They were the original plates. Not sure if the pads had ever been changed. Since I've owned the boat, the brakes have sucked. Most of the pads were still 20-30%, but the rest looked like crap and most looked to froze. The prior owner pretty much did next to maintenance on the trailer from what I can tell.

3. I don't rotate or balance. I did just replace 4 of my 6 tires and will probably do the other 2 soon.

4. I just have the tires mounted without being balanced.

5. N/A for me. I know the prior owner dipped the steel trailer in salt and it shows.

I re-pack bearings each fall

Brakes replaced as needed as well as tires.

I do rotate tires when I do the bearings

Check tire pressure and give a couple squirts of fresh gease before each use.

When ever the boat is off the trailer I check the boards and bolts at least once in the spring and once in the fall.

If I am parking it for a long period I always park on a couple 2x12's as well as put on tire covers (even when its inside the barn).

After my last brake job I noticed a lot of rust from it sitting after launching so now I tow it 10miles or so to create some heat to dry everything out rather than launch and then let it sit for a couple weeks.

I also go through it anytime I let someone else borrow it (at loto many people don't have trailers so if you have a 38' trailer set up for a straight bottom V you find a lot of friends wanting to borrow it).

Lastly, I don't tow that much (spring, fall, mid summer drive service, and any repairs that pop up so less than 1500miles a year) because I normally leave boat on its lift so once a month or so I will take the empty trailer for a spin around my neighborhood just to get the tires rolling a bit.

I am a bit paranoid and I probably go overboard but I would rather check everything out often than be stuck fixing stuff on the side of the interstate with my family sitting in truck.

I have a steel trailer and I dip in brackish. I had never delt with salt water before and I had alot of people tell me not to worry about it, that I was far enough up the bay that is was basically fresh water. Well, my new hubs lasted less than a season before the first one went, tire floated away while I was launching. When I was pulling the hubs I noticed that everything was completely rusted within the drums. I have a tandem trailer and when I was trying to get the boat off the ramp, the other axle gave way. It was rusted bad, from prior owners neglect in Florida. So $1500 custom made axles later and a $25 axle flush kit later, all is good. FYI, I had bearing buddies and plenty of grease.

Has anyone done anything to treat the steel frame work? (thinking about the inside of the steel tubes)

Flush the brake fluid at least every second season. Prevents alot of master cylinder and wheel cylinder failures. Brake fluid absorbs moisture from the atmosphere and the water molocules travel through the fluid like electrons through a wire. Most f'd up trailer brakes are due to never having the fluid changed.

Clean, inspect and repack bearings every year. Replace as necessary and use NEW seals in the hubs every time. Physically inspect brakes at that time. Service as necessary.

Best time to grease then via fitting or bearing buddy is right after loading the boat. When you arrive at the ramp, the bearings are warm ( should not be hot to the touch ) and if you tend to splash right away, the cooling effect will draw water right into the hub past the seals. Really bad for the bearings if its salt water.
By greasing the hubs before trailering home, you can displace any water that may have been drawn in.
Ideally, wait a half hour after arriving to splash the trailer.

Tires, check pressure each time you leave home and before heading back. Check one and just rap the rest with a billy and listen for any differences. Practice at listening to the "poooong" sound and you can skip using a gauge all together.

Suspension pivot points. Use a heavy spray grease at all pivot and spring mounting points once a month if you trailer alot. Saves wearing away mounting bolts. Check axle to spring pad u bolts for tightness at least once a season.

Winch. Inspect cable or strap often. I have seen a few snap when pulling the boat out and it can be very violent and even dangerous to you or your boat. Grease the winch mechanism once a season as well.

Put a wrench on every nut and bolt at least once a season.

Inspect and lube with wd 40 or similiar the coupler mechanism once a month.

Inspect bunks and mounts quickly everytime before loading the boat. A loose or broken bunk can really mess up you boat.
Inspect the bunk carpet for rips or tears before loading the boat every time. Carpet is cheap, gel coat not so much.

I average around 4000 miles of trailering a year and this basic routine has saved me from any unfortunate incidents so far.

I don't remember the temps offhand, but I just look for uniformity when towing. Anything that is out of the norm from the rest is in trouble, and that goes for tires, hubs, and brakes.

When towing in the daytime, the side to the sun will always have tires that are about 10 degrees warmer.

I also use it to test the tires on the truck at every stop, and also to validate engine, exhaust, and transmission temperatures. I've even been known to hang it out the window when driving in winter to test the road for freezing temps. Priceless tool & great for engine troubleshooting in the boat as well.

My hub temps run in the 120-140* range when towing on the interstate. I check temps with an infrared heat gun at every fuel stop.

AP..good clear advice.
Griff..thanks, being curious i always wondered what temps they ran at..
i think i want an infrared heat gun for my birthday..

I use the IR pyro on my tripple axle trailer and the hubs are 120* in the summer with a 10* varience between the 6. I run my bearings for two years, 1st year brand new, 2nd year repack, 3rd year new and so on.... I have the Kodak 225 disc brakes on my truck so I don't go through pads at all really.

I like the advise about flushing out the fluid!

This year (winter) I am planning on rebuilding my trailer running gear, new bearings, springs, pivot points, etc.. E-trailer.com will be happy with me.

thanks for the info!!!

I have a steel trailer that was dunked in the salt water 2 or 3 times by the previous owner. Is there something that can be done to the inside of the beams to help reduce the corrosion process? I have already flushed it a few times with Dawn dish soap and Salt Away. Or should I just bend over and hang on to my ankles.

I must admit that I cannot believe the number of people that don't balance their trailer tires. Even though you will not feel the imbalance in the tow vehicle, there will likely be a large amount of vibration at the trailer. This will not only increase the wear on the tires, but subject the boat to a lot of vibration and chafing on the bunks. I highly recommend balancing the trailer tires.

Also check your caps every time before launching to make sure they have pressure on the grease. I have greased my hubs at the house only to loose pressure by the time I am at the ramp. I now check right before launching and grease if I am not sure they are pressurized. You want to do this to make sure that water will not enter the hub during launch or retrival. This is particular true if you have just repacked or replaced bearings as there will be a lot of air in the hubs that must be purged before they are full of grease and hold pressure.

Happy trails!

Dan

I always walk around the trailer every stop and feel the temps of tires and wheels by hand. Never occured to me to bring my IR gun.

lots of good replys here thanks, I think im going to balance the new tires.

i was also reading on dexters website that they dont recommend torsion axles for triple axle trailers, after seeing some of the loads put on them in a tight turning situation i know know why.