15/08/2023
The boat trailer is often the neglected partner in the marriage between boat and trailer. For obvious reasons. You want your pride and joy fibreglass speed machine to be tip top and not going to let you down while you are cruising those ocean waves.
However, don’t forget the trailer. Whilst the boat is designed with the sole aim of sitting comfortably in the water the trailer is often not – especially in salt water.
There are some simple steps that can be taken to prolong the life of the trailer and reduce those maintenance and repair costs
Launching your boat into the sea will unavoidably affect the wheel bearings and brakes as well as inviting corrosion to the chassis.
Make sure you wash the trailer, including inside the hubs as well and as quickly as you can after launching. Even better if your trailer does not have a fresh water flushing system get one fitted !
Make sure the tyres have plenty of tread and most importantly are not cracked or bulging. We rarely see tyres that are worn of tread but so often we see trailers come in for service that have cracks in them. Remember, a tyre will blow out on the motorway because it has perished and cracked so don’t take the risk. If in doubt get them checked out and follow the golden rule of replacing tyres after 5-7 years regardless of condition.
If you are launching your boat avoid doing this immediately after a long journey. The bearings will be hot and the rapid change in temperature could damage the bearing
Try not to leave the handbrake on when parked for long periods. Instead chock the wheels. This will avoid the risk of brake linings attaching themselves to drums and potentially sticking on or causing damage when pulling away.
Braked trailers must be fitted with a breakaway cable. This applies the brakes in the event your trailer becomes detached from the towing vehicle. Is yours in good condition? For something so relatively cheap and vital to safety you would not believe how many trailers we have come in where this is either missing or damaged !!!
With all that in mind don’t forget your annual service. A good service engineer will check all the trailer over, adjust the brakes, grease where necessary and give you good piece of mind that all is well with your trailer.
For more information or to book your trailer in for its annual service call Phil on 07502 268425. We are a caravan and trailer workshop based in Rugeley Staffordshire
