Where Can I Get My Boat Trailer Repaired, It Needs A Spring

Apply these 10 tips to forbid or gear up mutual trailering problems. Steve Haefele

At the launch ramp or effectually the campfire, boater talk often turns to troubles—and topping the give-and-take, along with outboards and tow vehicles, is the boat trailer. It seems like everyone has a story nigh "that time my trailer wouldn't…" So, in keeping with that theme, hither are 10 potential problems on your boat trailer and how yous can prevent them.

Calorie-free problems? Supersede with LEDs, which final longer. Nib Doster

Trailer Lights
Commonly commencement or second on the list next to wheel bearings, trailer lights fail often due to the harsh environment they live in and, of course, lack of maintenance. Thanks to LED lighting, however, system problems have dropped dramatically. LEDs can take a lot more penalisation than old-school incandescent lights, plus they're a lot brighter. They last longer as well. If you're having light problems, it may be time to simply upgrade your trailer to LEDs. Typical light-system bug include:

Flickering: If all the lights flicker, this usually comes from an intermittent ground. If your trailer footing (white) wire is not continued, and you lot're using the ball coupler as the ground, this is normally the consequence. Connect that white wire to a solid basis on the trailer tongue, for example, by drilling a hole and using a screw every bit a post for a band terminal. (This is in addition to a ground for the pigtail on the vehicle.) If just one light (or merely ane side of the trailer) flickers, check the basis(s) on those individual lights. If you accept incandescent lights, remove the lens, and ensure the bulb is not damaged and is making its connection to its mounting base solidly.

No turn signal/brake light: Bank check the basis or the power wire for the problem low-cal (greenish on the right side, yellow on the left). Again, if you accept incandescent lights, remove the lens, and ensure the seedling is non damaged and is making its connection to its mounting base solidly.

No running lights: Bank check the ground or the power wire (brown) for the running lights. For incandescent lights—aye, you guessed it—see above.

Damaged pigtail (connection to motorcar socket): This ­commonly happens when someone runs over the harness. Fortunately, they're cheap and easy to replace.

Damaged low-cal mountain: Backed into something? You lot may demand a welder, or at least a new light bracket. Don't forget the license-plate bracket.

Supersede the wood and carpet if needed. Bill Doster

Bunks
Oh, homo—you come up back from the ramp, and at that place's a metallic bunk stanchion/support scraping the hull. Judge those one-time wooden bunks needed replacement, eh? Hither's what to do.

Measure the bunks, and buy replacement wood and carpet (or new plastic bunk slicks). Don't forget the mounting bolts, nuts and washers—stainless is best.

Offload the gunkhole and shop it. This may exist harder than it sounds, particularly if your rig is larger and/or you don't take an piece of cake way to do this. Y'all may have to dump it off on your lawn, or pick a slow day at the ramp and go out it docked while you replace the bunks in the parking lot.

If you're going the traditional way (wood and carpet), use white pine or redwood and stainless-steel or monel staples. Consider mounting the bunks on end rather than apartment—the forest is more than rigid that manner and will provide even improve hull support.

If rollers get deformed or rusty and no longer turn, they are like shooting fish in a barrel to replace. Measure carefully for the correct sizes. Jim Hendricks

Rollers
Rollers go deformed and won't turn, and the shafts go rusty. Fortunately, rollers are piece of cake to replace. What to practise:

• Measure, specially shafts. They're bachelor in many sizes, and you'll need to ensure they stick out far plenty on each side of the roller to get the retainer caps on.
• Consider replacing with poly rollers instead of the black safety ones. Poly is more expensive by far, simply it'll last longer and won't mar your hull with blackness streaks.
• Don't forget the bow roller/bow finish. This office takes a lot of abuse, then it should be replaced.
• End caps are important, peculiarly for the rearmost roller, when loading in the wind. They help go along your hull from damage when centering on the trailer.

When storing, don't utilise the jack to support the trailer natural language. Courtesy Westward Marine

Tongue Jack
For the most part, today'southward natural language jacks are inexpensive, disposable items. You can purchase a swiveling, galvanized 1,200-pound-capacity natural language jack for less than $30 at most discount stores. Trouble is, the price reflects the durability and longevity; if you're non careful, you lot'll exist replacing that jack inside a couple of years. Here'south how to make yours terminal a bit longer:

• When you use information technology to move your boat around the driveway, lower the jack well-nigh all the mode down. Moving it with the leg extended (at its weakest point) will cause premature failure.
• Keep the pivot bespeak, dolly cycle and crank handle/mechanism well-lubricated.
• Bear upon upward rusty spots with cold galvanizing spray to keep corrosion to a minimum.
• When storing, don't employ the jack to back up the trailer tongue; this will cause the plastic wheel to eventually flatten. Instead, use some other support, taking the weight of the trailer off the jack.

Proceed your brakes properly maintained to avoid problems on the road. Courtesy Necktie Down Engineering

Trailer Brakes
Brake bug oftentimes stem from poor maintenance. Nigh boat trailers apply surge brakes. Here are some common issues.

Depression or no fluid: If the surge-brake actuator reservoir is low or empty, yous'll demand to fill up it properly, then bleed the brakes over again. If the seals are leaking, you'll need to rebuild the actuator or buy a replacement.

Corroded or nonworking coupler actuator: Supercede the actuator if the electric current one hasn't been maintained.

Crimped or damaged brake lines: Discover the problem and repair the line. (You'll need to add fluid and drain the system once again.)

Corroded brake-actuator mechanisms: Practice a complete system overhaul. Start with new brake assemblies for each wheel.

Worn brake shoes or worn restriction pads: You lot may need to replace them and likewise replace the drums or rotors.

Plan alee and carry spare bearing parts and grease to deal with this common event. Courtesy Overton'south

Cycle Bearings
Next to trailer lights, wheel bearings seem like the nearly often reported problem amid trailer boaters. If yous're towing down the road and experience bearing failure, it'south often likewise late. If you take hold of information technology in time, y'all might be able to field-fix the issue, if you've planned ahead and carried parts and tools. (An extra hub complete with bearings and grease is a great savior.) Before a long trip, make it a addiction—role of your pre-trip checklist—to check the bearings, and repack or supplant them if necessary, before you lot head out.

To avoid the problem in the get-go place, take a short test ride. Bank check the hub temperature at every gas and rest finish; feel the hubs on the within and out for excessive warmth. If a hub gets hot, pull over every bit far as possible, enhance the problem wheel, and remove the cycle and tire. Removing the hub volition show the bad bearing. If the axle isn't damaged, you tin can wearing apparel the surface with crocus textile (plumber'due south sandpaper) and make clean information technology with some gasoline. Install the replacement hub, greasing information technology fully, and reinstall the cap (or begetting protector). Then reinstall the cycle and tire, checking for smooth functioning by rotating the associates and checking for excessive rocking and/or wobble before lowering information technology to the basis again.

Do preventative maintenance so the crank doesn't fail at the worst possible time. Courtesy West Marine

Winch
The winch, strap and hook tin fail at the most inopportune time—usually when yous're retrieving your boat, with a line of boaters waiting to utilize the ramp. Like most of the other components, the winch fails due to neglect and misuse. Here are some tips to keep yours working:

• Keep the winch strap straight; don't allow it to fold or crease, or flip over on itself when cranking.
• Go on the hook'south safety latch ­lubricated and working freely.
• Lubricate the gears, shafts and fasteners on the winch.
• Keep the winch's handle nut tight; otherwise, it will loosen and round off the handle axle.
• Keep the winch'southward attaching bolts tight to the trailer's winch stand up.
• Make sure the winch and bow finish are at the correct peak for your boat's bow eye. When winched up tight, the bow eye should stop up just under the bow stop/roller.

Accept your axles checked at least in one case every couple of seasons by a professional trailer-repair shop. Courtesy West Marine

Axles
The backbone of your boat trailer, the axles run into a load of abuse from corrosion, overloading and shock. Consider having yours checked at least once every couple of seasons past a professional person trailer-repair shop. Unless you lot're a seasoned trailer-repair expert, repairs to the axles, intermission and attaching hardware should be done past a pro. You tin, still, cheque for excessive corrosion, axle sag, jump sag, and spring/attaching hardware corrosion. Bank check tires for foreign wear patterns, and inspect the opinion and levelness of the trailer from backside. This can reveal impending axle problems or fifty-fifty failure.

Continue rust from spreading past touching up the stop with pigment or common cold-galvanizing spray. Pecker Doster

Frame
The frame is the bedrock of your trailer. While you can check for rust, sagging and broken welds, unless you lot're a trailer expert with welding and frame-straightening feel, information technology's best to go out major repairs to the trailer-shop experts. Yous can keep rust from spreading by touching up the terminate with paint or cold-galvanizing spray. Bank check the frame for straightness and sagging with a visual bank check from the rear, and bank check tires for uneven wear. Inspect the welds and fasteners (for bolt-together trailers) at to the lowest degree once per season. It's easy to launch your boat and forget about the trailer until it reminds you it'southward there—with a failure. Keeping things maintained is a pain, but much less painful than emergency repairs on the side of the road.

Bank check your tires often to head off any potential issues. Courtesy Westward Marine

Wheels and Tires
The unsung heroes of the boat-trailer earth, wheels and tires endure a lot of fail. Often, failure comes non from mileage wear, merely rotting due to historic period, idle sitting and ultraviolet rays. Want yours to terminal longer?

• Check often for signs of rot.
• Keep them inflated; don't let them to get flat.
• If you're non going to use the trailer for a while, jack the frame up and go along the tires off the footing.
• Consider covering the tires to continue them out of the sun.
• Bank check the lug-nut torque at least one time per season. When servicing, use Never-Seize on the wheel studs to keep the lug basics from galling and seizing.
• Cheque wheels for straightness, especially if you lot've hit a adjourn lately.
• Make sure y'all have the correct wheel and tire sizes, and the load rating for the combined weight of the trailer and boat plus gear.

Where Can I Get My Boat Trailer Repaired, It Needs A Spring,

Source: https://www.boatingmag.com/ten-things-that-can-go-wrong-with-your-boat-trailer/

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