Author Topic: Basic Camper Trailer maintenance  (Read 5397 times)

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Offline Xoe01

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Basic Camper Trailer maintenance
« on: June 20, 2014, 08:53:05 PM »
Very basic... What do you do to keep your CT in good stead??

Just asking as I have a 4 year old Camel Bushman Plus, a good off road trailer with all sorts of stuff going on under the trailer, leaf springs, water tank, etc... But I have never done any maintenance apart from a hose down and a tyre check......

What can I do myself, being a fairly handy female, but limited with time & tools...

????????


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Offline MDS69

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Re: Basic Camper Trailer maintenance
« Reply #1 on: June 20, 2014, 09:18:25 PM »
Good to see you being proactive about this subject. I am sure you will get lots of replies and with that opinions.

Wheel bearings - If you are handy with a jack and axle/chassis stands raise one side at a time with the jack and place an axle stand under the axle and with one hand gripping the top of your Tyre and the other hand gripping the bottom of the Tyre try to rock it by simultaneously pushing in at the top and pulling out at the bottom repeatedly to check for movement or play in your wheel bearings. If movement is evident then remove the cup on the hub with a love tap from the hammer, remove the split pin and tighten the castle nut clockwise one slot at a time until no movement present. Re-assemble in reverse order.Remove axle stand lower the CT and repeat on the other wheel. The probably is something on YouTube about this.

Suspension - If there are grease nipples on your eye to eye leaf springs give then a few pumps with a grease gun.

Hitch - some trailers if fitted with override brakes will have grease nipples on the body of the hitch. Again give it a few pumps with grease gun.

Axle - check for tightness the U bolts securing the axle to the leaf springs.

Basic electrical - remove the cover from the 7 pin plug at the front of the trailer and check the terminals for corrosion and loose connections. Crawl under your trailer and follow the wiring and check for damage to the wiring from stones etc. If your that way inclined open up your tail lights and check connections for corrosion etc.

Water tank - maybe drop some tank clean in it and go for a drive to slosh around. Drain and flush.

Base trailer - crawl under and over and check the welds for cracks but that is going a bit overboard for some.
« Last Edit: June 20, 2014, 09:21:54 PM by MDS69 »

Offline McTavish

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Re: Basic Camper Trailer maintenance
« Reply #2 on: June 20, 2014, 11:23:11 PM »
My bugbear (on any trailer) is following one who's tail/brake/blinker light/s are not working properly.   
So here's a little tip that has helped me in the past so you can add this to the list if you like and takes a whole 20 seconds... 
If you have a flat 7 pin plug on the trailer - every now and then use a small flat screwdriver to 'spread' the pins just a little so it ensures a good positive connection to the receiving plug.  Connecting and disconnecting the plugs can tend to pinch the pins over time.
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Offline muzza01

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Re: Basic Camper Trailer maintenance
« Reply #3 on: June 21, 2014, 06:03:53 AM »
Good to see you being proactive about this subject. I am sure you will get lots of replies and with that opinions.

Wheel bearings - If you are handy with a jack and axle/chassis stands raise one side at a time with the jack and place an axle stand under the axle and with one hand gripping the top of your Tyre and the other hand gripping the bottom of the Tyre try to rock it by simultaneously pushing in at the top and pulling out at the bottom repeatedly to check for movement or play in your wheel bearings. If movement is evident then remove the cup on the hub with a love tap from the hammer, remove the split pin and tighten the castle nut clockwise one slot at a time until no movement present. Re-assemble in reverse order.Remove axle stand lower the CT and repeat on the other wheel. The probably is something on YouTube about this.

Suspension - If there are grease nipples on your eye to eye leaf springs give then a few pumps with a grease gun.

Hitch - some trailers if fitted with override brakes will have grease nipples on the body of the hitch. Again give it a few pumps with grease gun.

Axle - check for tightness the U bolts securing the axle to the leaf springs.

Basic electrical - remove the cover from the 7 pin plug at the front of the trailer and check the terminals for corrosion and loose connections. Crawl under your trailer and follow the wiring and check for damage to the wiring from stones etc. If your that way inclined open up your tail lights and check connections for corrosion etc.

Water tank - maybe drop some tank clean in it and go for a drive to slosh around. Drain and flush.

Base trailer - crawl under and over and check the welds for cracks but that is going a bit overboard for some.
Excellent advice. I might just add to remove your brake drum and clean on the odd occasion.

Offline MDS69

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Re: Basic Camper Trailer maintenance
« Reply #4 on: June 21, 2014, 08:24:41 AM »
Excellent advice. I might just add to remove your brake drum and clean on the odd occasion.

Yes which can be difficult task in itself. I had issues removing my brake drums and a swagger kindly suggested undo the wheel nuts most of the way from the stud and use the wheel as a slide hammer to dislodge the drum :cheers:

Offline D4D

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Re: Basic Camper Trailer maintenance
« Reply #5 on: June 21, 2014, 08:27:32 AM »
If you have a flat 7 pin plug on the trailer - every now and then use a small flat screwdriver to 'spread' the pins just a little so it ensures a good positive connection to the receiving plug.

x2 I have fixed a few intermittent faults doing this.
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Offline Xoe01

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Re: Basic Camper Trailer maintenance
« Reply #6 on: June 21, 2014, 02:01:14 PM »
Thanks guys. Some good advice here, I will try next weekend when I have some time. A grease gun.... Is this a simple thing I can pick up?
Will do that thing with my trailer pin too, as I'm sure I've got a loose connection as sometimes it needs a wiggle to work!!!


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Offline Terry W4

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Re: Basic Camper Trailer maintenance
« Reply #7 on: June 21, 2014, 06:57:16 PM »
To me the most important things (after all the electrics working) is brakes and bearings.

Just had my Cub serviced and replaced the bearings, brake pads and brake cabling JUST to be sure as I bought it second hand last Sept.
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Offline Metters

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Re: Basic Camper Trailer maintenance
« Reply #8 on: June 21, 2014, 08:00:39 PM »
After four years of use,  I would start by having a look at the wheel bearings, particularly if you have taken it through deep water.  I found water in one front hub on my 4X4 when it was near new after a VHC trip that involved many water crossings.  The quality of the seals on cars is usually higher than trailers yet it still got in.

It is easy enough for me to say just remove the bearings then either check and repack them with grease or replace them when I worked for 19 years as a mechanic in my younger days.  It is not all that easy though for someone in your position.   What I would suggest you do is enroll in a basic car maintenance course.  That will help you considerably with your car but while there, ask a lot of questions about your trailer, particularly about setting bearing preload.

One tip with wheel bearings, either on your car or trailer, is do not use high temperature bearing grease.  It is bertone clay based and its main feature is it does not have a temperature drop off point where it will stop lubricating.  This is great if you drive a V8 supercar with its brake discs glowing red but it has no water washout resistance.  Use a lithium based wheel bearing grease.  You will most likely find that type of grease is specified in you car owner's handbook and it will be ideal for your trailer.

Offline ATC

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Re: Basic Camper Trailer maintenance
« Reply #9 on: June 21, 2014, 08:06:06 PM »
Thanks guys. Some good advice here, I will try next weekend when I have some time. A grease gun.... Is this a simple thing I can pick up?
Will do that thing with my trailer pin too, as I'm sure I've got a loose connection as sometimes it needs a wiggle to work!!!


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I use Marine Grease, but it's for a boat trailer that gets dipped in salt water each time we go out...


Offline bodgie

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Re: Basic Camper Trailer maintenance
« Reply #10 on: June 21, 2014, 08:21:02 PM »
I reckon the key thing to trailer maintenance as others have suggesting is make sure the wheel bearings are in good order. My advice is to over service the bearings particularly if you are going on a longer trip. While it isn't a guarantee you won't have issues it will go a long way to making sure you don't.

The other thing is leaf springs, keep an eye on the u-bolts and any grease points they have. I also recommend keeping the springs lubed up with oil or at least WD-50 to keep the rust at bay to make sure they are as supple as they can be.

Jason

Offline McTavish

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Re: Basic Camper Trailer maintenance
« Reply #11 on: June 21, 2014, 10:44:41 PM »
Another thing I just remembered and might be worthwhile using..

If the underside of the trailer has been used on dirt roads and peppered with stones you will find the paint has taken a bit of a flogging.   
This was the case for mine when bought second hand - so I spent some time with a wire brush and some elbow grease taking the light surface rust off the bits that were exposed. 
Then I brushed on "PENETROL" and let it dry overnight then reapplied the next day.  Then bought some hammertone spray cans and touched up the areas bringing it back like new...

http://www.floodaustralia.net/products/anti_corrosion/penetrol-anti_rust.php
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