Performing Trailer Brake Maintenance
Well-maintained trailer brakes play an important role in keeping you safe on the road while you’re towing. They relieve the pressure off your tow vehicle by helping your trailer come to a complete stop.
If your brakes are not working properly, it becomes tough for you to drive and control the trailer. Make sure you’re regularly maintaining the brakes, otherwise you could end up with a complicated problem requiring costly repairs down the road.
Countryside Trailer Sales has provided some tips for understanding how your trailer brakes function and how to keep them in peak working condition. If you’re having any problems that you can’t fix yourself or if you want your trailer professionally serviced, the experienced technicians at our service department are ready to help you. Contact us today! We’re in Spring, Texas, proudly serving the cities of Houston and Woodlands.
Types of Trailer Brakes
To know how to take proper care of your brakes, you need to first understand how they work. Trailers are equipped with either electric or surge brakes. Electric ones use an electric connection that sends a signal from the tow vehicle brakes to the trailer brakes to tell them when to stop. When you press your pedal brake, the signal reaches your trailer brakes and they get activated.
Next, let's look at the surge option. When you slow down, these get triggered by the forward jolt of the trailer. If it senses that your trailer is shifting forward, the brakes get activated automatically to prevent your trailer from slamming into the back of your tow vehicle. This type is useful for those who spend a lot of time around water, as you won't need to be concerned about fried electrical connections.
Brake Inspection
Now that you are familiar with the types of trailer brakes, you can get into the details of how to maintain them so they last longer. A great place to start is to engage in regular inspections. When you check your brakes regularly, you can catch issues that will only grow worse and cost more to repair over time. Detecting and fixing these problems early keeps you safe on the road and also saves you money in the long run.
Start with examining all parts of the braking system, including the drums, shoes, and shoe return springs and hardware. While you do this, keep an eye out for a few key things. Look for signs of corrosion, parts grinding together, or shoes and drums that are too thin and need to be replaced. Compare both sides of the system against each other. If you find that one side is wearing unevenly, it could either be a sign that your hitch is problematic or you may not be loading your trailer correctly. There could also be something else that needs immediate attention.
Specific Problems
There are different ways to check different brake systems. If your trailer has electric brakes, you'll want to inspect the wiring and connections for frays and broken wires. Push the trailer and see if the braking system gets engaged. If it doesn’t get activated, there could be an issue with the brake fluid or the master cylinder and wheel cylinders.
Regular Maintenance
If you aren’t maintaining your trailer brakes regularly, problems can snowball when left unnoticed for weeks or months on end. Remember to check your brakes annually or after every 12,000 miles of travel. These check-ups are necessary even if you don’t use your trailer very often. You may want to take your trailer on a drive every three months, just to make sure every part stays functional. This will help you avoid any maintenance issues related to disuse.
By following these tips, you should be able to keep your trailer brakes working smoothly. If you need professional help to fix any issue with your trailer, head to Countryside Trailer Sales in Spring, Texas. We welcome all our patrons from Houston and The Woodlands, Texas.