To flush or not to flush

[Hightower]

A question that has been playing on my mind for a while now.

After recovery, I trailer home and obviously the Brakes and hubs are toasty warm, which meens the hub and brake assemblies have dried out.

Is it still a good Idea to flush when arriving at home at the risk of keeping the brake and hub internals wet for possibly days?

[C2 RIBS]

My understanding is not to flush or put the trailer in the water when the brakes and hubs are hot. I would still flush through when cold as I have done for my older craft/trailer every time. I would suggest flush through at the slipway if possible

[BruceB]

They are loevely and toasty warm and dry leaving the nice coating of dried salt over everything.
Flushing goes some way to at least attempting to flush the salt coating everything out of the hubs.
Ideally the best place to do this would be at the slip immediately after recovery when the salt water is still water as salt crystals don't dissolve that well when formed by evaporation of the water but something is better than nothing they say.

[Hightower]

No tap at the slipway unfortunately, so has to be done at home. I haven't had the drums off yet to coat everything in grease but will do before too long.

So I guess flushing is the way to go then.

[Bigmuz7]

Flushing makes you feel good, but it wont extend the life "considerably" Salt is hygroscopic and always keeps everything damp.. clear that off and you've got good old oxygen to aid the rusting process anyway

Change em before they fail is the only policy

[bogib]

I flush the trailer everytime both after putting the boat on water and again after recovering the boat, we have both garden hose at the slipway as well do we have jet hose as well so no excuse not to wash your trailer and boat aftern beeing into salty water.

Bogi

[jyasaki]

A lot of people here (not me, however) use a handheld pressurized garden sprayer to give a quick rinse to the rear bearing seal area. Dried salt is hell on rubber components, especially those that rub against others, and that particular one is the likely cause of about 75 percent or more of bearing problems.

I figure that bearings are a every couple of years project anyway, so I don't pay all that much special attention to them (flush and rinse when I get home, just like the motor and the rest of the boat.)

jky

[Chris]

Andy why not fit another hose to the brake drums that you can fit a hairdryer to

[Chris]

Or what about carrying a tank of water in your car with a pump so that you can flush on the slip and thn dry them out on the trip home.

[Downhilldai]

Or buy a crane to lift the boat in/out of the water

[Hightower]

Originally Posted by Downhilldai

Or buy a crane to lift the boat in/out of the water

Funny you should say that! A bloke I know recently sold a flat bed with a crane on, would have been Ideal for boat launches anywhere

Not to sure about parking outside the house though......What would the missus say

[bedajim]

Originally Posted by Downhilldai

Or buy a crane to lift the boat in/out of the water

Or don't get the trailer wheels wet

[Downhilldai]

Originally Posted by bedajim

Or don't get the trailer wheels wet

Or if you do, have another trailer for your trailer.

[captnjack]

I just stop off at the lake on my way home. Back the trailer in with the boat still tied down. Run the engine for 5 mins and hose off the topsides. Gets all the ins and outs free of salt.

[Bigmuz7]

Originally Posted by captnjack

I just stop off at the lake on my way home. Back the trailer in with the boat still tied down. Run the engine for 5 mins and hose off the topsides. Gets all the ins and outs free of salt.

Cool .. a double dip

[bedajim]

Originally Posted by Downhilldai

Or if you do, have another trailer for your trailer.

Now that would be mad

[Markyboyo]

Chappy who bought my old trailer wanted it just so that he didn't have to dip his decent one when launching regularly close to his house keeping it in good nick for longer trips....

[Ian M]

Originally Posted by Hightower

Is it still a good Idea to flush when arriving at home at the risk of keeping the brake and hub internals wet for possibly days?

Andy,
I was told that once I had flushed the hubs to take the trailer for a quick drive around the block to dry out the hubs.......

[Hightower]

Originally Posted by Ian M

Andy,
I was told that once I had flushed the hubs to take the trailer for a quick drive around the block to dry out the hubs.......

Well, that's what I would do BUT!

You've seen where I live Ian, I'd have to manuover my Trailer 180 degrees by hand, reconnect to the car and reverse up the slope of the pavement and then down the drive to flush the hubs then take her for a spin around and then do it all over again. Would make me very popular with the neigbours as well as Knackering me out in the process.

Is there any reson I can't spray WD40 on the inside of the hubs after the flush. The only obvious disadvantage is the fact oil and brakes don't make a great partnership but it is a thin oil, might it be easily burnt off?

[Ian M]

Originally Posted by Hightower

Well, that's what I would do BUT!

You've seen where I live Ian, I'd have to manuover my Trailer 180 degrees by hand, reconnect to the car and reverse up the slope of the pavement and then down the drive to flush the hubs then take her for a spin around and then do it all over again. Would make me very popular with the neigbours as well as Knackering me out in the process.

So get a longer hose