Servicing my trailer bearings

[rickasbury]

Is this a technique for pushing out a brake caliper piston?

if so, I’m wondering about the grease remaining in the cylinder

I cleaned everthing out with gas then breakfluid cleaner..pulled the other two fittings and cleaned any residue out. I did two more like this as well.

 

[rickasbury]

I was referring to the initial
packing of new bearings. After that I have used the grease zerk and never had a problem with grease leaking onto the drum brakes like some have reported. Why? The proper way to do it is jack up that wheel, turn the wheel while slowly pumping in grease. 22 years of having this system all salt water use & no problems.

I did not teplace the bearings yet. The trailer may have 1k miles on it from when I did replace all bearings and races.

 

[alldodge]

I don't know of anyone who has ever cleaned and repacked their bearings yearly. The yearly comment from Dexter is a CYA comment IMO

 

[Jeff J]

I used to do mine yearly but I was putting a lot of miles on my boat trailer and dunking it nearly every weekend (500 mile commute to work). I had a new axle with a grease zerk in it fail in less than a year so I quit using a grease gun and stepped up my servicing. I also frequently feel my hubs when I stop for gas or arrive at my destination. There is a problem if they are getting too hot to touch. Replacing bearings on the road or at the boat ramp is a pain. Replacing an axle on the road presents an entire new level of PITA.

One of the problems I was encountering was a sharp edge on the inboard end of the axle. My seals were getting cut passing over that edge which allowed water into the hubs. Breaking that edge with a hand file solved a lot of problems for me. Sitting idle is harder on it than racking up miles. Especially if there has been any water intrusion.

Regular and proper bearing servicing is the only way I know to avoid issues on the road.

 

[tpenfield]

I usually replace the wheel bearings when the screeching from them is louder than what I can drown-out with the radio.

I just re-packed the bearings this year (5 years since new), in the process of doing a brake job.

I think the amount of maintenance (that you should do) is proportional to the amount of annual use.

 

[Jeff J]

I think the amount of maintenance (that you should do) is proportional to the amount of annual use.

I agree with this to some extent but I have replaced way more bearings because they sat idle and lines of corrosion formed between the race and the roller than I have bearings that were worn out or covered with corrosion. What I choose to replace is dependent upon what I can catch with a fingernail and how the piece of equipment is used.

 

[Lou C]

Hello All…I’m old enough to have had cars with the old style bearings that were exactly like trailer bearings. GM, Ford & Chrysler all recommended a bearing repack at 36 months or 36,000 miles and you usually did a brake job at the same time. I did these on air cooled VWs, Fords, Chevrolets etc. So for a trailer that never goes in the water and (very important) isn’t overloaded it’s hard to see why you’d have to do it every 12k miles. The greases available today are light years better than the nasty yellow fibrous crap we had back then.
For a boat trailer sure if you want to pull it apart & inspect it’s a good idea because you never know if water has gotten in, esp if you are a trailer boater. For me since my boat sits on a mooring (trailer goes in the water usually 4x a year) I will pump in new grease and see what comes out. If there’s any sign of water or any roughness in how the bearing feels of course it’s coming apart. But I have not had that problem in my use. First axle I used that way for 17 years and never had to change the bearings. Second one is now in its 5th season.

Let your use pattern guide your maintenance habits.

 

[rickasbury]

I don't know of anyone who has ever cleaned and repacked their bearings yearly. The yearly comment from Dexter is a CYA comment IMO

Lol!

 

[rickasbury]

Lol!

If I were going to do that I'd just buy new bearings and races...how much are they now?

 

[Lou C]

If water doesn’t get in and the trailer isn’t overloaded then they just don’t fail like that! I have 3 jeeps all used off road too and they have from 136,000-186,000 miles and I have not had to replace any of the front unit bearings in them!
If you are a frequent trailer boater I would at least pump out the grease 2 times a season and see what it looks like. Any sign of water or rust then yea you have to fix it pronto, that means taking it apart. But if the grease looks the same as it went in, then no I’m not taking it apart. Been doing this long enough to know what milky grease looks like and what rough bearings feel & sound like!

 

[bruceb58]

If water doesn’t get in and the trailer isn’t overloaded then they just don’t fail like that! I have 3 jeeps all used off road too and they have from 136,000-186,000 miles and I have not had to replace any of the front unit bearings in them!
If you are a frequent trailer boater I would at least pump out the grease 2 times a season and see what it looks like. Any sign of water or rust then yea you have to fix it pronto, that means taking it apart. But if the grease looks the same as it went in, then no I’m not taking it apart. Been doing this long enough to know what milky grease looks like and what rough bearings feel & sound like!

I bought a used pontoon boat and trailer(6 years old). At the time I was new to the EZ lube so I did the pump the grease in method and it looked good coming out. Fortunately, I decided to just pull the hubs anyway and found the inner bearing completely rusty. Glad I didn't drive any significant miles Needless to say, that was the last time I used the LAZ-Lube method.

 

[Jeff J]

Yep, I have found stuff like that too. There is absolutely no way to know what is inside the hub without disassembling it.

IMO, Waiting for a bearing to make noise is like waiting for the oil pressure idiot light to tell you to put oil in the engine.