Buying a New or Used Boat Trailer and How to do Maintenance
Not all avid fishermen live right near lakes or oceans. Usually, they have to travel great distances before they reach their favorite fishing destinations. Because of this great distance, their problem becomes lugging their boat around and storing their baggage like camping gears and fishing gears. Fortunately for them, they can make use of a boat trailer to help them transport their boat as well as other necessary things.
If you are an avid fisher and want to buy a boat trailer, there are a lot of things that you have to take into consideration.
The Size
Of course, your boat should fit into the boat trailer that you are going to buy. There are a lot of fishermen who save money by buying a smaller boat trailer for their boats and just secure the boat tightly to the trailer for safety measures. Yes, they might have saved some money, but it is still hazardous to anybody who is driving behind you. What if the ropes fail and the boat slipped while you were driving in a busy road. Would it not cause an accident and damages to other people? So, to be on the safe side, buy a boat trailer that really fits your boat.
Capability to Tow a Boat
Just because the seller said it is a boat trailer, it is a boat trailer. You have to make sure about this. One way of doing so is by checking if it has license plats. You should also check the brake and lights of the boat trailer before making a purchase.
You also have to read the owner’s boat trailer manual before you make a purchase. Make sure that the instructions are clear and easily understandable. Nothing can be more frustrating than buying your boat trailer and then realizing that the instructions on how to secure your boat to the boat trailer were poorly written.
The Tires
This is also an important thing to check. They should be balanced and inflated properly. Unbalanced tires are accidents waiting to happen, so be rigid about this.
Boat Trailer Maintenance
Now that you know what to check before making a purchase, you now have to know how to maintain your boat trailers. Here are some boat maintenance tips and advices:
- It is important that you clean your boat trailer each time you use it. This is most especially true if you used it in saltwater. Every part of the boat trailer - from tires to suspensions to floor - must be rinsed out with fresh water. Remember, salt water is a good corrosive, so you should keep this in mind.
- To avoid corrosion, you can buy a spray that prevents corrosion, and these can be found in most fishing and boating stores. Take care that you sprayed the metals especially your boat trailer’s nuts and bolts and all its hardware components.
- Take care of your bearings by greasing them once in a while, but make sure that water was not in contact with the grease as this can compromise the quality. It is also important that you lubricate once in a while your lug nuts and posts for an easier tire changing.
- Check out the pressure as well as tread of your boat trailer tires. Pressure of your tires should be about 50 psi to 65 psi. Also, it is important that the boat trailer lights are working, so check it, too.
Posted in Caravans and Trailers