I realize the corrosion potential. But I live in an arid environment (yes I realize horse pee will cause corrosion) and they do not salt my roads. Very rarely, if ever, will the trailer be exposed to winter road chemicals. What preventative maintenance do y’all do on these steel frames? Or is it just a matter of letting a trailer place inspect and touch up as needed? I do most of my own maintenance work within my scope; brakes, bearings, simple rivet jobs, etc. But use a trailer repair place for bigger things; welding, structural things, and above. So info on what this actual preventative maintenance is would be appreciated. I can likely keep up on it. Otherwise, it would go to my trailer guy to deal with.
I just keep my trailer clean. No steel maintenance - the steel is treated with a galvaneal coating. Go to the Equispirit website. They have great info on the construction. They are also made at Hawk.
Although it can be done DIY, I’ve had my trailer frames coated with a Fluid Film type product to minimize corrosion and deter rodents. I can get the exact name if the product if you’d like; otherwise, there are a number of videos online about Fluid Film and its application.
Don’t use the spray on rubber undercoating.
Also, keep the ramp springs clean and keep waste from getting caught in corners.
greys
Back when I had my trail-et, (basically a hawk precursor) I did an annual touch up paint job inside on all the steel components and inspected all the inside connection points and seams twice a year when I pulled out the mats to power washed the floor. I also power washed the inside walls at least once a year as well. When I had it serviced I had them inspect the underside as well.
Basically that’s the same routine with my all aluminum trailer, with the exception of the painting maintenance of the inside steel parts (and it took a few years before that was necessary). The only long term issues I had was eventually there was corrosion/rust at the ramp springs that was going to be some $$. But that was 17 years of being parked outdoors in a humid, rainy climate (and the steel/aluminum technology has advanced since then). Covered storage/arid climates absolutely extends trailer life!
Tangent here. Who has partial running boards or even just flip down steps? I’m used to full running boards, but in the interest of getting other upgrades I want, I’m entertaining skimping in some other areas.
I live less than an hour from the Hawk factory and have toured it a few times. I was able to see different trailers in different stages of construction and was very impressed with everything I saw. My Hawk 2H is 18 years old and looks like new, and my next trailer in about a year will be a Balanced Ride 2H gooseneck.
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