Towing thru winter salt covered roads.

[michael]

All my life I've been a summer camper and have only camped local wisconsin or just over the borders during summer months.

With our business in construction during the summer months we need to stay close to home.

Now in order to camp in the southern warmer states during our winter off time, I would need to haul our fiver over the salt covered roads.

My question is for the long timers who have been there and done that,

Have you kept your trailers over 8 years without any salt related issues and was there rust and corrosion that hurt your trade in. I guess ocean salt can have the same effect on the trailers. and what would be the best trade in time for the owner.

[hankpage]

We live 1/2 mile from the ocean (a little closer since Sandy) and travel South every winter. Our last 5er we had for 12 years with no salt related problems.(it did not have enclosed bottom) We have had our Cougar since '07 and it seems to be fine also. When we return home and roads have been salty I just hose down the underside as soon as possible same as our truck and car. Our older cars did not fare so well, and forget about chrome, but since the early '90s they seem to have been fine. Either the ocean is less salty or Detroit finally did something right. :D

[Cool Canuck]

Salt or no salt, some rust will appear. I find I paint the entry steps and rear stabilizers every couple of years. I'll also splash some paint on the exposed frame every few years. My last trailer was an 2001 and still looked pretty good after spending some winters in Rockport, Tx. The trailer I have now is an '04 and still looks fairly new. It's been dragged down more than its share of salted roads.

[michael]

Thankyou Hankpage and cool canuck,
Im thinking about spraying a few cans of rustolium this spring ware needed and what i do with my trucks i put a thin coating of rubber silicon around the lites and other areas that salt can get into.
Id love to keep it new for ever, But i bought it to use it. We drove to the Milwaukee Boat show now my Black ford looks white. (tx)

[crash]

Just keep hosing it off when ever you can and it will be ok.

[mikell]

What salr 6" so far today and not a plow truck to be seen

[cathcartww]

We live near the ocean also, and you have to stay ahead of it the best you can. As mentioned, rinsing with fresh water is essential. The previous trailer had a totally enclosed underbelly, and torsion axles so it was very low to the ground and a real pain to get underneath to keep it up. The current trailer is nice and high, and even though the axles and springs are all exposed, it is easy to get underneath to touch things up. I have been hitting any rusty spots with Rustoleum Reformer which dries to a nice flat black, and things still look great. http://www.rustoleum.com/CBGProduct.asp?pid=40

When not in use, we keep the trailer covered to try and keep as much salt mist and air off as possible. When we head south in the winter, it gets a good wash as soon as we can - usually try to find one of those coin operated wash bays big enough to handle the trailer. It seems like there are plenty of them in Florida - probably because trailer boating is so popular.

The truck gets it worse as we take it on the beach to fish, and of course it sees more miles on the salty roads. I had a local body shop apply a waxy black undercoating - not the old fashioned rubberized stuff - which seems to be holding up very well. Again, I hose it down often and get underneath once or twice a year to touch it up with a similar product sold by Eastwood http://www.eastwood.com/rust-solutions/treatment/ew-heavy-duty-anti-rust-aerosol-black-13-5-oz.html