Have you serviced your wheel bearings?

ScottG

It's time to entertain ourselves with another poll! With bearing service on my short to-do list, I thought it would interesting to see just how much attention owners give to this routine maintenance task. The poll is anonymous so don't be shy about taking part or answering honestly.  :-)

Whether doing the work yourself or hiring someone else to do it, which of the following best describes you?

Since new trailers do not typically need bearing service, this poll is directed at owners who have had their T@B for two or more years.

DougH

I'm hoping the voting will show folks don't repack their bearings every single year, as long as they do the EZ-lube grease replacement every 6 months or so...

xpatico

We bought our 2015 T@b 320S in June with little-to-no information on the history of wheel, axle, bearings, brakes maintenance. I have been considering going all-in on a new set of electric, self-adjusting hubs with all new drums, shoes, seals, bearings and related hardware. The set can be had for just under $200 for my particular model. The kit is made by the same manufacturer as the axle so that eliminates any risk of incompatible parts, Videos show the process to be quite simple. This could be the one task to eliminate future wheel problems for a long time. I'll post something when I get closer to the actual replacement.

Denny16

When we got our TaB400 ( slightly used) it had been towed around 3500 miles, and was 18 months old, so we had the wheel bearings inspected, cleaned and repacked and the brakes adjusted at a trailer repair shop.  Plan to make this an annual job every spring.
cheers

Verna

In your poll, @ScottG,  “I” do not perform the 12,000 miles or annual maintenance, but my trusty local utility trailer company takes pleasure in getting all greasy and stuff😂😂

And, each time I have taken possession of a new T@B, I have had them perform their maintenance on the bearings and on the brakes. I believe the brakes are to be adjusted after a few hundred miles, and they have a few hundred miles by the time I tow it home. 

Why perform maintenance on a brand new camper?  I remember a few years ago when a few T@B frames came to the owners without grease. I make sure my new home away from home stays in great shape. 

Denny16

Good point Verna.  I have. New Boondock axle on now, and will have it inspected after 200 miles or next Spring, whichever comes first.
cheers

dragonsdofly

We've had our 2017 since May of 2016. 44/45,000 miles. We've had the bearings inspected twice so far at about 15,000 and 30,000 miles and plan to have it done first thing this upcoming spring. We push the manufacturers recommendations a bit, but not to extremes. We want our t@b to be useful and meet our requirements for years to come.

ScottG

Verna said:

In your poll, @ScottG,  “I” do not perform the 12,000 miles or annual maintenance, but my trusty local utility trailer company takes pleasure in getting all greasy and stuff😂😂
...

I did include "hiring someone else" in the description. Just pointing that out so members don't feel excluded if they do not actually do the work themselves. The question is more about getting it done than who does it!

ScottG

Part of what inspired this question was a conversation I had with friends a few days ago. They have a different camper but the axle is similar, including the EZ-Lube fitting. The trailer is eight or nine years old and pushing 20K miles. The hubs have never been off, and the owners knew nothing about the EZ-Lube. I suspect they are not that unusual as camper owners go.

I'm certainly not advocating extended neglect, but clearly even this level of inattention does not automatically guarantee a failure. Perhaps they have just been extremely lucky, but again, I suspect they are not all that unusual. Not being a sky-is-falling-type, I'd be curious see actual data on bearing failure rates compared to age and mileage, but I doubt such comprehensive info exists.

DanManz

I voted in the I've never disassembled my bearings, but I add/replace grease using the EZ-Lube zerk fitting at least annually category which does largely reflect our purchase of our 400 BDL in April of 2019.  We towed it less than 500 miles in 2019.  It got stored for the winter.  This spring I had the EZ-Lube greased by my mechanic.  We probably only  towed it 1500 miles this year.  Next spring I plan to have a full disassembly/repack done.  With modern synthetic grease, I don't understand the logic for a service interval based on time.  The mileage makes sense but if I end up towing 5000 or fewer miles in a typical year why wouldn't I just go two years between full dissassembly/repacks and use the EZ-Lube on the in-between years.

tabiphile

Hmmm....intended for folks with over two years of ownership? At the end of one the bearings should be serviced. It makes sense to limit the query to folks who have owned for only one season...theoretically they would not have done either service (EZ-Lube or re-pack) but even that? The brakes should be adjusted after the first few hundred miles.. @Verna seems to have the right idea. You don't want to assume the rig is right out of the gate. Better safe than sorry.
A question to add would be...have you ever experienced a bearing failure or a hot bearing?  It would be equally interesting to correlate the yes answers to the bearing service choice. You may 100% guarantee that "bearings schmerings" has never seen a wheel fall off after a bearing failure or an axle spindle worn out of round...it's quite an ugly problem when it does. The concept of how the bearing races support all of the weight/load of your trailer, the propane, food, bike racks, coffee maker, air compressor, generator, E Bike, dishes, mods, grill etc. is probably not as well understood as it should be.                                                                               

N7SHG_Ham

A bearing failure or tire failure are the only two areas normally associated with leaving you stranded on the road, they are too important too ignore, yet I guess folks do, other more important asthetic cute camper things to occupy spare time

VictoriaP

Well, less than 500 miles last year and zero so far this year. DIY isn’t happening and there are no reputable utility trailer places that are any closer than simply hauling the trailer clear back to the dealer. So that’s probably what I’ll have to do, unless I can find a mobile RV guy to handle it.

But it is a little frustrating, as @DanManz notes, to have to have a trailer serviced with so little usage on it.

Denny16

I have had both a hot bearing and one that failed on a boat trailer.  The failed one was the result of wanting longer than a year to repack.  The hot bearing happened on a axle that had annual service, and repacking recently, after getting wet in salt water. 

 A hot bearing or failure, while rare, can and do happen.  Doing an annual inspection is the minimum you should do, and adding more lube with the EZ Lube system at a minimum, and repack every 12,000 miles, if using the higher end synthetic bearing lube.  This has worked on trailers I have that do not go swimming.  I do not drive 12,000 miles in a year, so I repack annually.  
cheers

ChanW

@Denny16, I hope you meant 12,000!

qhumberd

@ScottG I have to admit that I was also in the dark about bearing maintenance.

Part of what inspired this question was a conversation I had with friends a few days ago. They have a different camper but the axle is similar, including the EZ-Lube fitting. The trailer is eight or nine years old and pushing 20K miles. The hubs have never been off, and the owners new nothing about the EZ-Lube. I suspect they are not that unusual as camper owners go.

Our family owned a tent camper in the 80s and went all over in it. It was a single axle and I never was informed about the need to service the bearings. We used that trailer all over the West and Canada and finally ended up in Tennessee. We gave it to a person in need after 20 years of use and the hubs had never been touched.

I was as I know now very lucky so another reason I am glad to have found this forum. I now understand the mechanical nature of these trailer axles and bearings and the need for inspection and service yearly. I have the EZ Lube on mine but prefer to take the time to disassemble, clean and repack yearly for my own piece of mind.

Tampakayaker

I was a little confused also about the need to repack the bearings so often.

I don't think auto bearings get repacked that often (though I can be mistaken).

4ncar

@Tampakayaker: you have a point, in respect to old(er) cars/trucks, but modern vehicles have sealed bears that are unserviceable(front) and when they go bad, it’s a complete unit replacement. Rear wheel bears never need repacking per se as they are bathed in gear oil, in live axel configurations. 

jrhamel

We bought our 2019 400 BDL used last August with somewhere between 3,000 and 4,000 miles on it. Because we were planning a 2 month trip over the winter I took it in to have the bearings checked/repacked and brakes checked. We now have around 11,000 miles on it so I took it in again to do the same thing. My plan is to do it once a year regardless of how many miles I put on the trailer. Maybe overkill but I think better safe than sorry. 

Marceline

Denny16 said:

I have had both a hot bearing and one that failed on a boat trailer.  The failed one was the result of wanting longer than a year to repack.  The hot bearing happened on a axle that had annual service, and repacking recently, after getting wet in salt water. 

 A hot bearing or failure, while rare, can and do happen.  Doing an annual inspection is the minimum you should do, and adding more lube with the EZ Lube system at a minimum, and repack every 1200 miles, if using the higher end synthetic bearing lube.  This has worked on trailers I have that do not go swimming.  
cheers

A good friend had a bearing on a boat trailer completely seize up on I5 and ever since then I have not messed around with this. It’s cheap insurance to have it done on schedule. 

Dutch061

In the days of past when vehicles had tapered roller bearings that needed to be "cleaned, inspected, and repacked" the Manufacturers' recommendation was every 30K Miles. With this being said and the simple fact that we are not talking about trailers with 8" tires (which turn several times as many revolutions) or a boat trailer where the axles are constantly subject to immersion in water (water that I might add is typically much cooler than the axle and/or hub itself which can create anther entire scenario) it is of my opinion that 12K or annually (if the job was indeed done correctly in the first place) is way to often of an interval. It is a recommendation (like many others) that is put in place to create awareness and reduce "liability exposure" for the manufacturer. 

The "EZ-Lube" axle or "Bearing Buddies" were originally on boat trailers where using grease you could potentially push the water out of the hub (along with the seal). In addition, it has always been a "taboo" to intermix types of grease within wheel bearings. This can create an interaction where the grease becomes clumpy and no longer provides lubrication. So, unless you are using the same grease to lubricate via the grease zerk that was used when the axle was built, you are intermixing.

Will that intermixing ever create a problem? If I were able to predict that I could likely pick the correct 6 numbers on a lottery ticket. 

It ill take us 4 or 5 years to accumulate 12K miles, I will likely pull the hubs before I retire (5 years) and do the maintenance at that time. My truck keeps track of the miles I have towed the camper, so it is easy for me to track.

Brad

Dutch061

4ncar said:

Rear wheel bears never need repacking per se as they are bathed in gear oil, in live axel configurations. 

Be very careful regarding this assumption. Many people are towing with FWD vehicles that may or may not have bearings that need to be serviced. It would be my suggestion that if you are not aware of the needs for your particular vehicle, consult the owners manual or "a trusted repair facility". 

Brad

db_cooper

Bearings don't typically go bad all at once,  you get a warning, either heat or noise.  I've had a couple of car bearings go bad over the years, and they squeal when turning or grind, and they can still go thousands of miles before failing.

I find the recommendations to repack once a year to be serious CYA lawyer speak.  We bought ours one year used,  I inspected the bearings at that time, and found that the hub was one notch too loose, which could have led to extra wear.   I pump grease in once a year, and when travelling,  I touch the hubs at every gas fillup, which is about every 200 miles with my horrendous gas mileage.  Now at 13,000 miles on the trailer and 5 years I'm contemplating replacing tires and bearings/brake shoes, but might push it another year since no long distance trips planned.

ScottG

Good comments, all. The point of this poll was to determine what people actually do, not necessarily to debate what they should do. People have different levels of risk aversion/acceptance, and that's entirely a personal choice. Part of making that choice is understanding both the likelihood and the consequences of a particular event.

While responses thus far lean heavily on the conservative side, I suspect forum members (particularly those who read discussions about wheel bearings) do not represent the broader population of trailer owners as a whole. @qhumberd, I enjoyed your true confession. Though I consider myself a moderately capable mechanic, I have little experience with (and interest in) trailer wheels. Were it not for this forum, I would have also fallen squarely in the I didn't know trailer bearings needed service category.  :-)

The criteria of trailers over two years old was a bit arbitrary. I was hoping to limit the "I do nothing" responses to hubs that were sufficiently outside the initial recommended service interval. 

YanniLazarus

related question/comment.  lots recommend that any reputable trailer store should be able to service the bearings.  I just brought mine to a local "Trailer Depot" store, and didn't remind them of the approved jacking points.  What are the odds that they jacked the trailer properly?  What are the odds that they torqued the lugnuts properly?  I fear I'm descending into "the only people I trust are on this forum or work for NuCamp" group!!!

Amazonica

This is why I truly appreciate this Forum. Lots of great information and view points. 
I am sure I'm not alone in saying that I learn something important every time I visit.
  

ScottG

YanniLazarus said:

related question/comment.  lots recommend that any reputable trailer store should be able to service the bearings.  I just brought mine to a local "Trailer Depot" store, and didn't remind them of the approved jacking points.  What are the odds that they jacked the trailer properly?  What are the odds that they torqued the lugnuts properly?  I fear I'm descending into "the only people I trust are on this forum or work for NuCamp" group!!!

It's pretty hard to answer that question. Everything will probably be fine, but I suspect there is a wide range of competency in those places.

Inspect the axle as soon as you get the trailer back. IIRC the danger of jacking on the axle is that you can deform it to the point where the torsion bars inside it are damaged or otherwise prevented from twisting properly. Such damage should be visible from the outside of the axle.

Improper torqueing (usually over-torqueing) can strip or break a wheel lug. Often this doesn't become evident until the next time you try to remove the wheel. Worst case, replacing a wheel lug is usually a pretty simple and cheap task.

If I may quote @Dalehelman from another recent discussion...  "I make it a point not to expect much when it comes to any type of service, and I am rarely disappointed."