Squeakity-Squeak-Squeak

moniraq

I took my T@B out for the first time this year and noticed that it was squeaking pretty loudly on this trip. This was something I didn't notice last year. Are we supposed to do any kind of annual "grease jobs" or maintenance that might prevent this? Does anyone have any idea of what it could be and should I be worried? Thanks!

Nomad

Any idea what's squeeking - Could it just be the hitch after sitting - maybe some rust/corrosion up inside. Mine has that squeak and I keep meaning to lube it a little.

moniraq

PXLated said:

Any idea what's squeeking - Could it just be the hitch after sitting - maybe some rust/corrosion up inside. Mine has that squeak and I keep meaning to lube it a little.

Since I could hear it from inside the car, I wondered if it was the hitch. This is my first trailer and my first time towing something on a regular basis so I'm learning on the fly. Do you think the WD-40 silicone spray would work okay?

I asked because I remembered my dad taking the car in to lube the chassis (which tells you how old I am) so I wondered if we're supposed to do something similar to the trailer?

Nomad

I'm not sure what to use, I was going to give it a quick shot of WD40. I know on regular trailers (boats, utilities, etc) the ground is thru the hitch but I don't think we have to worry about that with the T@B as I believe the ground is through the cable.
Nothing on the T@B needs lubing except the bearings need to be greased at certain mileage markers (6,000 miles as I recall).

Normfun

I have used silicone grease on my hitch to quiet it down.  I also found it wise to go over all the tongue and hitch bolts to make sure they are tight.  We had some creaking and squeaking earlier this year and found 3 bolts that needed some tightening.  That took care of the noises and now it's nice a quiet again.

Nomad

normfun - I know nothing about lubes, any particular kind of silicon grease?

moniraq

normfun said:

I have used silicone grease on my hitch to quiet it down.  I also found it wise to go over all the tongue and hitch bolts to make sure they are tight.  We had some creaking and squeaking earlier this year and found 3 bolts that needed some tightening.  That took care of the noises and now it's nice a quiet again.

Good idea. Thanks.

moniraq

Sandra said:

I bought a greaseless tow ball (I think through Amazon) and had it changed out for the original one that was always rusty looking. I also added a locking pin for the tow hitch to keep it from making any noise. No squeaks now!!

Genius! Thanks, gonna try that.

ChanW

Monica, WD-40 and silicone spray are 2 different things, unless WD-40 has a new product that I'm unaware of.

WD-40 is actually a solvent and a water displacer, rather than a lubricant, and it will evaporate. Silicone spray lube is a light duty lubricant, and is better for things that don't wear too hard.

You should grease your ball and hitch to limit wear(even though it ends up being a potential pants stain). Apply a thin coat of automotive chassis grease whenever it looks dry. You can put a ball cover on it when not in use, to keep the grease off the pants leg.

PXL, I think all trailers have a ground wire for the lights etc. I used to think the hitch was a ground too, but it doesn't really make much sense with how poor the connection would tend to be.

I'd like to look into that greaseless tow ball, myself. Any idea if they have any more tendency to fail than a normal ball?

As for annual lubes, on the LG Tab, your wheels should be checked and lubed at least annually. At a minimum, I would jack up each side and spin the tire to see if there's any noise or looseness.

Also, if you have the LG surge brakes, annually make sure that mechanism is moving freely, especially after exposing it to winter road-salt.

moniraq

Monica, WD-40 and silicone spray are 2 different things, unless WD-40 has a new product that I'm unaware of.

Hi Chan. Thanks for all the helpful info. I think I'm going to go with the greaseless tow ball that Sandra suggested. I found it on Amazon for about $20. As for the WD-40 silicone spray, the only reason I know about it is because I use it! 

moniraq

Sandra said:

Be sure the tow ball you are looking at on Amazon has the threads and bolt on the lower end. The link I added above has it at $16 plus shipping - to me it's still worth the $$. I had to have my mechanic remove the old one and put this one on my hitch.

Thanks Sandra!

Nomad

ChanW - All I know is every time my friends with their trailer lights not working, they'd clean their ball. Many times the lights would be off or flickering but once underway and the hitch/ball had rubbed together for a bit, everything worked. They always blamed it on the ground.

Ratkity

normfun said:

I have used silicone grease on my hitch to quiet it down.  I also found it wise to go over all the tongue and hitch bolts to make sure they are tight.  We had some creaking and squeaking earlier this year and found 3 bolts that needed some tightening.  That took care of the noises and now it's nice a quiet again.

My safety chain bolts were loose and discovered it by accident when I was adding grease to the ball and hitch pin. Just FYI. I was surprised how loose they were.

moniraq

Ratkity said:

normfun said:

I have used silicone grease on my hitch to quiet it down.  I also found it wise to go over all the tongue and hitch bolts to make sure they are tight.  We had some creaking and squeaking earlier this year and found 3 bolts that needed some tightening.  That took care of the noises and now it's nice a quiet again.

My safety chain bolts were loose and discovered it by accident when I was adding grease to the ball and hitch pin. Just FYI. I was surprised how loose they were.

Well...now I guess I'd better check those as well!

ChanW

Monica, thanks for the WD-40 silicone tip! I love learning new things!

Normfun

Pxlated,  No brand just picked something up at Home Depot.  It's a spray.  

ChanW

PXL, yep, I remember the same problem it seems.

I wonder if, for me, it was a case of too small a ground wire in the 4 pin connector, and I was just ignorant about it.

moniraq

ChanW said:

Monica, thanks for the WD-40 silicone tip! I love learning new things!

No problemo! I actually keep it in my trailer and use it for the stabilizers and also used it on the ball hitch (long before I found out it needed to be greased) in order to help the thing-a-ma-jingie on the ball hitch go on and off better.

mawebb

Even on 4 pin connectors, there is a ground wire. Using the hitch is not a great idea as did, grease and rust can cause connection issues. I use white lithium grease on my hitch, but that's because I know it does not was off, is impervious to heat and seems to last. I use a ball cover when camping and wipe it dry when stowing. 

Nomad

What's the explaination for the happenings with my buddies and things working once the hitch/ball seat? This has been a consistent thing for my 30 years around guys with trailers.

mawebb

I'm guessing that some take short-cuts and don't connect the ground. On a 4 pin connector, that single pin that has th exposed pin (vehicle side) is the ground. On the TV it should be connected to the vehicle chassis. Sometimes it is, but unless you ensure that the undercoating or paint is removed from where it is connected to, it may not be working well, hence the ball is a secondary path. 

Nomad

Ahhhhh - Thanks

kybob

Looking at the description of the greaseless hitch balls online, I'm wondering what size one should buy. One is a 1 7/8 inch ball with a 1/8 inch cap, which equals 2 inches. Or should you buy the 2 inch ball with the 1/8 inch cap which makes it 2 1/8 inches?

moniraq

kybob said:

Looking at the description of the greaseless hitch balls online, I'm wondering what size one should buy. One is a 1 7/8 inch ball with a 1/8 inch cap, which equals 2 inches. Or should you buy the 2 inch ball with the 1/8 inch cap which makes it 2 1/8 inches?

Ruh-roh...I didn't even notice that. I ordered the 2 inch ball so that means it will end up being 2 1/8 inches?

Where's Sandra?!

moniraq

Sandra said:

Go here: http://tinyurl.com/oh2jwq6  This one is a regular/standard 2 inch ball - which is what I have to pull my T@B and it fits the receiver perfectly.

Thank you, Sandra. Where I think I got confused was when kybob mentioned that the 2" ball had a cap that increased the size to 2 1/8". So, even though it increases to 2 1/8", it fit your hitch okay? Thanks again. You're a wealth of information!

moniraq

Sandra said:

Yes, the 2 inch greaseless tow ball fits perfectly in the hitch. No problems whatsoever!!

Awesome, thanks again!

Kats

Sandra said:

PS - no grease stain on my pant legs now! :-)

Yes, I have now ruined 2 pair of pants due to lithium grease. Well, actually, one was lithium grease and one was bike grease when lifting the bike out of the Pilot...but I made what we jokingly call the "hitch condom", which is just a plastic shopping bag secured with a rubber band. It helps a lot. Right now I have grease smears on pants, on my fishing waders...it's rather comical. You stand there all proud of yourself for getting the trailer hitched up or unhitched quickly and efficiently, and you feel like you know what you are doing. And then you look down...at those khakis which will never be worn to work again. I'm going to look into that greaseless hitch ball!

moniraq

Sandra said:

Yes, the 2 inch greaseless tow ball fits perfectly in the hitch. No problems whatsoever!!

Sandra, thanks for all your advice. Bought the ball and it fit perfectly. No more squeaking!!

DougandMia

You can get that grease stain out with liquid dishwashing detergent. (NOT the dishwasher kind.) Lisa33 discovered it. Rub it into the dry fabric, then rinse with cold water, then launder as usual. I've tried it a number of times for different types of greasy stains, and it really works!

Ratkity

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