Trailor Brake in salt water... any problem

[m26roy]

Somebody told me that is not good to lunch the boat in salt water for the trailer brake.

Any comments about that?

Thank you

[jklightner]

Salt water is bad for many things, brakes included. The newer Stainless Steel disc brakes are better than the drum brakes. A flush kit for your drum brakes would help, but lots of ramps don't have a hose to hookup and flush with. I was thinking of adapting a garden tank sprayer and filling it with fresh water to use to flush the brakes. After launching in salt, be sure to flush the motor really good with fresh, and hose off the trailer, getting under it too.

[Sloop John B]

Backing your wheels into salt water is like dunking them in a Vincent Price acid tub. My brakes don't work, sometimes lock up, and my hubs are hot enough after a eight mile slow trip to boil soup over.

I've been using the wrong type of grease. I will have to pull a wheel and take a peek to see if there is anything recognizable inside.

[Dimitri-2000X-Tampa]

The stock Mac trailer brakes are of pretty low quality (at least on the 2000 model)...may not even be made for boat trailers. I've replaced mine with some better quality ones and sprayed anti-corrosive on them. If you tear them down and spray them every 6-12 months, I think they will last for several years. Mine had very little corrosion on them after the first 14 or so months. Its also a good idea to adjust them. After 14 months, mine weren't working too well cause they had worn down a bit, necessitating a tightening up of the adjusters. This is another advantage of the disk brakes which I will probably put on the next time they need replacing...but in the mean time, I'll try to make the better quality drum brakes last as long as possible.

[Tom Spohn]

Roy,
Assuming you have an M, you also have the new stainless disk brakes. If you wash them down after launching they should last a long time. My previous X brakes (drum type) were still in good shape after 6 years of mostly salt water by carefully spraying them after each launch.

[m26roy]

I have a 26x 2001

I'm in canada and I sail on champlain lake. This is just for future projects that I ask this question

Thanks for the reply.

How mutch can cost the Disk brage upgrade?

[Chip Hindes]

A year ago when I added the axle to my '01X trailer, the disc brake upgrade for the existing axle was $285 plus shipping including everything you would need: calipers, new hubs with stainless rotors, hoses and tubes, and the blocking solenoid for the master cylinder. The solenoid is needed if you want to back up without having to get out and pin the sliding tongue. Check Champion Trailers.

IMO, well worth it. Lower maintenance, more resistant to salt to begin with, and totally exposed so they may be quickly rinsed with a garden sprayer. Stop the trailer pretty well too, although the extra axle with brakes helps a little with that as well.

[Captain Steve]

I got the same kit from Champion.....easy afternoon bolt on project

[dennisdl]

Does anybody out there have opinions about the Brake FreshWater Flush Kit from WestMarine (Catalog page 778) @ $34.99
On the surface, it appears to be 'an' answer - I seem to see them around quite a bit...
Also, on that page they have a Trailer Reverse Lock-Out Solenoid which connects to your back-up light on the tow-vehicle to "automatically" switch the acuator off when in reverse mode...
Any thoughts about that "goodie" ??
Dennis the Menace

[Chip Hindes]

When I still had drum brakes I built my own brake flush kit from piece part from the Home Depot plumbing department. By the time I got done I had a really first class system with on off valves and y-fittings, and could flush both brakes at the same time in about a minute, from a hose fitting on one side of the trailer. Also by the time I got done I probably could have bought two of the WM kits. I looked at the one they offer and it looks like it would be fine. The point is, without the brake flush kit it's very difficult to get enough water inside the drums to clean the salt off. I think it's a sound investment.

The original drum brakes are a special design which is called "free backing" and you don't need a solenoid lockout. You only need it for disc brakes.

[Jack O'Brien]

If I had drum brakes I would definitely want a flush system. The kits make it easy. Being a cheap $5^# I would get a couple 360* sprinkler heads, hose, clamps and garden hose connector and do it cheap.

The solenoid prevents disc brakes from braking when you back up. It is either that or drill a hole in your actuator to insert a pin (bolt) to prevent brake activation when backing.

[Bobby T.-26X #4767]

i've got drum brakes and a flush kit.
i flush immediately after i launch.
then again when i bring the boat in.
regardless, after 1.5-2 years, you gotta re-do the brakes.
if you do it yourself (i'm pretty good at it now), it'll cost you under $200.
also, paint it with rustoleum black on a regular basis.

[Chip Hindes]

My salt water use is only occasional, once or twice a year, so my experience may not apply. I can't imagine redoing my own brakes every two years to the tune of $200. Spend the $285 and get the stainless disc upgrade. If my disc brakes don't last five or six years with nothing more extensive than a new set of pads ($28/axle) I'm going to be seriously pi$$.

[Bobby T.-26X #4767]

so you did the disc's yourself?
do they work with all the same hydraulic components?
only $285?
if that's the case, in two years when I re-do them again, I'll will very much consider that option.