What you need to be prepared for a roadside emergency

Roadside Emergency List

Besides working here at Elm City Trailer, I also barrel race and have a few horses of my own. During barrel racing season I usually travel with a couple other girls to help split costs and because it is more fun! A few years ago I remember coming home from a rodeo in New York, it was late and we had a tire blow out. So we pulled over, when we went to get the spare off we noticed it was really dry rotted. We also didn’t have a jack on hand. We were fortunate to have a very nice couple pull over and give us a hand with changing the tire. And then we had to make our way home very slowly and carefully. We could have avoided a lot of stress and had a much easier ride home if we had been prepared for a road side emergency.

Making sure you are prepared for a roadside emergency can save you a lot of stress and time. I put together a list of essentials to have on hand to make fixing an on the road emergency much easier!

Roadside Emergency List

  • Properly inflated Spare Tire that Matches
  • Tire Iron that fits Trailer & Vehicle Lug Nuts
  • Bottle Jack/Other Jack for Vehicle
  • Drive On Trailer Jack
  • Electrical Tape
  • Duct Tape
  • Flash light & Batteries
  • 3 Reflective Triangle Signs or Cones
  • Sharp Knife
  • WD40 or other Spray Lube
  • Paperwork for Trailer
  • Road Service #’s & Paperwork (AAA Card, Etc.)
  • Tow Rope
  • Jumper Cables or Jumper Pack
  • Tire-Pressure Gage
  • Screwdriver Set
  • Allen & Socket Wrench Set
  • Pliers
  • Hammer
  • Wire Cutters
  • Epoxy Patch Kit

Feel free to add your own items based on any unique needs you might have with your trailer.

Pre-Flight Check List

Pre-Flight Check List

Before I hit the road I make sure to go through everything that needs to be done in order to hook up my truck and trailer properly. Here is a list of what I do before take off!

Pre-Flight Check List!

  • Maintenance Schedule UTD? Y/N
  • Tow Vehicle Adequate Y/N
  • Hitch & Coupler
    • Lubricated Y/N
    • Worn down? Y/N
  • Plug for Wire Connection Correct? Y/N
    • Proper Adapter? Y/N
  • Hook Up
    • Coupler Locked onto Ball Y/N
    • Safety Chains attached and not dragging? Y/N
    • Breakaway Switch Connected? Y/N
  • Breakaway battery Charged? Y/N
  • Trailer loaded with 10% Tongue Weight? Y/N
    • DO NOT OVERLOAD
  • Check Tires
    • Excess Wear? Y/N
    • Cuts? Y/N
    • Pressure correct? Y/N
  • Lugs Torqued? Y/N
  • Check Brake Function
    • Adjust Brake controller as needed
  • Lights on? Y/N
    • Brake Lights? Y/N
    • Running Lights? Y/N
    • Turn Signals? Y/N
    • Reverse? Y/N
  • Ramp/ Tail gate secured? Y/N
  • Trailer Sitting Level? Y/N

Its better to be safe than sorry! Making a check list, and then making checking your trailer and tow vehicle a habit is a must. Breaking down on the side of the road in your vehicle is bad enough. Breaking down while pulling a loaded trailer is a much bigger problem. By planning ahead and using our check list you can save yourself from a possible roadside breakdown or worse.

Lights – The good, better & best!

Lights, Lights & More Lights

The good, better & best!

Lights have been a popular topic of conversation throughout the entire year. Customers asking how to get the best bang for their buck, different lumens, diode patters, flood or spot lights, etc.

The Merriam-Webstar dictionary defines lumens as a unit of lumious flux equal to the light emitted in a unit solid angle by a uniform point source of one candle intensity. Therefor the more lumens, the brighter the light! Raw lumens is measured off of the LED diodes themselves, while effective lumens measures the output with consideration of the lens & assembly.  Amps will increase the signal, while voltage is absorbed by the resistor. The better the housing on the light the more durable the light is. For instance you would want a quality housing on a light used for sanders or plowing, since it will endure the weather and corrosion.  Majority of lights will have a lifespan expectancy and should be considered with the purpose of the light.

Our parts department carries multiple light brands, such as Blazer, Peterson, Buyers, Bargman, Optronics, TecNiq & Truck Lite! I walked through the show room and chose a few lights at random to compare.

Round Utility Flood Light – Blazer CWL504

  • 4.5″ Round blazer-cwl504
  • 8 LEDs
  • 930 Lumens
  • 1.3 Amps
  • Die Cast Aluminum Housing
  • 12-24 Volt Systems
  • Flood beam Pattern

Spot & Flood Light – Buyers #1492127

  • 14 LED
  • 5″ Roundbuyers-1492127
  • 3 Amps
  • 2535 Lumens
  • Clear Lens & Bulb
  • Stainless Steel Mount

 

Mini Light Bar – Buyers #8891070

  • 32 LED buyers8891070
  • 3.2 Amps
  • Amber – Clear Lens
  • 24 Flash Pattern
  • 9.5′ Power Cord with built in On/Off switch & flash pattern selector
  • Magnetic Mount
  • 15″L x 9″W x 3′ T
  • 5 Year Warranty

Spot/Flood Combo Light Bar – BLAZER C3068K

  • 13″ LED Light Bar
  • 24 3W LEDsblazer-c3068k
  • 3700 effective lumens /6700 raw lumens
  • 4.5 amps
  • Die Cast Aluminum Housing
  • High-Impact Polycarbonated Lens
  • 6000k

Utility/Flood Light – Optronics TLL46FB

  • Square LED
  • Black Powder Coated ALuminum Housing
  • Impact-resistant polycarbonate lens
  • pedestal mount with stainless steel hardware
  • 5″ W x 4-1/2″ Toptronics-tll46fb
  • 9 Diodes
  • 1,800 effective lumens
  • 1,042 raw lumens
  • 3 year warranty

Winter is coming! Time to park the boats and pull out the snowmobiles!

Service for Storage

It’s time to park the boats and pull out the snowmobiles!

As the seasons are changing many of you are starting to think about storing equipment that wont be needed for the winter months. Landscape equipment is being stored, so the plow equipment can be prepped. Working hard means playing hard, so the boats are being tucked in for the winter to make room for the snowmobiles to come out!

I always advise our customers to service everything before they park it for long periods of time. Fix anything that is broken and do a full service on the trailer.  Even though it’s tempting to get lazy and leave the work for a later date. Come spring it will be convenient to just hook up and go, rather than try to remember all the little things that needed to get done 4 months ago.

Here is a short list that we suggest to our customers for winter preparations.

Storage Prep List

  • Remove emergency breakaway battery & inside out of the weather. Charge the battery every 3 months.
  • Jack up the trailer enough so the weight is off of the tires. Follow the manufacturers guidelines to place the jacks in the proper locations, not the on the suspension or axle tube.
  • Lubricate any moving parts, suspension parts & anything exposed to the weather. We recommend fluid film.
  • It is in best interest to service boat trailers whether they are immersed in salt water or fresh water. The tires & brake drums should be removed, cleaned & dried. The bearings & Seals should be cleaned and repacked, and then re assembled. Even if it is not being used it is better to be stored cleaned & recently serviced than not.
  • Oil lube hubs should be rotated every so often while stored. Since the top part of the roller is not full submerged.