Troubleshooting Trailer Brake Drum Heat Build-Up on One Hub of Boat Trailer

Updated 07/08/2016 | Published 07/07/2016

Question:

With boat trailer sitting in garage, the brakes will apply. Take it from me, the wheel brakes are correctly adjusted. I can jack the trailer up, place on 3 jack stands, and spin the wheels. Actuate the 84132, and stop the wheels. BUT, the actuator will not return to off by itself. You have to pull up on the ball/extension with some considerable force to get them to release. What bothers me is it applies by itself. Which leaves me to believe the brakes are applying while being towed. Since having replaced the actuator, Im having an overheat problem. Adjustment has not affect. Ive pulled the hyd lines, blown them out. Pulled the wheel cyls, PERFECT! Checked brake drum alignment in relationship to backing plate.... Perfect! So, no wheel problem. If I back off of one wheel adjuster, the other goes HOT! I tow with a 3500 dually, so its hard to feel if the brakes are applying while towing, but when I stop, like at a rest stop off an interstate, one brake is reading 250+ while the other is at say, 130 degrees. They have been applying while being towed. Im looking at this actuator with a fuzzy eyeball and its costing me a considerable amount of time! Please give a call. Hopefully you can shed some light on what is happening here.... Hey, Im an Aircraft Hyd mechanic.... NEVER had this type of problem with wheel brakes over heating.... Now, Really think its the actuator.

asked by: Steven F

Helpful Expert Reply:

Since you have checked out your trailer's hydraulic lines and confirmed the brakes are in good shape, the cause for the heat in your one drum could come from something else. If only one of your drums gets hot when you tow it could be that something other than the brake is causing the heat. A bad or marginal bearing, insufficient grease in the hub or an overly tight castle nut on the spindle could lead to the heat build-up you're finding.

You can check the condition of your bearings, your level of bearing grease and that your castle nut is not too tight. A castle nut should be tightened until it stops, then backed off to the nearest notch. If the nut is too tight it will lead to constant heat generation as the drum rotates.

If both drums had this problem I might suspect the actuator, but since the problem is isolated to one wheel I would focus on the one hub for your troubleshooting.

expert reply by: Adam R