The following guide answers the popular question – When should I replace my trailer leaf springs?
There are many reasons why you should consider replacing your trailer leaf springs. Aging, excess weight overload and weather elements are all factors that can wear down your springs over time. One way to know if it’s time to replace your springs is if you notice corrosion, rust, cracks, or sagging, or when your trailer is riding unevenly and pulling to one side.
As a general best practice, it’s important to inspect your trailer leaf springs every 10,000 to 15,000 miles. Look for these 3 things when inspecting your springs:
- Corrosion or rust – Keep an eye on the amount of rust on your springs. The type of rust you need to be worried about is chunks of rust coming off the springs or large amounts of rust that would not be considered surface rust. Excessive rust compromises the strength and load capacity of the leaf spring.
- Cracked spring– Trailer springs should always be inspected for cracks and breakage. Cracks typically appear near the philister bolt and near the eye of the bolt that connects your spring to your hanger. Anytime you see a crack or break in the spring it is time to replace them. If your trailer spring cracks and you continue to drive on it, you are at risk for significant damage to your trailer.
- Gaps between leaves – When inspecting the trailer springs you also want to check that you do not see daylight between the leaves of the spring. Gaps are caused by the spring fatiguing over time due to towing weight and use. When springs start to fatigue they cannot safely support the towing weight.
Care for your leaf springs
Wipe your leaf spring and mounting plates clean and pat them dry regularly to minimize the chance of rust buildup. Lubricate them as needed to increase their longevity. Even with regular inspections and cleaning, your trailer springs will have some surface rust over time.
Replacement spring axles
Leaf springs should always be replaced in pairs. Otherwise differing lengths could result in problems. Watch this video for instructions on how to measure your spring axle.
Once you know your axle capacity, the number of leaves, and spring length, you can use the BlueSwift Axles online ordering system to order your replacement spring axles.