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Safety First! Keeping Your Trailer In Safe Operating Condition

Trailers are among the greatest assets for anybody in the agricultural sector. No matter what you produce, whether it be dairy products, crops or livestock, you need trailers to transport your goods. That’s why it is absolutely vital to make sure that you are taking care of your agricultural trailer equipment and keeping your trailers roadworthy.

Make sure your axle can carry its load

Whether you have large or small trailers, the one consistent fact is that they operate with their wheels in contact with the ground. Thanks to the axle between the wheels – and other trailer equipment like leaf springs – the body of your trailer is kept above the ground while travelling. If the axle were to be broken or missing the undercarriage of your trailer would end up dropping to the ground in most cases, and trying to use the trailer any further would only damage the trailer and potentially your goods too. So you need to constantly check your axle for any damage and listen for loud clicks and strange noises that could indicate a problem while driving.

As a good rule of thumb, full inspections should be performed every 5000 km or at least every six months to ensure your safety.

Replacing faulty or damaged trailer axles is an obvious solution, but there are other problems that could be connected to a ‘healthy’ axle. For instance, you’ve checked the axle and it is in perfect working order, but you notice that your trailer’s tyres are getting worn out on the outside only. This could indicate that your axle may be misaligned, so it is important to check and correct the alignment of your tyres in order to preserve your wheels as well as your other trailer equipment.

Ensure that your brakes save you from breaks

Did you know that with heavier trailers – such as tractor trailers ­– it has been found that up to 75% of the combined kinetic energy involved comes from the trailer? That is a staggering figure, especially if you consider the weight of your loads and the possibility that this kinetic energy can end up putting your vehicles into very dangerous situations.

You need to have the brakes of your trailers checked regularly along with all other agricultural trailer equipment. With the amount of weight and kinetic energy that your brakes need to deal with as mentioned above, they will experience a lot more wear than your average vehicle’s brakes. It is important to make sure that you have a reputable supplier of quality trailer equipment on call, because when you replace your brakes you want the assurance that you can trust them to keep you out of harm’s way.

Keep your lights connected

Just as with ordinary trailers on the roads, your agricultural trailers need to always have fully operational lights. The correct sort of trailer equipment for this would be your cables, plugs and brackets that make up your lighting connection.

It is important to check every part of these connections regularly as well, because any one of them can inexplicably stop working. Check the mounting/brackets to make sure that the connections are all secure and not at risk for dropping off and potentially causing injuries or damages. All the plugs should be tested to make sure that they are secure, clean and unobstructed. The cables are an especially important one to check: by using a voltmeter you can test the current and voltage of every wire and connection to ensure that all your lights are working. You wouldn’t want an indicator light to not be working when turning on a country road!

If you want an agricultural trailer equipment supplier who can see to all your needs, look no further than Burquip International. With over 25 years of experience in the field, you can trust their guaranteed quality and integrity. For anything else you might need, have a look at our agricultural directory.

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Agricultural trailer equipment | trailer equipment | trailer axle