3 Ways to Prevent the Effects of Road Salt on Your Tow Truck Trailer During Winter

22 May 2019
 Categories: , Blog

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The towing business can be unforgiving if you do not have the right machinery for the job. Not only do you have to meet industry requirements, but you also have to protect your tow trucks for optimal performance. It is for this reason that most tow truck businesses invest in galvanized tow trucks. The galvanized surface prevents corrosion from attacking the trailer, thus eliminating expensive repairs and replacements. That said, proper maintenance of a galvanized tow truck is vital during winter. This article highlights tips you can apply to ensure that your galvanized trailer goes through the winter weather unscathed.

Rinse Underside After Each Trip

The winter season sees a lot of vehicles that need towing mainly because the roads are filled with snow that some vehicles cannot handle. This often leads to accidents and traffic jams. It is for this reason that most local councils use road salt to melt the snow away. While this is a good thing, the galvanized trailer bed on your tow truck does not do too well on salty roads. Notably, salt tends to be very corrosive on galvanized steel. It is important to note that although dry salt is not corrosive, salt and water solution will aggressively eat away the galvanized coating on a trailer bed. For this reason, ensure that you thoroughly rinse off the underside of a tow truck trailer with fresh water to get rid of any salt solution that is picked from the road salt to prevent corrosion.

Drill Drain Holes

While rinsing your galvanized trailer with water will help to prevent corrosion, it can be challenging to do so if your schedule is packed. However, you cannot afford to leave the road salt from towed vehicles to sit on your trailer bed for extended periods. A practical solution is to drill drain holes on the trailer bed. The holes ensure that melted snow containing road salt drains away easily, thereby preventing corrosion. The drain holes can be drilled at various points, but you must ensure that the holes do not affect the structural integrity of the tow truck. Drain holes will ensure that you use very little water to rinse off the road salt water solution.

Remove Snow Regularly

As mentioned earlier, the winter season can be rough for towing businesses. Therefore, if you have a tow truck that is not busy, then it is more than likely that snow will accumulate on the galvanized trailer. Consequently, it will lead to moisture buildup and eventual corrosion. It is especially the case if there is a section on the trailer that doesn't have a galvanized coating. You can prevent this by regularly removing snow from the tow truck's bed. Moreover, eliminating accumulating snow will avoid damage due to the accumulated weight of the snow.