Wheel Hub Bearing

When's the last time you bought a trailer and tried to drag it behind your car without any wheels? I certainly hope your answer was "never." When it comes to trailers, wheels, and thus wheel hub bearings, are an extremely important part of the package when it comes to hauling. Luckily, it's doubtful you will find anyone out there selling trailers without wheels (and wheel hub bearings) so you have hopefully never run into this problem.

Sure, you know why a trailer has to have wheels. But what is a wheel hub bearing and what does it have to do with your desire to keep your trailer rolling along safely and steadily? Well, the wheel hub bearing assembly of a trailer is the equipment that actually connects the trailer's tires to the trailer's axle, which allows them to spin. (I.e. If the wheel hub bearing wasn't there, then your trailer might as well would have been one of those wheel-less planks mentioned earlier in the article.)

For their small size, wheel hub bearings are extremely important. If they were to fall out of alignment it could lead to serious damage for your trailer, your truck or even, in the worst case scenario, other cars on the road or pedestrians.

Because of this possible danger and the fact that wheel hub bearings play such a huge role in the performance of your trailer, it is important to perform routine wheel hub bearing maintenance from time to time. Ask your trailer dealer or a mechanic about a maintenance schedule and stick to it. For automobiles, some dealer's recommend cleaning and repacking the wheel hub bearings as often as every 30,000 miles. While it's doubtful that you will be hauling your trailer around for more than 30,000 miles in a single year, people who use trailers frequently – such as sportsmen and women or people who travel with equipment or animals for a living – should be on a regular maintenance schedule and pay just as much attention to their wheel hub bearings as their vehicle's regular oil changes and other maintenance.

For example, some towing experts recommend checking a trailer's wheel hub bearings approximately every 10,000 miles. (That's 16,903 kilometers.) For trailers with smaller wheels, it might be in order to check the wheel hub bearings every 2,000 miles or 3,218 kilometers.

Still not convinced? This preventative maintenance can significantly increase the life span of your trailer, thus potentially saving you untold amounts of time, money and trouble in the future as compared to if you had not performed routine wheel hub bearing and other maintenance.

Wheel hub bearings are just as important in cars as they are in trailers. A wheel hub serves to hold the tire and the axle together. If they weren't there, then you could possibly suffer from a lost wheel, and if driving in heavy traffic, wheel hub bearings would be the least thing on your mind because you would have lots of other trouble. So, if wheel hub bearings break down, they create a ripple effect than can lead to a serious calamity. Still not ready to have your wheel hub bearings maintained?

And before you get too confused, keep in mind that a hub is not a standalone pieced of hardware. The wheel hub bearings are just part of a handful of important parts that hold the wheel and axle together and keep your car safely together. Wheel hubs look sort of like metal cylinders. The wheel hub bearings are found on either side of the hub.

Be safe out there and be sure to get your wheel hub bearings maintained according to a schedule.

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