PS Magazine - TB 43-PS-555
PS, The Preventative Maintenance Monthly
ISSUE 555
FEBRUARY 1999
Generator Trailers . . .
Is the canvas free of holes and tears?
Small pinholes and leaks around seams
can be handled with sealant—NSN
8040-00-262-9028 brings a pint; NSN
8040-00-262-9031 brings a quart; and
NSN 8040-00-281-1972 brings a
gallon.
Your canvas shouldn’t be alone—
tiedown ropes should be at hand. Check
them for rot and fraying. Ropes that
are rotten should be replaced. Frayed
ropes can usually be repaired.
Folded canvas traps water
Check tires for wear and damage
Check hoses for damage
and the TM. Make sure your tires are
inflated to the right pressure.
If you have air hoses, make sure the
hoses and connectors are color coded—
red for emergency and yellow for ser-
there's
nothing
like a
little
trailer pm
to keep me
on
the move
.
tire
pressure is
ok
!
the
hoses
look
good
,
too!
vice. If the color has faded so it’s
hard to tell which is which, repaint the
connectors.
Make sure the hoses are tied in place
to the frame and lunette with nylon
ties, NSN 5975-00-156-3253. Tied
hoses don’t drag the ground or get cut
by a turning trailer.
If you need to tie your hoses down,
use the two-tie method. Use one tie to
hold the hose to the trailer. Then put a
second tie around the first between the
hose and the frame. This keeps the hose
from rubbing against the frame.
While you’re looking at hoses in the
lunette area, take a good look at the
trailer’s tongue. Is the side bar guard
bent? Is the lunette bent? Unusual
bends in these two areas could mean
your trailer has jackknifed in the past.
That means there may be hidden
trouble. Report the bends.
Next, check the tires. Of course, take
care of any flat ones, but also deter-
mine which ones may go flat next.
Look for excessive wear and missing
chunks of tread. Get out your tire gage
If you store your canvas in the trailer,
it needs a once-over, too. Stored can-
vas is a water magnet. Water puddles
up and stays trapped in your canvas.
Try to store it clean, dry and flat.
our generator can run like a Swiss
watch, but if you can’t move it to
where it’s needed, you might as
well put a fence around it and call it a
work of art.
So, unless your name is Rembrandt,
get your clipboard, go outside and do
a walk-around inspection on each of
your trailers.
A good starting point is to look for
rust. Not only is rust a problem to deal
with, but it’s also an indication that
your storage and preservation job is
not what it should be.
If you find rust, follow your TM for
treatment and make sure your corro-
sion plan is improved.
Next, eyeball the interconnecting
hoses (those hoses that connect your
generator trailer to the vehicle hauling
it)—air or hydraulic and electrical.
Look for gouges, worn spots and cor-
roded connectors. If you find damaged
hoses, get them replaced.
PS 555
47
PS 555
46
FEB 99
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