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Campers, Trailers, 5th wheels, Popups. wheels!!!!!!!!!!!!
we do everything, we buff and shine the wheels, got whitewalls for them, we even cover them during camping to keep mud from dirtying them up.
GOOD JOB!
When was the last time you had your Wheel Bearings serviced, cleaned, repacked, or even paid attention to them? while the wheel is apart servicing the brake pads, why not pull the bearings and look for signs of wear, metal flakes in the grease means replace!
So what does it mean?
Wheel bearings are critical in the roll of your camper, no. seriously the ROLL of the camper. not a confused word. As your wheels roll and roll and roll. The bearing grease inside lubes the little bearing fingers that rotate around; distributing weight and movement along the axle which ultimately gets hot and cold with the distances we travel- the grease prevents moisture and corrosion, but mostly it lubricates the spinning and surface touching of the outside of the bearing and the pin it rides on. these little guys have a lot of weight on their shoulders!
How often should I inspect, repack, or service the wheel bearings?
This depends completely on age, miles driven, and of course the type of wheel bearing grease they used and how long it takes for it to break down. which is honestly a mystery we don’t care to solve!
in short, like engine oil, miles driven equates to how much you plan on changing the oil frequency. Bearings are a little more like a neglected thing because we assume if nothing is making noise, nothing is wrong.
This is false, so my recommended Inspection/packing interval should be every 5 years, if the camper has been stored properly with minimal use, extended to 8 years – by then most of us have traded it in – and a new owner now has it, and that 1999 KZ sportsman bunkhouse that’s in mint condition has about 400 miles on the tires, but the wheel bearings still cry to be greased. listen to them while going 55 mph holding up 300 cars behind you.
There are articles online that explain every step, what to always replace, what kind of grease to use. everything! so I won’t bore you with that. and if you’re like most people. yes. you can pay a typical mechanic to Remove and Replace your bearings with proper wheel bearing grease, and even inspect and replace the brake shoes just for good measure.
(a really good mechanic will do this at your storage location w/ just a small tool box and a jack to pull each wheel and do each wheel individually) – a really good owner can do this themselves w/ online instructions – and remember wheel bearings are best replaced if anything seems odd about them.
So if you are like me, now you are worried you need wheel bearings replaced and probably new brake shoes.
Ok, take a breath — go camping on the forth, celebrate our flag, our culture, make breakfast burritos for everyone at the camp site. forget lighter fluid AGAIN for the 3rd year in a row. and ignore this maintenance tip until AFTER you go camping.
ok here’s the quick way to test things.
move you camper to a level paved location and use a jack on the frame of the camper/RV whatever. and spin the wheels if they smoothly spin, have no issues at all, don’t grind, don’t squeak or squeal. or make any kind of noise .. you can safely ASSUME it’s fine.. take it camping.
otherwise. take a deep breath and get the bearing replaced.
Pippi, i love your RV tips.
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