Grease Fittings for Trailer Axle Bearings?

A friend of ours who's an RV newbie spent a weekend on a busy beach, loaded with RVers. He was having problems with his rig, and like we've all experienced, lots of RV folks were happy to lend him a hand. In a conversation with one, the subject of axle bearing maintenance came up. By the time Mike got home, he was "sold" on the idea of using a boat trailer axle bearing grease system--the kind where you simply pump lube through a zerk fitting, as opposed to hand packing the grease. Think of the savings on maintenance!

Well, those systems aren't all that they're cracked up to be, particularly for RV applications. Bearing Buddy systems are designed for sealed marine applications. The trouble with squirting grease into an RV axle is you don't really have a handle on how much grease is already in there. Push in too much, where will it go? Out into the wheel area, likely onto the brakes, and whoopsie doo, on your next 7% downgrade you'll find out just how mixing grease and trailer brakes is a really BAD idea.

Enter Dexter's "E-Z Lube" system. Dexter builds axles used on a lot of RVs, and some of them have the "E-Z" system--specially designed, it allows the owner to pump grease through the axle spindles and into the bearings. But many RVers who have the system complain they can't pump enough grease to get the old grease out; others say they fear blowing out the rear seals; still others say their RV maintenance guys fear the same problems that are posed by Bearing Buddy system: Grease on the brakes.

There's much to be said for hand-packing your axle bearings: It forces you to take the wheels off the axles, giving you the opportunity to inspect your brakes, brake magnets, and associated hardware. Like one RVer says, "I figure those eight wheel bearings are supporting over 11,000 lbs of very valuable RV and equipment... one afternoon a year [to hand pack the bearings] is a small price to pay."

Yes, it's true that there are RVers who really love their EZ Lube systems, and haven't had any problems with them. We'd add, "at least not yet." I don't know how much I'd want to gamble all my stuff on it.

Diagram courtesy Dexter Axles

Air Pressure Gauges: Dial Me Up or Stick it to Me?

We've often "lectured" on the necessity to caring properly for your tires. 'Take care of your tires and they'll take care of you!' has been our mantra. A major part of caring for those rubber donuts is making sure you've got sufficient air pressure. How do you test yours?

Some folks rely on "built in" gauge on the hose down at the gas station. You may have noticed that those gauges have been becoming fewer and fewer as the days roll along. And even when the hose does have a gauge, after having been slapped around like a TV wrestler, they tend to get a bit punch drunk and don't give reliable information.

Some folks like the "put it in your shirt pocket," "stick" style air gauge. They may have a point, but we've found the "stick" type aren't always accurate, and often have the drawback of having fewer "graduations," making it difficult to ensure what the pressure is within less than five pounds. Here's another case of spending a few more bucks, but spending it wisely. The "dial" type air gauges are more accurate, and usually read down to the precise pound of pressure.

If you spring for the dial style, do take good care of it. Dropping it on the pavement can cause irepairable damage. We carefully put ours away in the "glove box" (who--other than snobs maybe--drive with gloves these days?) when not in use.

High Tech Propane Leak Finder Beats Bubbles

We all face it: With LP gas such a major supplier of energy in our rigs, sooner or later you'll have to deal with a gas leak. Left "unfixed" as quick as you can say, "Hindenberg!" your dream rig can go up in smoke, taking you with it.


For years the industry standard for leak detection was a bath of soapy water. Paint our pour a stiff solution of dish soap and water on a suspect fitting, and if it bubbles, you found it. Well, technology has its "one upmanship." How about an electronic gas leak detector? A whole lot less mess, and certainly sensitive, we've found "Pocket Air Check" put out by a midwest firm just the thing.


For those with older truck campers, you're still probably using the old style "POL" fitting propane tanks. When you refill these tanks, you have to be extremely careful about firmly tightening the fittings--the least bit of looseness can lead to a leak.
We keep our Pocket Air Check detector handy, and more than once have found the fellows who've tightened the fittings haven't done such a good job.


The detector does more though: Just turn it on, and run it along any gas line or fitting, holding it a quarter inch away. If a bit of gas is found, both an audible alarm and an LED light warn you of the danger. Not expensive either, Camping World sells them for less than $25, an inexpensive way to a lot more safety.