Trailer Hitch Maintenance and Care

Anyone who hauls a trailer behind their truck or SUV knows the importance of having a reliable, tough trailer hitch. What many people don't think about is how to best maintain their trailer hitches. Since the trailer hitch is on the back of the vehicle, and only used some of the time, it's easy for truck owners to overlook the basics of taking care of this all-important vehicle accessory.

We get questions all the time about trailer hitch maintenance, so we thought we'd share some simple tips for keeping your hitch in tip-top operating condition.

    Check the documentation that came with your trailer hitch. This may seem like a no-brainer, but it is arguably the most important part of taking care of a hitch properly. Every manufacturer has their own specifics when it comes to maintenance, so dust yours off and make sure that you read through it. One thing that many people find out is that they are hauling too much weight for the hitch that they have installed on their trucks. This can lead to potentially dangerous conditions and cause too much wear on your truck hitch, so make sure that you aren't violating this rule.
    Keep it clean. Make sure that you get into the coupler on your hitch from time to time. It is very easy for grease and grime to build up inside the coupler. Make it a point to take care of this often overlooked maintenance task to keep your hitch in good operating condition. For the coupler to make a decent connection to the ball and hitch, it has to be kept completely free of dust and debris.

Keep these basic, but important tips in mind to get the best performance from your hitch.