Having strong brakes on a trailer is important for safe towing a heavy load. These brakes should allow safe stopping of a trailer, not causing any damage to the load. Nowadays, we are witnessing many types of braking systems with a greater emphasis on disc and drum brakes.
In this article the main benefits and features of disc brakes are explained. Many people are thinking that installing hydraulic disc brakes is too expensive compared to electric drum ones. You should know that drum brakes gained confidence over the years because of their efficiency for a relatively low cost.
Disc brakes are appropriate more for heavier trailers than for lighter trailers. Heat dissipation is created because a heavier trailer is producing more heat through braking. Other benefits of disk brakes are the ease of cleaning after mud immersion and improved water dispersal when crossing water surfaces. That’s why these brakes are preferred for boat trailers. They are rust resistant because they don’t contain any metal components. Also, they have fewer components that can be damaged, making them more reliable than drum brakes.
If you own a trailer who belongs to the 2501-3500 kg category, you should change your old ones and install new disc brakes. If you are considering purchasing a heavier trailer, search for a trailer for disc brakes. Maintenance of the disc is an easy job because only one component has to be replaced – the brake pads in the caliper. The calipers are used to squeeze pairs of pads against a rotor, creating friction that slows down the cylinder rotation. The vented rotors are cooling faster and maintain the braking more smoothly than a standard non-vented rotor. As a huge advantage of disc brakes is the possibility of automatic adjustment of the brake units. They self-adjust ad the pads wear down. The system is becoming more sensitive due to the increased number of individual drum brake units on a trailer.
The speed of deceleration of the towing vehicle during braking and the mass of the trailer are two factors that affect the pressure difference. Therefore, a more heavily loaded trailer will have a greater differential pressure between itself and the towing vehicle. The conclusion is when you are towing lighter load you should look for a better system at lower pressure.
It is obvious that the interest of hydraulic disc brakes in the trailer industry is growing; slowly, but surely.