Acid Washed & new EVA Mats!
When Richard had to have the bearings repacked in South Dakota due to tires wearing unevenly we were concerned that maybe one of the axles on the trailer was bent so this week the trailer went in to be serviced. The mechanics took the tires off etc & measured all the axles and everything is great! Phew! When I was on the road last week some of the side lights were not working so those have now all been replaced. With all the constant jolting of the road, things get loose & so the strips on the back door needed re-riveting. They are now all nice & tight:
Over the winter in the icky weather the trailer had really started to look dull & grimy despite us pressure washing it. We didn’t think there was anything we could do about it but the Trailer place offered to Acid Wash it for us. Not cheap – $180 but well worth it. Look at it now – all nice & shiny again. Very pleased 🙂
When we started the transporting side of the business we had no idea we would be transporting so many horses. Certainly not complaining as they are FAR cleaner than cows! The road can be hard on horses legs though so this week we also invested in 1 1/8″ EVA mats. EVA mats are very durable & weigh about half of what rubber weighs which means we are not adding so much weight to the trailer. Instead of 600lbs they weigh 300lbs which is still quite a lot but easier on the back & the load. Here’s a picture of the new mats in the trailer:
There are eight of them & they interlock like a jigsaw puzzle so they cannot slip, move or go under each other to cause a “tripping” issue.
You will notice that there is a small gap on each side of the trailer. This will be filled with pine shavings & will allow any urine to flow off the mats helping to keep the mats cleaner. The horses will not be able to trip in the gap as it is not big enough for a hoof & a horses legs are in from its body anyway so it would be quite a feat to even get its foot in that close! We are thrilled with this latest addition & hope our customers will be also.
Take care,
Liz
