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Re: [RC] Aluminum Trailer Floor Maintenance / Cleaning - Sisu West RanchThe instructions that come with most (if not all) trailers with Al floors tell the owner to remove the mats, and hose the floor down after each use. The reason is that the ammonia from the horse pee corrodes the Al floor very badly. Replacement of an Al floor is expensive. When I got my 10 yr old trailer, there was quite a bit of pit corrosion on the floor. Not wanting to replace the whole floor I did the following: 1. Washed the whole floor 2. Sand blasted the pits down to bare Al. The pits are filled with Aluminum Oxide from the corrosion. This all has to be removed to stop the corrosian. 3. Acid washed the whole floor untill it sparkled. I used phosphoric acid milk line cleaner from my local farm store. 4. Repaired the really bad areas with fiberclass cloth and resin. 5. Had Rhino lining put in the whole floor and up the walls 30 inches. 6. Bought cow mats (half the cost of horse trailer mats) cut them and installed. (use a very sharp box knife under running water to cut the cow mats) Now the aluminum floor is protected from the ammonia and should last forever. Cutting more drain holes is a good idea. I would suggest cutting about 1 inch diameter holes (a hole saw works well for this). Be sure to measure underneath so you do not drill into a support as you make the holes. Ed Ed and Wendy Hauser Sisu West 2994 Mittower Road Victor, MT 59875 (406) 642-9640 ranch@xxxxxxxxxxx =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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