Having a vehicle fleet can be great for business but time-consuming for its upkeep. While you may have a schedule for servicing your fleet, that’s not the only thing that you’ll want to concern yourself with. As the winter season hits, you’ll want to take some necessary measures to protect your truck fleet from unwanted corrosion.
Make Washing a Habit
The best way to prevent the exterior of your fleet vehicles from experiencing corrosion is to wash them. This not only means washing all the quarter panels but also washing their undercarriages as well. The objective is to remove snow, salt, ice, dirt, and other roadway debris from the vehicle’s exterior before it gets parked. Try and make it a habit to have your fleet cleaned at the end of every day.
Get Dents and Scratches Repaired
Any minor scratches, dings, or dents on a truck body can create points of weakness where corrosion can easily flourish. It’s highly advisable to get these issues repaired by a body shop like Ferguson Truck Center. By having these imperfections fixed with a protective paint coating, you can ensure that moisture won’t penetrate the air and create unwanted corrosion during the winter season.
Apply Wax
One well-known method for warding off exterior vehicle corrosion is to apply wax. This slick coat not only helps to make your fleet vehicles look clean, but it also helps to prevent snow and ice accumulation. At the bare minimum, you should be waxing your entire fleet at least twice a year. Aim for the spring and fall months. If your winter season lasts quite a while, you may want to consider waxing your fleet a couple of times during the snowy season for the best results.
Use Corrosion Inhibitors
The undercarriage of a vehicle is highly susceptible to corrosion due to the high amount of dirt, salt, and moisture it comes into contact with from day to day. One of the best things you can do to protect your vehicle’s undercarriage is to apply a corrosion inhibitor. Think of this product as similar to applying paint and wax to the body of your vehicle. Just a little can go a very long way in preventing unwanted rust in your fleet of trucks.
Schedule Regular Inspections
A necessity for any fleet is to undergo regular inspections. This doesn’t mean once a year when inspection season comes around. Rather, your vehicles should be getting inspected at least once a month. Your mechanics should be instructed to look for any rust that is developing. The earlier you can see these corroded areas, the easier and more cost-effective they will be to repair.
Consider Electronic Rustproofing
A fairly newer prevention method that has come on the market recently is electronic rustproofing. Instead of spraying on a rust inhibitor solution, this method utilizes the property of electrical current and metal. This small device is installed on your fleet vehicles and emits a weak electrical current to the vehicle’s metal components. This electrical current interferes with the charge between the metal and oxygen, which stops rust from being able to adequately form.
Get Your Fleet Repainted
Most modern vehicle paints are designed to last between 10 and 15 years. After that point, the paint is susceptible to severe corroding. You should keep a list of how often each vehicle gets painted and aim to have each one repainted, at the bare minimum, every 15 years. A new paint job can go a long way in preventing unwanted moisture and sodium components from creating rust on your fleet vehicles.
Store Your Fleet Indoors
Another great tactic for reducing the amount of corroding that your fleet experiences is to store them indoors. If possible, store your fleet vehicles in a heated facility that will help to evaporate any excess moisture on their exterior surfaces. By keeping your fleet vehicles out of the elements after they’ve been washed at the end of the day, you can greatly reduce the risk of oxidation and rust forming on your vehicles’ exterior surfaces.
Investing in a large fleet of vehicles is quite costly. As a business owner, you want to do everything possible to ensure that your fleet vehicles stay in great working condition and last as long as possible. By implementing the rust prevention tips that we discussed above, you’ll be well on your way to keeping your fleet of trucks in tip-top shape this winter season.
