I haul horses thousands of miles every year and have learned a lot of useful things on all of those many trips. It’s not that I *wanted* to learn these things, but out of necessity often I’ve had to. Most important is knowing how to change a flat tire. Before heading out on a trip alone (or even if you aren’t alone) it’s always good to check and make sure you have all of the tools and knowledge necessary to change a flat tire on your truck or trailer. You may not have to change the tire yourself (hopefully you can get help) but you should know where all of the tools are and be sure that you have them.
I have two spares for my trailer. That way if I need to use one, I still have a spare and won’t have to stop. Seems that lots of tire shops aren’t open late, or on weekends and holidays which is often when I’m traveling. Since I am often traveling in areas where there is no cell service and that is also miles and miles from help even if I could call it is just safer to know how to change a tire. I’ve had to do it more than once, and it usually takes me about 15 to 20 minutes and then I am on my way. Much better than sitting alongside a highway waiting for hours to get help.
Another useful thing that I’ve learned is that it is important to carry an extra fuel filter. This way if you should get bad fuel on your trip you can change the fuel filter out. Filters should be changed with your regular maintenance but you just never know what you might encounter on a long trip, and it’s no fun being stuck or stranded somewhere for something as simple as a fuel filter.
This video shows how to change both fuel filters out on a Ford 6.0 diesel engine, which is the truck I have. Click here to view how to change the fuel filter out on a 7.3 Ford. Search on Youtube if you have another brand of truck if you’d like to see how to change the fuel filter. Then make sure you have a new fuel filter “spare” in your toolbox. In my case if I were having engine problems one of the first things I would check would be the fuel filter on top – and change that out first to see if that made a difference. When traveling with Dave we’ve done that with his truck (7.3) and it worked – even when the injectors were going bad it at least was the bandaid that was needed to get back home. Without changing the fuel filter, the truck wasn’t driveable.
Another word of caution – stick with original OEM brand fuel filters and don’t use generic stuff because it’s cheaper. Why? Because a friend of mine with a 6.0 Ford had her fuel filter collaspse (off brand fuel filter), which pretty much left her stranded on the way to a ride. So watch for that with any model truck you have because your warranty might not cover repairs for such an incident if your truck is still under warranty. You can still find some good deals on top quality name brand filters on ebay.
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