Roy Gambrell is Maintenance Director for Truck It, Inc., a small flatbed carrier in Franklin, Ky. He is also on the Board of Directors of the Technology and Maintenance Council (TMC). But Gambrell's claim to fame is that he is the person who first identified "Rust Jacking" and brought it to the industry's attention.

He found that the sudden increase in premature rusting many truck owners noticed was tied to the use of more aggressive chemicals to fight snow and ice in northern states. Yet short of avoiding certain highways, there are ways to keep corrosion from stopping your rig.

What is Rust Jacking?

Gambrell first investigated rust jacking because his trucks were experiencing brake shoe failures after only 18 months of service. He noticed edge cracks that looked like heat damage on his truck's brake shoes. The cracks deepened enough to put the units out of service. Gambrell pulled his wheels and found rust build-up on the shoe tables forming an A-shaped wedge that literally jacked-up the brake shoe. Held in place by the rivets, the shoes cracked under the jacking force of the rust, just as expanding ice can crack the hull of a ship.

The industry, under TMC leadership, investigated the matter and discovered that premature rusting was destroying equipment at a rate never seen before. Damage was not confined to brakes. Virtually any unprotected metal was affectedÑsteel, iron and aluminum alike. Paint protects metals, but if the integrity of the paint is broken by a scratch or a stone chip, a path is opened for rusting to start.

Finding the Cause

The sudden increase in rust damage was traced to the increase in the use of more aggressive snow removal and deicing chemicals in the northern tier of states.

Previously, most states used rock salt (sodium chloride), sometimes mixed with sand or cinders for traction. In the late 1990s, state highway and transportation departments started experimenting with more aggressive chemicals: calcium chloride and magnesium chloride, often in combination with each other or with rock salt, and with potassium acetate and calcium-magnesium acetate.

Instead of waiting for the snow to reach a pre-determined depth to start spreading salt, many highway departments now spread chemicals in advance of snow or ice storms, often mixed with water as brine. In theory, the brine dries to an even coat, and starts working as soon as the snow falls.

In the real world, the aggressive liquid chlorides and acetates stay on the pavement only until they are kicked up by car and truck tires as spray. The spray permeates the air and lands on all vehicles driving through these mists. Once the chemicals find a weakness, even in recesses as hidden as the crevices between the brake shoe and the table, corrosion starts.

What Can You Do?

As bad as all this sounds, there are ways to prevent excessive rust damage short of refusing to drive north of Interstate 10.

• Keep your truck clean, especially after you've been driving through brine sprays. You can tell when you have been by the pervasive film on your windshield, lights and reflectors. Your washer fluid usually isn't strong enough to dissolve it, and when it builds up on headlamps, their range is shortened. Pressure washing, especially the under carriage and beneath the truck, will cut through the build-up and remove the chemicals to prevent much of the damage.
  
• Buy quality replacement parts. Gambrell used to buy reconditioned brake shoe assemblies with new linings. He found many were not properly re-coined to have the correct contour, and many are not properly painted. They were not as corrosion-resistant as original equipment.
  
• Inspect components and assemblies carefully for rust on a regular basis. If there is any rust or corrosion on parts, clean them down to bare metal, then prime and paint thoroughly. Be sure there are no bubbles or missed spots. Polish aluminum wheels, tanks, hangers and anything else. Then give them a protective coat of wax. And whenever possible, buy stainless steel.
  
• Be very careful using fasteners. Attach steel parts with steel bolts and nuts (using the proper grade) and non-ferrous parts with stainless steel. The fasteners may cost a bit more, but they will prevent electrolytic corrosion of the non-ferrous parts.

TMC and the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) have initiated discussions with various highway engineering groups to try to reduce the use of these aggressive chemicals, but that process may take years to show results.

Meanwhile, you can protect your truck. With frequent inspection and prompt maintenance, your truck can resist winter's worst and survive this newest form of chemical warfare.