Caravan Security

[Anseo]

I have a 23 year old Swift caravan owned from new. The original locks have had regular doses of WD40 and work beautifully
Guess I've been doing it all wrong!

If you had applied a more relevant product then you may not have been applying WD40 so regularly :lol:

If it works for you, who am I to say different ?

 

[Craigyoung]

Craig, you werent by any chance at Lowdham Huddersfield a few days back. I was talking to a couple there who had a lock barrel stuck to their key, not amused at all was the gentleman.

No it was not me but i know how he was feeling !

 

[otherclive]

Never using it again ! Gonna buy some decent lubricant

Craig,

It's not a panacea for everything but has many properties that some WD40 users expect of WD40.

It was not designed as a water dispersal agent or a lubricant but it has many attributes, worth checking out, not cheap but so very very versatile.

http://www.acf-50.co.uk/acf-50.htm
EDIT: try it on locks and electrical contacts etc. you will not be disappointed.
A half litre (goes a very very long way-years perhaps) including applicator can be had for £30.00, seems a lot, but worth every penny,
reliable protection for a relatevely small initital outlay.

According to the company history site they were looking to develop something to prevent corrosion on missiles. It was designated "Water Displacement 40th attempt". Eventually abbreviated to WD40. Regarding plastics it will affect ABS, PVC but nylons and other plastics are not affected. It depends on the crystalline structure of the particular plastic. There are data sheets spelling it out. Clear plastics can be affected or not depending on their structure.

https://www.quora.com/What-effect-does-WD-40-have-on-plastic-materials
Any oil type lubricant injected into a lock will leave a residue that will dry out. I'd suggest tha t mineral oil could be as bad but people have used it successfully. Can't understand why there is such a down on WD40. Like everything there's horses for courses.

 

[Damian]

Quote " Can't understand why there is such a down on WD40."

Simply because it is not as good as it is made out to be and false claims are made of its uses, like as a lubricant, which it is not.
Also using it in the wrong application can be very expensive, you just have to ask those caravanners with vacuum Dometic toilets when they have sprayed the stuff on part of the toilet and it has cost them £700 for a new vacuum unit, or the loads of people who were advised to spray their Hartal locks with it, and ended up in a worse situation.

It may have its uses, but not on a caravan.

 

[Craigyoung]

Quote "
...or the loads of people who were advised to spray their Hartal locks with it, and ended up in a worse situation....

It may have its uses, but not on a caravan.

I know what you mean !!

 

[Icaru5]

Again, whilst WD-40 is not the best lubricant, it does have lubricating properties, albeit more short lived than several alternatives, and I find it is much better when used as a cleaner, but I do feel it neccesary to comment on the points that Damian found ...

Taken from a well respected website which listed 15 things WD 40 is good for, like spraying on shovels etc and these things it should not be:

But Don't Spray It On:
1. Door hinges. Sure, WD-40 will stop the squeaking, but it also attracts dust and dirt. Over time, you'll end up with ugly black streaks on your hinges.

It doesn’t attract dust and dirt, dust particles will suspend in any liquid. The black streaks would be carbon from the steel, caused by friction from a lack of lubrication, the same friction that caused the squeak and then caused the owner to lubricate the hinge.

2. Bike chains. WD-40 can cause dirt and dust to stick to a chain. Use bike-specific lubricants, which typically contain Teflon.

WD-40 is great for cleaning bike chains, but given the harsh exposed environment, it is advisable to then wipe dry and apply an alternative lubricant, such as GT-85

3. Paintball guns. WD-40 can melt the seals in the guns.

Never played with a paintball gun !

4. Locks. The spray can prematurely wear down the internal mechanisms, especially in the pin tumbler locks, in door locks and padlocks. Go for graphite powder.

Whilst there are undoubtedly better lubricants, I’d be really interested to hear how WD-40 “prematurely wears the internal mechanisms” !

5. iPods and iPads. WD-40 won't repair the Home button on these devices. In fact, the spray can cause the plastic to break down on the cover, and if some gets inside the electronics, it can damage plastic parts inside.

If someone thinks it’s a good idea to spray WD-40 into delicate parts of their iPad then I think the resultant failure would be the least of their problems !

It’s rather unfortunate that these days people read, quote and follow the endless lists of unsubstantiated advice and information off the internet without even questioning or wanting to understand the reasoning.

 

[otherclive]

Could the problem with the Hartal lock be that it is badly designed or made. Below is taken from acwell respected accessory suppliers advice section:
No mention of lubricants of any type:

So many caravanners are having problems with the Hartal front door lock becoming stiff and near impossible to lock or unlock. Searching through our caravan accessories you may be looking for a new key barrel for your lock when the main problem involves the internal grey assembly.
Removing the red and green buttons and the moon shaped plastic piece with 'HARTAL' stamped on it, will expose the fixing screws. Undo these and remove the internal assembly.
The probable cause of the stiffness in the lock is the interference where the shaft of the grey locking handle passes through the assembly. Remove the circlip and the handle will fall out. The hole now needs to be made marginally larger preferably with a drill. NOTE - only remove a very small amount of material to avoid the handle becoming 'wobbly'. Re-assemble and hopefully your lock will become serviceable again.
Many of the caravan manufacturers are fitting the Hartal front doors which come complete with the locks. I cannot remember us having so many problems with the Ellbee doors and the Caraloc front door locks.