Frozen Rubber Track to Trailer Floor

[Moldman]

Fellow Rubber Track Owners, wife and I just got back from Michigan U.P. where we had -30 wind chills for three days. While there we had heat in the trailer up to 50 degrees, no problems. When we got home and tried to remove Max II from the trailer the track was frozen. Is there anything other than warming up the trailer and letting it thraw? Some time or some place we won't have electric for a heater, what do you all do? Any ideas are deeply appreciated.

[Noel Woods]

While in the Army, experienced a similar deal with wheeled vehicles that were loaded on railway cars. The wheeled vehicles were shipped into Norway during a winter storm. We had to make a salt water slurry and spread it by 5 gallon buckets onto the tires of the vehicles to brake them free. It wasn't that big of an effort. Prior to that we had just tried backing the vehicles out under power, but after de-treading several high dollar tires, the salt water slurry technique was suggested by the locals and it worked.

[ARGOJIM]

Perhaps slats so complete track doesn't freeze? Ie rumble strips, rubber or bed liner plastic.

Enclosed trailer.

[mowbizz]

A few minutes of heat from a portable kerosene torpedo heater should do the trick.
This is what I have and it comes in real handy for other garage projects too.
Oops sorry, it does need to be plugged in for fan motor!
Perhaps best bet would be like someone already said...some material that would inhibit ice from bonding.

[racerone3]

no great solution to your current issue, but try hosing things down with wd-40 in the future when you load? that or a silicon based lube. side benefit is it mat slow rot on the plywood floor of the trailer

[john swenson]

if you were carefull...how would one of those propane torches advertised for killing weeds work . i think the flame is adjustable and use a small tank like the ones for outdoor grills . johnboy va.

[beagle man]

Try weed burner with a small propane bottle (10 lb) and 6 feet of stove pipe. Bush pilots up here in Alaska use similar setups for engine heaters.

[Moldman]

Thanks for all the ideas. I have some old bed liners we use to drag leaves to the burn pile with. Will cut one in strips and screw to the floor. Machines don't stay in trailer when not used, always store on car dollies in barn with all the other big boy toys.

[ARGOJIM]

Let us know if this works, just a stab in the dark.

[rickf]

As a heavy equipment operator I am quite familiar with your predicament. The thawing out is going to be something you will have to deal with and probably already have by the time this is posted but what we ALWAYS did at the end of a day in sub freezing temps was to park the equipment on lengthwise placed 6x6's. If we didn't have boards we used trees, anything to get the tracks away from the ground.This kept the tracks up off of the ground and kept a large surface area from freezing solid to the ground. It it froze to the board, which it seldom did, it would break right loose as soon as you started to move. In your case I would just lay down a couple 2x4's lengthwise under each track.