Oh No...Trailer Brake Reservoir filled with foreign substance

[dfrancom]

Hello,

I opened the lid to my brake fluid reservoir on my trailer (a 2013 nitro z9) and when i got it opened it was filled with what appeared to look like crushed and ground up peanuts. I kid you not. I dont think it has ever been opened i am guessing but what is this substance? It is a little moist and I have no clue what it is. Could this be from water getting in the brake fluid? somehow decomposing it into a powder?

Any advice or input would be great. I have photos but cant get them uploaded as I am sure it would help to see. I can email a few if needed.

Thanks and Merry Christmas.

Derek

[CatFan]

Rust would be my first guess, though on a 2013 that would be surprising. Good news is that even if you have to replace everything it isn’t crazy expensive.

I think I’d try to get all of the crud out and disconnect the line at the rear of the actuator and try flushing it out with brake fluid to see if the master cylinder works. Follow the process for bleeding the master cylinder which depends on what actuator you have.

[dfrancom]

Thanks CatFan. I will do just that and see what happens...

DF

[billnorman1]

Hello,

I opened the lid to my brake fluid reservoir on my trailer (a 2013 nitro z9) and when i got it opened it was filled with what appeared to look like crushed and ground up peanuts. . .............Derek

Derek, I'd say it sucks to be you. Bad break (pardon the pun).

[Ohio Archer]

I've seen that on hydraulic brakes many times on bikes but not on one so new. You'll need to disassemble the master cylinder and flush all the lines. I would definitely replace ALL the rubber parts including the cap seal. I'm assuming it uses Dot 3 and that stuff is bad for just sitting around and it absorbs water.