How about a Brake Flush?

Last week, I saw a Multicab lose its brakes in a mountain barangay road near to where I was. The incident left a passenger injured as he flew out of the panel when the driver purposely hit a mound to make the vehicle stop. The driver said the brakes linings had recently been changed. But when I asked him about the brake fluid, he never replied.

The most obvious parts of the brake system that need to be replaced are the brake pads or brake shoes and the brake discs/rotors or brake drums if you have a drum system. These parts are commonly the ones that your neighborhood mechanic always list down on a small paper. But did you know there is more to maintaining your brakes than that? For those who don’t bring their cars to the casa or to a proper shop, the replacement of brake fluids are commonly overlooked.

Brake flush, as what the procedure is called, is often forgotten by manong mechanic when he goes to your house for some brake maintenance work. Brake Fluids are as important as the parts that we’ve mentioned above and is an integral part of the system. You will always need to do brake flushing at scheduled intervals to keep your brake system in top shape.

For those who don’t know what brake flushing is, let me write about it further. Brake Flushing is the process of draining out the old brake fluids of your car and replacing it with new ones. There are technical and safety steps to flushing the brake fluids and it’s better to leave it with the experts. Instead, let’s look more closely at why it’s important to change brake fluids at scheduled intervals.

Brake Fluids become dirty

Brake Fluids act as hydraulic fluids, pushing parts of the brake system to clamp or hold, which

create friction and in effect, making your car stop. This friction creates heat, thus corrosion. Over time as the brake fluid moves through your brake system, it will begin to pick up dirt and debris from the natural deterioration of the brake system caused by heat. These contaminants then continue to circulate through your brake system until the fluids become too compounded to do its job as a hydraulic fluid. The dirt in the brake fluid makes the brakes less effective, thus making your car less safe to drive. Dirty brake fluids can also damage components in the system if left unchecked over time.

Moisture ruins the fluids

Moisture is also another cause of concern when it comes to the brakes. Over time, moisture builds up in the brake system and mixes with the brake fluid. As more moisture accumulates in the system, the brake fluid becomes deteriorated and the system gets overloaded with the mix. Fluids will then lose its qualities to do its job efficiently. Following the strict schedule of brake flushing can prevent this and keep your brakes working efficiently and consistently.

Bad Fluids can cause corrosion and damage

Whenever there is what we call contaminants in any fluid of a car like dirt and/or moisture, it almost always can lead to damage. Dirt or moisture build-up in the brake fluid can cause the rubber seals to leak or the components to corrode. This usually leads to expensive fixes, not to mention the time consuming process of tearing down and repairing corroded brake systems.

If you’re following your oil change regiment well and you miss one, an uneasy feeling hits you while driving, right? That should be the same way with the brakes. You wouldn’t want to drive around in a car that has never had an oil change, worse if brake fluids haven’t been changed. Not changing brake fluids presents a higher degree of safety concern.

Flush your brakes every 30,000 km and have the fluid checked in between flushing especially with heavy use. It doesn’t take much to flush your brake fluids. You’ll avoid those premature costly repairs.Most importantly, your car will be safer to drive.