Tips To Maintain Your Conveyor Belt

 

conveyer-frames

 

Taking proper care of your conveyor belts is one of the most important things you can do for it. This will ensure that your belt lasts a long time, reducing downtime and saving you cash. Here are six simple tips for keeping your conveyor belt in good condition. 

Adjust the belt tension as needed.  

Over-tensioning of conveyor belts is the most common cause of belt failure in the line of work. Belt over tensioning causes laps to separate or lace to pull out hastily. It is also a method of destroying conveyor bearings, shafts, and other components. If your belt is slipping, you may need to boost the wrap on your pulley or check to see if your pulley is lagged. Continue to apply more tension to the belt to get it to turn, as this will cause more problems for your belt. 

Select the appropriate belt for the job.  

There are numerous factors to consider when selecting the best conveyor belt for a given application. Some of these variables are the type of product being conveyed, load size, minimum pulley size, and speed. Using the best belt for the job is the ideal route to get the most life out of your belt. There are plenty of vendors out there that provide you with conveyor frames and maintenance guidelines. 

Check that the belt is properly tracked.  

When you install a new belt on a conveyor, it’s likely that the belt you’re replacing has been on that conveyor for a lot longer. Over time, the old belt may have resulted in changes to the conveyor. If this is the case, you will need to adjust accordingly to the conveyor to return it to its specified standards before installing the new belt. After installing a new belt at the proper tension, run it slowly and make any tracking modifications in small steps. You risk harming the belt before it has carried your product if you run the new belt at full speed or create massive changes. 

Conveyor belts should be properly stored.  

It is not unusual for businesses to keep extra belts on hand in case of belt defeat. There is no closer substitute belt than the one you keep in stockpiling. It is critical that these extra belts are properly stored. Smaller belts should be sealed in plastic bags to keep humidity, light, and pollutants at bay. Larger belts should be kept on skids and not positioned directly on the floor, where they are susceptible to water uptake and fabric wicking from cold floors. 

Check that the conveyor is in good working order.  

Before replacing a belt, the conveyor should be thoroughly inspected to ensure that it is square and level. All pulleys should be returned to their original positions. Check that the idler rollers on the conveyor are all turning correctly and are square to the frame. Rotary cutters, plows, scrapers, and automatic tracking devices should all be inspected and repaired or replaced as needed. The better the condition of the conveyor when a new belt is installed, the longer it will run without problems. 

If you follow these simple tips, you will be able to extend the life of your conveyor belt, resulting in lower costs and fewer outages.