How to protect your seals.
It is no secret that dust, and dirt have a habit of getting into all sorts of places. Both at home and work, you will see dust and dirt making their way across various surfaces. And when you shine light across any of those surfaces, you will easily see that unwanted detritus!
Another issue with dust and dirt is they can cause catastrophic damage to unprotected or vulnerable engineering equipment. For example, significant damage can get caused within cylinder walls, and in some cases, it can even lead to water ingress.
The Importance of Clean Machinery
Issues like surface wear, friction, and imperfect seal contact will likely result from dust, dirt, and liquid infiltration. That is why it makes sense to keep all engineering equipment and machinery clean both internally and externally.
How can you achieve that goal? A regular cleaning regime makes sense to ensure the exterior of all equipment and machinery is free of dirt and other debris so the cleaning frequency will ultimately depend on how often each item gets used.
When you ensure the exterior is as clean as possible, you minimise the risk of dirt, dust, and liquids from entering internal components.
Protecting Rubber Seals
You must ensure that the rubber seals used internally with each machine or piece of equipment do not get damaged. There are some components you can use to block dirt, dust, and water ingress. They attach to the exterior of the primary seal in a system:
- Wipers – ideal for light applications and are easy to assemble.
- Scrapers – perfect for more aggressive applications as they block debris like solid mud and ice.
- Excluders – typically used for hydraulic cylinders, such as brake cylinders.
Finally, you should only use high-quality seals as part of your shaft and seal configurations. Doing so will ensure the greater longevity of both your equipment and the seals and bearings within them.
Contact us to discuss your sealing requirements today.
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