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Are You Testing Your Oil Onsite?
David Lander, MLA II PdM Tech. Temple Inland
Forest Products
Working with a very limited budget and in an effort
to get the best results for the money we had to work with; we
had to get creative with our in-house tests. We elected to put
the bulk of our budget into a good private lab that offered quick
turnaround, about 24 hours, and a variety of tests and services.
We send our most critical equipment samples to this lab, this
works out to about 60 samples a month. Another 70 to 100 samples
a month are tested in-house using a collection of inexpensive
but very effective test equipment.
Sampling - Click to Enlarge
Sample quality is probably the most important part
of our test procedures we use zip-lock bags, a new tube for each
sample and of course sample ports on all our equipment.
Sample Agitator - Click to Enlarge
Sample agitator is home made using only scrap parts. The samples
are rotated at a low speed causing the oil to splash from top
to bottom in the bottles. It is very effective at agitating the
sample. The agitator is also used for vibration and oil analysis
training.
A True Minilab - Click to Enlarge
We have two visages one of which was lent to us
by an oil supplier. With practice you can get very accurate readings
with these. I have become very consistent with them less than
3% error compared to lab results.
We have a hot plate for crackle tests. A syringe,
(purchased from e-bay), with a patch holder. Patch tests have
proven to be very effective at finding problems early. We have
detected early signs of bearing failures, worn seals, pump ware,
and filter failures. We have also used our in-house testing to
extended our oil drains and test all our incoming oils. It is
also very educational to actually see the particles in the oil,
instead of just a number on a report, has been very beneficial
to understanding what is going on inside our equipment.
The most expensive piece of equipment we have is
our microscope, purchased from an on-line discount store, equipped
with a digital camera for trending images. These images have gone
a long way in convincing management that we know what we are doing.
Under construction is a ferrography slide maker.
Purchased magnets from e-bay and making the unit from scrap.
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