Keeping your truck scale well maintained and clean is an important part of truck scale ownership. Not only is it good practice to always keep your weighbridge clean, but it also helps to have a preventative maintenance schedule in place for your scales. With a maintenance schedule agreement with your provider, you can set it and forget it. Our techs will be there.
Preventative maintenance will significantly reduce your risk of downtime and inaccurate weighing and a huge part of that, for truck scales, means thorough and careful cleaning.
WHAT IT MEANS TO CLEAN
Cleaning your truck scale does not mean simply spraying the deck with some water, it means visually inspecting the scale for any loose or missing parts that could contribute to an inaccurate weight. It means the areas of the scale where dirt, mud, debris and other things get stuck and thus cause the scale to not work properly. Itis fine having a clean deck, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg – the underside of the truck scale will need the most attention.
Over time, the build-up of mud and debris can have a negative impact on weighbridge performance. Compacted mud can set hard and reduce the movement of the weighbridge. This in turn causes reduced accuracy in weighing. Of course, certain sites and environments will suffer more with mud and weather conditions than others, and if your site rarely gets muddy, your cleaning schedule
Keep in mind, weighbridge cleaning can be a bit tricky. First, you need to remove the mud and buildup so the scale platform can perform correctly. However, the water pressure required to remove dirt and debris from around a weighbridge’s critical weighing points can, if not performed correctly, damage load cells, cables, junction boxes, and summing boards.
When cleaning the scale, the lightest amount of water pressure you can use and still achieve adequate cleaning, the better.
ESTABLISH A MAINTENANCE SCHEDULE
Weighbridge maintenance should take place as part of a daily or weekly routine depending on the type of site. The build-up of debris and water should be monitored and obstructions should be removed from beneath the scale to provide clearance between the weighbridge and the ground. Otherwise, your scale accuracy can suffer.
Pit weighbridges should be checked to make sure clearances are clean and the correct gap between the deck and pit wall are in place. ‘T’ section rubber can be used to help maintain gaps and should be replaced if worn or damaged. Regular end-middle-end tests with a loaded truck should be carried out to review the accuracy of the scale to see if there are any buildup issues.
Basic cleaning and maintenance can be carried out by a site foreman or truck scale weighbridge operator. If your team needs a KSS technician for periodic truck scale cleaning and inspection or as part of a preventative maintenance plan, call your KSS representative or reach out here.
CLOSING WORDS
Check out our Knowledge Hub for more helpful articles for users of industrial weighing and measurement equipment in their business operations as well as news from our company. From scale service and maintenance, to learning how to pick the right equipment for you, KSS has you covered. Contact us today!