Over the last little while I've been asked about what should a company really have for spare parts, as well as what they should do for some preventative maintenance.
Let me start with the spare parts. This is really broken down into two sections. There are parts you should have on each truck, as well as parts you should keep tucked away at the shop.
Truck spare parts:
2 x complete guns
1 x complete front housing (with chamber)
1 x spare parts kit
A spare parts kit should include the following:
2 x sets of orings
1x a side check assembly
1x b side check assembly
1x a side seal cartridge
1x b side seal cartridge
1x chamber (at least one chamber, if not two)
Keeping these parts close by, will help you keep spraying. To some it may sound like a lot of money to tie up, but it's a small price to pay to keep spraying. Keep in mind you are only making money if you are spraying. Think of these items as an insurance policy, if it helps. It's an insurance policy that you will actually use some day. When that day comes most of these parts will pay for themselves with the cost of prevented downtime. Not to mention in reputation. A company that promises a job will be done for a set time, and constantly delivers that promise, will become more respected. Respect equal more money in your pocket.
At the shop spare parts:
10 x 80 mesh filters for the Inlet of your machine (most places sell these as a 10 pack)
Spare filter washers (these stupid things never seal right after you check the filter)
Machine pump rebuild kit
Feed pump rebuild kit (spare pumps for each side is not a bad idea to have either)
2 x springs for the top of your feed pump (if it's a stick pump)
1 x heated whip
1 x gallon of TSL (this is throat seal liquid. Any type of plasticizer will work)
When it comes to PM work it's broken up over time. This pm covers the actual foam equipment. Gennys, air dryers, air compressors, and fresh air filters are not included in this. Please check you manuals for their requested PM.
Daily:
Check you hose for wear spots. This is easy to do when you are pulling the hose out and putting it back in.
If you have recirc lines that you use, open the ISO side for a little bit. Letting fresh material move through the line stops it from hardening up, and building up residue on the walls of the line.
Give your lube cup a shake. Make sure it's not hardening up in there.
Monthly:
Check a and b Inlet filters
Replace the TSL in the line cup (keep an eye on how "worn" 'it is. If it's getting crusty and brownish there is a good chance you have a leak in your ISO pump. If it's just white and chalky that's normal wear. You want to swap timeout before it thickens up to the point of plugging the system.
Open the the air motor on your stick pumps and inspect them for wear, as well as wipe off old grease and re grease using white lithium grease.
Some people like to swap guns every month as well. They will put in a newly rebuilt gun and set the other one up for rebuild. You should be able to get 2-3 months out of a gun easily. But replacing it before it's wear out date is a good way to prevent onsite downtime. It's also good to have a look at your guns before they fail. This will let you see how parts are wearing, before failures.
Before winter/summer:
Winter time can be a pain in colder climates. It can be hard to maintain a constant hose temp. This in turn makes the foam inconsistent and can be a headache to work with.
In warmer climates this happens in the summer time.
The best way to prevent this is to make sure your hose is insulted properly, and well wrapped. The insulation is key in maintaining a consistent temp. The wrap is a major part in keeping the insulation protected. I will get into ways to wrap hose in a future blog.
Once a year:
Every one has a slow time (most of the time is in January). It's during this slow time I would recommend going over the equipment in detail. I would check electrical connections, blow dust out of cabinets, give the machine a nice "spit shine".
It's also a great idea to take this time and rebuild your pumps. You know the next rush is coming and there is nothing worse then having to push jobs away because you need time to rebuild pumps. Timing the rebuild of these pumps will prevent unwanted downtime.
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