Preventative Maintenance

In this article we take a deeper dive into the critical steps you can take to prevent costly issues with generators, compressors, and air dryers to help you reduce downtime, and keep your spray operations running reliably.

Since there are many different brands and variations of this equipment, it is impossible for us to address each one individually. Therefore the tips we will present here are general in nature.

You should also remember that the conditions in which the equipment is used, plays a large role in when & how often maintenance should be done. Heat, high humidity, and dusty environments can dictate that service should be performed more frequently. Remember, preventative maintenance is always less expensive than repairs and downtime.

GENERATORS

Obviously, when your generator is not working properly, you can’t spray. Perhaps just as important, is that if your generator shuts down unexpectedly, it can have adverse effects on the rest of your equipment. When a generator starts up or shuts down, the voltage fluctuations can be extreme. The Graco Reactor units utilize circuit boards that can be pretty sensitive to these voltage fluctuations, sometimes resulting in circuit board failure. However, there are some simple things you can do to that will help to avoid problems with your power source.

On a Daily basis, check the following:

• OIL LEVEL - If necessary, top off with the recommended grade of oil. However, if you have to constantly add oil to your generator engine, then there is a problem that should be addressed.
• COOLANT LEVEL - If necessary, top off with the recommended mixture of water / antifreeze. Once again, if you constantly have to add coolant, then there is a problem that should be addressed.
• BELTS - Look for frayed or cracked drive belts. In almost all cases, these drive the water pump. If they fail your generator will overheat and cause major engine damage.
• FUEL - Running out of fuel can cause the generator to shut down leading to damage to other equipment. Virtually all diesel engines have a water separator filter on them. It’s a good idea to periodically drain a little fuel out of the bowl and check for water.
• VISUAL INSPECTION - Look for fluid (fuel, oil, & coolant) leaks and quickly address them if you find evidence of leakage.Think of it this way, would you put your automobile on an 8 hour road trip without checking the oil, water, tires, etc.? Sounds like common sense, right? However, it is amazing how often the same logic is not applied to a generator that is being ran for 8 hours each and every day!

You should keep track of the hour meter on your generator and service the engine at the intervals recommended by the manufacturer.

Among the items that should be serviced are:

• OIL AND FILTER CHANGE - Refer to your owners manual for the proper type and grade of oil, as well as the required oil level.
• AIR FILTER - Refer to your owners manual for the proper type. (In one case a customer failed to replace a dirty air filter. That led to turbo charger failure, which led to a loss of oil pressure, which led to engine failure. It cost thousands of dollars for a new engine all because an air filter needed to be replaced)
• FUEL FILTER - As described above, an unexpected shut down of the generator can lead to damage to other equipment.
• CLEAN COOLING FINS OF THE RADIATOR - Because the generator is sitting stationary during operation, you are relying totally on the fan to draw air through the cooling fins of the radiator. Therefore, it is critical that the cooling fins be cleaned periodically for the the radiator to work effectively.

AIR COMPRESSORS

There are two basic types of air compressors, rotary screw and reciprocating. When it comes to maintenance, they have several things in common that need to be serviced.

Among the items that should be serviced are:

• LUBRICATION (oil) - Both types use an oil of some type. Refer to your owners manual for the proper type and grade of oil, as well as the required oil level. Check the oil level on a DAILY basis. Do not over-fill the compressor with oil, too much oil can be as bad as not enough.
• AIR INTAKE FILTER - all compressors use some type of air intake filter. A clogged intake filter can cause the compressor to work excessively hard and cause it to overheat.
• OIL FILTER - Many rotary screw and some reciprocating compressors use an oil filter. If the oil filter is clogged it will reduce or stop the circulation of oil in the compressor and cause premature failure.
• COALESCER FILTER - Many rotary screw compressors utilize a coalescer filter, that removes the oil from the compressed air and returns it to the sump. If it is clogged, it will not effectively remove this oil from the air. The result is that the contaminated air is sent down-stream to the air drier and then all of the equipment on your rig that uses air (including the spray gun). It will also cause the compressor to lose oil and eventually run dry. If you have to “top off” the oil in your compressor on a daily basis, or if you observe an oily discharge in the exhaust of your transfer pumps or agitator, you should investigate the cause immediately.
• COOLING SYSTEM - Rotary screw compressors use an oil cooling system similar to a radiator. The fins of this cooling core should be kept clean and unobstructed to prevent overheating. Reciprocating compressors utilize cooling fins on the compressor head itself (similar to an air-cooled motorcycle engine). If these fins are covered with dust or dirt, the compressor cannot cool itself effectively and will overheat. In both types of compressors, there is usually a over-temperature shut down safety device, but you should not count on that. Rather, you should visually inspect and clean these cooling fins as needed.

COMPRESSED AIR DRYER

There are two commonly used air dryer systems available, refrigerated and desiccant, both are designed to remove condensation from compressed air. Moisture is common in compressed air. How much moisture is determined by dew point and ambient humidity.

Among the items that should be serviced are:

• DESICCANT AIR DRYER - The beads should be replaced when they turn from blue to pink. On multi stage units there may be filters that need to be replaced.
• REFRIGERATED AIR DRYER - You should clean the ambient air filter regularly and service the separator filter and drain mechanism per the manufacturer’s recommendations.

If you have had a malfunction with your compressor and have sent contaminated (with oil) air to the dryer, the air dryer should be serviced when the compressor issue has been repaired.

We highly recommend that you have a copy of your owner’s manual on each piece of equipment on your rig. If you discover that you don’t have a copy of the owner’s manual, we suggest that you get a replacement. It is the best source of information for recommended service intervals.