Learning About Lubricant-Free Chains

When I was growing up, I was taught to properly maintain my bicycle. One of the requirements of maintenance was to ensure the chain was not corroded, did not rub more than necessary, and had the correct amount of oil. The amount of oil was tricky for me, and most of the time I was faced with the quandary of applying too much oil and risking grit and road grime from building up on the chain, or neglecting to add enough with the result of the chain grinding the gears, causing both to wear more quickly than normal.

Nearly every industry utilizes chains for most of its assembly line processes. Much like the chain on my bicycle, industrial chains are maintained by people who strive to maintain them to the best of their abilities. However, the same conundrum of too much or too little oil perseveres. Too little oil causes the chains, bearings, and other equipment to wear much more rapidly than expected. Too much oil invites contamination from airborne particles, which may spray oil in droplets across the surface of the product being manufactured. This latter predicament is extremely detrimental when the material is fabric or technology hardware, for instance.

To address this problem, sanitation chemical suppliers developed lubricant-free chains. These chains have an initial cost more than double that of a traditional chain, but because they are not maintained by the unintentional over- or under-oiling of maintenance personnel, the span of usefulness may stretch more than ten times that of a lubricated chain.

Lubricated chains are created with the lubricant added as the components are manufactured, a process known as sintering by sanitation chemical suppliers, or by packing the rollers with a high-viscosity grease lubricant. Of the two, the former is more highly recommended. Both have the advantage of dispersing oil internally to the chain rather than externally on the chain. Internal application repels more of the airborne particulate matter from adhering to the surface of the chain and causing undue wear.

Give your products and machinery the advantage of lubricated chains. The amount of man-hours saved in maintaining the chains of your equipment along with the greater amount of clean, oil-free products will certainly make the purchase of lubricated chains beneficial.

To learn more about sanitation chemicals, contact the Orlando sanitation chemical supplier at Bell Chem today.