Making sure our construction company is competitive

Even small construction companies can get in on bidding for jobs and competing with other companies hungry for work. You sometimes have to be clever about the way that you compete for tenders and you have to make sure we have the right equipment and materials to get the job done as quickly and efficiently as possible; we can to keep clients coming back. This can mean using a construction broker to make sure you get the right combo of new equipment and secondhand equipment to help the business succeed. This blog is about finding and choosing heavy construction equipment for your small scale construction company.

4 Causes of Pump Cavitation You Should Guard Against

Blog

One of the biggest causes of hydraulic system failures is pump cavitation. Unfortunately, some inexperienced technicians may think that only low hydraulic fluid level can cause pump cavitation. This article discusses some other causes of cavitation that owners of hydraulic equipment need to guard against in order to avoid costly repairs.

Contaminated Strainers

Clogged suction strainers can cause the inlet velocity to be so low that air will enter the pump when limited amounts of hydraulic fluid are flowing through the system. This air will cause pump cavitation and the pump may fail if prompt action isn't taken to clean or replace the contaminated strainers or filters. It is therefore advisable to check all strainers and filters periodically so that you can confirm that they are not contaminated to a level that can affect the velocity of hydraulic fluid through your equipment.

Defective Breather Caps

All hydraulic systems have breathers that help to balance the pressure within the system. Pump cavitation can easily occur if someone accidentally plugs this breather cap. This is because the pressure within the fluid reservoir will drop so much with the net result that the suction pressure will be inordinately high. Pump failure will become inevitable due to the resultant cavitation. It is therefore imperative for you to ensure that all breather caps are correctly replaced after maintenance or repair work so that pump cavitation is avoided.

Extreme Oil Temperatures

Pump cavitation can also take place when the temperature of the hydraulic oil rises so much that the entrained air within the oil forms bubbles as the viscosity of that oil decreases. Very low temperatures can also cause the hydraulic oil to increase in viscosity. Such oil cannot easily enter the pump. This also gives air a chance to enter the system. Pump cavitation will result in both these cases. You can prevent this type of cavitation by keeping a close eye on the operating temperature of your hydraulic equipment. Investigate any abnormal temperature variations and fix the problem before it causes system failures. For example, you can reduce the loads on your equipment if that is causing the temperature of the oil to increase beyond the acceptable level.

High Drive Speed

Pump damage due to cavitation can also result from excessive pump drive speeds. This is because the suction side will be unable to take in all the oil that the pump is trying to force through it. Regulating the drive speed to the recommended level can easily avert this problem before it damages the pump.

As you can see, pump cavitation can be caused by numerous unrelated factors. It is therefore advisable for you to call for expert help in case you are unable to pinpoint the actual cause of hydraulic pump failures. The remedy that is implemented after a thorough failure analysis will then be the most appropriate fix to the problem.

Share

10 July 2017