Troubleshooting Impact Wrench Flow And Connection Failure
Posted on: 15 April 2015
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Impact wrenches (or other pneumatic tools) have a few common failure points that can ruin your operations if not handled as soon as possible. You'll also need a good maintenance and training program in place if you plan on having others use the tools on a regular basis. Before throwing out your impact wrench, consider a few failure points and ways to both fix the problem and avoid regular failures in the future.
Hose Connector Failure And Poor Handling
Pneumatic tools rely on a proper seal at the hose and house fittings. If there's damage at the hose or a gap at the fitting and connector, you'll lose air pressure and quality of impact wrench performance. It may not fail completely, but you may have sudden starts and stops that aren't reliable when heavy work demands your attention.
How can the hoses and fittings fail in the first place? Outside of major accidents that puncture and break the parts, poor handling can completely ruin your accessories to the point of having to patch hoses or buy all new accessory sets.
When a hose is removed from an impact wrench, tired workers may carelessly toss the hose aside to move on with their day. Brass, copper, steel or almost any other material used for attaching and sealing to the impact wrench can be broken or chipped due to dropping, especially if a worker has a regular habit of tossing things aside.
It isn't just other workers that you need to keep an eye out for. Watch your own habits and realize that such things can happen due to fatigue. Accidents happen, so consider placing rubber floor mats to cover for the accidents and even regular bad habit that simply don't seem to go away.
Hose Damage From Improper Storage
When the impact wrench is done for the day, what do you do with the hose? Is it left on the floor or ground, or is it hung up on a harness? Do you wrap or roll the hose up? Depending on the brand, there may be a problem with any of those habits.
Some hoses can become brittle and break if you simply roll or fold them. The inner materials made of rubber or cork can slowly melt or deform in hotter temperatures, resulting in a brittle core that releases air when you finally unravel the hose. Rolling and unrolling the hoses too tightly could pinch the hose material too much, resulting in a hole at the corners of the bend.
If there's excessive holes or cracks in the hose, make sure to replace it immediately. Contact an impact wrench professional to find hoses or other pneumatic tools that could help your operations.