Summer will be here before you know it and if you haven’t had your truck scale tested and inspected lately now is the time. The changing of the seasons brings us warm weather, but it also brings running water to truck scale pits and foundations. If left unmaintained, the mud and debris can wreak havoc on truck scale operations and accuracy. We recommend completing the following steps to ensure your scale is up and running in time for the busy summer season. You, the scale owner, can actually do quite a few of the steps below.
Take a walk around the perimeter of your scale. Examine the entire deck, scale pit, foundation and approaches for any major structural or surface problems. If you see any foundation deterioration be sure to fix it right away. Any deck and approach repair is not merely cosmetic; those issues can have a negative effect on the scales performance. Flaking rust and crumbling concrete falling into the pit will add maintenance costs now, but in the future they will reduce the scales’ usefulness.
We’ve been servicing truck scales for a long time and the most common cause of incorrect weighments is debris under the scale (or in the pit) binding movement. Clean all dirt from each component. Remember, even though most scales these days are electronic, they still have moving parts underneath. Load cells still need to be able to deflect through their capacity range.
To cut down on any future debris problems, it’s a good idea to invest in flexible T-Grip or T-Strip rubber molding. These moldings, while being flexible enough to work with the movement of the scale, will keep debris from causing problems and eventual damage to the scale. Depending on the scale design, the molding might only be necessary to cover the end gaps where the trucks enter and exit the scale. Scales weighing open trucks or messy operations will also need side molding to protect against spillage falling into the pit.
If you have a mechanical truck scale with pit, it’s a good idea to have your scale greased periodically. You can call our office to schedule this at your convenience. Our scale technicians will generously lubricate all moving contact points with heavy bearing grease including load buttons that fit into load cells.
If rodents or radio frequency interference are problems for you, it might be a good idea to switch to a cable offering both rodent protection and EMI/RFI protection. We recommend the Rice Lake EL147RP cable. For protection against rodents only, run the cable through conduit or in the Rice Lake SURVIVOR® Cable Armor.
After you’ve looked over your truck scale, give us a call to discuss what services you’d like our scale technician’s to take care of. We can do truck scale greasing, troubleshooting, calibration, and connecting a remote display scoreboard. You can reach the Central Carolina Scale service department at (919) 776-7737.