During the day-to-day operation of heat treat departments, many habits are formed and procedures followed that sometimes are done simply because that’s the way they’ve always 
been done. One of the great benefits of having a community of heat treaters is to challenge those habits and look at new ways of doing things. Heat Treat Today‘s 101 Heat Treat Tips, tips and tricks that come from some of the industry’s foremost experts, were initially published in the FNA 2018 Special Print Edition, as a way to make the benefits of that community available to as many people as possible. This special edition is available in a digital format here.
Today, we offer one of the tips published under the Vacuum Furnace category.
Vacuum Furnace
Heat Treat Tips #3
Make and Stick to a Clear Preventative Maintenance Program
Make sure a preventative maintenance schedule is clearly defined and adhered to. Most modern furnace control systems include diagnostics to assist in determining when certain components of the equipment require maintenance. Use these tools to prevent downtime and avoid wasting unnecessary maintenance.
- Change pump oil regularly: roughing, pump, boosters, and holding.
- Check hot zone for wear, loose, or missing hardware; verify element to ground resistance is greater than 10 ohms, vacuum out loose debris (monthly).
- Check water chemistry and adequate flow to and from the furnace (weekly).
- Check front door O-ring integrity, make sure there is no damage and that the ring is not flat; light grease as needed.
- Bubble check process gas lines for potential leaks.
- Check motor belts.
- Grease the main valve (monthly).
This tip was submitted by Solar Manufacturing.
