The 10 Features of a Highly Effective Conveyor Lubricator

Conveyor lubricators are not all alike. Many poorly engineered shot type conveyor lubricators will squirt only one brand and one viscosity of lubricant, squirt oil in the wrong places, and drip oil on the floor or on your parts. Brush type lubricators are sometimes sold to the uninformed as "automatic conveyor lubricators". The purchase and installation of a device sold as a "conveyor lubricator" will not guarantee that your conveyor is properly lubricated.

Better conveyors deserve better lubricators

A properly designed and engineered conveyor lubricator will increase chain life, reduce drive power requirements, cause smoother conveyor operation and will be a highly effective production and maintenance tool. When choosing a conveyor lubricator, look for all ten of the features listed below.

1. Squirts lubricant from nozzles. The lubricator should squirt lubricant into conveyor wear areas. If the lubricator has a brush or brushes instead of nozzles, it will smear oil on the conveyor, but not into it.
2. Dispenses "all" lubricants. The lubricator will function with all lubricants within the wide viscosity range of ISO 2 to ISO 100. In layman's terms these are the viscosities of mineral spirits and SAE 30 crankcase oil respectively. Common "dry-film" lubricants have viscosities similar to mineral spirits. Synthetic conveyor lubricants are universally available in viscosities from ISO 10 to ISO 100. The lubricator will also have Viton seals because Viton is compatible with hydrocarbons to allow you to choose from a wide range of lubricant types. Too many lubricators can squirt only the thin “dry-film” lubricants.
3. Operates in either direction of conveyor travel. The lubricator will be capable of operating in either conveyor travel direction so it can be installed with its "front" accessible at any desired location on the conveyor. Lubricators must be adjusted, programmed, and maintained and the "front" of the lubricator is where the dispenser adjustment knobs, display screen, velocity control knob, most sensors, and most nozzles are located. If the lubricator includes a single arrow, it can only be installed one way.
4. Includes microprocessor controller with operator interface. The lubricator will have an advanced microprocessor with programmable display screen to allow lubrication based on counting complete conveyor circuits. A number representing one complete conveyor circuit can be entered into the program along with the required number of conveyor circuits without lube and the number of circuits with lube. Repeat will be automatic with full program and progress memory during power outages. Timed lubrication is not as accurate as counting and the OFF and ON times are often not even based on conveyor run time.
5. Powered by compressed air. Compressed air is common in most industrial facilities and is the best source of energy for the reciprocating piston motions necessary to accurately measure and squirt lubricants. Multiple compressed air operated piston dispensers will be located adjacent to lubrication areas to facilitate short nozzle tubes. All electric lubricators usually can’t squirt all lubricants.
6. Adjustable positive displacement dispensers. Because not all conveyor components require identical amounts of lubricant, the lubricator will have an adjustable positive displacement measuring dispenser for each lubrication point or lubrication area. Some electric lubricators connect two or three nozzles to the timed lubricant output of one solenoid valve and the amount of lubricant squirted from each nozzle is not controlled.
7. Velocity adjustment. A compressed air regulator will allow the ejection force of the lubricant to be adjusted to squirt all viscosity lubricants without dripping or splashing. This adjustment is lockable and a gauge displays pressure. Some electric lubricators are not even capable of squirting both thick and thin lubricant.
8. Check valve at each nozzle. Each nozzle has a check valve located as close to its tip as possible to eliminate dripping. Having only one nozzle tip downstream of each check valve is an essential factor in eliminating dripping. Many electric lubricators use “capillary” tubing and connect more than one nozzle to the output of each solenoid valve. This invites dripping because lower nozzles siphon lubricant from higher nozzles.
9. Auto-speed shot placement. The lubricator recognizes conveyor speed and automatically places the lubricant in the correct locations on the moving conveyor components regardless of conveyor speed. Squirt type lubricators without this feature require manual sensor adjustment after speed change.
10. Auto fill or central reservoir. The lubricator has an integral reservoir that includes ports to allow automatic filling from a remote source although the lubricator may be designed to function with lubricant supplied by a remote pump. Lubricant supply pressure is not used to squirt lubricant. Lubricators that use the lubricant supply pressure to obtain the force necessary to squirt lubricant are usually limited to operation only with thinner “dry-film” lubricants.

Please feel free to contact us with questions and comments. . For more information, please read " Lubricating Powder Coating Conveyor Systems"

G. P. Reeves Inc.
Gord Reeves
Email: gordr@gpreeves.com