A lot of contractors unfortunately don’t keep up with regular maintenance of their machines, and as a result, we see a lot of interesting things come into our machine repair shop. Get ahead of any problems by performing regular maintenance on your machines. A key to this is having spare parts available for replacements. Here are some of the most common machine parts to wear out on equipment used by sports floor contractors which are easy to swap out.
Switches – You go to switch on your big machine or edger and the switch breaks. These have a tendency to break as they’re being used and turned on and off frequently. Not to worry, a switch is easy to replace––check out this video for a tutorial on replacing the switch on an American Sanders B2 edger. And while we’re on the topic of switches, it’s a great idea to have an emergency switch hooked up to your big machine just in case you need to shut it off quickly.
Carbon Brushes – A carbon brush is a key component in conducting electricity within the motor. It permits the flow of electricity and the completion of a circuit. In terms of replacing it, the best advice is to monitor it and check on it every so often. Once it’s down to about ¼ inch, it will need to be replaced. You should also replace it if you see any signs of breakage, burning, or a collapsed spring within the carbon brush. It’s an inexpensive part to stock up on, so you might as well have them on hand. Click here to view our video about changing out the carbon brushes on the Super 7R and B2 edgers.
Spare set of wheels for your big machine – When you’re on a jobsite and you start seeing chatter appear on the floor, you know the wheels on your big machine most likely have to be either leveled or replaced. For the cost of a spare set of wheels, it’s a lot cheaper to have them on hand than to wait for a shop to repair it for you––if they’re worn down, you can replace them and continue on with the job rather than wasting precious time. Watch our video about replacing and leveling the wheels on a Lagler Hummel.
Spare dust bags are great to have on hand for your vacuum, edger, and big machine. Don’t be caught without them. Make sure your dust pickup is the best it can possibly be to avoid your finish not adhering properly and a myriad of other issues. Browse our selection of dust bags.
Plugs – The plugs for machines have a tendency to wear down because you’re constantly pulling them out of outlets and plugging them in. So keeping a few spares can be helpful because frayed wires are dangerous. Get ahead of the issue and keep a spare or two on hand.
