How to Keep Your Seamless Gutter Machine in Tip-top Shape!

By Katie Bowles, New Tech Machinery.

Learn about the importance of performing regular maintenance on your seamless gutter machine and what exactly you should do to take care of it.

One of the best ways to ensure your seamless gutter machine lasts for a while is to perform regular maintenance on it. This seems like an obvious point to make, but the difference a quick inspection of your machine can make might surprise you.

At New Tech Machinery (NTM), the Service Department is available assist with any repairs on your NTM gutter machine. They also understand how critical it is to keep customers educated on proper maintenance procedures to help make sure their machines last a long time.

In this article, learn:

• Why routinely inspecting and maintaining your gutter machine is important
• How often to maintain and take care of your portable gutter machine
• What kind of maintenance you should do on your gutter machine

Advantages of maintaining your gutter machine and equipment

Buying a portable gutter machine is a long-term investment. Not only does it involve the initial cost of the machine, but down the line you could have service or repair expenses depending on how well your machine is taken care of.

If you want to make sure you get the most out of your machine and produce quality gutters, maintenance should be a priority.

Benefits of taking care of your gutter machine can include:

• It helps ensure you’ll have your machine running for a long time
• Improves the quality of the gutters you make
• Saves you time and money on future repairs, parts, and service
• Allows for safer and better performance from your machine
• Increases the life of your machine and its components

Portable gutter machines can make different styles of gutters quicker than in-plant machines. However, they can also encounter problems just as fast if not taken care of regularly.

Without regular machine maintenance, you risk:

• Lost work and money for potential service or repairs on your machine
• Delays in running your gutter machine
• Improperly formed gutters

Irregular maintenance can cause problems with the working parts of your gutter machine, as well as causing gutters to form improperly

Keep dirt, debris and foreign objects out of your portable gutter machine

Rollers can become damaged if debris and dust collect on them, or if anything is left inside the machine. That’s why it’s important to inspect your gutter machine before you start a job.

Your seamless gutter machine needs to be free of any material inside when not in use and when transporting the machine to and from jobs. This helps prevent dust and dirt from building up inside the machine.

Another reason to make sure anything foreign isn't caught inside your machine is that it could make rippling or denting on your gutters the next time you form them. An indentation in the gutter could be forming because some type of material (tape, caulking, etc.) is stuck to one of the rollers or caused by an object that got run through the machine and gouged a roller.

Keep your machine’s shear blades well lubricated

Failure or irregular lubrication of your machine can cause problems with the shear blade and dies, chains, and entry guide carriage. Inadequate lubrication of the shear lead to rusting, premature failure of the blade and dies, and won't cut cleanly.

How often should you maintain your machine?

If you’re using your portable gutter machine every day, practicing good habits of inspecting your machine weekly and keeping it cleaned can help ensure a long-lasting machine.

Some best practices to keep your gutter machine well maintained and taken care of include the following:

• Keep your machine inspected and clean of any dust and debris. This allows your machine to run better and won’t damage the material or the rollers inside your machine.
• Avoid storing your machine outdoors uncovered for a long time. Using a tarp with proper ventilation or the NTM-designed cover can keep your machine safe from condensation and rusting over time.
• Don’t store or transport your machine with any material left inside the rollers or fed into the machine. This can cause dirt and debris to collect and possibly damage the rollers and impact the gutters you produce.
• Inspect that all parts are working correctly and not damaged. Inspect your screws and bolts for signs of overwear, that free-moving parts like rollers and bearings are turning properly and smoothly.
• Inspect your machine leaks, either from hydraulic fluid or gas if your machine uses a gas motor.
• Check the fuses, batteries (if you have a gasoline engine), electrical connections, and controllers to make sure there are no issues like wiring problems or shortages.
• Check the tension in your chains. They should not be over-tightened or too loose. Keeping them just snug will help ensure they work smoothly and properly. Ideally they should have no tighter than ½" of play.

Note: The shear is a very dangerous apparatus. The safety pin must be in place when removing the shear from the machine. Failure to do so will allow the blade to protrude through the bottom of the shear and can cause severe injury.

*Before performing any maintenance on your machine, be sure to check your machine manual, which can be found on New Tech Machinery’s website. Instructions on how to maintain your machine, when to perform certain maintenance actions, and NTM recommended lubricants and cleaners to use can be found there.

Read the full version of this article for more maintenance tips and best practices on New Tech Machinery’s website.

Final thoughts

Seamless gutter machine maintenance doesn’t have to require a lot of time, as long as you keep up with a routine of cleaning and inspecting your machine. Not only will maintenance keep your machine running for a long time, but it can also save you future expenses on repairs or service, increase the life of your machine, and allows you to produce better quality gutters.

New Tech Machinery manufactures portable rollforming equipment and strives to make sure customers get the most out of their machine by providing them with best practices that will help keep their equipment in top condition.

If you ever have a maintenance question or need service assistance, please contact a New Tech Machinery service department specialist today.

Learn more about New Tech Machinery in their RoofersCoffeeShop® Directory or visit www.newtechmachinery.com.

Original article source: New Tech Machinery