Filter Carts

I use ofline filtration with good results. In the indusrty I am working in (corn and grain milling) vacuum distillation, air stripping or other methods are not cost effective or convenient as the equipment is very expensive and typically larger and less mobile than a small portable filter. We have alot of conveyors with small sump capacities fronm 2-20 gallons which are often located in places you cannot get a large wheeled cart into without a crane or other rigging. Our sumps are fit with quick connects for the filter units, air filtering breathers and pitot tube sample ports. This allows us to quickly and effectivly attach the filters and monitor particle counts in our onsite lab.

Hard Rock Mining & Processing
I am also going with the flow....we have been using off-line or kidney loop systems for years. We have a vacuume dehydration unit but it has not seen usage for quite some time. Oil analysis tells us when the conditions are right for filtration and when they are right for changing. Filtration can't do everything (economically)
The thing to realise is that most of the people visiting his site have been to the mountain and have learned the secrets of extending component life and to do that with cost effectivness in mind. You will probably only get positive responces to your question. Everyone worth their weight in opinions would not argue with the value of keeping your oil clean and contaminent free. Economics should end up being the determining criteria.
regards.....

MC,
I am in an industry that involves forging, heat treating, and machining. We use offline filtration along with a portable filter cart. Due to the large size of some of our tanks, 2500-5000 gallons, we have recently installed a recaliming station which includes vacuum dehydration. I believe it all is dependant on your company size and pocket book. The more important thing is to keep your oil as clean as possible. I would also suggest installing desiccant breathers on your tanks to keep the moisture and other contaminants out. Good luck.

I am a filtration specialist and I agree with Mr. BuckHntr. Off-line filtration is one of the best methods for reducing/maintain appropriate ISO Cleanliness Classifications. If a good absolute rated off-line filter B1/B3>1000 is used, it should meet almost any manufacturer ISO requirements.

Filter carts are good as well, but many do not have adequate filtration performance.

Contact me if need assistance.

I agree with Bert in that offline/kidney loop systems are ideal for improving system cleanliness. They can also be coupled with water absorbing filters to remove water, heat exchangers can also be added. Another benefit is that they can reduce the changes required for your expensive pressure filters. Which equates into $$$ saved.

We use filter carts for large and small gearboxes .Filter cart plays a big role in small gearboxes with no filteration installed .With disconnects we can circulate oil while machine stays in production . Saves many oil changes .

Hello , We are a company that produces and manufactures filtration media , and i would like to intrduce you to our website , If you have any questions about filtration please don't hestitate to contact me via email(jonathan@plastok.co.uk), phone +44 151 666 2056 or fax +44 151 650 0073, and I will endouvour to help you with any problems you have ....

many thanks for looking

Hello. I have a question regarding offline filtration in manufacturing. We currently manufacture a filtration cart that the military uses in aviation ground support. This cart has its own built-in power supply (the pump runs on 24 volts). That allows them to use it anywhere regardless of power source. My question is - Would such a filter cart be of use in the manufacturing enviroment or are power sources readily available? I appreciate any feedback that you can give me.
Thanks.

JohnC,
If your cart is truly portable, (weighs less than 35lbs), is able to operate continuously for over 4 hours on a charge and can provide a flow rate of 3-4 gpm then it probably would be usable in remote locations in plants with alot of places traditional wheeled carts are difficult to get to such as conveyor heads and tank agitators.
My weight criteria applies to componant of the system that can be easlily hand lined up to remote areas for instance the pump, filter, hoses, and battery pack can all be seperate units each weighing up to 35 lbs. This allows one to pack everything onto a cart to get to the site and then hauled up with a rope to the conveyor head. It would be difficult to get a single unit that weighs 150 - 200 lbs up there without a crane.

Thanks for your reply. I understand your weight requirements and it makes sense. The unit we manufacture does have a removable pump under 35 lbs. but the batteries (about 80 lbs. worth) are not easily removed and of course their weight would be prohibitive. The cart in total includes a handtruck (for moving lubricant drums or anything else you might need to transport to the site) attached to a carriage which includes the pump (Parker Guardian), batteries, charger, etc.. A Special Ops unit of the Army loves it because of the mobility and I thought that there may be many applicatons in manufacturing. If you want you can check out the unit at the website. There are pics which would better explain the cart.
I appreciate your insight.

I just had a thought about the previous subject. There wouldn't be any reason that a 24 volt "extension cord" could not be used in a hard to reach application. That way the pump could be removed from the cart and used remotely.

In my filtering setup We use the 110V Parker Guardian for the pump but I fit a larger filter head on with a quick connect. A seperate battery and 100 ft extension cord would make it usable in most of our remote locations.

I really like the Parker guardian for the pump but the filter is too small and elemennts are too expensive for my tastes.

I am currently trying to standardise on quick connect fittings for off line filtration useing a portable filter cart. Are there any recommendations of "Good" fittings or any that I should steer clear of. Main usage is for gearboxes and hydraulic power packs.

The ISO B type fittings would be my recomendation and are interchangable between different manufacturers. They have a rubber seal inside them and so are more positive sealing than older tractor fittings and they are also easier to connect. You might try using different sizes for different lubricants such as a 3/8" on light oils like hydraulic fluids, 1/2" for most gear oils and 3/4" for heavier worm gear oils. Standardize which fitting (male or female) you will use for the suction and discharges so the filter will only attach one way.

MC originally asked: “In my experience many people use filter carts, but few actually know how to use them safely and efficiently”.

Speaking of filter carts use, as a chemist, I want to know what the heck they do (their efficiency) to the oil, and when is OK to remove cart from one place and hook it up to another. I see two choices to measure and track the efficiency. One would be to send samples to a lab, and the other one would be to have available a portable particle counter. Either way, one would learn valuable info such as: a) is target-cleanliness reached or not; b) is bypass valve stuck open or not; c) is filter media ruptured or not; d) is my pressure differential gauge malfunctioning or it is OK; and e) is a noticed drop in efficiency result of my filter getting plugged, and needs to be inspected or replaced.
Preferred choice should depend on number of filter carts in use, number of sumps, and of course, your budget. I personally, prefer a one–time investment in a laser particle counter, which will give me an instant result, rather than using a lab and wait for days on result. The same instrument can be used to monitor the rate of ingression of contaminants and wear particles in all sumps. A spectroscopy can easily distinguish between the two if a sudden or unusual increase is observed.

Dear MC
I am offering Professional services for Oil Condition Monitoring with Laser Particle Counter and cleaning the Oil With Off Line Filtration System. its capacity is 45 LPM and giving extremly good results.I can clean the Oil up to NAS - 3 / NAS - 4 level with out any problem. I rather suggest all users of any type of Hydraulic / Lub System to use it. It is worth investment at least any one haveing large no. of Hydraulic Systems or a single big unit of say 1000 ltrs. and above.
If you need more information please do let me know. I will send you my slide show.
V.S.Dave

quote:

Originally posted by MC:
Just curious as to whether any of this forums readers commonly use offline filtration for their equipment. In my experience many people use filter carts, but few actually know how to use them safely and efficiently. And how many people actually go to the extra effort and expense of other forms of fluid purification such as vacuum distilation?

In fact I am offering Professional Services to our customers for Oil Filtration at site. I found it most convenient for the customers as they get the Oil filtered once in 6 months and they don't have to invest in Filtration Cart, plus they get expert services.

Dear MC,
Filtercarts can be usefull, but it depents on what kind of contamination you want to filter out of the oil.
If you have an kidneyfilterloop wich can filter out particles, water and oxidation products, then you have be carefull.
Taking oxidation out of the free oil (older systems)can bring more particles in the oil!
When you disconnect this kind of bypass filtercarts, the clean oil cleans you'r oiltanks after it. large particles dirty up the oil again. Take car of that!

John is right in that once you clean up your oil then it can again load up with the dirt it shed before. The key to getting control of this is periodic sampling and systematic filtering set a target and any units that exceed the target level for cleanliness get filtered. In the beginning you will be writing loads of work orders but they will reduce over time after several cycles of filtering removes the years of built up sludge. You might set your work order trigger at 2-3 ISO codes above your ideal target, any wear above normal and an oil change for bad oil. This will get the work started on your most critical items. After all you oil is good and the wear is under control you can drop your work order trigger closer to your ideal target level.