The Underwater Test: Why You Should Test Your Equipment After a Flood

Sometimes it’s hard to plan for destructive natural disasters – such as Hurricane Harvey along the Texas and Louisiana Gulf Coast and the subsequent flooding. So, what do you do if your equipment is exposed to the disaster’s effects and flooding?

Based on years of experience in helping companies save their equipment and extend the equipment’s lifecycle, quite simply we recommend taking action.

Flooding can result in water contamination and can cause corrosion and oxidation which can be extremely harmful for your equipment and, in turn, can cause holds in production and loss of business. How will you know if you need to test your equipment’s fluids to see if any damage was caused and determine if potential maintenance is needed?

First, check for signs of water ingression or leaking. Search for answers to key common challenges, such as:

  • Is the high-water mark above the containers?
  • Is dried mud crusted on the container?
  • Are caps, lids and vents still in place?
  • Are desiccant filters saturated?

After you check for signs of water ingression, the next steps for testing depend on the type of fluid:

Oils and Lubricants

Check the fluid itself for signs of water contamination. A milky appearance indicates the oil additives have emulsified as much water as they could, and there is likely more dissolved in the fluid. An oil analysis test from POLARIS Laboratories® includes a water test, and elemental analysis can identify dirt contamination from mud or salt from sea water.

Coolants

Pressure caps on coolant containers typically prevent floodwaters from entering cooling systems. However, it is still worth the time to perform a field test using a refractometer or paper test strip to determine if the glycol/water ratio is still in balance. If you suspect contamination, a coolant analysis test from POLARIS Laboratories® will determine if the external water and dirt requires the cooling system to be drained and/or flushed.

Bulk Tanks

Bulk tanks typically have water drain-off ports to remove free water that settles to the bottom of the tank, but the fluids should be checked for water as well as using the techniques above. A “thief bomb” or “bacon bomb” may be needed to collect the sample. Diesel fuel and new lubricant testing from POLARIS Laboratories® will determine if the fluid quality is adequate for future use.

It’s crucial for any contaminated oils, coolants or diesel fuel to go through analysis testing when flooding occurs. Testing can prevent future issues from arising and can help determine what equipment maintenance is needed to resume work.

Proven Impact. Proven Uptime. Proven Savings.
Let us prove it to you.

Published September 6, 2017

Protect Your Gear Systems

There’s no avoiding dirt and water contamination in your gear systems. If you’re not careful, wear will occur and damage the overall health of your equipment. Partnering with a strong fluid analysis program, you can prevent undesired downtime and cut your costs.

To learn more about how routine fluid analysis can help protect your gear systems, check out this technical document or contact us directly at custserv@eoilreports.com.

Proven Impact. Proven Uptime. Proven Savings.
Let us prove it to you.

Published August 8, 2017

What is particle count?

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Testing Your Oil Conditions

Contamination, component wear and fluid degradation make oil changes necessary. However, we have a choice when to change it.

Maintenance managers can set oil drains based on the equipment manufacturer’s recommendations, but that doesn’t necessarily account for unique environmental conditions. A heavy duty diesel engine on a piece of mobile equipment at a surface mine has different operational conditions than the same engine model in a standby power generation application. Oil analysis from POLARIS Laboratories® provides the scientific data to determine if a drain is necessary or if the drain interval can be extended.

But oil analysis by POLARIS Laboratories® covers more than just extending drains. Tests can determine abnormal component wear and fluid degradation. Here are a few of the oil conditions that are measured through our oil testing:

  1. Wear Metals: Components wear as they operate. This wear debris is abrasive and will beget additional component wear as the abrasive particles are circulated via the lubricant. The quantity and type of metal in the lubricant can identify how much wear is occurring and which part is wearing.
  2. Viscosity:  A measure of the lubricant’s resistance to flow at temperature. It is considered the most important property of a lubricant because it indicates film strength. Lubricants need to be within a certain viscosity range to provide adequate lubrication and prevent wear.
  3. Water Content: The amount of water contamination present. Water causes component corrosion and is a catalyst for oxidation.
  4. Soot: Particulate created as a by-product of incomplete combustion. Excessive soot levels will cause abrasive component wear.
  5. Fuel Dilution: Amount of unburned fuel in the lubricant. Excessive fuel dilution lowers the flash point and the viscosity, which results in friction-related wear.
  6. Acid Number: Used to measure the relative amount of acids in the lubricant, which can lead to lubricant degradation, and the potential for increased component wear.
  7. Base Number: A measure of a lubricant’s alkaline reserve, which can indicate the ability to neutralize acids.
  8. Oxidation: A way to measure the breakdown of the lubricant due to age and operating conditions. Oxidation promotes the formation of acids, which leads to lubricant degradation, and the potential for increased component wear.
  9. Nitration: Degradation that occurs when nitrogen oxides react with the lubricant primarily from ventilation (blow-by). Nitration leads to formation of sludge and varnish.

Of course, these are basic tests. Many different types of tests are available for special lubricant types or to gather more information on contamination found by another test.

Oil testing is even more helpful when the lubrication is used with other in-line fluids, such as coolant and diesel fuel. Engines use all three fluids, and a problem with one can affect another. Adding coolant analysis and diesel fuel analysis will uncover problems that would normally go undetected with oil analysis alone.

Proven Impact. Proven Uptime. Proven Savings.
Let us prove it to you.

Published May 2, 2017

Compliance Yields Results

When equipment replacement costs hit an all-time high, a worldwide oil field service company turned to our team to revitalize their fluid analysis program. Coming from a low rate of compliance with a different fluid analysis firm, the company took a new approach to fluid analysis by adopting our web-based fluid analysis management system, HORIZON®.

Program Impact

Working together, our team designed an effective fluid analysis solution for the oil service company. We assembled a team of qualified experts in customer service, IT and field services to facilitate implementation. Site visits were made to each location, and the company’s employees received training on fluid sampling and use of the HORIZON system. Fluid analysis program champions were identified in the oil service company to provide onsite leadership and keep the program on track.

Results

Eighteen months after implementing its new fluid analysis program, the company’s compliance rate climbed from 40 to 70 percent. The company was able to make better maintenance decisions thanks to the qualified data and recommendations we provided. The oil service company now can plan for most outages, making operations more efficient and improving their bottom line.

To learn how POLARIS Laboratories® can help improve your team’s compliance rate, contact us at custserv@eoilreports.com.

Proven Impact. Proven Uptime. Proven Savings.
Let us prove it to you.

Published April 4, 2017

Why Go Advanced?

With all the choices in oil analysis today, there can be much confusion about which testing is best for a maintenance program. Routine testing can be broken down into two main categories, basic and advanced testing. Basic testing can provide information about the condition of the equipment as it relates to wear and contamination. This can prevent small issues from turning into major failures (saving real dollars).

Read the Full White Paper 

What’s New: Particle Count

POLARIS Laboratories® has shaken up how we perform particle count testing at our U.S. location, and I’m excited about the improvements we’ve seen so far. In order to continue providing customers with top-notch oil analysis service, we switched from using the ISO 11500 test method to ASTM D7647 utilizing a solvent dilution test method.

There is nothing wrong with the equipment performing the ISO 11500 test methods, but we relied on pore blockage testing – an alternative particle count test – for dark samples or water-soluble fluids.

A few years ago, the manufacturer ceased supporting our pore blockage instruments. The effort to maintain the ageing equipment continued to rise, and POLARIS Laboratories® faced the choice of simply replacing the units or consolidating particle count and pore blockage testing into one instrument. We concluded the latter would be better for our internal processes at the same time it improved the service we provide customers.

By setting aside the good to accomplish the great, we knew we would face difficulties that always accompany change. First of all, it meant only the U.S.-based instruments would be replaced, leaving our labs in Edmonton, Guatemala City, and Poznan running ISO 11500 on the current units. While we now have plenty of spare parts for those units, we need to maintain two different test methods until we’re ready to switch over the rest of the locations.

It took about a year to validate the instrument’s capabilities, demonstrate the new method would match or outperform the current process, and organize the laboratories for the change. All of the preparation allows us to be confident we can switch to ASTM D7647 and provide a higher quality test results without a service interruption.

But changing test methods will benefit customers as well. The ISO 11500 test method results sometimes included water and soft, non-damaging particles (such as varnishes and long-chain additives) along with the hard particles that pose a danger to equipment longevity. The solvents we are using in ASTM D7647 allow the results to better represent the particle count of fluid under those conditions. Customers currently receiving pore blockage testing should see a mild shift in particle count results as a result of the new method.

To learn more about the different particle count test methods, the ISO cleanliness code, and how particle count tests results help you extend equipment life, explore our particle count technical bulletins or contact our data analysis team.

Proven Impact. Proven Uptime. Proven Savings.
Let us prove it to you.

Published March 21, 2017

Submit Your Samples Online

You’ve heard about sample submission.  You’ve heard about how easy the process is and how quickly your samples will make it out to the lab once logged into the system. But do you understand how easy the process is to setup online submission?  There are a few steps you must take prior to submitting your sample.

Use the tips below to help get ready for your online submissions!

Equipment Information

Have we tested this piece of equipment before?  If not, does the equipment component exist under your account already?  If we haven’t tested it before and the equipment does not already exist, then just click on the “Equipment Management” tab in HORIZON® and click on “Add Equipment”.

For equipment that already exists under your account but needs updates such as component manufacturer/model or lubricant information – click on your “Equipment Management” tab and then click on “Edit Equipment”.  This will allow you to edit any piece of equipment under your account.

Do you know the difference between component time and lube time?  The component time is the total number of miles or hours on your equipment.  The lube time is the amount of miles or hours since you last changed the fluid.

Kit Information

Remember, coolants, oils, and diesel fuels have their own kits tied to their specific testing.  If the correct kit isn’t used during the online submission process, the sample will be placed in a hold status until a bar code from a correct kit is used. For example, when you are submitting a sample for your coolant component but use an oil testing kit – that sample won’t be able to be processed when it arrives at the lab.

Account Information

If you have access to multiple accounts online, it is important to make sure the account on your paperwork matches the account your equipment is registered under.  You can find the first part of your account number on your paperwork.

Once you have gone through the checklist above, you and your sample are ready for the online sample submission process! To learn more about online sample submission, contact us at custserv@eoilreports.com.

Proven Impact. Proven Uptime. Proven Savings.
Let us prove it to you.

Published January 20, 2017

Extend Drains with Management Reports

Management reports matter. A POLARIS Laboratories® Technical Business Consultant (TBC) used his knowledge on customized reports to help a major oil company’s customer, VCNA Prairie Material, extend its drain intervals. The goal was to determine the optimum service interval for VCNA Prairie Material’s ready-mix fleet of trucks. These efforts exemplify the idea, “It’s not just data, it’s what we (you) do with it!”

Seven Steps to Managing an Effective Fluid Analysis Program

Managing your fluid analysis program is simple. At least it should be. If you struggle to ensure your fluid analysis program meets your maintenance goals, check out these seven steps. I guarantee, it will make a world of a difference.

Set attainable program goals
Take a moment to set your goals. Then, review your current maintenance practices and strategies to determine if they will help you accomplish your goals.

 Identify the resources you need to sufficiently run the program
Resources play an important role in program success. Another factor is the size of your program. This will impact the personnel and resources needed to reach your goals.

Build the appropriate equipment lists
Equipment list information should be sent to your laboratory before samples are submitted for processing.

Determine sampling intervals
Although an equipment manufacturer’s recommendations provide a good starting point for developing preventive maintenance practices, sampling intervals should be based on various factors.

Take an active role in minimizing sample turnaround time
Don’t compromise the value of your fluid analysis results and the laboratory’s maintenance recommendations with unnecessary delays in turnaround time.

Report key results to management
When reviewing your most critical information, consider what management needs to know most – and share the results with them. The size of your operation and your goals and resources will dictate the best and most efficient metrics to share with management.

Select a laboratory that will help you every step of the way
To realize the true value that an effective fluid analysis program can have on your overall business performance, you need to select the right partner.

To learn more, read this article about what makes a successful fluid analysis program or contact us a custservice@eoilreports.com.

Proven Impact. Proven Uptime. Proven Savings.
Let us prove it to you.

Published February 7, 2017