SERVICE & MAINTENANCE OF ENVIRONMENTAL TEST CHAMBERS
In order to keep your test equipment operating effectively and to avoid unnecessary downtime, it is important to have your equipment serviced and maintained regularly. ETS provide service for any make of environmental test equipment, our team of fully equipped service engineers are on hand within 24 hours, all our engineers carry a comprehensive range of parts on their vehicles, in order to prevent delays.
Alternatively ETS provide maintenance contracts to suit your company's specific needs. A maintenance contact can be made up of any of the following:
- Preventative maintenance visits
- Visits at your premises for technical assistance within 48 hours
- Spare parts (included)
- Discount on chambers not included in the maintenance contract
- A temporary replacement chamber for any equipment being upgraded ( subject to availability)
- Consumable materials that are necessary during the ordinary maintenance visit
- Calibration (UKAS traceable)
- Testing
An example of one of our maintenance contract is:
- Two preventative maintenance visits per year
- Unlimited number of visits at your premises for technical assistance with 48 hours
- All necessary spare parts
- A discount on visits on chambers not included in the maintenance contract
- A temporary replacement chamber for any equipment being upgraded (subject to availability)
Although ETS offer a 24 hour support service to our existing clients as well as a fast response to service call outs, although it's always useful to make a few weekly/monthly checks of your own to maybe save downtime and keep tests and results completely reliable.
In a perfect world, every time we turned the power on for one of our chambers it would be immediately ready to run, to do whatever we ask of it, and we would never have to clean or care for it. However, it is not a perfect world. The fact is that chambers need preventive maintenance and sometimes in ways that we would not expect.
Of course there are many simple things that one would expect:
- Checking to make sure that the water connection is tight
- That the drain is free and clear of any debris
- Keeping the window and interior of the chamber clean
Then there are some points that may not automatically come to mind:
Wet sock
One of these in a humidity chamber is the wet sock. If the water supply has any impurities in it, or the level inside of the reservoir is not always high enough, the wet sock material can start to become contaminated. It is easy to see because it will change color from the normal bright white to a brownish color, sometimes even looking like it has burned. This distortion can be a problem with very long tests, causing incorrect readings and shutting down a test.
The best rule of thumb is to change the wet sock material before every humidity test. If this is not feasible, at least make sure to check the material to see that it is clean - and check the water level in the reservoir at the same time. This simple 5-second check can mean the difference between a successful test and one that needs to be restarted several days into it for a problem that would cost pennies to fix.
ETS hold wet sock in stock if you require. Please email climatic@ets.co.uk or call 01992 899440
Calibration
Yearly calibration is also an important part of chamber care. Remember that the sensors are going through the same tests that your products are, and they will wear out. It is important to make sure that all sensors are reading correctly, and the easiest way to do this is with a periodic calibration.
If you require yearly calibrations then please contact enquiries@ets.co.uk or call our service manager Dave Turner 01992 899440.
Cleaning
When cleaning the internal portion of the chamber, be sure to follow after any chemical solution with plain water. A cleaner may appear to do an excellent job, but traces of it will remain. This can cause off gassing which can change the testing results in some cases. Simply wiping with a damp rag after cleaning will take care of the problem.
Checking connections
If you are using a PC for control, check the serial connection once in a while. Sometimes things get knocked about a bit. If you use the built in screws available on most serial cables then you can insure that knocking a wire out accidently will not break the communication.
Remember, the better you take care of your chamber - the better it will take care of you.
For further information on Service & Maintenance please contact our service manager Dave Turner on 01992 899440 or email him on david.turner@ets.co.uk.
