Beef up Your Lubrication for Bearings to Extend Motor Life

Many businesses rely on the electric motors at their facility to keep operations up and running on a continual basis. When the motor experiences problems, it leads to costly downtime, replacement cost, and even the possibility of safety issues. Bearing failure is one of the primary reasons for motor problems.

The issue associated with bearing failures is nothing new to most business owners. After experiencing a few motor failures, you find bearings account for most of the breakdowns. In fact, according to the United States Department of Energy, over 50% of all electric motor failures are bearing related.

Understanding the importance of bearings is one thing, but knowing how to prevent the problem is another.

Bearing Lifespan

If you look at many industry estimates for bearing lifespan, you would expect them to last for thousands of hours of continuous operation. In most cases, shaft bearings do not have a heavy duty job to care for so it stands to reason that they would last a long time.

In actuality, bearings tend to fail much earlier than expected. It may be possible to increase the lifespan of the motor when following proper bearing maintenance steps.

One of the most common problems to occur with bearings involves lubrication. Lubrication may leak or become contaminated from outside or inside sources.

Preventative Measures

It is possible to prevent issues to a large extent by considering the following specific techniques.

Lubrication Schedules

One of the biggest problems associated with bearing failure is over-lubrication. When using too much grease, it leads to overheating and premature breakdown. Using the schedule provided by the bearing manufacturer instead of “winging” it extends bearing life.

Avoiding Moisture

Another serious issue is moisture in the lubrication. Some moisture comes from obvious sources. It is also possible for condensation to form when the motor isn’t running. When water comes in contact with the bearing itself, it leads to rust and premature failure.

Use the Right Grease

Many businesses try to cut corners and save money by using a low performance and low-cost lubricant. Although it may be compatible, it is not able to handle the contamination that is common for most applications. Spending more money on high-quality grease pays for itself with reduced equipment failure.

Other Contaminants

Along with water, there may be dirt and other airborne contaminants that contaminate the bearing lubricant. Using bearing isolators, such as an AEGIS product, in some instances reduces this possibility. Regular lubrication testing also determines if contamination is a problem and decides if further measures are necessary.