Hot Melt Equipment Preventive Maintenance Guide

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Some of the world’s most crucial industries utilize hot melt equipment and hot melt adhesives to accomplish the business that keeps the global economy moving. For food and beverage producers, appliance manufacturers, mattress manufacturers, bookbinders, and more, hot melt adhesive systems are essential to packaging our most important industrial and consumer products. For the most part, these industries utilize a hot melt tank, which melts hot melt adhesive to the ideal temperature before pumping it to applicator guns for easy application.

When properly maintained, hot melt adhesive systems can allow your businesses to quickly and efficiently package your most important products, but without proper care, you can run into big problems. Following our hot melt equipment maintenance guide can help alleviate major headaches.

The Importance of Hot Melt System Preventive Maintenance

Like any other piece of equipment, a hot melt system requires preventive maintenance to perform its best. A regularly scheduled hot melt adhesive equipment maintenance routine can benefit your operation in a variety of ways, including:

Improved efficiency

Preventive maintenance of your hot melt glue machine can reduce the effects of wear and tear on your system and help you avoid restricted flow and inaccurate adhesive placement.

Minimized downtime

Regular maintenance can help eliminate common issues that cause downtime and costly losses in production, including charred pots and clogged lines.

Increased system life

Regularly cleaning crucial elements of your hot melt system using a hot melt cleaner reduces harmful stress on pumps, nozzles, and hoses, improving performance and prolonging their life.

Improved safety

Addressing potential issues with preventive maintenance of your hot melter reduces the need for hasty emergency calls and workarounds, and the unsafe operating conditions they may cause.

Reduced costs

The above issues can cost you valuable time, money, and productivity. Addressing issues before they begin with an effective hot melt system preventive maintenance program will help you reduce these costs.

Guide to Hot Melt Equipment Maintenance

While your hot melt system makes attention to your hot melt adhesive and packaging needs simple, the system itself includes multiple components, each of which must receive regularly scheduled maintenance. Without proper maintenance of your hot melt tank, adhesive charring can lead to a host of other issues within your system, including clogged hoses and filters, and even damaged equipment.

The affected adhesive will not melt properly, causing it to clump, settle into the tank, and harden into char. As mentioned, char affects your entire system, and regular maintenance is necessary to remove it before it causes system failure. Scheduling regular maintenance or performing maintenance whenever you change adhesives will help keep your system in proper working order.

Components to Address

When crafting your hot melt system maintenance plan, be sure to target all the components mentioned below.

Hot melt tanks

Since char begins in the tank assembly, cleaning your hot melt tank is one of the most essential parts of a hot melt adhesive dispensing equipment maintenance plan. First, shut down your system, and clear away as much of the remaining adhesive as possible. Then, add a purging compound and re-engage the pressure pump. The purging compound will break up the rest of the remaining adhesive and push the resulting mixture through your machine. Finally, drain any remaining compound.

Gun and tank filters

When you purge your hot melt tank, you should also change gun and tank filters. Failure to do so can result in clogged filters and strain on your system. Check these often for signs of buildup and replace them as necessary.

Pumps

Your hot melt pressure pump is responsible for pushing hot melt adhesive through your system. As a result, issues with clogs and insufficient lubrication can add unnecessary stress on your pump and even lead to premature failure before the end of its lifespan. Lubricate your pressure pump at least twice per year when you are cleaning your hot melt tank.

Hot melt hoses

Each time you clean your hot melt tank, purge your hot melt hoses. Once a purging compound has broken up as much of the tank char as possible, pump the purging compound through the hoses, clearing out the remainder of the hot melt adhesive left behind. Finally, refill your tank with new adhesive and pump through the hoses and into a clear container until no remaining char or compound is present.

Guns and nozzles

Use manufacturer-approved cleaning agents or solvents to clean your most delicate components, including guns and nozzles. On an as-needed basis or at least twice per year while cleaning your hot melt adhesive tank, use a product like Melt-O-Clean to clean the exterior and interior surfaces of your hot melt adhesive guns. Detachable nozzles can be soaked in solvent and purged of remaining adhesive or replaced, as necessary.

Other machine parts and tools

Any remaining machine parts, adhesive tools, and cleaning tools should be cleaned on an as-needed basis. Again, you can use a cleaner like Melt O Clean and a little elbow grease to remove buildup, foreign debris, and char from these components. Keeping all machine parts clean and in proper working order contributes to your hot melt adhesive system’s proper health and optimal operation.

Hot Melt System Preventive Maintenance Schedule

Part of proper hot melt equipment maintenance is following a regular schedule that works for you and your machinery. It is important to consult the official manufacturer’s guidance for maintenance of your hot melt system.

While many businesses choose to develop a quarterly maintenance schedule to purge and clean their hot melt adhesive systems, heavy-running equipment will likely need more regularly scheduled equipment maintenance. At the bare minimum, you should perform a full system purge twice yearly. Clean or replace filters, nozzles, machine parts, guns, and pumps quarterly, or as your needs dictate.

Get Help for Your Hot Melt Maintenance Needs

If your hot melt adhesive equipment needs preventive maintenance or is experiencing issues with char, APPLIED Adhesives can be your guide. Our extensive inventory of replacement hot melt parts and hot melt system cleaners can help you get your operation back on the right track. We also offer a hot melt equipment service program to ensure your equipment receives the proper adjustments and fine-tuning it needs to run at peak performance.

Want to learn more? Reach out online and get connected with one of our experts.

 

 

FAQs

How often should a hot melt system be cleaned?

How often a hot melt system should be cleaned depends on factors such as the system model, the production volume, the operating temperature, the adhesive, and the run time. We often recommend a full system purge quarterly, but more routine cleaning should be done more often.

Why is preventive maintenance important for hot melt equipment?

Without proper hot melt equipment maintenance, systems can experience issues like charring and clogging. These problems can ultimately lead to more downtime, decreased system life, and increased costs.

How often should hot melt filters be replaced?

How often you should replace a filter will vary by application, adhesive type, filter location, and equipment use. Typically, we recommend you inspect filters monthly and replace them whenever adhesive flow becomes restricted, or contamination is visible. In some cases, weekly filter inspection is recommended.

Can preventive maintenance extend the life of hot melt equipment?

Yes. Routine inspections, cleaning, lubrication, and parts replacement can typically help extend the lifespan of tanks, hoses, pumps, applicators, and other hot melt system components compared to systems that do not receive regular maintenance.

What are common signs that a hot melt system needs maintenance?

There can be mulltiple signs your hot melt equipment needs maintenance. Some common warnings can include:

  • Adhesive char buildup
  • Inconsistent adhesive flow
  • Nozzle clogging
  • Temperature fluctuations
  • Reduced bond performance
  • Hose leaks
  • Unusual pump noises
  • Increased downtime

What is the best way to purge a hot melt system?

For best results, you should use a hot melt purge cleaner that is compatible with your system and adhesive. Always follow the instructions from the manufacturer for the actual purging process.