I have the stop and go button switches on both my band saw and grinder. The newer clean up people can be afraid to touch it sometimes.
Those pull switches always get cleaned on the front of the knob from my experience but as your picture shows the back of the knob never got cleaned very well.
It might be because people are nervous about accidently pulling it and starting the saw. They don't trust it even though it is probably unplugged. That is one theory I have but they probably just forgot.
-- Edited by fdarn on Wednesday 17th of April 2013 07:51:27 AM
Correct. It's funny how these things can be so filthy when the rest of the machine is surgicaly clean. They get totally forgotten at clean up time at. You might be surprised to see how many shops have this situation. This was at a shop I worked at yesterday when I was off from my regular job. Don't get the wrong idea. The entire shop was super clean. Nice place to work at too.
Am I the only one who was taught to turn the band saw on while cleaning it? Back where I was trained we never unplugged - we took the entire thing apart twice a week, and the rest of the time it was very well scrubbed and the blade was sprayed while on to clean it. Have yet to work in a meat shop that takes the blade off to clean it - do you all?
i always took the blade off to clean it and my cleaning people do the same thing. its funny watching new people try to fold the blade. I have seen people turn the power on and spray it while the wheels are spinning. i don't think that is very smart thoughj. but that is just my opinion.
i always took the blade off to clean it and my cleaning people do the same thing. its funny watching new people try to fold the blade. I have seen people turn the power on and spray it while the wheels are spinning. i don't think that is very smart thoughj. but that is just my opinion.
One pet peeve of mine is when people never remove the wheels that drive the blade. When I get extra work on my day off at other stores, if it's a late shift, I'll have to clean up. More often than not, the wheels will not come off of the band saw. They're sort of rusted in place from not being removed in months or who knows how long. Of course they should be removed to clean them properly and also behind them.
Sometimes after I clean and partially reassemble the saw, I may notice a small piece of meat on the blade. In that case, I may hit it with the hose again and turn the wheel by HAND and continue spraying. Or I'll put a clean wet towel on the blade and spin it slowly backwards. I too have seen people spray it with the power on. I don't really have an opinion one way or the other on if it's right or wrong. But I do think it's best to remove everything and clean each piece separately.
Unplugged and broken down everyday, even the pull knob like the one above, when re-assembled we spray mineral oil on all the inside parts. When washing and sanitizing the blade I have a sign posted to make sure all sanitizer is rinsed off before air drying, if not the sanitizer will make the blade oxidize.
I break down the saw every night that I work. Policy is to leave it all apart until morning, which a pain in the neck when I am holding a coffee in my hand in the morning. So, I just assemble it before I leave for the night.
I always completely disassemble all machines and scrub and sanatize all parts. Typically store management comes in after hours to inspect for cleanliness. So I always cover my a**. If you keep the wheels clean as possible the machine runs better too. Once a week ill run the wheels without the blade and use a hook to scrape the grooves in the wheel out. Eliminates play in the blade while its running
