Old timer told me to stop greasing guide rails every month, I thought he was crazy

Guy named Frank who's been doing elevators since the 70s in Chicago told me I was overgreasing the rails on a Otis job we were sharing. I kept at it for three months thinking he was just lazy, but then I started noticing way more buildup on the roller guides than usual. Finally tried his way, just a light wipe and grease every three months, and the ride quality actually got smoother. Anyone else have a old hand give them advice that went against everything they learned in trade school?

3 comments

3 Comments

susan1301mo ago

Heard a similar thing from an old maintenance guy about slowing down hydraulic pump cycles, less wear in the long run.

alice_hart1mo ago

1973 Westinghouse job in Minneapolis, a guy named Pete told me the exact same thing about guide rails and I told him the book says different. I kept greasing every month for six months and ended up having to replace the roller guide bearings twice because the grease was trapping dirt and making them seize up. That old timer was a union rep for thirty years, he knew why the manufacturer spec was written for maintenance contracts and not real conditions. You sure you are not just picking up his bad habits from back when elevators ran on different materials and lighter traffic?

abbyg6028d ago

Wait, is that really a thing with the hydraulic pump cycles too? I mean, my uncle used to argue with the building super about slowing down the door closer on an old Otis in a department store in the 80s. He swore taking it easy on the hydraulics kept the seals from blowing out, but @alice_hart your story about the roller guide bearings and the grease trapping dirt makes me think maybe the old timers were just making up rules to fit their own broken parts. That Pete guy you mentioned sounds like he had a grudge against the manufacturer spec for a reason though.