Winter Contracting Series - 3. Prepping a Slab Lifting Rig for Winter Storage

As temperatures drop, contractors in certain areas need to winterize their slab lifting rigs for storage during the off-season. Below are the step-by-step guidelines to properly store your equipment.

Important Note

• Extra attention is devoted to the A-side of the system, which is standard practice.
• This guide assumes you're using a PMC pump for your slab lifting rig.

Preparing a Slab Lifting Rig for Winter Storage

1. Remove and clean the A and B stick pumps. Clean the exterior of the pumps with brake cleaner to remove as much residual resin and polyol as possible.
2. Place the A-Side transfer pump into a 5-gallon pail of the AP Pump Flush.
3. Remove the recirculation hose from the A-Side drum and place it in a purge pail.
4. Open A-Side inlet valve and recirculation valve on your PMC machine.
5. Slowly open the air valve on the A-Side transfer pump to start introducing the AS Pump Flush through the A-Side of the machine.
6. You will notice iso material being pushed out of the recirculation line into the purge pail. Continue to pump AS Pump Flush through the system until it comes out of the recirculation line clear, with no added coloring or debris.
7. Shut the air supply feeding the transfer pump. This will stop all flow of material.
8. Un-cap the A-Side of the PMC whip hose. Once un-capped, place the hose into the purge pail.
9. Close the recirculation valve on the A-Side of the PMC machine.
10. Slowly open the air valve on the A-Side transfer pump to start the flow of AS Pump Flush through the heated hose.
11. You will notice iso material being pushed out of the whip hose into the purge pail. Continue to pump AS Pump Flush through the system until it comes out of the recirculation line clear, with no added coloring or debris.
12. Now that this process is complete, the A-Side has been completely cleaned of any iso material.
13. Remove the A-Side transfer pump from the pail of AS Pump Flush and place it into a 5-gallon pail of AP Pump Saver 195.
14. Slowly open the air valve on the A-Side transfer pump to start introducing the AP Pump Saver 195 through the A-Side of the machine. Continue to pump the AP Pump Saver 195 until you have pure and clean AP Pump Saver 195 coming out of the end of the whip hose.
15. Place the B-Side stick pump into a separate 5-gallon pail of AP Pump Saver 195.
16. Slowly open the air valve on the B-Side transfer pump to start introducing the AP Pump Saver 195 through the B-Side of the machine and heated hose. Continue to pump AP Pump Saver 195 through the system until it comes out of the end of the whip hose, with no added coloring or debris.
17. Once the entire system is full of clean AP Lube 190, slowly start to recirculate the AP Pump Saver 195 through the entire system. When doing this, it is best to let the PMC machine cycle while recirculating the AP Pump Saver 195.
18. Once all these steps are complete, close the air on each transfer pump and re-cap the heated PMC whip hoses.

If you follow these steps, your slab lifting rig should be well-prepared for the winter storage period.

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