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Tag: jack safety inspections

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Hydraulic Jacks Jacks Truck Jacks

Quick and Easy Maintenance Tips to Prolong Your Truck Jack’s Life

A truck jack is a mechanical device that is used to lift heavy-duty armored trucks and military-grade vehicles, among other types of trucks and heavy vehicles. Heavy duty truck jacks are specially designed to bear these loads that ordinary automotive jacks traditionally cannot.

Apart from providing superior lifting solutions and Designed for heavy-duty lifting of vehicles, including trucks and armored cars. These Jacks also provide additional services like tire and oil changes. The diversity and quality of truck jack benefits you will derive from your equipment depends primarily on two factors. One, its mechanism of operation, meaning whether it is built for singular or multi-purpose use.

Two, whether it is stored and maintained properly with regular checks being implemented. This step is critical for the long-term wellbeing of your heavy-duty truck jack and making it more reliable and durable for you despite on-the-job wear and tear. Miss this crucial step and you have an empty tin can on your hands needing frequent replacement.

That is why we will cover 8 quick and easy maintenance tips to prolong your heavy-duty truck jack’s life in this blog. By following these steps, you can turn your recurrent purchases (of buying new heavy-duty truck jacks and replacing them at regular intervals) into a long-term investment in truck lifting solutions.

Features that Guarantee Prolonged heavy duty Jack Life 

Before we get into the 8 quick and easy maintenance tips to prolong your heavy-duty truck jack’s life, we would like to ensure that you know that these alone are by no means foolproof measures against a jack’s long term on the job wear and tear. 

What kind of heavy duty truck jack you buy?

Meaning the truck jack benefits its features have to offer- matters just as much. So, we will quickly discuss the top features inherent to top performing heavy duty truck jacks that future proofs your investment. 

  1. Load Capacity – The load capacities of heavy-duty truck jacks vary significantly from ordinary ones, owing to the types of vehicles they are designed to lift. So, naturally, it would follow that a heavy-duty truck jack would have a higher load capacity more commensurate to lifting bigger trucks than regular jacks. Using the right jack for the right vehicle is bound to prolong the life of the jack. 
  2. Component Quality – Perhaps the most important feature of an ideal heavy-duty truck jack- whether it is a hydraulic or pneumatic- is the quality of its component parts that determine its prolonged performance. Stan Design Inc. is a leading heavy-duty truck jack manufacturer that uses high gloss powder coat paint and zinc plated components that enhance their functionality. 
  3. Build Material – Finally, the material used to build the jack- usually steel- must be of high quality so it can ensure safe and prolonged use of the heavy-duty truck jack. This quality goes a long way in determining whether additional support accessories like chocks or stands would be required in the lifting process. Stan Design Inc. heavy-duty truck jacks are made with high-grade steel that resists corrosion and deterioration. 

Heavy-duty Truck Jacks– 8 Maintenance Tips 

Maintaining your heavy-duty truck jack is no rocket science. Everyone can do it with a little patience and our guide. So, without further ado, here are 8 quick and easy maintenance tips to prolong your heavy-duty truck jack’s life. Happy learning! 

  1. Storing it in a clean and dry place– Heavy-duty truck jacks have various components that must not be exposed to humid or dirty environments. For instance, in hydraulic jacks that run on grease and fluids, stored within, any contact with dirt or external moisture is bound to contaminate it, rendering it useless or potentially harmful even.
  2. Creating a regular inspection checklist– Once the storage is looked after, stick to a robust checklist of items or procedures required to maintain your heavy-duty truck jack. You may begin with setting up a maintenance routine which will help you compartmentalize your time and organize your chores accordingly. Even though jacks rarely demand any attention, if kept properly, keep an eye out for unusual issues.
  3. Using quality lubricants– High-grade oil, grease, or hydraulic fluid, in the case of hydraulic jacks, must be used for the truck lifting solutions. This reduces unnecessary friction which can lead to premature wear and tear within the mechanical and structural components of jacks. Check and refill oil levels accordingly. With pneumatic jacks, check pressure test point locations, flow rates within the system, air motor speeds, etc.
  4. Checking for physical dents– The most visible giveaway sign of a potential malfunction is a physical dent on your jack body or, worse, broken parts. So, keeping a lookout for these on and off your jack, prevents the costs related to repairs from accruing. And of course, it also helps you to get it fixed before it hurts you or someone else.
  5. Cleaning and restoring after every use– Use a damp cloth to clean the dirt after a use, before it settles and gets sticky. Grease tends to attract a lot of dirt because of its texture, leading to rusting and clogging within jack
  6. Troubleshooting burst hoses or valves– Applicable exclusively to pneumatic heavy-duty truck jacks, troubleshooting burst hoses or valves prevents or identifies early excessive air leakage, inadequate pressure levels, loose manual operations, and erratic functioning components. Compressed air is an unstable element in pneumatic systems, so missing this step can cost heavily.
  7. Bleeding hydraulic cylinders– Applicable exclusively to hydraulic heavy-duty truck jacks, this step involves releasing pressure before putting the jack away. Bleed the cylinders regularly before storage. Otherwise, the jack would strain lifting and supporting loads. This also makes the tool more compact and easier to store. Finally, it releases stress on the system that can contribute to the deterioration of various components.

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Categories
Bridge Jacks Floor jacks Hydraulic Jacks Jacks Pit Jacks Truck Jacks

What Type of Jack Do I Need for a Truck?

Trucks need periodic maintenance and repair to run smoothly and carry freight across the continent. So, truckers have to rely on workshops to keep their vehicles up and running. Which tool do the workshops rely on the most to service trucks? It’s the truck jack.

The type of Truck jacks are by far the most popular and effective vehicle servicing tools in the world. They use hydraulics to lift heavy trucks with minimum effort from the user. Once elevated, the truck’s undercarriage becomes accessible to technicians, aiding in servicing essential components like the transmission, exhaust system, and wheels.

Truck jacks come in many different varieties and weight capacities. Let’s look at the most popular iterations so that you can choose the perfect equipment for your workshop or garage.

1. The Heavy-duty Floor Jack

Hands down, this is the most popular truck jack on the market. Incredibly easy to operate, fast, efficient, and safe, the heavy-duty floor jack serves as the backbone of the car and truck service industry worldwide.

The floor jack’s lifting mechanism comprises a set of hydraulic cylinders filled with a viscous fluid, pistons, a pumping handle, and a lifting apparatus. When the operator pumps the handle, the hydraulic fluid transfers and compounds the pressure on the piston of the lifting apparatus and makes short work of lifting heavy vehicles.

When buying a heavy duty floor jack for your garage or workshop, look for the following attributes:

  • Always buy a truck jack with a greater weight capacity than the heaviest truck you are planning to lift. This way the jack won’t buckle under the weight of the vehicle and compromise the safety of the user and the vehicle.
  • What’s your truck’s ground clearance like? Is it a lifted truck or a standard one? These are two important questions you need to ask yourself before homing in on the truck jack with the right lift height.
  • The best floor jacks for cars, trucks, EVs, and other vehicles are made of strong and durable materials like high-tensile steel. This makes them last really long and give a great return on the investment.

2. The Bottle Jack

Why are bottle jacks called ‘bottle’ jacks? Well, they are shaped like bottles! That’s it. No surprises there. These stubby jacks are robust and designed for heavy-duty lifting. And like the floor jacks, bottle jacks utilize the power of hydraulics to lift big and bulky vehicles high enough for undercarriage repair and maintenance.

If you own a full-sized pickup truck or a large commercial vehicle, a bottle jack might be the tool you need. Its compact design and smaller footprint compared to a floor jack make a bottle jack easier to move around and store.

The only catch is that bottle jacks aren’t known to lift as high as floor jacks and might not be the right tool to work on lifted trucks or off-road vehicles.

3. Scissor Jacks for Small Trucks and Cars

Scissor jacks are cool mechanical devices that convert rotational motion into upward thrust, lifting cars and small trucks in the process. You must have one as part of your car’s standard toolkit.

Scissor jacks come in handy in case of roadside repairs like tire changing and undercarriage inspection. A light yet sturdy build and incredibly small footprint make these cool tools perfect for lifting cars in tight spaces and uneven surfaces.  But lifting loaded trucks is an absolute No for scissor jacks because they are simply not built to carry the weight of large and bulky vehicles.

4. Pit Jacks

Pit jacks have been keeping trucking fleets on the road for ages now. It’s impossible to imagine a truck or bus servicing workshop without a pit jack, and there’s a good reason for that.

Vehicles like large trucks and armored cars must take a lot of beating on their undercarriage due to the kind of terrain they normally have to endure. Only a pit jack has the robustness and lifting power to elevate these vehicles high enough for major undercarriage repair.

The only caveat is that these super-efficient tools need to be installed in dedicated service pits for them to operate. Despite their lack of mobility, pit jacks are tough and durable. Modern pit jacks rely on a combination of hydraulics and compressed air pumps for heavy lifting. They also have stackable adapters to accommodate all types of vehicles and subframes. So yes, you can trust a pit jack to lift anything you throw at it.

5. Rolling Bridge Jacks

Rolling bridge jacks are hydraulic devices designed to operate in tandem with four-post lifts. A set of roller bearings makes it easy to maneuver a bridge jack in a service pit.

Operating one is easy too. You just need to place the lifting apparatus of the jack under your vehicle and activate the hydraulic system and voila! Your vehicle is lifted high enough for easy access to the undercarriage. All modern bridge jacks use a combination of hydraulics and pneumatic pressure (compressed air) to lift cars and trucks. An intuitive control system aided by a locking mechanism makes the operation safe and easy.

Now that you know what’s selling, consider the following tips to home in on the perfect truck jack for your workshop:

6. Mind Your Truck’s Weight and Size

Before selecting a jack, it’s crucial to know the maximum weight of the trucks you are going to service. Check the manufacturer’s specifications for the maximum weight capacity of the truck jack you are planning to buy. Using a jack with insufficient capacity is a recipe for disaster.

Safety First: Use Jack Stands

Regardless of the jack type, always prioritize safety. Once your truck is lifted, secure it with jack stands. This provides an extra layer of protection, preventing accidents in case the jack fails.

Endnote:

Choosing a truck jack is a decision that can seriously impact your maintenance routine. Whether you opt for a scissor jack, heavy-duty floor jack, or a full-blown rolling bridge jack, make sure it aligns with your truck’s specifications. Remember, investing in the right tools ensures the longevity of your workshop business.

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