September 3, 2020
Need a denser bale – Crank up the psi?
Balers are electro-hydraulic machines designed to do a specific job – make recyclables into bales for easy handling. Baling of cardboard, plastic, aluminum and other non-ferrous materials and textiles requires a baler – either vertical or horizontal – to either ship and/or recycle. As discussed in previous blogs, horsepower has very little to do with how heavy and dense a bale is, but psi (pounds per square inch) that each hydraulic cylinder is set at is very important to determine density.
All baler come preset to a certain setting and a limit switch setting which determines when the cylinder reverses direction and retracts back into its’ original position. Usually the operational setting is somewhere around 2,000 – 2,500psi which the limit switch setting is usually about 30% higher. The setting switch is usually hidden to reduce tampering. Some end users who want denser balers, have found the setting switch and cranked it up which, in fact, does help produce denser heavier bales but at what cost? In some cases, very heavy long-term costs. Is cranking up the psi a good idea? NO – it is too costly to the long-term life of the baler and reduces the life cycle of the baler.
Let me explain. The structural integrity of the baler is comprised by adding additional pressure and can result in the floor of the baling chamber being distorted permanently reducing the life of the baler. I addition to harming the structural integrity of the baler, if there is a warranty issue and the manufacturer suspects tampering with the psi settings, more than likely all warranties will be invalid, meaning that even if the psi setting did not directly result in the failure of ANY part, repairs will fall back upon the end user of the baler. Good reasons to NOT tamper with the factory setting EVER.Other questions?
Contact a Better Baler representative at 888-422-5375.