Morris Machine Services LLC

Pics from a page of air compressor system at a facility in Iowa along the Mississippi River. The compressor itself is similar to some I worked on when I first got into this business and this one is actually water driven since it was part of a lock system and used to operate the equipment at that facility.

Back then those belt drives were pretty much open with only the rails to keep you from walking into it but if you were stupid enough to reach in that area it was often unforgiving. Part of me is sad to see this equipment in this condition but part of me is glad it is still here to be seen even if only in pictures. The design was simple but it worked. According to my source it was installed around 1912 and the last inspections were 1968. Back then they were built to last there is no doubt, but I for one will tell you the maintenance required to keep it running was also intensive and costly in labor.

As times change so does technology but I feel we have lost something since then.... robust design that can take a beating and be rebuilt time after time rather then just thrown away.

Recent job for a customer, at 20k hours manufacturer recommended changing the drive coupling insert as part of its scheduled services. I advised while we had this apart to swap out the air end shaft seal since we have it apart since it is right there. Another point based on knowing this machine well since I am the only tech that services it on a regular basis was to swap the motor bearings. Noise level had increased on this unit over the last year is why I advised this added work at this time.

Once they were changed out I cut the old bearing apart to confirm my suspicions that the motor bearings were indeed the source of the increase in noise level. This was a textbook example of what preventive maintenance is suppose to be! From a business owners perspective this is one of those jobs that can be at times a hard sell because most people would not have noticed a change in sound that concerned me. Fortunately for me this customer had another compressor that had a motor fail with no warning years ago and knew the cost of a shutdown like that can cause.

Got a call today from one of my customers that I service their compressor twice a year. He called because they had ordered a new conveyor and somewhere along the chain a box got checked wrong when it came to voltage of the drive motor. The original conveyor was 120 volt single phase and the new one arrived with a 240 / 480 volt three phase motor.

They had called a local electrician and he quoted a price to run power out to this location and all the other supporting equipment to make it work.... let's just say it was more then what the conveyor cost. I walked in, looked it over and said, rather then all that why not change the 1/2 hp motor and use the rest of the controls from the prior conveyor that failed. Well he just so happened to have a brand new motor on the shelf that was the correct fit and voltage, a couple hours later it's all hooked up and running.

Finding simple solutions to problems like this is what I do day in and day out. Now you see why it's Morris Machine Services.... I work on more then just air compressors for my customers that need it.

I was out doing service yesterday at a customers location that I service on a regular basis and ran across a situation I have seen time and time again over the years. Finding water in a crankcase of a piston air compressor, this happens commonly when the compressor is placed in a non heated structure and tends to sweat due to quick temperature changes and high humidity.

The water tends to build up in the bottom of the crankcase and even though the oil may look ok, it is not. I post this because I have had those people that seem to think the oil your draining out of my compressor looks just as good as what your putting back into it. And bottom line is THAT is why we change it.... The last picture is what was inside one after I drained the oil, scooped out the layer of crud that was about a 1/4 deep, flushed it out and saved the pump believe it or not.

When you get down to it, two quarts of oil is a LOT cheaper then a pump. Having someone that knows how to spot this early is priceless when it comes to dependability and your ability to keep up your production.