By Guthix Danis
When your business has a busy warehouse and uses forklift trucks to do all the heavy lifting and carrying, you must maintain the vehicles correctly. As with any other type of vehicle, you will need to inspect it regularly and service it, which will help keep everything working correctly and prolong the life of the forklift truck. Below are some tips on what you need to do to keep your forklift in excellent condition and fully functional, so you are not down a vehicle that can disrupt your business.
A Daily Inspection
You will want to get your employees to do daily inspections on their vehicles at the start and end of every shift. They will want to go around the forklift truck and look for damage and anything loose and ensure the lights and horn work. Look for leaks of oil or hydraulic fluid, and they will also need to check the tyres and ensure they are fit for use and fully inflated. If they find anything wrong with the forklift truck, they need to document it, and it needs to be assessed whether you can still use it that day or whether it needs repairing first.
Monthly Maintenance
You will also need to give your forklift trucks a thorough inspection once a month, which will be more in-depth than the daily inspection. Around every 200 hours or around once a month, you will need to check various aspects of the forklift and do some essential maintenance. You will want to do things like cleaning the air filters, checking the spark plugs, inspecting the tilt and lift cylinder, and checking the drive belt. You will also want to check the engine’s idle speed and correct this if it is too low or high, and you will also want to ensure everything is well lubricated.
Quarterly Maintenance
You will also need to do quarterly maintenance on your forklift trucks, and this is more in-depth than the daily or monthly checks that you will do. You will need to do things such as replace hydraulic filters, inspect the handbrake, drain the water and diesel from the system, check the hydraulic oil pump, and use plenty of engine degreaser to clean the engine. You may also need to look at and clean the radiators and inspect the carriage rollers, mast operation, and the PCV.
A Twice-Yearly Check
You will also need to do more maintenance after around 1200 hours of service, or every six months, and you will need to inspect various aspects of the forklift truck. You will want to replace brake fluid, check the brake booster operation, and check and replace the fuel filter if needed.
This is a simple break down of what you need to do to maintain your forklift truck correctly and following this guide can help to increase the lifespan of the vehicle. If you cannot do the maintenance yourself, you will need to have a reputable and qualified company come and do the required maintenance work for you. Maintaining your forklift trucks correctly can help and keep them fully operational, ensure they are safe, and compliant with the health & safety rules and regulations.
