System Startup

If a problem crops up when first starting up a new system, you can usually solve it by answering one or more of the following questions:

• Is the station turned on? Verify its status at the controller.
• Is the vacuum line physically attached to this station?
• Is the material hose/line attached to the proper source (hopper, surge bin, Gaylord)? If you are using source valves, verify that the proper valve is assigned to this station.
• Is the source valve opening and closing properly?
• Is enough air mixing with the material? The system cannot move material without air mixed in with the material flow. Check the air probe at the source and make sure that the probe is at least 50% open.
• Do material hoses have any holes or breaks?
• Is the material flowing freely from the source?
• Is material clogged in the hopper?
• Is there sufficient material at the source point?
• Is material clogged in the line?
• If there is there a gasket on the bottoms of the dump throats on the vacuum receivers, make sure the flapper is sealing properly against the gasket. (Conical valves are sometimes used to seal the dump throat but they are relatively expensive.)
• Is one station loading correctly and the others are not? Check that station to verify the station valve is not stuck in the open position. This will prevent the other stations from loading properly.