carbon impregnated filters

I don't want to raise a bunch of problems, but Carbon Impregnated filters and not really approved for use in food manufacturing.  There is a big push with all the food scares to bring manufacturing more into complacence.   Surprising what some people are using in their operation.  Can you imagine pieces of Teflon and carbon in your food.  It is hard to imagine, but it is used widely in industry.   Many filters have coatings to aid in dust release or filtration.  I sit here and wonder what else we are eating.

More repairs than innovation

Every once in a while it seems like everything breaks at once.  Well it is our tun this week. Not a whole lot of innovation, just fixin'.   We are however working on two new cartridge filters. One will double the air to cloth ratio based on a current design, but it can be taken apart for cleaning, or to replace individual elements of the filter that fail.  Kind of a cool idea but we will have to see where this one goes.  This type of filter is very expensive (over $350.00 each).  The concept is that we can replace the failed part of the filter saving cost, and being more sustainable by not putting the entire element into the trash. Not sure how this will be accepted by industry that always seems to want the fast fix.

Awesome Dude.....

It is fun figuring how to do some thing new.  It keeps work fun, and interesting.  Figuring out how to clean a sticky mess out of the inside of a filter has always been a huge challenge. I don't know how he did it but, "He did it!"   We were ready to stop doing this type of filter, but, a rabbit was pulled out of the hat, and he was able to cut the cleaning time by 33%.    Also figured out a way to dry these filters decreasing the dry time by 50%.  All of the sudden this filter is worth cleaning.  Awesome Dude !

We cleaned a tough filter this week

This was a filter full of Carmel  and Cinnamon. The smell was all the way through the building. I don't know if I will ever eat Cinnamon Toast Crunch again. 

I told Andy there was no way this was cleanable.  He proved me wrong again.  The filter is a Farr Gold which has an inner and outer filter.  New they are $325.00 +.  We cleaned this filter for $100.00.  This guy just saved 66% off his maintenance budget.  Do I smell a Christmas Bonus?

It's wild how much....

It is wild how much solids we get off a filter when cleaning.  We ran a ton of cleaning through the shop this week.  Woodworking filters present a challenge compared to other types of dust.  IT FLOATS. 

Talk about messing up a filtration system.  The stuff gets into the pumps, stick in the screening filters, and makes any soaps foam.  We had to make a skimmer this week to pull all the wood off the top of the filtration system.  It worked pretty well. Like any prototype it will need some modifications..... and time to built it.  Time is our biggest challenge, Ideas keep flowing out of everyone here.  WE NEED MORE TIME!

As it turns cold check out your collector.

As it is turning cold we are beginning to get the usual calls.  When air is recirculated back into the shop during the winter there are challenges.  The first thing that happens is that the warm air from the building is blown outside into a cold area.  many times condensation can occur. This can cause some filtration issues.  The bigger problem is the filtration rating of the filter.  If the system was not designed to recirculate, or if it is an older system, you may not have the correct filters.   Most collectors that vent outside use a polyester filter.  They are the most prevalent in the industry filtering 99.9% of nuisance dusts over 10 micron..  For humans inside a plant this particle is larger than recommended.  Dust particles reccirced into the plan should be sub micron.  There are two common ways in practice. one is to use a secondary hepa filter, or to use a filter in the dust collector that filters finer dust.  Both have more cost involved but will prevent inhalation problems.  
For more help on this subject contact one of our knowledgeable staff members at:  816-869-3201

Bless all of you stuck in the flooding.

Please think about all those suffering, cold, and stuck in the flood.  Give thanks, and pray for those in need.

Using Acid to Clean Filters

Well last week we used an acid to clean a cartridge filter.  I thought this was a very weird occurrence.  I have spoken about the importance of chemistry in our business.  I learned something new last week when we used this acid.  I have also tried to communicate the importance of a team that can think outside the box. 
This week is a good example.  We have a filter bag that I am not happy with the results after cleaning the filter.    The filter bag has good air flow but seems stiffer that what it should be.  After communicating with the customer we found that this is a caramel coating is put on dog food to sweeten the food, and add coloring.
We used the food based acid to clean the filter bag.  It worked!

The old dog learned a new trick

Getting the US back on track

If we are going to create new jobs, we have to get back to the days that we promote creativity in schools, and develop kids that want to experiment.

Bad Air Lock

Most people when they call do not even know what an air lock is.  The air lock is located at the bottom of the hopper.  The air lock allows the dust to be dumped into a container below the collector with out loosing the vacuum in the collector.  Air lock may have precision blades make out of metal, or a rubber blade.   The rubber blade types are a lower cost option, but require more maintenance, as the rubber wears out.

Another monumental moment

We are announcing an addition to our website.  We are putting up a page to document and list all of efforts to become a more sustainable company.   Keep an eye on our efforts.  We plan to detail both our successes, and the failures.  Not everything will work.  Small steps one at a time can add up to more than one big leap.

New Developments in cleaning a paper filter

New technique on the right

Paper filters are a challenge because if you clean to aggressively the filter is damaged.   I sent this picture to a buddy that works for the largest new filter manufacturer in the world.  He thought the filter on the right was new.  It took me a while to convince him that it was in fact cleaned.  The picture above is in fact a picture of two cleaned filters.  The one on the left was our previous results; on the right is the filter after the most recent invention.  The "Super Duper Paper Filter Brightening Finisher"  started life as a $0.50 garage sale item purchased last week end.  Now it may be a really cool way to add the last brightening step to our paper cleaning process.

NEED MORE COMPRESSED AIR?

During the hot summer months machinery and capacities are maxed,   Many time plant air New compressors are hundreds of thousands for a medium sized plant.  

If you find yourself short on plant air there may be a simple fix.   Dust collector cleaning systems consume large amounts of air.  In most plants you can hear the pulsers in the distance 24/7.  When you think about it this is a total waste.
A solution is changing the magnehelic to a photohelic.  Cheap, and easy to install a photohelic acts as a switch turning on the cleaning system only when the filters need cleaning.   This can reduce air consumption by75 to 80% in many cases.  Reducing the cleaning cycles can also provide better filtration, and longer filter life.

visit our web siteIf you would like more information on Photohelic systems give us a call.   800-336-5441

HOLIDAYS at FilterPro

The time before and after a holiday is very busy for us.  Many companies use the holiday down time to change out their filters. This year with the uncertain economic times companies are waiting until the last minute.  This is not occurring only in the cleaning industry, but new filtration.  Inventory levels are down and it is increasing tough to get Hot orders for new filters out the door.
Anyway, it is finally summer and hotter that the dickens.   Have a good holiday!  When you get back send your filters into us for cleaning.

Filter Cleaning - Sustainability

I mentioned in a couple past Bloggs that I had the opportunity to attend a Sustainability Summit a couple weeks back.  We are still a buzz about the expanded view companies are making to help in sustainability.  By expanded view I am referencing A company outlook.  I wish I could say that my voice was the main reason for the switch, but I am sure that all my comments over the past years were small.

A couple years back when I joined this group they were all about turning off lights.  I kept arguing that although this was important it was a very small piece of the puzzle.  Industrial waste is a much larger problem that simply turning off the lights.  Our companies are consumer, and profit based.  In past years the waste stream was totally ignored, almost to the point that we destroyed our country.

I would love to hear some feedback on what you have done at your company to expand your sustainabilityVisit us to learn more.   

All the natural gas filter bags are cleaned, packed, and outta here

Interesting.....We are really good at cleaning filters, not so good at getting them all back into a truck.   The biggest challenges we faced when cleaning the filters we posted last week was not the cleaning of the bag filters, but packing them back into the bulk bags and loading them into a trailer.  "They kept falling over" came the frustrated voice.  The bulk bags were not rigid on the sides so, when we loaded them it was like putting jelly into a baggie.  Try stacking several of these on top of each other to get them to fit back in the trailer was our biggest challenge.  This customer is taking our technology to their national convention next week....Keep crank'in guys!FilterPro web site

$6.2 Million Savings by utilizing professional filter bag cleaning

A Colorado Gas company will save $6.2 Million by having their process filters cleaned by FilterPro

Their filters are used to remove impurities out of the gas stream.   The picture below represents the results achieved by FilterPro, an industrial cleaning company.  Upon implementation the company will reduce expenditures by close to 75%

"Company Executives are thrilled" according to Leslie Alig of FilterPro.   The sustainability manager of the natural gas company plans to present the "Filter Cleaning Program" at an upcoming company convention.  Learn more about FilterPro and their capabilities by clicking on the link below.

FilterPro web site

A Full Trailer of Filters Arrived for Cleaning This Week.

We did a test about 6 months ago for a company that uses a large number of filters.     The filters are used to remove impurities from natural gas when it is piped out of the ground.   Last week out of the blue we received a call about starting to clean.   The semi showed up last Friday and we have been working on cleaning these hot and heavy.  I have posted some pictures below to illustrate the difference in a cleaned bag vs. a dirty filter.  We were able to save this company $261,000 by cleaning.   

WOW, that is a lot on savings.  They have over 10 processing plants  That is $2.6 million in saving per year for the company.   WHERE ELSE CAN YOU CUT EXPENSES BY 2.6 MILLION DOLLARS..

Also, from a sustainable viewpoint each time these filters are cleaned it keeps 1/2 football field out of a landfill (160 cubic yards.).    This can be a reduction of 5 football fields of waste kept out of landfills (company wide).  Talk about making a difference!  GOOD JOBS GUY!!

"CLICK HERE" FOR MORE ON FILTER CLEANING

Do Your Maintenance On Your Dust Collector

This is what happens when you do not do your change outs.    This was the amount of product emptied out of a filter bag.   If a leak develops in a filter bag then the dust will travel into the clean air side of the dust collector and distributes and fills the nearby filters with product.  When there is product inside, the filters are tough to clean.  The product gets stuck inside the filter.  The only solution is to dump the product out by hand.  This is labor intensive and  increases your cost and delays our schedule.   If your magnehelic gage drops in pressure then check out your filters.   Typically there is a leak.   Leaks can also be caused from too much pressure and the product being forced into the filter bag.  Visit our site

Cash Back to Use for Filter Cleaning

Credit on Filter Cleaning

When you purchase a new set of filters in the month of May we will send you a cash back check to use toward cleaning the set of filters you are removing from the dust collector.

Thanks for all your support and helping FilterPro become synonymous with "filter cleaning".   

cellulose cartridge

Cleaned filters...Ready to ship

FilterPro

All of these filters are ready to ship.  This is one days work.  Andy came in and said "shoot I had ten other skids of filters ship earlier you should have told me you wanted a picture".
It still looks pretty impressive though.
Why did I post this?
About once a week we get a call saying "can you handle cleaning our plants filters?
I truly think I can say we are the nations largest filter cleaner.

Intresting week- all paper filters to clean

Busy, busy week. Cranked out a lot of filters, both new and cleaned. It seemed like most of the cartridge filters this week were paper media. The nature of the fine dust, and the loading on the filter produced a new challenge. All the dusts turned into a muck. It took some quick reaction to pre-filter all the dust removed from the filters. All in all a super week.

They ran these too long

This wee we have a real challenge. We are cleaning 92 filters that are so plugged with product that we will have over 4 tons of waste collected. Some customers want to run their collector until they have a mag gage reading of "10" . This does not pay off. It puts undue pressure on the system, strain on the motor, and will cost more to clean. We will have to stop four times to clean out the waste solids separator in order to complete this order. We normally only clean this once a month. Unfortunately we will have to upcharge the cleaning of this filter due to the extra work.

Filter Cleaning this weeks update: Cleaning a Farr Gold Cone Filter

Filter Cleaning this weeks update: Cleaning a Farr Gold Cone Filter: You can not clean a Farr Gold Series Filter. Oh, Really? You may want to see this. I think a truer statement is "Nobody but FilterPro ca...

Filter Cleaning this weeks update: Cleaning a Farr Gold Cone Filter

Filter Cleaning this weeks update: Cleaning a Farr Gold Cone Filter: You can not clean a Farr Gold Series Filter. Oh, Really? You may want to see this. I think a truer statement is "Nobody but FilterPro ca...

Filter Cleaning this weeks update: Why Should I Have a Ground Wire Sewn into my Bag F...

Filter Cleaning this weeks update: Why Should I Have a Ground Wire Sewn into my Bag F...: The filter in the picture is a filter that just came in for cleaning. The black marks are burn marks in the filter. What caused this? Spar...

Why Should I Have a Ground Wire Sewn into my Bag Filter?

The filter in the picture is a filter that just came in for cleaning. The black marks are burn marks in the filter.
What caused this? Sparks built up by static electricicy jumped from the filter bag to the cage and burned the filter. This then caused the filter to melt along the wire cage. Ok, bad deal the filter is leaking. Yes, this is a pain. What could have happened is a lot worse. When the spark jumped accross the filter bag the collector could have blown up like a bomb. The filter was in a grain milling enviroment. Consider using a ground wire in your filters. If a ground wire would have been sewn into the bag the electric charge would have ran up the length of the filter and grouned out on the steel frame. Having a ground wire can prevent a a very dangerous situation. It is worth the extra couple bucks.

Cleaning a Farr Gold Cone Filter

You can not clean a Farr Gold Series Filter. Oh, Really? You may want to see this. I think a truer statement is "Nobody but FilterPro can clean and recondition a Farr Gold Cone filter."

The filters in the pictures are actually "In Process". The cleaned filter still has some small particles in the media that will be removed in the upcoming steps. This filter has cotton oil, and linseed oil in them. This is impossible to clean with conventional filter cleaning methods. The customer is saving 75% each and every time the filter is cleaned.

Farr had a great idea when they designed this filter. But, the inner cone tends to block up faster that the outer, and this causes the filter to loose the advantage for which it was intended. The other disadvantage of this system is that the filter cost is astronomical. How about $350.00 each ? That is painful. Take a look at the pictures, I would love to hear your comments