Essential Winter Safety Checks for Construction Equipment'

When it comes to construction, it’s better to be safe than to complete the work on time. Any wrong move and you have thousands of dollars of damage or loss of life on your end.

Companies then upgrade their vehicles with special tires and carry out lots of maintenance on their vehicles. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for construction equipment.

If you’re operating any construction equipment during winter, then you’ll need to carry out the following safety checks and procedures.

Inspect the Battery

Batteries are well known to be finicky during cold weather. This is because the cold makes them degrade and slowly charge. 

If these batteries aren’t inspected well, then the equipment will have trouble starting up or can shut down out of nowhere.

Test All Buttons

Once you’ve inspected the battery, you’ll need to check all the buttons to make sure that they are functional. Because if care isn’t taken, these buttons can become quite stiff due to ice buildup. They can also completely stop working if moisture from melted ice or snow gets into the board containing the button.

Make Sure Filters are Regularly Replaced

An essential safety check must involve checking the filters to make sure they are in tip-top condition. 

Dirty filters for the hydraulics and fuel can end up reducing the efficiency of the equipment and damaging the equipment.

Inspect The Tire

During winter, tires usually tend to lose pressure, deflating the tires and making it dangerous to drive around. So, as part of your safety check, you need to check at the right range to see if the pressure is right. 

Swiftly Check The Seals and Hoses

Hoses carry hydraulic fluid throughout the equipment, and seals prevent leaks. When it’s cold, the hydraulic fluid can congeal so that it is released less quickly. When performing a safety check, make sure to look for leaks or blocked hoses.

Lubricate Moving Parts

Don’t neglect to use oil on your moving parts in maintenance to prevent the tools from dying. Failing to do that can result in disastrous issues once the machine really ramps up.

Inspect Your Light and Wipers

In the winter, when it snows, you can’t see where you’re going because your windshield and your lights are covered in condensation. This warrants that your light be powerful enough and be regularly wiped.  Remember to check your windshield wipers to keep the snow off your windshield.

Warm up the Equipment before Use

Before making use of any equipment for construction during winter, you’ll need to carry out a little warming to heat up the engine and get it to ignition temperatures.

By letting it start for a few minutes, you warm up the engine components, letting it idle, and allowing oil to properly circulate.

Dress Appropriately

Just as it is during summer, winter work conditions require that you dress a certain way. It isn’t uncommon for you to want to collapse back into their coats and arrive home before they even leave if they do not wear clothes that are at least two layers thick. But that’s not all, and since it involves construction equipment, you should wear helmets and protective boots to prevent injury from falling objects.

Gorilla Hammers Know Construction

This coming winter, ensuring all your equipment is in peak working condition is essential for getting the job done efficiently and safely, and you can achieve this by renting high-quality hydraulic hammers and breakers from Gorilla Hammers—contact us today at (888) 814 – 6745 to reserve your equipment and keep your projects running smoothly.