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MonOct122020
Testing America's Cup Scales
When is a kilogram not a kilogram? Sounds impossible, right? Because it is always the same block of metal or whateve... -
TueFeb252020
Weighing a vintage jet fighter aeroplane
A beautifully restored De Havilland Venom jet fighter recently attended the world-famous Napier Art Deco Show. It's believed to b...
Most people do not realise that a bathroom-type scale is not an industrial scale.
Bathroom scales, in particular the low cost ones, are designed to monitor you weight and show it going down or up and they do this very well. They will be close to the correct weight but may be up to 0.5kg out depending on the weight range. However, this is not so important when you are really only interested in how your weight is changing.
Industrial scales are very accurate and can be calibrated to show the correct weight. These are usually found in hospitals and good gyms, but sometimes the scales in chemist shops and doctors surgeries are the monitoring type, not the industrial type.
To check your scale is working okay you need to:
- have the scale on a hard surface that is level - a concrete floor is best.
- weigh yourself three times and then compare the second and third readings - if they are the same then the scale is working as it should.
- the first reading is often slightly different and may be due to the scale start up.
If your scales are both industrial and calibrated, there should not be any issues.
Otherwise, it’s just like when you ask for the correct time and everyone’s watch gives that time a little differently.
Tiny houses are beginning to feature more & more in NZ architecture & as a response to housing issues. Built to float or to be transportable on the back of a truck, to run on solar energy & take you right off the grid, these homes are only limited by your imagination - and possibly a few regulations.
Advasco was recently asked for help by Tiny House builder Jon, who needed to weigh his Tiny House. It’s taken about a year to build this one, which Jon’s daughter & her dog will live in. During this period, Jon discovered that the Tiny House was too big to get up the drive, so they had to lay a new & wider driveway, cut down some trees - and then winch it up a very steep hill and around the corner – everyone holding their breath until the Tiny House was safely at the top! Then there was all the time spent finding lightweight materials to utilise in the building. These are just some of the entertaining issues you have to think about when building your Tiny House! Special consideration had to be given to the weight limitations, as this Tiny House sits on a road trailer, which allows a maximum weight of 3500 kilograms.
Weighing the Tiny House was easily achieved by using a compact compression load cell with a battery-powered indicator. The load cell is placed on a trolley jack and the Tiny House lifted at three points. The total results in a close approximation of the combined weight.
This is a simple solution, easily able to be carried out on site, saving you the cost not to mention hassle of transporting your Tiny House to a weighbridge or similar weighing mechanism.
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Here's a list of things you should never ever do to your electronic scale, followed by some advice on how to clean your scale safely.
* Never ever water-blast any scale, even if it is rated as 'water resistant' - this will destroy the electrical system as effectively as dropping it in a bathtub full of water!
And never immerse your electonic scale in water to clean it.
* Do not use any harsh cleaning compounds, such as hyperchlorites, on the scales when you're cleaning them, and please remove your scales from areas that are being cleaned with harsh chemicals
- this is because the fumes, mainly chlorine, can even penetrate into a water resistant scale and cause corrosion.
* Please treat your electronic scale as carefully as you would treat your cellphone - they are both sophisticated electronic instruments.
A good cleaning procedure is to
1. Create a designated cleaning area and always take your scales there to clean them.
2. Wipe the scale over with warm water and a mild detergent such as dish washing liquid.
3. For harder cleaning a rag soaked in methylated spirits is suitable.
4. Avoid too much cleaning around labels as they will come off over time.
5. For larger scales with a removable stainless top cover, this can be taken off and cleaned more rigorously - provided there are no electronics attached to it.
6. Dry off with a soft clear, and store in a dry area if possible.
Weigh Plate Adjustment for Avery ABA or BDE mechanical scales
Concerning mechanical scales which weigh 250kg or 500kg and note that
setting procedure is - with the weigh plate on the scale.
- Remove the cover screw caps from each corner - and you will find these are on top of the weigh plate.
-Screw the adjustment thrust race screws anti-clockwise to LOWER the weigh plate until touching the main scale body and there is no free movement sideways.
-Now slowly screw in clockwise direction to raise the plate evenly a little at a time, until it moves freely sideways in all directions.
-Load weight on scale and check to ensure that it is still freely moving sideways - if not, remove the weight and raise the weigh plate some more. Then reload the weight and try again. Carry on doing this until the correct height is obtained and the plate is freely moving sideways.
-Make sure that the plate is evenly adjusted and does not rock or tilt from corner to corner - stand on the plate to do this and shift your weight from side to side without moving your feet.
-Once height is correct and there is no rocking, liberally grease the cover screw caps for future ease of removal, and return them to correct place on scale.
The Weigh to Excellence
Advasco Scales – specialists in weighing equipment
Want to talk weighing equipment? Talk to us! We will answer your enquiries promptly.
We are specialists in custom design and building of weighing equipment for specific purposes, always working in close collaboration with our clients.
We can adapt existing weighing equipment to fit a specific need or manufacture a purpose-designed item at your request.
We have an innovative and creative programmer who will respond to your software data recording needs, and if it's not a program that we already have, we're happy to discuss your requirements and provide exactly what you need.
We sell both new and second-hand scales, and yes, we do deal in trade-ins.
You can hire scales from us, for any time period you choose, to suit a wide variety of uses.
We service and repair scales and we have registered technicians who will carry out calibration accreditation tests to meet your own quality control requirements,
or any of the various legally required testing regimes such as TS and MAF.
We have a broad range of knowledge and expertise in both mechanical and electronic weighing systems, from simple mechanical scales
to multi-purpose computerised scales to systems including test rigs, and we can advise you on the best options to suit your project and budget.