Your new electrical controls are running according to your expectations, but do you know how to ensure this operability moving forward? When not working at their best, your electrical controls can create unscheduled, inconvenient downtime. Based on our years of experience producing custom electrical controls for many industries, here is what we recommend for maintaining this aspect of your system:
- Properly manage temperature—When it comes to your electrical controls, the cooling systems you use matter, big time. Most importantly, your cooling system needs to be sized correctly. If undersized, your electrical controls will be exposed to high heat, and if they’re oversized, you could run into issues with moisture and condensation.
- Schedule inspections—We recommend scheduling regular maintenance with qualified personnel to inspect and clean your electrical controls and related components. Each control should be inspected for worn-out parts, loose connections, and brittle wires. For larger banks of panels, we recommend breaking down your inspection schedule into quadrants and rotating through with regularity.
- Follow cleaning and storage guidelines—Vacuum and clean the bottoms and tops of your electrical components on a schedule. If you cannot reach an area using compressed air, follow standard recommendations for an acceptable PSI level. Never use your electrical panels for storage space, and remove any debris and unused parts promptly.
- Label and document your controls—Check that the labels on your electric controls are correct. By replacing worn-out or damaged labels, you can reduce repair times and increase safety for those who use the panel.
