Tips for Maintaining Your Pneumatic Conveying System

Because unexpected downtime of a pneumatic conveying system can be costly to an operation, it’s essential to minimize the risk however possible. One of the chief ways you can do this is with regular preventive maintenance.

Here are three general tips you should keep in mind to help ensure that your pneumatic conveying system stays in top shape.

How to Identify Pneumatic Conveying System Issues Early

No matter what you’re conveying in your pneumatic system, it will eventually start to wear down somewhere. By staying on top of your preventative maintenance plans, you’ll be able to catch problems while they’re still small and avoid complete system breakdowns. Keep an eye out for the following:

Increased throughput time
Drops in powder dosing or in dispensing volume accuracy
Leaks anywhere in the system, especially the joints, connections, lines, and tubes
An increase in operating pressure or vacuum levels

If you see any of these warning signs, it's critical that you inspect your system to see where the problem lies and also reevaluate your overall preventative maintenance plan and see where you could improve it.

How to Use OEM Manuals for Pneumatic Conveying Maintenance

The manuals from the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) are full of specific guidance on what preventive maintenance your particular system needs. They will recommend how often you should perform maintenance, what steps are involved in that maintenance, and what level of knowledge the employees performing the maintenance should have. For example, some maintenance steps can be achieved by operators, while others will require trained personnel or even require an outside field service technician.

Additionally, your manual will include a list of spare parts, including a list of consumable or worn parts that you should have on hand to keep up with maintenance. It may also include a list of parts whose lead times may be longer than usual, such as blowers, solenoid valves, and programmable logic controllers. If any of these parts go down, you’re looking at a total system failure that could lead to excessive downtime and financial loss. For this reason, it’s important to keep at least one or two of these parts in-house at all times.

Preventative Maintenance Checklist for Pneumatic Conveying Systems

Preventative maintenance is critical to keeping your operation running smoothly. But it can’t be performed just once in a while — it ought to be regularly scheduled because some parts and components must be inspected more frequently than others. Here are some recommendations on what you should check and when you should check it.

Before Every Shift. The machine operator should always inspect the machine before their shift starts. Dosing equipment, lines, flex sleeves, tubes, screw feeders, and screens should all be checked to ensure no damage, no clogs, and no excessive build-up are present. Overflow containers should be inspected and emptied if they are full.
Daily. After start-up, the machine operator or an in-house maintenance tech should verify that seal pressure and blower temperature are within the recommended ranges presented in the OEM guidelines.
Weekly. All valves and safety switches should be inspected by an in-house maintenance tech to ensure they are working properly.
Monthly. All seals should be greased, and the ventilation and filtration systems on the blower should be checked and cleaned. Wear parts — such as filter cartridges, socks, metal cages, seals, and gaskets — should be inspected and replaced. If your system is washed down, you should check the filters and ensure they are dry so that no moisture gets into the system.
Annually. The entire system should be locked down or tagged out for a complete cleaning, servicing, and inspection. All of the components, including lines, tubing, dosing equipment, screens, and pressure generators, should be inspected and cleaned, and all grounding systems should be tested to ensure that they are functioning properly. Oil levels on pump mortars should be checked and changed accordingly, and all consumable wear parts, such as baffle flaps, v-rings on drive shafts, sealing gaskets for screen frames, filters, as well as any seals, gaskets, joints, and tubing that show signs of damage should be replaced.

By keeping an eye out for trouble, referencing your OEM system manuals, and having preventative maintenance performed regularly on your pneumatic conveying system, you can help avoid costly breakdowns and downtime.

If you need parts to maintain your pneumatic conveying system, contact the professionals here at Progressive Products. We’ll never sell you anything you don’t need and have over 40 years of experience helping people like you maintain and get the most out of their pneumatic conveying systems.

How often should a pneumatic conveying system be inspected and maintained?

Maintenance should happen at multiple intervals. Before each shift, operators should inspect dosing equipment, lines, flex sleeves, tubes, screw feeders, and screens. Daily checks should verify seal pressure and blower temperature. Weekly, all valves and safety switches should be inspected. Monthly, seals should be greased, ventilation and filtration systems checked, and wear parts inspected and replaced. Annually, the entire system should undergo a complete shutdown for full cleaning, servicing, and inspection of all components.

What are the most common signs of wear in a pneumatic conveying system?

Warning signs to watch for include: increased throughput time, drops in powder dosing or dispensing accuracy, leaks at joints, connections, lines, or tubes, and an increase in operating pressure or vacuum levels. Any of these signs warrants a system inspection to identify the problem and a review of the preventative maintenance plan to address gaps before a complete system breakdown occurs.

Which pneumatic conveying components require the most frequent maintenance?

Components that require the most attention include elbows and line fittings (most susceptible to abrasive wear), gaskets and seals (which can crack or degrade), filter cartridges and socks, flex sleeves, and blower ventilation and filtration systems. High-value, long-lead-time components such as blowers, solenoid valves, and programmable logic controllers should be kept in stock to prevent extended downtime if they fail.

How can preventative maintenance reduce pneumatic conveying system downtime?

Regular preventative maintenance catches problems while they're still small, before they become system-wide failures. By following OEM maintenance schedules, keeping spare parts on hand, and performing inspections at the recommended intervals, plants avoid costly emergency repairs and unplanned production stops. Maintaining wear parts such as baffle flaps, sealing gaskets, and filter elements on a regular cycle prevents the kind of degradation that causes unexpected shutdowns.

What should be included in a pneumatic conveying maintenance checklist?

A comprehensive checklist should include: pre-shift inspection of all lines, tubes, screens, and dosing equipment; daily verification of seal pressure and blower temperature; weekly inspection of all valves and safety switches; monthly greasing of seals and cleaning of ventilation/filtration systems; and an annual full-system lockout/tagout for complete inspection, cleaning, and replacement of all consumable wear parts including gaskets, filters, seals, and any tubing showing signs of damage.

How do elbow wear and pipeline erosion affect system performance?

Elbows are the most common wear points in a pneumatic conveying system — particularly in short radius bends where abrasive material impacts a concentrated area. As elbow walls thin from wear, the risk of blowout increases. Pipeline erosion can also create turbulence that affects airflow, reduces conveying efficiency, and causes product degradation. Monitoring elbow condition and replacing worn components before they fail is critical to maintaining system performance.

When should pneumatic conveying components be repaired versus replaced?

The OEM manual typically provides guidance on inspection criteria and wear thresholds. Minor leaks or seal wear can often be repaired. However, elbows, pipe sections, and other components showing significant wall thinning, cracking, or frequent recurring leaks should be replaced rather than repaired. Keeping critical, high-lead-time components in stock — at least one or two units — ensures fast replacement when needed and avoids extended downtime.