TL;DR
A lube alarm means the crusher protection has tripped for a reason. Do not override. Check oil level, filter condition, and pump pressure before restarting.
What you might see
- low lube oil pressure alarm
- lube oil temperature high alarm
- crusher shutdown on lube fault
- oily residue around the main shaft seal
Likely causes
Lube oil pump worn or cavitating reducing delivery pressure
Plugged oil filter restricting flow to the main bearings
Oil cooler core plugged reducing cooling capacity and raising oil temperature
Oil level low from a seal leak
Required tools
- Calibrated oil pressure gauge
- Oil sample kit
- Low-pressure compressed air
- Replacement filter elements
- LOTO kit
Safety first
- Never run the crusher without confirmed lubrication flow to the main bearings. Bearing failure without lubrication can cause catastrophic collapse.
- Lock out crusher drive and feed before opening any lubrication components.
Procedure
- 1
Do not restart the crusher against a lube alarm. Investigate the cause first.
- 2
Check the lube oil level in the tank. Correct the level if low before any further checks.[1]
- 3
Read the oil pressure gauge on the lube unit. Compare to the rated pressure in the service documentation.[1]
- 4
Check the differential pressure indicator on the oil filter. If the indicator is red or above the specified differential, replace the filter element.
- 5
Inspect the oil cooler for external fouling. Clean the cooler core faces with low-pressure compressed air.
- 6
Restart the lube pump without starting the crusher and measure oil flow and pressure at steady state.
- 7
If pressure is still low after filter replacement and oil top-up, test the lube pump relief valve setting and pump output flow.
- 8
Pull an oil sample and send it for analysis to check for metallic particles indicating bearing wear.
Sources
Metso Outotec Metso Nordberg C / HP / GP / Symons Crusher (Jaw / Cone / Gyratory) general technical documentation, Metso Outotec
Metso Outotec crusher lubrication system service documentation (general)
More guides for Metso Outotec Metso Nordberg C / HP / GP / Symons
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