Care and Maintenance for Forklift Forks
Don’t forget the forks!
Forklift forks are arguably the most critical component of a forklift truck. After all, what’s a forklift truck without forks? They’re also exposed to abrasion and wear and tear every day, from steel shelving, pallets, concrete floors and more. This can cause forks to gradually become thinner and thinner, potentially leading to a serious failure when they exceed their stated load capacity.
Daily inspections by forklift operators can help ensure the safety of forklift forks by monitoring their thickness and checking for any cracks, bends or distortion. Some forks can be easily straightened or repaired depending on their degree of distortion or the damage incurred. A licensed forklift technician can help identify weaknesses, distortion or cracks in forklift forks and can help you make a plan for service or replacement of forks if you need it. Beware – any amateur or in-house modification of forks can reduce the fork strength drastically and may result in fork failure or an accident. When you need to replace your forks you should choose high quality forks from a supplier you trust.
Another serious consideration is to never overload forklift forks or exceed the load capacity in any way. This will help prevent excessive strain or wear and tear on the forks. Operators should keep the load within the limits of the recommend manufacturer capacities, and it is important for fork truck operators to know that capacity of their machinery and its parts. This is important because any overloading can weaken or even bend the forks.
The load should be positioned as per the load center recommended on the chart supplied by the manufacturer. The load limit of the fork truck would decrease as the load center is raised. You should avoid adding any excess weight for counterbalancing the forklift.
Forklift forks are an essential component to the safety and security of your forklift truck. It’s important to ensure that an inspection of forklift forks be included in your operator’s daily inspection checklist.