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Home My WebLink About310.004 - Aerial Ladder LubricationEffective Date: February 2019 Robert J. Garcia, Engineer Current Revision Date: 05/27/2025 Section 310.004 Next Revision (1) Date: 05/272027 Page 1 of 9 300 Training and Equipment Manual SECTION 310.004 AERIAL LADDER LUBRICATION PURPOSE This policy outlines proper lubrication for Fresno Fire Department (FFD or Department) aerial ladders and towers. APPLICATION To properly maintain aerial apparatus, it is important the proper lubrication be applied and maintained at all friction points of the ladder. Lubrication where any slide block meets the metal structure warrants special attention and needs to be always maintained. Proper lubrication at appropriate intervals increases the life of the slide blocks and reduces unnecessary stretching of the extension and retraction cables by minimizing the amount of friction between the ladder sections. Appropriate maintenance on an as needed basis results in much smoother operational function as well as reduced time spent performing maintenance. OPERATIONAL POLICY Aerial ladder lubrication shall be performed once a month and entered in PS Trax in the Monthly Aerial Lubrication Maintenance section. This policy describes factors which would periodically indicate increased frequency intervals of aerial maintenance as well as specific instruction on the process of cleaning and lubing aerial components. OPERATIONAL GUIDELINE This section intentionally left blank. PROCESS Cleaning and Lubricating Procedures: 1. Place outriggers as if preparing for aerial operations. Fresno City Fire Department Effective Date: March 2016 Robert J. Garcia, Engineer Current Revision Date: 05/27/2025 Section 310.004 Next Revision (1) Date: 05/27/2027 Page 2 of 9 2. Elevate and rotate the ladder to fully extend off the rear of the truck at an elevation allowing easy access to the base rails. Allow enough clearance between ground and monitor/waterway. 3. Manually remove the old grease with: a. WD-40 b. Putty Knife 4. Wash with soap and water, if needed. 5. Apply new white lithium grease: a. By hand b. To contact areas c. Working away from slide blocks 6. After applying grease, raise the ladder to 60 degrees elevation or higher. Retract fully; extend fully; and lower back down to a suitable inspection height: a. Confirm a thin film is applied where needed b. Repeat extending, and retracting then re-evaluate c. Continue until a thin film of grease is applied to the appropriate areas Cleaning and Lubricating Cables: 1. Wipe all cables with a red rag soaked in SAE 30-weight motor oil (15-40 wt. may be used if 30 wt. is not available). This both cleans and lubricates the cables. If the cables are extremely dirty, it may be necessary to clean them first using WD-40 and a rag. Lubricating Zerk Fittings: 1. Zerk fittings are located throughout the length of the aerial ladder, waterway, and the wire cable pulleys. 2. The ladder has Zerks located on all pivot points from the ladder base up to the ladder basket. 3. The waterway has Zerk fittings from the pedestal turntable to the ladder basket including the nozzle. Check for all articulating joints and the waterway junctions located at each ladder section. Effective Date: March 2016 Robert J. Garcia, Engineer Current Revision Date: 05/27/2025 Section 310.004 Next Revision (1) Date: 05/27/2027 Page 3 of 9 4. The cable pulleys are located from the top of the ladder base section up to the fly section of the aerial. These are located symmetrically up the length of the ladder. 5. When lubricating any Zerk fitting, always clean the Zerk fitting first with a clean red rag before injecting new grease. This keeps dirt from contaminating the bearing or bushing. 6. In general, each Zerk should receive one to two squirts if the ladder is being cleaned and lubed monthly. After lubrication check for proper extension/retraction cable tension. 1. Fully extend the ladder. 2. Raise the ladder to sixty degrees elevation. 3. Fully retract the ladder. 4. Lower the adder to zero degrees elevation. 5. There should be a ¼” to ¾” gap between the front of the base section front cross member and the back of the lower mid-section water pipe flange mounting bracket. The gap should be maintained for all the ladder sections and should not be any larger or smaller than recommended. INFORMATION Aerial Cleaning: Pressure washing of aerials is not to be done under any circumstances. When pressure washing is done incorrectly, water can penetrate the caulked or painted seams of the ladder. Over time, this can result in corrosion. Visible corrosion appears as blistering of the paint. Nonvisible corrosion is only detectable by acoustic emissions testing, ultrasonic thickness testing to measure material thickness, or at catastrophic failure. Removal of old, dirty grease requires WD-40, spray bottles, red shop rags, and plastic putty knives. The bulk of the dirty grease can be removed using a plastic putty knife. The remainder of the old grease can then be removed by spraying a rag to dampen and then lightly spray dirty, greasy areas with WD-40 and wipe. Continue to spray and wipe grease off, replacing the dirty rag as needed with a clean one. In the areas where the ladder sections overlap; spray greasy area with WD-40. Dampen the rag Effective Date: March 2016 Robert J. Garcia, Engineer Current Revision Date: 05/27/2025 Section 310.004 Next Revision (1) Date: 05/27/2027 Page 4 of 9 with WD-40 and push the rag into inaccessible areas with a screwdriver and then pull the rag out. Once the lube is removed, the ladder can be washed with soap and water with a dedicated car brush and/or wash mitt and rinsed with water. Lubrication Once the aerial is cleaned, it can be lubricated using white lithium grease. With the aerial still fully extended, apply grease to the metal surfaces of the aerial starting near each slide block and work away from the block. Apply grease with a gloved hand, particularly to areas where paint wear indicates slide block contact has occurred in the past. The slide blocks are located at various locations on the apparatus as follows: • The tip of the bottom rail of the base and mid sections (See Figures 1, 2 and 3). (Figure 1) (Figure 2) (Figure 3) • The foot of the mid and fly sections (See Figures 4 and 5) are often overlooked at this location. (Figure 4) (Figure 5) Effective Date: March 2016 Robert J. Garcia, Engineer Current Revision Date: 05/27/2025 Section 310.004 Next Revision (1) Date: 05/27/2027 Page 5 of 9 • The extension/retraction cylinder sheaves to support them as they move (See Figure 6). (Figure 6) Once a light film of grease has been applied, retract and extend the ladder at both 0-degree and approximately 60-degree elevations. Lower the ladder down; extend the ladder to visualize greased areas; apply more as needed to ensure all contact areas have adequate lubrication. Performing this step may need to be repeated several times, but it will prevent over greasing and make future services much easier. The time intervals to lubricate the ladder can vary based on use and weather conditions and may require lubrication more frequently than the scheduled monthly service. Maintenance is required anytime a clean, thin film of grease is not present. Visualize and feel to evaluate the condition of the white lithium grease. A white or somewhat clear appearance with a thin film on contact points is good. Visible dirt in the lube or a “gritty” feel to the touch due to frequent exposure to dusty or dirty air conditions indicates the need to remove and replace with new grease. When the grease turns light to dark gray, it is an indication it has been worked a lot and feels “gritty” and needs to be cleaned and replaced. Grease left on after it has turned gray becomes dry and paste-like. Often this condition is worse than having no grease at all and increases the friction between the ladder sections, causing the ladder to “jerk” while extending or retracting, especially at low elevations. Effective Date: March 2016 Robert J. Garcia, Engineer Current Revision Date: 05/27/2025 Section 310.004 Next Revision (1) Date: 05/27/2027 Page 6 of 9 Examples of Zerk Fittings (Figure 7) (Figure 8) (Figure 9) (Figure 10) (Figure 11) (Figure 12) (Figure 13) (Figure 14) (Figure 15) Waterway Cleaning and Lubrication: The chromed tubing of the aerial waterway is to be cleaned and lubricated using a red rag soaked in ATF. Wipe the rag along the length of the chromed sections and the waterway is both cleaned and lubed in one step. (See Figure 16) Effective Date: March 2016 Robert J. Garcia, Engineer Current Revision Date: 05/27/2025 Section 310.004 Next Revision (1) Date: 05/27/2027 Page 7 of 9 (Figure 16) Ladder Cleaning Supplies: All aerial ladder cleaning supplies are available through the shop. Pictured below left to right: high pressure grease (HPG) used to grease Zerk fittings; white lithium grease used to lubricate ladder rub blocks and rails; and WD-40 to clean and remove grease. Not pictured is ATF, used to clean and lubricate waterway, and SAE 30 wt. motor oil, used to lubricate cables. (Figure 17) Effective Date: March 2016 Robert J. Garcia, Engineer Current Revision Date: 05/27/2025 Section 310.004 Next Revision (1) Date: 05/27/2027 Page 8 of 9 LUBRICATION CHART Lubrication & Maintenance Schedule Location Description Amount 1 Ladder pivot 1 shot of HPG 2 Upper hoist cylinder pivot 1 shot of HPG 3 Lower hoist cylinder pivot 1 shot of HPG 4 Extension traveling blocks light coat of white lithium grease 5 Extension traveling block guides light coat of white lithium grease 6 Base water pipe 1 shot of HPG 7 Lower-mid water pipe 1 shot of HPG 8 Upper-mid water pipe 1 shot of HPG 9 Fly water pipe 1 shot of HPG 10 & 10a Platform leveling cylinders upper and lower pivot pins 1 shot of HPG 11 Lower-mid section top of retaining tube and bottom of lower chord Light coat of white lithium grease 12 Upper-mid section top of retaining tube and bottom of lower chord Light coat of white lithium grease 13 Fly section top of retaining tube and bottom of lower chord Light coat of white lithium grease 14 Platform pivot pins 1 shot of HPG 15 All ladder section ladder retaining bar guides Light coat of white lithium grease 16 Platform water pipe swivel 1 shot of HPG Effective Date: March 2016 Robert J. Garcia, Engineer Current Revision Date: 05/27/2025 Section 310.004 Next Revision (1) Date: 05/27/2027 Page 9 of 9 DEFINITIONS This section intentionally left blank CROSS-REFERENCES SFA Aerial Ladder Operations and Service Manual 105’ Ladder SFA Aerial Ladder Operations and Service Manual 100’ Tower