• Descent 298 publication date

    Our June/July issue will be published on Saturday 8 June

    Now with four extra pages as standard. If you want to receive it as part of your subscription, make sure you sign up or renew by Monday 27 May.

    Click here for more

Cleaning conveyor

Pitlamp

Pitlamp

Well-known member
Most conveyor belting we cavers acquire will have been around for some time and may also have been exposed to UV. As a result the surface starts to degrade. It then smears a filthy black residue on your hands and anything else that touches it. I've had a short length rolled up in the back yard for 2 or 3 years which is particularly bad for this.

Anyone got any top tips for cleaning the surface? Washing up liquid / hosepipe / yard brush maybe?
 
The Old Ruminator

The Old Ruminator

Well-known member
Never had that problem but we use conveyor from a food factory. Maybe its made differantly. The factories replace the belting fairly regulary and as far as we saw it was just dumped. Sadly " Our " factory Oscar Meyer at Chard has closed down.

 
F

Flotsam

Active member
Kerosene (heating oil) would probably get it off. Getting rid of the dirty kerosene would be an issue, it might go in the waste oil container present at most household waste sites as well as Marinas/boatyards.
 
AlexR

AlexR

Active member
I’d advise against the hydrocarbon route, there is a reasonably high chance that this will either exacerbate the problem or be partially absorbed into the rubber - to then slowly outgas in the dig. Not nice.

If soap & scrubbing doesn’t do the trick, an alcohol might. Rubbing alcohol (isopropanol) is more likely to work but more expensive, ethanol (ideally bioethanol) is less likely to work but cheaper. Either may be absorbed to a degree & outgas later, but I’d be less worried about either of those than petrochemicals.

The blue food conveyor belt is excellent and worth sniffing out, much lighter so more transportable than the heavy black stuff but does everything else just as well.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top