Centrifuge and 90 line Chinese rug test

[T Monahan]

Greg Turcotte and I did a test with a 90 line Chinese rug tonight. It was a one rug test only. We weighed it dry, then saturated, and performed wringing with our centrifuge and weighed it again.

Here are the results in round numbers:

A dry 90 line Chinese rug weighs in about .75 lbs per square foot.

That same rug when saturated with water increases weight to 2.25 lbs per square foot.

After the centrifuge spun the rug in less than 3 minutes, the rug weighed 1 lb per square foot.

Please consider this example:

That makes a common 10' X 12' (90 line Chinese) rug weigh in wet at 270 lbs. saturated. That is generally too heavy for one man to handle without the potential of injury and sheer physical exhaustion.

When our horizontal rug wringing centrifuge does its job, it would remove 150 lbs of water from a rug of that size. The rug would weigh in at about 120 lbs after the spin in the centrifuge. That means 30 lbs of water in the wool rug still needs to evaporate. We suggest you hang them up to dry and not lay flat on a concrete floor since that will only trap moisture and impede air flow needed for drying such a thick rug.

These are general and average numbers. Thick wool rugs will be more dramatic. Thinner pile rugs less dramatic.

Most in our industry like to talk about 90 line Chinese rugs. These are common and known to be big, fat and funky to work with, because they can hold lots of water.

 

[Larry Cobb]

Thanks for the info Tom.

That means that the high speed centrifuge spinning @ ~1400 RPM (?),

removes 83% of the water from a saturated wool carpet in 3 minutes.

How much water did roller wringer types remove ?

Larry

P.S. Are you building new Moore equipment now ?

 

[T Monahan]

I have heard the wild claims made by manufacturers about their devices. This is what prompted my impromptu test with my partner last night.

Please note: This was only one test with one type of heavy hand knotted pile rug. Although the numbers represent reality with this one rug, it is only one rug tested. A variety of results can be expected with different types of textiles, with different types of foundation construction, along with yarn or pile types that is seen in a variety of density styles.

In this one case, it is of interest that the rug was only damp to the touch, not dripping, no obvious moisture transferring on my hand when touching it. Those providing professional care for textiles comprehend the way wool can hold moisture before it would even appear wet. We spun this heavy wool pile rug, which had a cotton foundation, at 1450 rpms in our centrifuge for this test to get the subsequent reported results. (My scale measures accurately down to the 1000th of a pound or grams weight)

Having had a 16’ automated MOR Roll-A-Jet in the past; I know firsthand that it would not have wrung the water out as well as the centrifuge had last night. The test between the two devices would have been more dramatic with olefin pile rugs. Through a Moore Wringer, the rug would drip on the pole when hung in contrast with just being slightly damp to the touch and not dripping at all when it goes through our centrifuge. This visual experience helps one to understand why a centrifuge definitely helps minimize post fringe detailing after hanging rugs to dry vertical on drying towers.

Larry: Centrum Force will be building automated equipment again. The resurrected MOR Time Saving Equipment line will include production of the Rinse/Wringer and the Roll-A-Jet.

Also we will continue to make lifting devices to minimize work place injuries.

 

[The Great Oz]

Thanks for taking the time to do the test Tom. From observation a centrifugal extractor will remove more water than a compression wringer. Guys that have wringers say that a follow-up ride in an extractor means no more post-cleaning fringe touchup. Having numbers backs up that observation.

My recollection of an old article is fading, but I seem to remember the compression wringer being quoted at a 75% water removal rate. If you happen to be passing by and have that scale in your back pocket we could do a similar test to see if those numbers are accurate. A properly functioning wringer shouldn't leave a rug dripping wet. Ours doesn't, and I don't know that there's anything special about it.

 

[Ken Snow]

Ditto what Bryan said, our rugs are just damp to the touch of back of hand coming out of our wringer not dripping wet. No doubt the centrifuge will remove more moisture, but a properly operating compression wringer is pretty kick butt too

 

[T Monahan]

Bryan and Ken,

My reference to water dripping was in this context: "The test between the two devices would have been more dramatic with olefin pile rugs." I have seen in many plants, including my own where my Roll-A-Jet was, the olefins tended to hold the water more going through the wringers and would drip a bit later after hanging awhile.

The more water that left behind in the rug, the more water becomes available to migrate down a vertically hung rug. The weight of the water gravitates, with capillary action, dragging to the bottom of the rug particulates still in the rug to finally locate and dry in the fringe. This is job security for the post fringe cleanup crew to address before the rug is considered done. This is where the centrifuge really helps to minimize post fringe cleaning.

 

[sweendogg]

Tom, if you perform a second cycle of three minutes on said, rug you will find that even more water will be removed from said rug. Granted this slows production if you are pushing for volume. This would be a good second test to perform when you have an opportunity. Most people who have dealt with water damage and restoration knows that the more physical water you can extract, the easier it is to remove the residual moisture from the rug using evaporation. It would be worth it to know just how much a second pass would improve the extraction vs. the additional 6 minutes. (9 minutes total for two full spins) compared to a single 3 minute cycle. I know for us, we can monitor the moisture removal and always get additional moisture out of the rug, which in our eyes will speed up our drying process since we do not have an enclosed drying area utiltizing forced heat or dehumidfication.

 

[T Monahan]

Tom, if you perform a second cycle of three minutes on said, rug you will find that even more water will be removed from said rug. .

Dave,

The test will be done again later with even more data collected. However, let me state, in this instance, no more loose water drained out of the centrifuge after 1 1/2 minutes. Therefore, the additional 1 1/2 minutes did not achieve any better results. Running it again 3 minutes would not likely have proved any different results. My conclusion is that this heavy wool pile rug on a cotton foundation simply holds more water than others.

 

[sweendogg]

Huh, could be the difference between the sp16 and the 18 inch tube? And different spin rates?

 

[T Monahan]

Huh, could be the difference between the sp16 and the 18 inch tube? And different spin rates?

Good question, but NO. In my shop I used the SP-6 that has more perfs in the cylinder and a spin of 1450 rmps compared to the standard 900-1000 rpms in the other centrifuge models. It simply appears that lots of water molecules can hang out in the yarn. To be sure, I will do more tests for the science of it and share the results as I have time to do so.

 

[sweendogg]

Ohhhhhhh this was a smaller 90 line then wasn't it! Lol yeah agreed that one spin cycle is enough for smaller rugs, even the 90 lines. Sorry thought it was a larger 90 line.