Why Should You Inspect of Your Cotton Picker Parts?

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Regular inspections and maintenance of your cotton pickers and their parts will help them to last longer and put off the need to purchase any replacement parts. Of course, normal wear and tear is going to happen, and heavy machinery simply isn’t designed to last forever. But there are some simple steps you can take to prevent unnecessary damage or wear to your machinery and avoid having to spend a lot of money on repairs and part replacements.

Here are a few tips to keep in mind:

  • Regularly review your manual: Whenever you purchase a harvester, the very first thing you should do is read the manual, long before you think about starting it up. Even if you’ve had your current model for some time, you should still routinely take the time to re-familiarize yourself with your model, including some tips for cleaning, maintenance, inspections and troubleshooting. You don’t need to have any significant engineering or mechanical experience to have a basic understanding of how your machinery works and what you need to do to keep it in good working order.
  • Make inspections part of your routine: It’s easier to remember to perform some inspections into the condition and safety of your cotton picker parts if it’s part of your routine. Make it a monthly, quarterly or seasonal routine. You should always perform an inspection before the first time you use your cotton picker in a given year, but beyond that it’s a good idea to make some regular inspections during the harvest season just to make sure it’s operating smoothly and efficiently.
  • Learn how to make some basic adjustments: You’re going to have some issues with parts in your harvester coming misaligned over time, which will have a negative effect on your productivity when using the machine. If you’re able to adjust some of your equipment yourself, you’ll be able to boost your productivity and reduce downtime. Again, you don’t have to be an experienced technician or repair person to make this happen. There are some simple adjustments you can learn to make yourself, many of which you’ll find in your manual. Just make sure you know what the default settings are. If you find yourself having to make adjustments too frequently, then you might need to have a professional analyze your picker.
  • Keep an eye on the center rows: Crooked rows will also have a negative effect on your picking and tracking. You will frequently waste cotton and even miss some crops when you have crooked rows, which will result in a loss of money. Therefore, make sure you test out the center rows on occasion to make sure they’re working as they should so you don’t have to worry about losing money due to accidentally flattened crops caused by crooked center rows.

These are just a few considerations to keep in mind when inspecting your cotton picker. For more information or to order cotton picker parts, contact the experts at Certi-Pik, USA today.