Tech Talk
How Do I Live Load My Pump, Agitator, or Mixer?
Why Live Load Rotary Equipment?
Much like air and motor actuated control valves, rotary equipment (pumps,
agitators, and mixers) tends to experience more packing wear and consoli-
dation than a block valve application, and therefore a loss of gland load
leading to excessive leakage or the necessity to retighten gland nuts in the
field. As a result, the use of Belleville disc springs and flat washers under
the gland nuts can help store elastic energy for when gland load is lost due
to consolidation, and help maintain the proper gland load.
What Information Do I Need to Live Load My Equipment?
The customer or specialist will have to provide accurate equipment dimen-
sions including; Stuffing Box ID, Shaft OD, Stuffing Box Depth, Gland Nose
Length, Axial/Radial Clearance, and Stud Size. Additional Parameters
which need to be given are; Stud Quantity, Rotary Speed in RPM, System
Temperature, System Pressure, Packing Style, Fluid Medium, Contami-
nants or Suspended Solids, and Flush Rate when applicable.
Why Is Rotary Live Loading Such A Challenge?
Rotary packing installation instructions will tell
the customer to only finger tighten the
gland bolts on a piece of equipment
prior to equipment startup. Then,
once the equipment has been
started, the installer can begin
tightening the gland bolts one
flat per 15 minutes to avoid
glazing or over tightening the
packing while also checking
to see if the equipment has
“acceptable controllable leak-
age” in the eyes of the customer.
This method works only if the person
installing is willing to be patient. Most of the
time the customer is used to a packing manufactur-
er supplying a torque value for a valve, tightening the packing
gland nuts to this value, and assuming no leakage will occur. Therefore,
they will tighten the gland too much prior to startup of rotating equipment
and potentially glaze the packing, or provide excessive gland load and
resulting friction, increasing the power requirement from their driving equip-
ment.
The gland load required to successfully seal a piece of rotating equipment
depends on a multitude of factors. This includes shaft speed, shaft size,
packing style, fluid medium, presence of solids, flush rate, and even cus-
tomer requirements. Changing any one of these variables can dramatically
change the load at which the packing will seal the equipment to
“acceptable controllable leakage” in the eyes of the customer.
A.W. Chesterton Company
860 Salem Street, Groveland, MA 01834 USA
Tel: (781) 438-7000 Fax: (781) 438-8971 www.chesterton.com
© A.W. Chesterton Company, 2014 All rights reserved.
® Registered trademark owned and licensed by A.W. Chesterton Company
in USA and other countries, unless otherwise noted.
What Does This Mean For The End User?
This means that in order to live load rotary equipment most effectively, the
packing manufacturer will not provide a torque value... the customer will! When
the equipment is operating with “acceptable controllable leakage” the customer
should measure the torque on the gland nuts using a calibrated torque wrench,
and then provide this value to the packing manufacturer so that they can
reverse engineer the spring set that will provide the corresponding gland load to
the packing.
This means that when the springs are installed, the customer will still start with
the gland nuts finger tight as before, and tighten one flat per 15 minutes as
usual, but when they finally reach “acceptable controllable leakage” the gland
load will be in the same range as when they measured the torque with a torque
wrench. This will yield more usable travel out of the spring set, and help prevent
over-tightening, excessive packing friction, and increased power consumption.
Can Cartridge Live Loading Be Used On Rotary Equipment?
A piece of valve live loading technology that many customers ask about for
rotary applications is Cartridge Live Loading (CLL). CLL assem-
blies use an outer guide to keep the spring assembly
concentric, and also helps to provide a visual indication
of when the correct gland load has been applied, as
well as if any consolidation has occurred.
As previously mentioned, a piece of rotary
equipment should not be torqued to a precise
value before equipment startup. If the spring
set is not designed for a specific acceptable
torque, and resulting gland load, using an
outer guide is meaningless. On the other hand
if the customer provides the torque that yields
“acceptable controllable leakage” and the set is
designed to operate there when compressed, an outer
guide could be used to indicate when the gland load is in
the correct range, and if any consolidation has taken place in
service, making reloading the gland to the original load possible.
What Can Be Done In The Future To Simplify Rotary Live Loading?
Take the guess work out of the equation! The live loading provider would come
up with a set of pre-engineered spring sets that cover a specified range of
torques/gland loads. A customer would then measure the torque on their gland
nuts and input this value into a tool which would compare their torque against a
table of springs sets to find the optimal spring set that has a torque/load range
that matches up.
The packing and live loading manufacturer would not have to provide a
misleading torque value and the customer could tighten the gland nuts on the
rotary equipment as if the spring set wasn’t even there, knowing that when the
equipment reaches “acceptable controllable leakage” that the springs will be
providing stored energy to accommodate in service consolidation.
Technical data reflects results of laboratory tests and is intended to indicate general characteristics only.
A.W. Chesterton Company disclaims all warranties expressed, or implied, including warranties of merchantability and fitness
for a particular purpose or use. Liability, if any, is limited to product replacement only. Any images contained herein are for
general illustrative or aesthetic purposes only and are not intended to convey any instructional, safety, handling or usage or
advice respecting any product or equipment. Please refer to relevant Safety/Product Data Sheets, and/or Product Labels for
safe use, storage, handling, and disposal of products, or consult with a local Chesterton sales representative.
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