We previously discussed the Types of Misalignment and Types of Soft Foot as causes of machine failures. In this blog, we will discuss Pipe Strain and how it can result in misalignment and vibration.

Pipe strain is a form of machine frame distortion caused by the piping as opposed to feet or base condition. The forces from the pipes are transferred through the driven machine onto the driver machine causing vibration and misalignment at the coupling.  Sometimes the forces are not great enough to transfer onto the driver, but will affect the internal misalignment of the driven machine and therefore cause premature failure.  Here are a few causes of pipe strain:

• A shift in the foundation
• Incorrect pipe fitting
• Thermal expansion of the pipes
• Broken, improper, or lack of hangers and wall mounting hardware

Checking and correcting pipe strain in all alignment jobs will eliminate these forces allowing the machines to run properly.

Watch our Shaft Alignment Know-How video to learn about the effects of running equipment with pipe stress