Custom Viton Shaft Seal for a Snow Blower

A leading manufacturer of snow blowers relied on Amsted Seals to solve a leaking seal problem.

After extensive review of their equipment and thorough analysis of the application, it was determined that the cause of leakage was a fairly common problem found in seasonal equipment. Mowers, agriculture equipment, watercraft and motorized vehicles all go through periods of heavy use and long storage, causing some rubber compounds to compress and relax for extended periods of time and loosen their dimensions and compression properties.This problem is further enhanced in seasonal equipment where run-out and shaft/housing misalignment is common.

The solution, as with most seasonal equipment, was to design a seal with extreme follow ability to resist compression set and stress relaxation at low temperatures, improve reaction ratio and increase lip force contribution from the garter spring since stainless steel springs are not subject to stress relaxation.

This custom sealing solution took one week to develop, was less expensive than their previous seal and ultimately reduced warranty claims by 94%.