Properly preparing heavy equipment for the cold season is important in extending its life and preventing malfunctions during the winter. Cold temperatures put a lot of stress on heavy equipment that you need to adjust for as the seasons change.

The following are six things you may want to do to get your equipment ready for the cold season:

Make sure that batteries are fully charged and don't get too cold

Batteries will lose power much faster at colder temperatures than they do in warm weather. As the temperatures drop outside, you should have your batteries charged and stay on top of battery condition until the weather warms up again. 

Get used to giving engines time to warm up before equipment use

One of the most important things you can do in cold temperature to prevent equipment malfunctions is give your engines time to warm up before you start engaging in work tasks with heavy equipment. 

Operating at cold temperatures is very hard on the engine of heavy equipment and will prematurely age vital mechanical components. 

Lubricate moving equipment parts

Lubrication is especially important at cold temperatures because mechanical equipment operating in the cold become more brittle.

You need to keep track of numerous lubricants to keep your equipment operating properly. It's important to inspect transmission, engine, hydraulic, and final drive lubricants to avoid cold weather malfunctions. 

Check inflation level of tires

You should be aware of the fact that tires lose air more quickly in cold weather. It's therefore especially important to regularly check tire pressure and inflate tires when necessary during the winter season. 

When you inflate tires, you should make sure that you do so in a warm or heated area because the tire bead won't seat as well in cold temperatures as it will in warmer temperatures. 

Use block heaters to prevent equipment from getting too cold

It's not going to be easy to start equipment engines if you're operating in extremely low temperatures and there is no heat supply available.

Having block heaters available is a great way to keep the hydraulic fluid and engine components of your equipment warm so that equipment will readily start up when needed. 

Store equipment in enclosed and ideally climate controlled area

Ideally, you want to store equipment in a climate controlled environment so that fluids don't get too cold while equipment is in storage.

Storing in an enclosed, climate controlled environment will not only allow engines to start up faster, but it will also prevent snow from collecting on top of machinery that's in storage. 

Contact an equipment dealer, like Independent Lift Truck Of Alaska, for more help.