Hydraoulic elevator problem

greenspun.com : LUSENET : Elevator Problem Discussion : One Thread

I'm confused about an Elevator in a shopping complex, I can tell it's a Hydaroulic elevator because of the way it moves and it's not very fast. Anyway the sign inside says that the max load is 8 people, but they have put a warning sign outside the lift saying max 6 people, Why would they do this?. Also every now and again the elevator goes up but then as it slows down near the floor it stops and goes back to the ground floor again and the doors don't open, if you press the button again it does the same, it's doesn't seem to matter whether you got to the 3rd 4th or 2nd floor it still does it. Is this elevator safe.. I'm concerned about it because it gets a lot of use and I don't think it can cope.. I want to complain about it and tell them what's wrong with it .. Also how safe are hydroulic elevators?

-- Steve Guy (glm15@dial.pipex.com), October 26, 2000

Answers

Most hydraulic elevators are "slow" because they serve moderate rises, mostly three floors or less, so no great speed is needed. However, just because an elevator moves slowly, that does not necessarily mean it is a hydraulic.

The sign sounds like there is some problem which is not being dealt with and obviously is an incorrect procedure. Perhaps, if it is a hydraulic, the relief valve is opening prematurely - that could also make it go VERY slow. If it takes too long to reach a floor, a protective timer circuit will return it to the lowest floor and shut it down untill reset on most hydraulic elevators. This is however just speculation on my part.

All modern elevators are very safe if cared for properly, whether hydraulic or another type.

Check with management and see who is responsible for maintenance of the elevator. Perhapsthey don't have properly qualified people taking care of it. Ask them what's up with the sign.

-- John Brannon (akaelevman@AOL.com), October 26, 2000.


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